Ostara tarot

There Is Light at the End of the Tunnel

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Today’s meditation was just over ten minutes long and wasn’t really focused on anything in particular even though it was a guided meditation.   The guide took me through a breathing exercise and then spoke near the end about the new year and how important it is to step forward into the future with a mentality of hope and anticipation rather than pessimism.

The Emperor - Ostara Tarot Today’s draw is The Emperor of the Major Arcana.  I really love the imagery for this Emperor card, which speaks to me of not just dominance and control, but an earthy power behind that strength as well.

The Emperor’s appearance on this last day of the year is an encouragement.  I have been feeling very adrift and struggling with an awkward sense of directionless discomfort over the past week since the holiday rush ended.  The Emperor is a reminder that it won’t always be that way and I’ll find that familiar sense of grounded strength and surety once again soon enough.

DECK USED:  OSTARA TAROT

Bonus Reading – #TarotForGrowthDecember

Question: How can I make the most of this coming year?

Fateshifter’s TarotReading Summary:  Set aside my inner conflict (Five of Swords) and instead embrace the new beginnings that the new year represents (The World) and jump in with both feet (Eight of Wands).  Give and Take (Six of Pentacles)

Take Away:  Sometimes how you take your steps forward into the future is an inspiration to others, and sometimes the way others do so can be an inspiration to us.  The cards in today’s draw is telling me to look outside myself and seek out the guidance of others to help me in embracing  the new year and all that it entails with open arms.

DECK USED:  THE FATESHIFTER’S TAROT

Finding Footing

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Today’s meditation was non-existent, because my day turned into a bit of a clusterfuck the moment my feet hit the floor.   I did enjoy doing the char creation thing at the end of the day though.  The graphics part of things was very relaxing to me and I really appreciated that you were okay with that.

The High Priestess - Ostara Tarot Today’s draw is The High Priestess card of the Major Arcana, which means that the card is not about any one aspect of the human experience, but rather deals with more of a “big picture”.

The High Priestess card is usually an indication of the subconscious and/or intuition, but what I am really picking up from this card in today’s draw is that I am repressing.  It may not be intentionally…. in fact, I feel that it’s definitely not intentionally.   But there’s a sense of limbo over the past few days that is odd.  It’s as if I can’t quite find my stride after the holiday rush, and am still struggling with the strain even though the actual stressors from that time are no longer a part of my day.

The positive message here is in awareness and acknowledgement, and which will assist in finding a way through that limbo and back on solid footing.

DECK USED:  OSTARA TAROT

Bonus Reading – #TarotForGrowthDecember

Question:  How should I greet 2020?

The Fairy Tale Tarot

Reading Summary: With an attitude of openness to new perspectives (Hanged Man) and grounded authority (The Emperor) while keeping in touch with the lessons I’ve learned in the past year (Six of Cups) when moving forward into seeking a new path with my business (Princess of Pentacles)

Take Away:  This is a continuation of my draw of the day, which spoke of finding my footing.  As the new year approaches, now is the time to find that footing and the balance I need, and to do so might mean entertaining new perspectives on how I structure my life and my time.   This is not surprising, as I am moving forward into restructuring how I run my business (behind the scenes) over the new year, and as I do this, it will be important to keep in mind the lessons I’ve learned about what works (and what doesn’t).

DECK USED:  THE FAIRY TALE TAROT (SPANISH EDITION)

 

Stepping Out of the Cycle

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Today’s meditation was just over ten minutes long and focused on looking beyond the self.  In this case, it was about how we can at times get lost in our thoughts and allow them to create anxiety, discomfort, or negativity.

When you are lost in a thought and experiencing these things, sometimes it can help to take a step back emotionally and realize that they really are just thoughts. Often?  They are predictive thought that is baseless other than being created by riding on our worries or anxieties.

As our thoughts are often cyclical, once thoughts like this settle in, they begin to repeat and repeat, building on themselves again and again. In doing so, they can build on worries, stress, and anxiety as well, which can become overwhelming.  In stepping back and acknowledging that these thoughts are not reality but just thoughts, it allows us to set those thoughts aside, and eases those feelings of stress and negativity.

The Moon - Ostara Tarot Today’s draw is the Moon card, which is the eighteenth card of the Major Arcana, and deals with topics in in the areas of uncertainty and fear, anxieties and the unknown, the subconscious, and confusion.

