A Refuge From the Storm

Today’s meditation was skipped.

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Soul's Oracle and It’s Going To Be Okay 2024 Day-to-day Calendar By Kate AllanToday’s draw is the Home Tree and the affirmation “You are not a fountain of energy and goodness. Please, do not sacrifice your health or well-being for other people.”

Home is where your roots grow, digging deep to anchor and ground you.  It is your shelter and your anchor.

Sometimes, these are the things you need most, in order to be healthy and happy and take care of your own well-being.  Today’s cards are a reminder of this need to pause and find a sense of stability and security.  How important it is to feel rooted, grounded in having a safe place to call your own, a place of refuge from the storm.

These cards encourage taking advantage of that refuge when you need it, instead of ignoring your needs for the desires, needs, and whims of others.  Your needs are important too, and it’s up to you to give yourself what you need when you need it… even when it’s something as simple as staying home when everyone else is demanding you go out.

DECK USED: SOUL’S ORACLE

#DiscordTarotholicsAug2023 Challenge Prompt
Question for August 5th : What do I need to focus on for self-care this new moon?

Oracle Reading with the Soul's Oracle

Reading Summary: Say goodbye to the city (in the Left Card we see a figure waving at buildings in the distance. They appear to be saying a last farewell before disappearing out of sight on their trek down the path). Slip through the liminal spaces (in the Center Card we see a portal of natural spaces, a liminal space that leads from forest to sea… from one existence to another). Take time to savor nature (in the Right Card we see a figure sitting on the shore of a lake, feet in the water, enjoying the beauty and calm of nature as mother earth’s face smiles from the soil below).

Take Away: These cards encourage taking the opportunities that arise during this new moon to get out of the city and enjoy some time in nature.  Hike to a lake in the woods and take a dip. Make a day of it and let go of the stress and responsibilities of day to day life for a while.  Cut loose and enjoy some time among the trees.

DECK USED: SOUL’S ORACLE

Daily Self Kindness

I went down to the library today and got my card re-issued so that I could listen to audiobooks through Libby for free sometimes instead of always sourcing through Audible. A lot of times the library doesn’t have the titles I want to listen to, but sometimes they do so it’ll be a cheaper source for those titles that they have available.

Finding the Positive for August 2 – 4

Sea Witch Oracle, Asherah Tarot, Grounded Wisdom Soil Tarot, Wisdom for Wee Ones Cards, and It’s Going To Be Okay 2024 Day-to-day Calendar By Kate Allan

August 2 – Mental Health Card of the Day

Today’s meditation was ten minutes long, and was one of the #DailyCalm sessions with the Calm app.  Today’s meditation focused on the breath and the practice of Anapana, which was described as using focus on the natural breath as a meditation practice.  Instead of focusing on the lungs and chest, though, you focused on the little bit of space just under the nose, and paying attention to the movement of air through that space, narrowing down  your focus to just that small patch of skin and nothing else.

I am, admittedly? Not good at “observing the natural breath”. I try, but every time I try? I end up altering my breath when I pay attention to it, either deepening it or modulating it in some way.  I’ll keep trying, of course, but I’ve yet to find a way to keep this from happening.  I’m sure I’m not the only one.

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Today’s card is the Seal card combined with the affirmation “I have a good body, whether or not other people like it.”

This affirmation reminds me of the phrase “It could always be worse.” My body hurts. It has scars. It has damage. Hell, it even has a few white hairs and wrinkles these days. But… it could be worse. It could always be worse in an endless myriad of ways.

The Seal card’s words “Curiosity needs freedom” is a reminder that no matter what you don’t like about your body, or what others don’t like about your body?  It’s -your- body, and it serves you well (if not exactly as perfectly as you might want).  Get out and do things with it.  Have fun with it. Explore with it.

Who cares if you get dirty in the process? Who cares if you get sweaty and flush-faced? Celebrate your body with an adventure. Let curiosity lead you now and then, and don’t worry so much about what others may think.

DECK USED: SEA WITCH ORACLE AND IT’S GOING TO BE OKAY 2024 DAY-TO-DAY CALENDAR BY KATE ALLAN

August 3 – Mental Health Card of the Day

Today’s meditation was skipped.

