How Long Is Your Reach?

Today’s meditation was again postponed to take place at bed time.  I know.  And I agree with you that I need to get on track and more dedicated to doing my meditation practice in the morning again.  But it did not happen today.   I will put more of a push behind doing better about this, though. Because you’re right… morning meditation works a lot better for my self care than evening ones do.

Herbal Tarot - Seven of Cups - Juniper BerriesToday’s draw is the Seven of Cups, which is traditionally a representation of being presented with a variety of opportunities, and using one’s heart assist in making choices.  It can also represent feeling overwhelmed by the choices set out before you.

A lot of times when I get this card in my personal readings, it means that I am leaning too heavily on making decisions in my head, and that my heart needs to have its voice included in making whatever decisions are going on at the moment.

What stood out the strongest to me today in the imagery of this card was the sprig of Juniper at the top of the card, and the image of the little blue dragon that looks like its trying to get a nibble off that sprig.

Juniperus communis is used spiritually as a way to protect oneself from negative thoughts and influences, which fits in well with what I see in that little dragon, actually.   As what I see here in the imagery of today’s card and the relationship between the dragon and the Juniper sprig… is empowerment.

When you reach for the things you want, sometimes? Negative thoughts have a way of shortening your reach and influencing you to fall short of your goals.   The message in today’s card is to not allow those negative self dialog to have that kind of power.  It’s not about a specific thing or event, instead this card is about how to build my confidence and become stronger.

DECK USED:  HERBAL TAROT

#TarotForGrowthJune Challenge Prompt
Question
: How can I align more with the wildness within me?

Tarot of a Moon Garden

Reading Summary: It is self defeating (Five of Swords) to intellectualize (Nine of Swords) your emotions so much (Queen of Cups). Set them free and allow them to find their own way (Six of Cups).

Take Away:  Funny that we just talked about this a bit ago.  Although, this question refers specifically to connecting more to the wildness within me.   So of course intellectualizing would be self defeating in that goal.  I’m not really sure that connecting to my wildness is what I need right now though.  So perhaps the intellectualizing is a good thing, yeah?

DECK USED:  TAROT OF A MOON GARDEN

#DiscordTarotholicsJun2020 Challenge Prompt
Question
: Philosophical Question: Are beliefs and superstitions the same?

Japaridze TarotReading Summary: When driven by our convictions and passions (Queen of Fire), belief and superstition can both provide a sense of emotional fulfillment (Ten of Tides) when we feel that we are being guided and protected by them.

When we connect with others that share the same beliefs or superstitions (Three of Gardens), the experience has the ability to create a sense of intellectual superiority over others that do not share the same views (King of Winds).

By the same turn, both beliefs and superstitions can create a sense of being overburdened if we become too focused upon them and too dependent upon them and their parameters (Ten of Fire).

Take Away:  What is being shown in these cards is about how both belief and superstition are related.  In these ways, they are absolutely the same.  I do think, though, that there are as many differences between belief and superstition as there are similarities.

DECK USED:  JAPARIDZE TAROT

#TheJuneTarot Challenge by Lionhart
Question
: What more can I do to ready myself for the next mercury rx?

Simply Deep Tarot

Reading Summary: Have a plan in place (Three of Wands), depend upon your intuition to guide you forward (High Priestess), and keep plowing forward (Chariot).

Take Away:  I’m not usually particularly affected by mercury rx, but the people around me are and as a result what I notice most is a bit of a breakdown in communication between others… and sometimes between others and myself.  Essentially what the cards are telling me is to keep my head down and keep moving.  Don’t allow things to stagnate, and follow my intuition when I need a little boost or a bit of extra direction.

DECK USED:  SIMPLY DEEP TAROT

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge by E Roebuck-Jones
Question: What are my 3 goals for the next quarter of the year?

Grimalkin Tarot

Reading Summary: More understanding and nurturing of the self concerning stability goals (Queen of Pentacles. More stable and grounded self talk (King of Swords). Inner growth and maturity (Grimalkin).

Take Away:  I hadn’t really set out to make goals for the next three months, but these sound like really good ones.

The first goal is about allowing myself a bit of wiggle room concerning my usual obsession with stability and security.  This is a topic I’ve been hyper focused on for the majority of my adult life, and I’ve had a lot of readings indicating lately that I need to loosen those barbwire bindings I use to keep everything in control.  I have a feeling that this loosening is necessary if I want to do the restructuring I’ve been working on and have it be a success.

The second goal is about my inner narrative and being more kind to myself.  Or… not so much more kind as less unstable.  Less lashing out, more stability and strength.  There are good kings that make spectacular leaders, and bad kings that are tyrants.  Don’t be a tyrant.