The topic goes really well with today’s meditation. Sometimes uncertainty is a good thing because it gives you time to pause, think, and reassess.  Today’s meditation is about taking that pause, assessing what is real and what is just thoughts as a projection of what’s in your heart and head instead of reality, and reassessing the situation to find a better outlook.

I think that everyone falls into this habit of “doom day” type thought cycles now and then. I’m no different.  Today’s draw is a good reminder not to let myself get carried away by the unknown.

DECK USED:  OSTARA TAROT

Bonus Reading – #TarotForGrowthDecember

Question:  What can I do to create better focus on the topic of yesterday’s read without overburdening myself?

Wayhome Tarot

Reading Summary:  To avoid burnout (Ten of Wands) I need to plot a course (Three of Wands) and stick to it (The Chariot) or I’ll have to pay the consequences (Justice).

Take Away:  (Just sayin’… but I really love this deck.)  Essentially if I don’t want to upset the apple cart and have my responsibilities and interests all come toppling into a mess on the floor, I need to make a plan on how I want to move forward.  One that will help me avoid giving myself burnout, which I am very good at doing.  And then, once that plan is made?  Stick to it.

DECK USED:  WAYHOME TAROT

 

Guarded, but No Smothering

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Today’s meditation was ten minutes long and focused on stepping outside yourself.  It was not about “stepping outside yourself” during meditation, but rather about when you are interacting with others in the day-to-day.

Sometimes we all get wrapped up in our own lives, experiences, history, and future plans that we forget everyone else is also their own little universe as well, and their universe is completely different than ours.

We can’t know what they are thinking, or feeling, or going through unless we are willing to step outside of our own personal reality and listen to them and theirs.  Even then, it is more like looking in through a window than an actual experience of our own.

The reminder in today’s meditation is not just that everyone’s life and experiences are subjective and different, but that when we run into difficulty concerning interaction with them, we need to remember this and practice tolerance and understanding, rather than impatience, irritation, or negativity.

Ostara Tarot Today’s draw is a double without a jumper, which means that both cards dropped out of the deck together.  The cards in today’s draw are the Ace of Wands and the Seven of Swords.

Back in the fall during one of my Self-Care reads, I was given a warning to be on my guard concerning sharing my inspiration and creative spark with others.  I was warned that by sharing my ideas without a care for who I shared them with, I could end up getting screwed over in the long run.

The appearance of the Ace of Wands over the Seven of Swords in today’s draw is a reminder not to let that caution overshadow and consequently smothering my creative spark.  It’s good to take care and protect yourself, but not so much that you end up snuffing out the creativity and ideas that you are trying to protect in the first place.

DECK USED:  OSTARA TAROT

Bonus Reading – #TarotForGrowthDecember

Question: What should I leave behind as this year comes to a close?

Spooky Cat Tarot

Reading Summary:  Making good choices (The Lovers) includes accepting that if I want to protect my business (Seven of Wands), I need to set aside my “play time” (Ace of Wands and The Fool) and focus on the more grounded parts of the job.

Take Away:  Okay so, the administrative aspects of my business are NOT my favorite part of things.  In fact, they’re really near the very bottom of the list. So it’s not surprising that I have a habit of trying to ignore those tasks as much as possible and focus on the part I enjoy, which is the creative side of things.  The cards are telling me that it’s time to bite the bullet and deal with the administrative tasks as this year comes to a close, and start off the new year on this foundational footing that needs to be dealt with.

DECK USED:  SPOOKY CAT TAROT

 

Alacrity Can’t Always Be Logical

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Today’s meditation was just over eleven minutes long and focused upon keeping in mind the temporary nature of negative emotions.

This is a practice that I use often, especially during my depression.   In fact, it is one of the things that very much helped me in getting hold of my suicidal urges during my Major Depressive Episodes prior to finding a medication that actually helped me with said urges.

The problem is that when you’re in the middle of a deep depression, it feels like it’s never going to end.  That darkness closes in and it feels like that is all there is and all there will ever be forever. Learning to accept that the experience is temporary, no matter how permanent it feels like it might be, gives you something to cling to.  And when there’s only room for one focus.  One thought.  One word…. “it’s temporary” becomes a mantra to get you through those darkest hours in the pit.

