Skele-tarot

Morning Bonus Read – Thinning Veil Spread

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Because I am trying to show a bit more of my decks this month, as I have a whole LOT of October/Halloween/Samhain decks, I’m doing a few extra bonus reads over the month.  This is one of those extra readings.

Thinning Veil Tarot Spread - SkeleTarot

Your Higher Purpose
Page of Pentacles

Learning how to connect to the earth and to develop my manifestation abilities no matter what life throws at me along the way.  It’s about adaptability and staying grounded while still moving forward.  There is also an indication here about the speed of that movement.  This is not fast movement, but rather slow and steady with the focus more on what you learn along the way than where you are going to end up.

Advice From Beyond the Veil
The Lovers

So many of my readings that have included this question end up throwing this same answer to me again and again.  Make good choices.  This isn’t about making choices that advance some agenda but rather about listening to my moral compass and allowing deeper needs and motivations to lead rather than surface wants and desires.

A Lesson From This Side of the Veil
Strength

The events of my life thus far have been about survival. It’s about taking your licks and keeping moving, no matter how much it hurts or how debilitating the experience should be. This is a lesson in inner strength.  Most of my “misfortunes” along the way were not about making good or bad choices, but about the strength gained along the way as I move through and beyond the ramifications of what has happened, continually adapting as I go.

Your Shadow’s Influence
Ace of Wands

As the shadows within work to whisper in your ear, it can be hard to keep your inspiration and enthusiasm going.  The influence of my Shadow upon this lifetime is to teach me how to sustain that enthusiasm, even as those whispers try to distract me and drag me into backslide after backslide.

DECK USED:  SKELE-TAROT

Countdown to Samhain – Part 1

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I discovered this little challenge on Instagram and thought I’d give it a go.  Since it’s not demanding a card pull each day, I thought it might be fun to use it for a couple of my Pagan’s Perspective posts instead of adding it to my daily rotations.

Countdown to Samhain #samhaincountdown1  Okay so this one might be just a lil’ weird since this is my blog and all.  But… Hi, I’m Twist. I’m in my early 30s and live in the Pacific NW.  I have a twin sister and a beautiful tortie cat named Luna.  I am a farm hand, a jewelry designer, a gardener, a nature photographer, a fortune teller, a teacher and a student, a non-theist pagan, a survivor (of cancer among other things), and I am in a life-long battle with the inky black pit of clinical depression. I have an education in botany and horticulture, and a deep affinity for the earth and those things that grow from it.

2  My favorite thing about Samhain is the crisp feeling in the air. I love that the weather has changed and the scent in the air at this time of year is more than just that of a season’s change, but speaks to me of so many elements from the thinning of the veil to the wet and decay that autumn brings.

3  My favorite divination tools are cards.  Sometimes tarot, sometimes playing cards, sometimes image only cards.  But it’s cards.  Always cards.  It’s not the only divination tools that I use, but absolutely is my favorite.

4  Samhain is about religion, Halloween is about aesthetic.  Samhain is about ancestors, Halloween is about spooky stuff.  Samhain includes a dumb supper, Halloween includes trick or treating.

SkeleTarot - Knight of Cups5  The page of cups is all about going after your heart’s desire.  It’s about taking that pursuit seriously and using your creativity combined with action to not just claim what your heart wants, but express your emotions clearly and openly… essentially wearing your heart upon your sleeve.  The Knight of Cups as the focus for this month is an indication that if I want things to go a certain way? It’s time to act upon those needs and heart’s desires to make sure that I am able to achieve what I want.  I feel this is a direct play off the COTD I had the other day which indicated you must “start as you want to go forward”.  In other words, don’t procrastinate in finding that grounding and balance with my life, responsibilities, and emotional growth.  Do it.

6  Turkey.  I mean, we’re talking seasonal food so, yeah.  Oven roasted turkey.

7  Okay, so I’ve done this before on this blog and you can see my altar setup in that past post. Nothing really has changed concerning it’s set up other than the fact that the hand mirror in the photos for that post has been removed and replaced with my great-great-grandmother’s divination cards.

8  To be honest?  I don’t really have a tarot card that I associate specifically with Samhain, or with any of the Sabbats for that matter.  I tried to think about it and pick one out, but I guess that I do not see the Sabbats in that way… or see the cards in that way?   It seems like an odd correlation to me.  Now, I have a crapload of decks that are Samhain/Halloween based.  But not a specific card.

9  I have created two of them for this month that are focused upon Samhain and the season.  One is focused on the animal and plant correspondences of the season… and the second is focused on the plant and stone correspondences of the season.

SkeleTarot - The Devil and Eight of Pentacles10  The Ghost of Samhain Past is represented by the Devil and the Eight of Pentacles.  These cards mark the path that I have taken in the past during this time of year.