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Today’s card is the Lovers card combined with the affirmation “Just try to stay calm and do what you can.”

There is a dual meaning in today’s card, especially when combined with the affirmation for today. The Lovers is often about unity and union, but it can also be about making choices that are best for you.

Combined together, the message for today is about allowing others to do their part so that you are healthier in your own work and responsibilities. Don’t get worked up over everything that needs to be done, but instead trust in others to do their part while you focus on doing yours.

DECK USED: ASHERAH TAROT AND IT’S GOING TO BE OKAY 2024 DAY-TO-DAY CALENDAR BY KATE ALLAN

August 4 – Mental Health Card of the Day

Today’s meditation was skipped.

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Today’s card is the Devil combined with the affirmation “Some people take and never give, yet they don’t have enough, but Wisdom’s way is to give without fear. You’ll still have enough of what you hold dear.”

Fear of missing out (FOMO) is a thing, whether it’s buying things you think will be useful to you at a later date, trying to “keep up with the Joneses”, or just not trimming one’s roses because they want to see all the blooms (but instead stunt it’s growth and the size of its blooms due to not cutting them back enough). These feelings, whether spurred on by fears, insecurities, or sentimentality, can be harmful if not kept in check.

One way we keep this in check is through generosity.  Like the rose bush that needs to have its buds cut back regularly in order to produce bigger and more beautiful blooms, our homes need to be purged occasionally.

It can be freeing to go through your closet and finally get rid of some of the clothing you haven’t worn in a couple years, or go through a collection and weed out those in it that you don’t really enjoy, or go through your kitchen cupboards and donate a portion of what’s in there you haven’t gotten around to using.  It helps us to not allow these things to have such a choke hold on us, like removing the invasive vines from a garden before they choke out all the other plants.

That is what today’s cards are about.  Don’t worry that by giving to others you are creating a lack in your own life.  There will still be plenty.  You’re just doing a bit of weeding so the stuff you truly enjoy can have more breathing room and appreciation.

DECK USED: GROUNDED WISDOM SOIL TAROT AND WISDOM FOR WEE ONES CARDS

🌑 New Moon in Leo – August 2024

The new moon is upon us!  Like all new moons and full moons, I did a spread aligned to the moon’s current themes as a part of my recognition of the moon’s cycle and influences upon us. Today’s spread is courtesy of @Lionharts #theaugusttarot.

New Moon in Leo Tarot Reading with the Tarot of the Forest Witch

What heart’s desire should I manifest during this New Moon?

Wheel of Fortune atop Justice – Spin the wheel on cause-and-effect and take a chance that the consequences you predict coming to pass won’t actually be the result. You don’t have to play things so safe and close to the vest all the time.

What intentions should I set under the New Moon in Leo?

Chariot – It’s time to start moving again. The languishing and dawdling about has been a nice respite and needed rest, but to grow and thrive you also need to lean in to hard work in order to steer things in the direction you want them to go.

How can I align my actions with my hearts true desires?

Judgment – Remember where you are going and who you want to have become when you get there. Regrets don’t always come from doing something against your nature, but sometimes in standing back and not doing something that down the line you’ll wish you had.

New Moon advice from the Minoan Goddess Amalthea.

Temperance – Just because it’s time to start moving again doesn’t mean it’s time to rush or push yourself. Small steps.

Other elements included in this reading:
Conch Shell Knot for Concentration and Clarity
Citrine for for Lift (easing the weight of heavy energies)
Selenite for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy
Hand Crafted Goat as sympathetic representation of Amalthea

DECK USED: TAROT OF A FOREST WITCH

No Strength Without Rest

Today’s meditation was skipped (yet again).

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Solace Oracle and It’s Going To Be Okay 2024 Day-to-day Calendar By Kate AllanToday’s draw is the Standing Strong card combined with the affirmation “You have coped through a lot; you deserve a nice long break.”

Today’s cards are a reminder that you don’t have to be strong all the time, and that times of rest are what help you to stay strong over the long haul.  Without rest, there is no strength.  So don’t be down on yourself about needing rest. It’s okay.

