Two of Wands – Choices, choices, choices.

For today I have drawn the Two of Wands from the Legacy of the Divine Tarot and it is pretty obvious what this card is all about: we have to make a choice in order to move forward. In the picture we see two beautifully adorned wands and also two locked boxes in mid air and one key floating between them. There is no way of telling which of the two boxes is holding something  of value for us or if the key only fits on one lock. Do we have only one chance to try to open a box  or perhaps maybe  two ? How can we be sure? Should we wait for more information or just try? All these questions and possibilities can cause you to freeze instead of making the choice. Because how on earth can we be sure we will make the right choice. Maybe both options are right. Our mind keeps working on high speed but it is like we are running in circles and there is no way out.

I often feel like this. I find it hard to make decisions. When there is really a pressing situation which has to be dealt with, I am  more determined and unwavering then when it is about the small things in life: What will we have fro dinner? What shall I wear? Do I need new shoes and  when and where shall I buy them? What movie will we watch? What will I draw? What book will I read next?

There are numerous choices to be made on a daily basis and I think it is a miracle we are not all hiding our head under the pillows. Luckily we can rely on previous decisions: I don’t have to consider all the brands of detergent anymore: I chose my own familiar brand. Still there are enough choices left for me today: “what deck will I choose” was the most recent.

Lenormand – practice, practice, practice!

This morning I figured it was about time I picked up my Lenormand cards again to practice my reading skills so when my copy of the Celtic Lenormand would arrive, I would be able to work with it. For this line of five I have chosen the Gilded Reverie by Ciro Marchetti. The question is: what advice can you give me on how to pursue my challenge of “Making room in 40 days”?

After shuffling the cards I searched for the ring as a symbol of my commitment to this challenge and picked the two cards on either side of the ring. Together they form a line of five with:

whip + cross + ring + heart + sun

Cross+ ring+  heart : it is important to devote yourself spiritually and emotionally to this commitment.

Whip + cross : establishing some repetitive spiritual practices can be very helpful

Sun +heart:  Give yourself permission to bask yourself in the light of self love

Whip + sun : although there will be difficulties, maybe self-doubt and other  and inner  struggles, this challenge will  strengthen your confidence and will give you  a lot of insight in yourself

These cards gave me lots of practical advice. Especially about  creating some daily rhythm, so there will be some flow during the day and I won’t be constantly aware of the things I cannot do but more focusing on what I can and want to do. Honestly it feels a bit like when I quit smoking but with the heart and the sun in view I am on my way again!

Ten of Cups - There is a lot to be grateful for

Today’s card is the Ten of Cups from the Legacy of the Divine Tarot by Ciro Marchetti. At first I intended to pick a card myself which would represent my latest obsession with the “Midori travelers Notebook”. Besides being overly fond of tarot and Oracles decks, stationery, planners and journals etc  is something I am getting more and more addicted to. But since this blog is mainly about my love for tarot I decide to  just pull a card and see what the tarot had in store for me today. Well isn't this a lovely picture. I see both Tara and our new puppy in this card. Tara in dog’s heaven near a cozy fire place completely  healthy and happy, where cats are friends instead of mortal enemies J. On the other hand this might be our near future. In a few hours we are going to visit our puppy for the second time. We are so looking forward to this and we are counting the days until we can take him home with us.

Finally I see myself in this card, so happy and content with my finished leather project. I am going to finish it tomorrow and although excited to make my own version of the Midori, I am also a bit anxious to ruin the leather. Maybe this card is a good omen, so I pulled a card from the Gilded Reverie Lenormand: Bouquet! I see this one as the gift card and I suppose everything I’ve written  about in this post can be considered as gifts to be grateful for.

Combining Tarot and Lenormand in one reading

Inspired by Chloe and Siddaleah  I've been practicing again with my Lenormand cards for several days now. And I have to say it hasn't been easy. There has been times the cards only spoke jibber jabber to me and I felt like throwing them into the trash can. Could it be possible I'm not cut out  for this? Since I am a stubborn woman (Taurus) I didn't want to be defeated by 36 pieces of cardboard so I kept practicing.

And gradually the fog was lifting and the cards started to make sense to me again. It was helpful for me me not to search for generic meanings but to ask a question first. Was it about love, money or health? But how many questions can you come up with while practicing on  your own. So I included my tarot cards in the reading. I picked a tarot card which would be the topic of my reading and then I drew a line of three lennies about this topic.

The topic for this reading was the Ten of Swords from the Legacy of the Divine Tarot : How can I let go of all my self defeating thoughts and move on?

Then I pulled three cards from the Gilded Reverie Lenormand (both decks are by Ciro Marchetti):

7 Snake +15 Bear + 5 Tree

Biting thoughts (suspicions and self loathing) can be conquered by confidence and inner strength which will improve your physical (health) and mental (wisdom) well being.

I liked how the bear was swimming away from the snake and towards the tree; moving on from one situation to another.

Building confidence is certainly helpful for me while practicing with these cards. Whining about how I will never, ever be able to read them won't help me to improve my skills.J

Practicing like this is so much fun and very encouraging for my confidence in reading the Lenormand.