The temptation to work myself to the bone and forsake sleep or any kind of self care in order to gear up for the holiday rush and be full prepared for what is to come.  It indicates that that temptation is something that has become a bit of an addiction, and a habit that I am working to now break.

SkeleTarot - Nine of Swords11  The Ghost of Samhain Present this year is represented by the Ten of Swords.  This card speaks of coming to the end of a journey.  Not just the end of any journey, but the end of a painful journey that has not been kind to me along the way.  That journey is the habits of my past that are indicated in the cards pulled for the Ghost of Samhain Past.   I am, in essence, working to kill those bad tendencies and the addictive pull to push myself too hard and treat myself too harshly.  The Ghost of Samhain Present says that I have reached a point where I can put that behind me and start anew on a new path… but only if I am willing to pick myself up from the ashes and keep moving forward… not looking back.

SkeleTarot - Six of Pentacles12 The Ghost of Samhain Future is represented by the Six of Pentacles. As a card of generosity and economic balance, it’s appearance as the card of the Ghost of Samhain Future indicates that in riding out this change and using this time to find my grounding and my path, my balance and a better way forward, that the future ahead looks bright.  Allowing for balance to take hold and the ability to sustain and flourish with this new way of doing things not just possible but absolutely probable.  This card indicates that there is no need to worry about if I’m going to find a new balance that is healthier and more sustainable.  It’s not just possible… but the most probable outcome looking at the trajectory forward.

13  A number of them, actually.   My sister spend the time between Beltane and Samhain planning our Samhain ritual.  The time between Mabon and Samhain is our favorite time of year and we participate in a number of spellcasting and rituals together during this time of year, culminating in our largest ritual of the year on Samhain.  Included in this ritual is a dumb supper and respectful offering to our ancestors, as well as spellcraft that involves the releasing of stagnant energy and habits that are no longer useful us.

14 Green is slowly turning to oranges and browns.  There’s a great deal of evergreen plants in my area of the world, but the deciduous trees and seasonal plants begin to lose their leaves, which causes the forest’s greenery to take on a darker shade as there are more trunks and branches and more old growth evergreens rather than the brighter green of the plants that do not keep leaves year round.   Leaves start to leave their imprints upon pavement, stamping the pavement with the echos of their shapes as rain washes away the debris.  By the end of the month, most trees that are going to lose their leaves will have lost them all, and the gray skies will be back in full force making each day “sweater weather” damp and comfy.

15  Yes.   As I mentioned above, my sister and I will present offerings to our ancestors during Samhain, and invite them to join us in our dumb supper, setting places for them at the table and significant items for those we remember in the center of the table to make sure they know they are being remembered.

A Nest Egg Reminder

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IMG_6901Today’s meditation was ten minutes long, and was a combination of a guided meditation and interval timer for the switching positions of my piriformis stretching.  I haven’t done my piriformis stretches in a few days, and I can definitely feel it today.  The pull up into my spine and along my internal scar tissue was pretty intense, but it wasn’t so bad that it didn’t release with time.

The focus of the guided part of this meditation was about magic in the every day.  The thing is that there are times when repetitive actions and the mundane can sometimes feel very boring.  You walk the same path to and from work every day, and after a while it feels like there’s nothing new to see, yeah?

The meditation today encouraged listeners that that’s when it’s time to really start paying attention to the details around you and sinking into the experience. Pay attention to the patterns of leaves on the sidewalk, the smells in the air, the feel of the breeze, the whisper of tree’s branches or the blooming and fading of flowers. Become invested in the nuances and details, and you soon find that no two days are alike, no to walks are alike.  Everything changes, even those things we feel bored with or stagnant.

Tarot of Haunted House - Four of PentaclesToday’s draw is the Four of Pentacles, which is traditionally a representation of stability and security in the areas of finance, resources, hearth and home, health, and manifestations.  It’s about conservation of resources and creating a sense of security by having what one needs.

This is my second favorite card in this deck, and it is so funny that it came up today because when I shuffled the cards, I saw it on the bottom of the deck and specifically thought  “God I love that card.  If it’s meant to come up, it’ll come up”.  And then?  It popped right out of the deck for my pull during shuffling.

Poppets are used for a variety of different purposes.  Curses and hexes are what is most commonly known since they were made familiar through works of voodoo.  And yet?  That is not the only way these magical artifacts are used or the only thing they are used for.   Here in this picture?  You see a money poppet.  A boon spell for drawing in good fortune.  Specifically good fortune in the area of one’s finances and resources.

