The Cryptid Tarot

Accepting Comfort

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As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, I’ve fallen behind again and I can’t remember whether I meditated on the 30th or not. So, like yesterday, I’ll leave this empty this time around as I finish up these posts that got started… but never published on the blog.

Tarot of Haunted House - Queen of CupsToday’s draw is the Queen of Cups, which is traditionally a representation of a receptive alpha energy, personality, or person in the area of one’s emotions, relationships, imagination, and intuition.  This often translates into a nurturing energy, personality, or person that has the ability to touch our emotions and soothe them, as well as bolster them.

What stands out to me the strongest in this imagery is the wings and the warm glow that the imagery holds.   The wings are soft and large.  They appear as if they would be too heavy for the woman in the image, and yet she holds them aloft without stress or strain.  They are all encompassing, stretching wide like arms seeking to embrace and hold, to provide comfort in the warm glow of the light that surrounds her.

The message in today’s card is about accepting comfort when it is offered.  We all need comfort sometimes, and it’s okay to sink into it instead of berating yourself for needing it or for accepting it.

DECK USED:  TAROT OF HAUNTED HOUSE

LionHart’s #TheOctoberTarot #SeasonOfTheWitchChallenge Prompt
Question: Savor – Something good I should keep, or remember, for November.

Cute and Creepy Tarot

Reading Summary: Make sure you rest when you need to (Four of Swords), keep your true desires in mind when pushing forward (Knight of Cups), and don’t get yourself fall so deeply into the chaos that you end up flirting with burn out (Nine of Wands).

Take Away:  With the holiday rush coming, all of the advice in these cards is specifically directed at the things I need to keep in mind for my self care during that chaotic time.  It’s important that I rest and give myself chances to recover from the work and the stress involved in the holiday rush.

Without that rest, my constant drive to keep going will take over and I will end up doing myself a good deal of harm… coming out the other side not just exhausted but in need of serious mending.  The center card is a reminder that I need to keep in mind what I really want, and don’t get so swept up in everything that I lose that focus.

DECK USED:  CUTE AND CREEPY TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsOct2020 Challenge Prompt
Question: Grab a spread of your choice that you’ve been curious about… and give it a go!

Twisted Tarot Tales - Full Moon in Taurus Tarot Reading

How can I center myself during these unpredictable times?

Knight of Cups – Stay focused on what you want. I’ve been having a bit of an issue with focus lately, and in centering myself with a focus in mind, it will be help me hold onto that center more easily, and the focus as well, than trying to do them separately.

How can I bring more stability into my life?

Two of Cups – Connect with others, especially on an emotional level, and it will help you in finding more stability in your life.  It will also help when things fall into instability, as they will be able to see what’s going on and help lift you up, or at least slow the slide into deeper waters.

What do I value most and how does this influence my actions?

Three of Cups atop Rabid Raccoon – I value my family and those that are my chosen family, and the protection of them from others and/or events that might hurt them or steal them away.

Seven of Pentacles – This influences my actions by making sure that I make long-term plans that work to build a better future for all of us. I work to keep us together, and to grow our relationship and our lives in positive ways that foster that unity between us from one year to the next.

What changes am I being called to be a part of?

Six of Pentacles atop Page of Swords – I am being called to look at how I give to others and reevaluate the best ways forward in this area. Look for the differences between generosity and foolishness, and make adjustments that lean toward more logical choices rather than those driven by a sense of obligation.

DECK USED:  TWISTED TAROT TALES

#MysticStarChallenge October Challenge Prompt
Question: How can I embrace yesterday’s message for the next year?

The Cryptid Tarot

Reading Summary: Make sure that you’re taking in others perspectives and looking at things in a different way (The Hanged Man).  You can overcome the warning from  yesterday (Five of Swords), but to do so it will take making conscious choices that lead you away from the chain of events yesterday’s reading indicated. In other words, it’s not something you’ll fall into naturally.

Take Away:  The message yesterday was about overworking myself and turning into an asshole as a result.  The thing is? When I reach the cusp of burnout?  I do turn into an asshole.  I just don’t have patience anymore at that point.  Not for myself, or for anyone else.  Repercussions happen when you treat other people like shit, and I need to make a conscious effort to pull myself back from that path now, before I get to the point of no return.