I personally needed to hear this message today. It’s supposed to be an orders day, but I spent a large portion of the day trying to fill orders only to have to re-do damned near every little thing over at least once because of stupid mistakes and dissatisfaction with the results of my efforts.

I finally gave up and set orders aside, giving myself permission to ship out everything on Tuesday instead of tomorrow. The guilt was significant, especially when others in my life sort of seemed disapproving of my choices. (Or, alternately? It’s possible that could have just been me projecting my own feelings and guilt.)  Either way, today’s message helped in easing some of those negative emotions.  I’m allowed to rest when I need to, even when it’s not particularly convenient.

DECK USED: SOLACE ORACLE

#DiscordTarotholicsAug2023 Challenge Prompt
Question for August 1st and 2nd

Oracle Reading with the Moon Woman OracleHow does my inner child feel right now?

Maiden – Your inner child is excited about the potential your steps in personal growth are opening up to you. No longer is your inner child shoved in a closet, neglected and ignored as they had been in the past, and they are beginning to enjoy the attention and exploration.

How can I better connect with my inner child?

The Cauldron – Remember that creativity isn’t just fun and games, but there is also a sacredness to it that makes each thing you create (whether it be physical, metaphysical, or just the space for future potential) contain an intrinsic part of you within it.

DECK USED: MOON WOMAN ORACLE

Daily Self Kindness

I had myself some lazy time in bed today while I was alone at home.  As mentioned in the Card of the Day exercise above, I also allowed myself to not fill orders today, and rest instead… and am working on not feeling guilty about it.

First Harvest 2024 – Lammas/Lugh

Today is Lammas, which is known as the First Harvest of the year. This day marks the transition into the harvest season of August, September, and October (of which there is a Second Harvest and Last Harvest that correspond to these months).

Tarotholics Harvest Challenge Spreads

This holiday is often referred to as Lammas, Lughnasadh, or Lugh, although I usually just refer to it as the First Harvest. On my path, it celebrates the beginning of Summer’s decline and ramping up of the busy season where we begin to reap in the abundance that the bounty of summer’s energies has encouraged to grow and flourish. It is a time filled with a combination of abundance, hard work, and gratitude.

Like with new moons and full moons, I usually do a spread to check in with myself and give myself some direction for the next couple of months for each solstice, equinox, and other Sabbats. Unfortunately, I was unable to do my normal Sabbat reading this month, so I am combining the harvest spreads from this month’s Discord Tarot Challenge instead.

First Harvest Oracle Reading with the Seasons of the Witch Lammas Oracle

Seeds Sown – What seeds for my physical health & growth planted in the Spring have flourished and grown strong?

Welcoming the Harvest – You have gotten back on track with your eating schedule, ensuring no hypoglycemic episodes and helping in staying off the irrational scarcity feelings that start to crop up in all areas of life when you start trying to cut back on food intake.

The Chaff – What seeds for my physical health & growth have not flourished and need to be let go to encourage healthy growth in other areas?

Harvest Basket – You are still struggling to carry too much on your shoulders. In order to continue with healthy physical progress in areas where you are thriving, you need to work on letting go of taking on too much on your own.

The Harvest – How can I best prepare now to reap the benefits of a positive healthy harvest for my physical health & growth in the Fall?

Craftsmanship – Work on honing your craft and toughening up your hands and forearms for the overwork that will come as the holiday season comes into focus. Build up that strength and endurance now so you won’t be injured later.

Seeds Sown – What seeds for my mental health & growth planted in the Spring have flourished and grown strong?

Fennel – You have been working on fretting less and trusting that you will get through obstacles instead of decimated by them. With your emotions in play (as you try not to bury them and ignore them), it’s difficult to not be affected more intensely by setbacks and hurdles. You are doing well at learning how to not let your anxiety spiral in these instances, and instead focusing on solution based thoughts and plans.

The Chaff – What seeds for my mental health & growth  have not flourished and need to be let go to encourage healthy growth in other areas?