The message in this card is to “tend to your garden” and foster it’s growth.  Through that growth.  Through focusing on collecting and saving and creating a “nest egg” of a cushion, you create a sense of stability in your life that allows for shit to happen and life to continue on in some semblance of “normal”, even when times are at their hardest.

DECK USED:  TAROT OF HAUNTED HOUSE

LionHart’s #TheOctoberTarot #SeasonOfTheWitchChallenge Prompt
Question: What can I do to honor the magick within me?

Anne Stokes Gothic Tarot

Reading Summary: Hold tight to the faith (The Star) that you have the skills, abilities, and capability to deal with (The Magician) all of those things that you’re worried about (Nine of Swords).

Take Away:  To honor the magic within me, it’s important to accept that I have all that I need to deal with all the issues and all the worries that plague me.  It’s about having trust and faith that everything is going to work out, because no matter what life throws at me?  I can deal with it, adapt, and in the end?  Find a path of positive growth forward beyond it.  These worries? They’re just a distraction.  Set them aside and trust I can deal with what comes, no matter what it might be.

DECK USED:  ANNE STOKES GOTHIC TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsOct2020 Challenge Prompt
Topic: Do Spread #1
Question: How can I shrug off this feeling of blah and ineptitude?

Cute and Creepy TarotReading Summary: Both sevens RX. Stop looking at all the choices (Seven of Cups Rx) and make a dive for what you want (Knight of Cups) and do it now. No time like the present (Seven of Pentacles Rx).

There is a connection between the Seven of Cups and the Knight of cups in both coloring and theme.  This goes beyond the “Cups” suit correspondence and into how the two cards flow together.  Pick one cup.  Just one.  And go after it full force.

There is also a connection between the Seven of Cups and Seven of Pentacles that goes beyond the fact they are both Rx and both sevens.  This has to do with the clusters in both cards.  Many cups.  May pentacles.  Choices and selections and abundance that has turned against you, indicating a need to downsize.

Take Away:  Stop allowing everything that needs to be done overwhelm you and set you into a stagnant paralysis.  Pick one thing.  Just one thing… and do it.  Then pick another.  Don’t worry about all of it at once, and don’t worry about if you’re going to get it all done or not.  You can’t eat an entire cake in one bite, and you can’t get the prep done all at once.  Work at it one piece at a time instead.

DECK USED:  CUTE AND CREEPY TAROT

#MysticStarChallenge October Challenge Prompt
Question:  In what way do I embody the ______ card?

Skele-Tarot

My Card – Ace of Cups – The seed of beginnings of new relationships, new dynamics within existing relationships, new creative ideas, and new emotions.

In what way do I embody the Ace of Cups card?
Page of Cups, Five of Pentacles, Three of Cups

I’m doing my best to expand my emotional intelligence, and sometimes that is going to cause me to feel negative emotions, but I understand that these things are temporary and there is renewal ahead which means there is always hope.

DECK USED:  SKELE-TAROT

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge by E Roebuck-Jones
Question: What are my magickal influences?

Spirit of Halloween Tarot

Reading Summary:  In my life right now I am at a place where I struggle to lift the blindfold and see clearly my path forward (Eight of Swords). For a time, this caused me to lose faith in my abilities to ride out what may come and turn it around in my favor (The Magician).  Beside the cards that represent this struggle reside a card indicating the two prominent aspects of my life at the moment.  The Nine of Pentacles speaks of my goals and my current feelings of security and comfort.  The Ace of Cups represents my efforts at that new level of emotional intelligence and the growth I’ve managed so far this year… which is truly just the beginning of a much longer journey.

Take Away:  My magical influences at this time are being blocked.  The influence that helps me the greatest is my ingenuity and my adaptability, but with my current state, I am muffling it and drowning it beneath feelings of overwhelm that cloud my vision.  

DECK USED:  SPIRIT OF HALLOWEEN TAROT

Boundaries

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Today’s meditation was just over ten minutes long, and I started a new series to work through as the regular daily meditation was a repeat from a couple months ago.   The new series is “How to Meditate” with a different narrator than my regular, so we’ll see how it goes.  I did very much like the very basic way that they broke down what meditation is, though, and so I’ll probably stick with it for a while at least, regardless of the voice not being the best.

Nine of Wands - Dark Mansion Tarot Today’s draw is the Nine of Wands, which is a representation of resilience, defense, and good boundaries in the area of one’s passions, drive, and ambitions.   After the day I had yesterday, it’s not surprising that this card would come up.

Today’s draw is a reminder to keep my boundaries strong.  They are there for a reason and even with the awakening of new levels of emotion in my life, they need to hold firm. That new depth of emotion I’ve been feeling lately leaves me feeling a bit disoriented and as if I am fumbling in the dark.  Now more than ever it is important to ground myself in my values, as well as in those boundaries I’ve put in place for my own personal and emotional safety as well as the safety of what (and who) I hold dear.

