Today’s meditation was just under ten minutes long, and was a guided meditation with interval timer for my piriformis stretches.
The topic of today’s guided meditation was about individuality. It was about not just following your own inner compass, but marching to the beat of your own drum.
To be fair, I didn’t really relate all that much to the pep talk. I’ve never really had much of a problem with peer pressure or felt the need to conform to the norms and expectations of others outside of my extremely overactive work ethic in relation to my father’s voice in my head. It was still a wonderful message, though, and one that I wish more people were comfortable with. That is… individuality over conformity.
Today’s draw is the Ace of Swords, which is traditionally a representation of the seed of new beginnings in the area of one’s thoughts, ideas, intellect, communication, and ambitions.
What stands out to me in the imagery of this card is the woman’s posture, and the size of the sword and crown that she holds. I know that in the image she is actually bowing to the sword and crown, but when I saw this image this morning… that is not what I saw. Instead, it appeared that she was struggling to carry those items.
This seems like an awful amount of weight for the girl to carry, and she appears to strain under the weight.
The message here is about how much you take on… and only taking what you can sustain. It’s all well and good to be bombarded with great ideas all the time, but when you start too any of them at once, suddenly you find that none of them end up completed.
DECK USED: TRADITIONAL MANGA TAROT
LionHart’s As Above So Below Challenge Prompt
Venus Question: How can I begin to do more of what I truly love?
Reading Summary: Allow your emotions to play a part (Ace of Cups), savor them (Nine of Cups), and create that sense of homecoming for your emotions like what you already feel for your creativity (Four of Wands).
Take Away: If I want to do more of what I truly love, I need to open up to my emotions more and allow them to have a more welcome and permanent place in my life. Right now I am still exploring them, but I’m not really comfortable with them.
By allowing my emotions to have the same type of value that I put on my creative spark, it will open me up to more opportunities for doing more of the things that I love.
DECK USED: ELEMENTAL TAROT
#DiscordTarotolicsNov2020 Challenge Prompt
Question: What do I need to focus on for self-care for this new moon?
Reading Summary: When it comes to dealing with your past (Six of Cups), take your time (Seven of Coins) on deciding what you want to deal with (Seven of Cups). Remember that it’s okay to set it behind you for now (Five of Cups), because sooner or later it will come around at a time you’ll prepared to deal with it (Six of Spears).
Take Away: What I need to focus on for self care this new moon has to do with leaving my past in the past for now.
I need to accept that I’m not yet in a place where I can deal with these things, but that by setting them aside to wait, I will allow myself the time I need to sort through everything and pick where to start with better clarity later on when I’m in a better place.
DECK USED: CATHARSIS TAROT
Heal & Transform November Challenge Prompt
Question: What physical daily habits or routines need reevaluated?
Reading Summary: When I feel the tendency to tense up and hunker down (Four of Pentacles), this is not the time to retreat but rather it is a time to open myself up and share (Six of Pentacles) with Gideon what I’m feeling so that he can help me deal with things (King of Cups).
Take Away: I’m not sure I would have considered this a daily habit, but it’s true that my natural instinct when I am feeling vulnerable or overtaken by emotion to curl into myself and “show my shell” like a turtle rather than dealing with those emotions or even bothering to give them a cursory examination.
The cards here indicate something I know, but that I need to be reminded of often as I try to change this well known habit. It is a reminder to reach out for help instead of closing myself off… and specifically to reach out to Gideon for his help in exploring and understanding the emotions and triggers that cause me to try and close myself off in the first place.
DECK USED: DARK WOOD TAROT
#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge by E Roebuck-Jones
Question: What three to five qualities do I feel I want to embody?
The Hanged Man – I want to be able to take in different perspectives and always seek a deeper understanding. The more perspectives I see, the more I understand. The more I understand, the better person I become.
Page of Swords – This also means that I seek to be the perpetual student, always learning new things and exploring new ideas beyond my current knowledge base.
King of Swords – But at the same time, I want to be able to share my knowledge with others and inspire them to learn as well and expand their knowledge as they seek out their own answers.
Nine of Wands – I also desire to continue protecting and defending my personal values, and those things and people that mean the most to me. Sometimes this can feel like an uphill battle, but if it’s something I value enough to fight for… then it’s worth it.
King of Rings – I feel a deep seated need for stability and security, grounding and strength through a strong foundation beneath my feet. I don’t mind moving slow at getting there, as long as I am making progress in the right direction.
DECK USED: MARIGOLD TAROT
Today’s draw is the Six of Cups, which traditionally is a representation of the emotions that circle around topics of nostalgia and looking back into the past and embracing the joy and innocence that often comes with childhood memories and remembering past relationships.
Reading Summary: You’re going to pay for it (Justice) if you don’t allow yourself some rest (Four of Coins) and keep striving for a positive perspective during this busy time (The Star). It won’t last forever (Eight of Cups).
Today’s meditation was just over eighteen minutes long because I needed a little extra time in my piriformis stretching this morning. The hike in the rain yesterday was just what I needed I wish I could have stayed out there for hours and hours on end. But my muscles did not like the hard exertion in the cold rain, nor the sudden heat up of a shower that came after. So… I’m a bit sore today.
Twisting the Leaf 