Coneflower – You don’t need any more independence than you already have. Quit trying to scrape up more. You need to instead focus on allowing others in and asking for help, even in times when you feel you don’t need to.

The Harvest – How can I best prepare now to reap the benefits of a positive healthy harvest for my mental health & growth in the Fall?

Rooster and Hens – Get out in nature and enjoy time outside among the trees, exploring new trails and old alike. Revisit the joy that noticing natures little changes from one day to the next gives you. These excursions help create clarity of mind, and revitalize you both in mind and body.

Seeds Sown – What seeds for my emotional health & growth planted in the Spring have flourished and grown strong?

Citrine – The confidence you have gained over the past few months is of the gentle and uplifting sort. You are discovering that confidence in others and your connection to them is just as important as independence and having confidence in yourself.

The Chaff – What seeds for my emotional health & growth  have not flourished and need to be let go to encourage healthy growth in other areas?

Garden Tools – You are not on your own and (yet again in this reading) you are being reminded that independence doesn’t mean you have to cut yourself off from others. That right there is the line where independence becomes unhealthy.

The Harvest – How can I best prepare now to reap the benefits of a positive healthy harvest for my emotional health & growth in the Fall?

Vegetable Garden – Touch base with yourself and your progress. Make sure that those seeds that need to flourish are doing so and thriving, and that the weeds of unhealthy thoughts and old habits that could choke them out are being pulled and discarded.

DECKS USED: SEASONS OF THE WITCH LAMMAS ORACLE

Perfectionism Clogs the Gears

Today’s meditation was skipped.

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Cryptid Creatures Tarot and It’s Going To Be Okay 2024 Day-to-day Calendar By Kate AllanToday’s card is the Wheel of Fortune (Tailypo) combined with the affirmation “You can do the thing!”

Let go of the need for perfection . You have have better things to do with your time.

When you focus too hard on perfection, it slows you down and keeps you from completing tasks that could easily be done much quicker with a little more tolerance for everything not being “just right”.  Why waste your time with these tiny details when no one will care one way or another, or even notice for that matter… including -you- if it wasn’t you doing the work!

Just do it and get it done with out the obsessing, and then instead of wasting time on something you’re not really enjoying, you can move on to something that you will.

DECK USED: CRYPTID CREATURES TAROT AND IT’S GOING TO BE OKAY 2024 DAY-TO-DAY CALENDAR BY KATE ALLAN

#DiscordTarotholicsJul2024 Challenge Prompt
Prompt for July 31
: Grab a spread of your choice that you’ve been curious about… and give it a go!

Summer Oracle Reading with the Wing Hoof and Paw Oracle

Flowers – What is flourishing in your life right now?

Muskrat – Thanks to the end of month reading that you did earlier in the week, you are paying far more attention to the world around you. You are alert and aware, and working at preserving clarity of sight and mind. Vigilance and awareness of what’s going on around you is extremely important at the moment, and you’re doing well with it.

Sun – Where you’re shining your brightest this summer.

Prairie Dog – You are doing better at showing your emotions and sharing them with those that you love than you have done in quite some time. Last year, due to circumstances beyond your control, you had to shut yourself down and everyone suffered. You are beginning to open back up now.

Stars – What needs released to shine even brighter?

Deer – It’s hard to believe that you’re not going to have a repeat experience of what happened last year. You need to set down your distrust in the universe and it’s whims, and allow things to flow smoothly once more. Stop bracing for the next blow to come raining down on you.

Bees – Where to focus your energy to get things done?

Springbok – Revisit those things that you really enjoy, and allow them to help spark your creativity and enthusiasm. You have the extra time at the moment to spend some time having fun. Make sure you take advantage of that time instead of wasting it.

Bonfires – Embers to stir up for a brighter future.

Swan – Make sure that you were giving yourself credit where credit is due. You are enough, even when those negative whispers in your head make it seem like you’re not. This is something you need to work on reminding yourself of on the regular.

DECK USED: WING HOOF AND PAW ORACLE

Daily Self Kindness

I mixed the rest of the Froot Loops in with the Trix cereal. It’s a really good combo that I enjoy.