The message here today is indicating I have the ability to do this, but I’m going to need to slow down and take some time to pay attention and listen to myself and others.  I need to seek out another path, and make the daily concentrated choice to then stay on that healthier path instead of falling into the old habits that have started to creep up and cause conflict.

DECK USED:  THE CRYPTID TAROT

Don’t Be “All Talk”

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Today’s meditation was skipped.   I know.  I shouldn’t be skipping anymore but I’m confessing here.  I skipped it.   I need to get back on track with doing the meditation on a daily basis each morning.  I know it helps, and would probably help my current feeling of malaise that I’ve been struggling with.  So I need to just do it.

Tarot of Haunted House - The EmpressToday’s draw is the Empress card, which is traditionally a representation of a nurturing earth-mother type of energy, abundance, and the sacred feminine.

There are a couple of things that really stand out to me in the imagery of this card today. The first of which is how svelt the Empress is in this imagery. That just feels a little weird for me, but I think it’s not so much something the card is speaking to me as it is just a personal preference for the Empress to have a bit of meat on her bones.

The second, and far more relevant, aspect of the imagery that stands out to me today is the delicate curl of her hand as she cradles the glowing orb. The tilt of her head indicates regal authority, and yet she holds the orb with a gentle touch (indicated in the light curl of her pinky finger). She listens and cares, and the orb comes to her in trust.

The message here is about being good to yourself. As good to yourself as you are to others. And that has to be more than a thought or an idea. It has to be an action. It has to be something you actually do. Because if it’s all talk? Then it’s not going to get you anywhere.

DECK USED:  TAROT OF HAUNTED HOUSE

LionHart’s #TheOctoberTarot #SeasonOfTheWitchChallenge Prompt
Question: Select your Death card and ask the Spirit World to guide you in something you could move past. Now draw another card.

Cute and Creepy Tarot

My Death Card is the Seven of Wands, which is about being so defensive all the time, indicating that this is something within myself that I need to work on changing.  Not in one fell sweep, but a little at a time.

When asking the Spirit World for guidance in moving past this issue, I was given the Star card, indicating that I need to approach this problem with a mindset geared towards hope while striving for an outlook of gentle balance and self-kindness.

The Two of Swords and Death card then dropped out as I was setting the cards down.  This added input indicates that this endeavor is not something that will happen on its own but rather is something I will have to make a choice to work on, and have the patience to let it unfold slowly.

DECK USED:  CUTE AND CREEPY TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsOct2020 Challenge Prompt
Question: What positive generational gift has been passed down to me from my ancestors?

Dark Angels TarotReading Summary: The ability to take things in stride (Wheel of Fortune) and move you and your loved ones forward (Two of Cups atop Two of Wands) no matter the amount burden involved (Ten of Wands).

Take Away:  I would not have considered this a generational gift, and yet… perhaps it is after all.  The fact that I carry those that depend on me forward, continuing to keep them moving and keep them together even when things fall apart or the burden of it all feels too much is something… I have done and do today.  Is something my father has done.  And I imagine it is something that those before him did as well.

Perhaps this quality of being able to move forward even under that horrible weight of responsibility and the ever changing sands of life under my feet is hereditary after all, yes?   At least… that is what the cards are saying.

DECK USED:  DARK ANGELS TAROT

#MysticStarChallenge October Challenge Prompt
Question: How can I strengthen my connection with my Guides?

Cryptid Tarot

Reading Summary: My cards are singing to me that old Bill Withers “Lean On Me” song.

Sometimes in our lives we all have pain
We all have sorrow
But if we are wise
We know that there’s always tomorrow (The Tower)

Lean on me, when you’re not strong
And I’ll be your friend
I’ll help you carry on (Two of Cups)

If there is a load you have to bear
That you can’t carry (Seven of Cups)

I’m right up the road
I’ll share your load
If you just call me (Two of Cups)

Take Away:  In a previous reading, there was a question about how can I honor my connection with my guides, which was to strengthen that connection.

The response to how to strengthen that connection is to use that connection. Don’t ignore it or leave it in the background, but actively reach for it and my guides, and use the tools at my disposal to ask for help and connect to them on a conscious level.  To actually ask questions, seek out their advice, and acknowledge them and their guiding hands.

DECK USED:  THE CRYPTID TAROT

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge by E Roebuck-Jones
Question: What is ready to be released from my life?