Ostara Tarot Today’s draw is the Knight of Swords, with the Eight of Wands as a jumper that fell out to land atop the Knight.   And that is a whole lot of action in the space of two cards, yeah?  Except what I’m seeing here is a bit of a mix between an intuitive hit and traditional meaning.

This is because what I see is that when I am feeling driven to act swiftly, sometimes you have to take your head out of the equation and act from the heart instead.   It doesn’t change the swiftness of the actions needed, but it is a shift in -where- that action comes from.   Sometimes, you have to listen to your heart and your gut, and set your mind aside so that what should be swift action doesn’t turn into conflict.

DECK USED:  OSTARA TAROT

Bonus Reading – #TarotForGrowthDecember

Question:  How can I continue a practice of growth and healing moving forward?

New Era Elements Tarot

Reading Summary: Acknowledge your inner strength (Strength) and resiliency that will allow you to transition through changes in life (Two of Earth) without falling apart emotionally (Son of Water).

Take Away:  Change can suck.  Even when it’s good change, there’s often a feeling of struggle and anxiety involved in the process.   This stress can cause an emotional reaction, but as I learn to better understand and deal with my emotions, my inner strength will continue to grow and I will, in turn, be better prepared for future changes to come.

DECK USED:  NEW ERA ELEMENTS TAROT

Transitioning Into Self Care

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Today’s meditation was ten minutes long and focused on acknowledging your feelings rather than allowing yourself to close them off and distancing yourself from them.  This is a topic that is very relatable to me, as I spent pretty much the first two decades of my life doing just that.  And honestly?  Until I met you, that was okay and worked well for me.

It truly is the truth, that saying about ignorance being bliss, because I didn’t know what I was missing and I thought I was just fine.  I didn’t realize that by submerging and boxing away my emotions I was dampening my intuition and blinding myself to a variety of experiences.

Even after over a decade of you tearing down those walls and breaking apart the boxes that held all that from view out of my awareness, I can honestly say that a lot of emotions are still… weird for me.  Uncomfortable.  Awkward.  Even unpleasant.  I don’t mean unpleasant emotions, but that even the pleasant ones can sometimes be unpleasantly uncomfortable.   Still, I have no intention of returning to my old way of doing things.  Instead, I’m going to continue moving forward into finding a different way to deal with and process these emotions that are so often still unfamiliar feeling and awkward.

Ostara Tarot Today’s draw is a double without a jumper, meaning that both cards came out of the deck together as one.  The cards in today’s draw are the Empress and the Six of Cups.

Together these cards speak to me about the transition that is currently in the process of taking place in my life as the holiday rush comes to an end and the time to return to caring for my needs and nurturing myself comes back to the forefront.

During the holiday rush, my self care kind of goes to the wayside.  And, although I can say that I have done better at self care this year during the rush than I have in the past?  I can also admit that a lot of my need, necessities, emotions, and just so much of the more rounded aspects of life as a whole have had to be pushed to the side to make room for the constant focus I had to put on work during the past six weeks.

With the Empress over top of the Six of Cups, there is a communication here about returning to a more nurturing and balanced focus and energy as the chaos of the holiday rush eases into a relaxed energy and speed.

DECK USED:  OSTARA TAROT

Bonus Reading – #TarotForGrowthDecember

Question: What positive impact did others have on me this year?

Anima Mundi Tarot

Reading Summary: Focusing more on my own interests and education (Queen of Swords) as well as my own needs and self care (The Empress).  Encouraged to find a new path with my passions and interests (Hierophant and Three of Wands), and to entertain a greater scope of new perspectives in times when I feel like closing myself off and pulling inward (Hanged Man).

Take Away:  At the beginning of the year I went through a severe depression that created a need for self-care that I really wasn’t that enthusiastic about, as well as a need to close myself off and shrink inward that I was definitely very enthusiastic about.  With the help of others, I was able to turn this around and found myself far more open than I have been in the past, not just to caring for myself and my needs, but in listening to myself and my emotions.  At the same time, by helping me to resist closing myself off, I felt myself open back up to others and their perspectives as the depression receded, rather than trying to continue to protect myself by staying detached and cloistered away.

DECK USED:  ANIMA MUNDI TAROT