Deck Used: Dark Mansion Tarot

Bonus Reading

Another #TarotForGrowthOctober prompt.

Question: How can I encourage continued growth moving forward?

Skele-TarotReading Summary:  When you’re feeling a bit lost in the dark (The Moon) remain calm, thoughtful, and decisive (Queen of Swords) rather than letting choices overwhelm you (Seven of Cups) and create conflict (Five of Wands).

Take Away:  A lot of times when I’m dealing with uncertainty, I let things get overwhelming because I feel powerless in those moments.  The cards are reminding me that to move forward and grow from these experiences, I can’t give in to those feelings of being overwhelmed, but instead strive to stay calm and collected within the storm.

Deck Used: Skele-Tarot

You Can Do It

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Today’s meditation was just under four minutes long because I could NOT manage to stay still and allow myself to relax this morning.  I will give it another go before bed for the regular ten minutes or so.

Halloween Tarot Today’s draw was a double without a jumper, which is to say that both cards came out together as one.   The cards in today’s draw are the Five of Pumpkins (Pentacles) and the Magician card.

The message in these cards jumped out at me and has to do with what we spoke about last night.  It has to do with the shadow work that you’ve asked me to begin and I am in the process of creating a plan for.

What the cards are saying is that I have the tools to do this. Starting a project like this holds a lot of self consciousness and self doubt, which is natural. It’s going to be difficult, possibly painful, and I’m going to need help, but the knowledge and the tools to work on it are well in hand.

Deck Used: Halloween Tarot

Bonus Reading

Another #TarotForGrowthOctober prompt.

Question: How can I be more adaptable?

Skele-Tarot Reading Summary: I need to be kinder to myself (The Empress) and allow myself to celebrate (Four of Wands) my accomplishments (Queen of Pentacles) instead of always pushing to go go go (Eight of Wands)

Take Away:  This message is about my motivations and my drive.  In this area, I am very harsh with myself and unrelenting.  I want to do more.. more… more.  This is an area where I could be well served to be more adaptable and allow myself some more space, gentle nurturing, and acceptance of my accomplishments and limitations rather than constantly pushing forward like a runaway horse with blinders on.

Deck Used: Skele-Tarot

 

Empathic Ability… or Something Else

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Today’s meditation was… well, I’m not entirely how long it was, because I fell asleep.  It was relaxing, though. I think that just a lack of sleep combined with the taxing part of having both the helper and the housekeeper coming by today just took it out of me.  I laid down and became still, and off to sleep I went.

Today’s draw is Queen of Bats (Swords), which is a representation of a receptive alpha energy in the area of intellect, thought, logic, communication, and instinct.  This involves themes that include independent thought, reflection on new ideas without the need for conformity (ie: clear boundaries), a lack of bias, and direct communication.

When I look at today’s card, what I see is strength reflected through the posture of the queen and her sword, and an openness to hear out others while staying firm in one’s own foundations that is demonstrated in her welcoming of the flying bat combined with the death moth that is both at the base of her throne as well as within her crown. The moon smiling down feels like a blessing and approval, displaying an indication that this path is the right one for this moment in time.

I think this is a really interesting card to draw today, because I find myself reflecting on the definition of what an empath is, and if it really applies to me as I thought it did.  The thing is, I do not feel other people’s emotions in the way that I understand empathic abilities to work.  Instead, I sense and react to energy.  From that energy, my body can then interpret and even empathize with emotions from others… but it is not the direct connection and mimicry of emotion that others seem to define the ability as having.

Clearly, this feels like a separation between what I’m experiencing, and what is generally defined as empathic ability.  I wonder, then, if in fact this isn’t empathic ability at all, but something else that I haven’t yet found a name and/or definition for yet.

This, to me, fits in with the Queen of Bats because it runs along the line of intellectual examination, independent thought, and non-conformity.

Deck Used: Halloween Tarot

Bonus Reading

I did the #TarotForGrowthOctober prompt today from Instagram.

Question: How can I recognize my own power to manifest growth?  I specifically focused on growth concerning my business in this inquiry.

IMG_5806

Reading Summary:  If you would just give yourself a chance to be nicer to yourself and embrace the emotional gifts others are offering,  the world would be at your feet.  Stop and examine where you feel scarcity.

Take Away:  I need to sit with my emotions, look at and delve into a better understanding of them, and allow others to contribute to my life with their own emotions as well.   This is the aspect of my life where I am at my weakest, as I often have a hard time connecting with others in this manner, or experiencing the world through that lens. I need to take a breath and ease my strangle hold of stress concerning finances and the business or it will smother under my grip.

Deck Used: Skele-Tarot