Tarot of Vampyres

Reading Summary: Emotions (Lord of Grails) and intuition (The Priestess) taking the forefront (imagery in the Lord of Grails). That whole “steady as she goes” mentality (Four of Skulls) is great when there’s not a bombardment of chaos to deal with, and fun and games have their place (The Sun).  Unfortunately, none of that is going to help me in the couple of months ahead.

Take Away:  It’s time to release fun and play and relaxed methodologies as well as the distractions that I’ve been enjoying so much through the spring and summer (emotional growth, intuitive growth, etc).   There is a seven week stretch quickly approaching that is going to require setting all that aside for a bit.  Releasing all that is hard, but it needs to happen. 

DECK USED:  TAROT OF VAMPYRES

Choosing Your Poison

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Today’s meditation was curtailed in the face of my need for a nap… because I totally dozed off in the middle of my meditation. I’ll try again before I go to sleep tonight but I’ve had two naps today, bot of them unanticipated, so… yeah.   Definitely not taking the chance of lying down again until bed time.

Tarot of Haunted House - The DevilToday’s draw is the Devil card, which is traditionally a representation of themes and situations that have to do with addictions and temptations.  It’s about those things you fall into that seem good and can become unhealthy if allowed to go to far, and about the bad habits and addictions that you fall into and then find yourself unwilling to leave behind even when you know they are bad for you.

I very much try to keep in mind Gideon’s take on this card.  For me, this card is often a representation of addiction, and a representation of the temptation that my addictive personality can create for me.  For him, it is a reminder of the temptation of me… how obsessed and addicted to me that he is.

Regardless of the temptation or addiction is beneficial or not, though. What really stands out to me in this card (and in many Devil cards) is that the chains on those caught and bound are loose. They could slip free.

The message of today’s card is that you choose your addictions and what temptations you want to allow into your life.  It’s important to pay attention and be diligent so that you make conscious choices about these things, instead of just wandering randomly from one to another.

DECK USED:  TAROT OF HAUNTED HOUSE

#DiscordTarotholicsOct2020 Challenge Prompt
Question:How can I best release negativity carried froward from my ancestors to me?

Cryptid TarotReading Summary: Instead of getting up in arms (Five of Wands – Tatzelwurm) when disaster strikes (The Tower – Mothman), take control and plunge into it (The Chariot – Kelpie).

Take Away:  Be proactive about the direction you go in and how you react to the chaos that starts to crash around you.  Don’t shirk, and don’t get your back up about it, move forward, adapt, and keep moving.  

It’s the difference between fighting change, or actually moving with it and adapting to it.  Sometimes, you have to just allow change to happen and control your own actions and responses rather than fighting against the change and causing things to go even harder on yourself.

DECK USED:  THE CRYPTID TAROT

#MysticStarChallenge October Challenge Prompt
Question: How can I utilize mine and my Spirit Guide’s different personalities to my advantage?

Trick or Tarot

Reading Summary: When I’m in need of help (Five of Swords), just remember that they’ve been through all this before (Ten of Swords), and they’re trying to help by giving advice based on knowledge that they have obtained through experience (Queen of Swords).

Take Away:  It’s about trusting what I hear, and trusting what I fee.  They give me messages through the same sensations as my intuition to make sure I listen, so remember that the advice comes from a good place and is the same as when someone that’s been to war gives someone that hasn’t advice on using a gun.  It’s guidance given through expertise I didn’t have to live myself to take advantage of.

DECK USED:  TRICK OR TAROT

Don’t Dawdle Too Long

/ Twist the Leaf / 1 Comment

IMG_6970Today’s meditation was just over ten minutes long and was another of the guided meditations with interval timer for my piriformis stretches.  I’m sort of wondering if the additional soreness I’m feeling lately isn’t just because I skipped a couple of days of stretching, but also because I have not been going in to the sports medicine doctor for adjustments since the spring.

The topic of today’s meditation was in taking a pause when reacting and responding to others to check if you are being kind.   It focused upon the quote by Rumi that is posted in this blog post to the right.   I’ve never heard this quote by Rumi before, but I can honestly say that it’s become one of my favorites.  I work really hard to do this when I interact with others… although perhaps the “Is it necessary” gets skipped a bit more than it should.  Still, I think it is a good guideline, and something as a whole that we all need to keep in mind more often.