The third goal is about learning from your mistakes and the growth and maturity you develop through experience.  This is a long standing goal, and I feel it’s also a healthy one to continue.

DECK USED:  GRIMALKIN TAROT

Plato’s Split Apart Theory of Soulmates

Today’s meditation was ten minutes long and another of the harp strings meditation sessions.  It was uneventful and peaceful, and I got a really good stretch in through the process of it.  I’m still searching for a similar sound track that uses randomly plucked cello strings instead of harp strings. No luck yet, but I’m searching.

Japaridze TarotToday’s draw is the Two of Winds (Wands) which is traditionally a representation of coming to a crossroads and needing to take a moment to make a clear choice.  This impasse requires thought as the decisions here are not easy ones to make.

The imagery in this makes me think of a corrupted version of Plato’s split-aparts.

“Once, a long, long time ago, we all had four legs and two heads. And then the gods threw down thunderbolts and split everyone into two. Each half then had two legs and one head. But the separation left both sides with a desperate yearning to be reunited. Because they each shared the same sole. And ever since then, all people spend their lives searching for the other half of their soul.” – Plato

What strikes me the strongest is the two profiles coming together to become one face, and what that says to me in relation to this card is the necessity to gather information.  You need to have the full picture before you make a decision, as opposed to just going with your gut.

Today’s card is a reminder that the best decisions are informed decisions. Yes, intuition is a great thing, but it doesn’t lead the way on everything and sometimes you have to do the work (and the homework) to make sure that you are making the right choices for you.

DECK USED:  JAPARIDZE TAROT

#TarotForGrowthJune Challenge Prompt
Question
: What in my life am I not seeing clearly?

The Crystal Tarot

Reading Summary: The. temptation (The Devil) to pretend that everything is fine (Nine of Cups connected to the Devil) is very strong, but I need to remember that it’s okay  for things to not be fine sometimes (Five of Pentacles) and there are others in my life waiting and eager to help me through those times (Two of Cups).

Take Away:  I do that.   A lot.   I have a habit of not allowing others to see when I’m struggling, and pretending to the point that even I can’t tell when shit is not “all okay”. I don’t do it as pervasively as I used to, but that tendency is still there to “fake it til you make it” when it comes to how I’m doing and whether or not I need help.   The cards here are indicating I need to pay more attention to this tendency and work on calling myself out on it more often while leaning on others to help me through instead of just trudging on solo.

DECK USED:  THE CRYSTAL TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsJun2020 Challenge Prompt
Question
: What can I do to help my inner child feel more protected?

Linestrider TarotReading Summary: Keep alive those feelings from my youth (Six of Cups) that made me feel warm and safe (Three of Cups), and don’t allow current thoughts and worries (Nine of Swords) to overtake and cloud those feelings and memories.

Take Away:  This reading echos back to the reading about the little red corvette and talk with my mother when I was sixteen.  It speaks of the fact that that memory still holds those positive memories within it that felt good at that time… even though in the here and now I can see the machinations involved.   Yet, those good feelings live on, even if there is no basis for them to be valid.

The cards here indicate that to help my inner child feel more connected, I need to keep those good memories like that, and the feelings attached to them, alive and well instead of deconstructing and/or invalidating them.

DECK USED:  LINESTRIDER TAROT

#TheJuneTarot Challenge by Lionhart
Question
: How can I positively keep investing in myself?

Simply Deep Tarot

Reading Summary: Note the color connection between the Devil and the Two of Coins, creating a dominant theme between them, that is then reduced to being only a small element in the Ten of Cups (the green cup).

Keep on top of that temptation (The Devil) that makes you want to balance more than you’re ready for (Two of Coins) so that you can create for yourself a more fulfilling existence. Color coordination between the first two cards versus the last card where only one cup is green.

Take Away:  I can keep investing positively in myself by remembering my commitment to finding a better way of juggling my responsibilities that allows for more “down time” and more time enjoying life rather than pushing myself harder and harder.

DECK USED:  SIMPLY DEEP TAROT

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge by E Roebuck-Jones
Question: How have I grown?

Stone Marseille Tarot

Reading Summary: Learning how to better silence my inner voice when it goes into attack mode (Knight of Swords Rx) and to ask for help  (Two of Cups) instead of taking it all on myself. Understanding and accepting (Page of Swords) that a rebuild is needed in creating a healthier method of stability (Ace of Coins).

Take Away: A lot of cards in today’s readings are about that new method and the restructuring of how I go about balancing self care with my responsibilities and obligations.   It feels like this message has really come forward the last few days, and I think the constant reminders are because I need constant reminders right now as the pandemic restrictions start to lift.

DECK USED:  STONE MARSEILLE TAROT