Tarot of Haunted House - The Hanged ManToday’s draw is the Hanged Man, which is traditionally a representation of taking a step back to mull things over or see things from a new and different perspective.  This involves letting go of your own preconceptions and opening your mind to a new view.

Although I see this in the imagery of today’s card, the card’s imagery brings up more questions than answers today.   The reason for this is that the skeleton hangs in darkness beyond an opening in a brick wall.  From that I begin to wonder just how long has that skeleton been hanging there?  How did it get there?  How was it discovered?

These questions bring me to what I feel is the message of today’s card.  That is to say, the message here is about just how long you take in that “step back” to consider other perspectives.  Yes…. making decisions requires seeing as much of the “whole picture” as possible.  But if you get so wrapped up and focused on collecting data?  Sometimes  you end up missing the opportunities presented to you.   It’s a delicate balance, making sure you don’t hang there in limbo so long that you end up walled in.

DECK USED:  TAROT OF HAUNTED HOUSE

LionHart’s #TheOctoberTarot #SeasonOfTheWitchChallenge Prompt
Question: I am in control of the path I walk by…

Curio Tarot

Reading Summary: …being generous and kind with your emotions (Queen of Cups), and not allowing your drive to be more and do better get in the way (King of Cups Rx). Instead, you need to make sure you’re taking time to rest and recover (Four of Swords) and focus on your balance (Two of Pentacles).

Note: The “to do more and be better” is more about the fact that the King of the same suit showed up beside the Queen of Cups, rather than the connotations of the suit he is in.

Take Away:  The indication here is that it is not me in control of my path when I’m allowing those inner demons to drive me on the focus of “more more more”. It’s only when I take control of my life balance, be kind to myself, and allow myself the rest and restoration I need in that I am truly in control.

DECK USED:  CURIO TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsOct2020 Challenge Prompt
Question: How can I embrace positive influences carried forward from my ancestors?

The Dark Mansion TarotReading Summary: Open your eyes (Two of Swords) and look forward at your progress concerning that emotional intelligence you’ve been working on (Queen of Cups). Inspire others with your kindness to believe in you and fight for you (Queen of Cups leading up into the Seven of Wands).

Note: The Queen of Cups came up reversed, but I think it is more to the point that she is supposed to be looking to the right (and the future), rather than the fact that the card actually means it’s reversed meaning.

Take Away:  It is a conscious choice to reach for progress and embrace the lessons the Queen of Cups has to offer about your emotions and how they influence not just yourself but others as well.

For so long I have chosen to ignore my emotions and their influences. I learned this behavior from those in my past… and this new path I am on is guided by not just my desire to break the pattern but the spirit guides that are there to help guide me along the way.

DECK USED:  THE DARK MANSION TAROT

#MysticStarChallenge October Challenge Prompt
Question: How can I better embrace my Spirit Guide’s message from the 6th?

Grim Tarock

Reading Summary: Sometimes in moving on from what isn’t working for you (Eight of Fish), you find something better (Ten of Citadels). Learn to accept what you’re leaving behind isn’t worth keeping, and it’s worth the sludge and slog of the journey to move forward beyond it (The Hierophant).

Obviously this reading is based off the imagery and not the suits/card names.  The “learn to” is a nod to the Hierophant’s traditional meaning, but otherwise this reading is imagery focused.

Take Away:  When you abandon what is familiar, there’s always a bit of fear involved. That’s true even when what you’re leaving behind is something that doesn’t work for you or is unhealthy for you.  It’s important, during these times, to remember that what you’re moving toward is worth slogging through all that worry and fear.  As long as you keep moving, you’ll get there.  Just don’t look back.

DECK USED:  GRIM TAROCK

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge by E Roebuck-Jones
Question: What does the Sun mean to me?

The Cryptid Tarot

Reading Summary: Let’s use those swords (Eight of Swords/Averasboro Gallinipper) to make something great (Ten of Pentacles/Yowie), and let’s do it with enthusiasm (Knight of Wands/Gef the Mongoose).

Take Away:  That critter in the Eight of Swords card is probably pretty blind to just how useful those sword legs can be, but with the help of the Yowie and Gef, goth of which have a far more positive outlook going on, it’s possible to turn what appears to be a dangerous handicap into a positive boon.

This is the energy I see in the Sun, that transformative energy that can turn things around and instill a positive or optimistic spin on something perceived to be negative.

DECK USED:  THE CRYPTID TAROT