Computer problems

Due to some problems with my computer, I will taken a little hiatus from blogging and commenting on my favorite blogs
See you soon

Four of Swords - Be Still and find Peace

Today’s cards is the Four of Swords  from the Shadowscapes Tarot by Stephanie Pui-Mun Law. This deck seems to be popping up on several of my favorite blogs and YouTube channels. so I was inspired to pick it up and draw from it myself. This card seems to be a follow-up from my last post about turning inwards and listening to your intuition.

We see a woman adrift in midair with three swords above her head and one held with both hands on her chest. Her head is the center of golden spiraling swirls. Her hair is swaying  and the ends are blending in with these swirls. Around her body lotuses are floating in the air as a symbol of spiritual and mental purity; of enlightenment. The sword on her chest  has the sigil of an eye, which symbolizes seeing the world with your heart, filled with compassion and love.

Although this card is, like yesterday’s card, also about meditation and listening to the “silent whispers of our heart”  it is also about the necessity of retreat. Often, when this card shows up it is an indication we have been running around in our head far too long and got trapped and/or lost in the tangle of our thoughts. As you all know by now, I have a very swordy personality, so whenever I draw a version of this card I feel an relief. It urges me take a few steps back and breath. The Four of Swords is a kind of guardian angel card for me. So today I will try to carve out time to relax and enjoy the silence in and around (if possible) me. Not only because I love it but because I need it!

Lost in my mindscape

List'ning to the whispering

Of a silent heart

Intuitive Communication - Silent Whispers of the Heart

For today I’ve drawn Intuitive Communication - Silent Whispers of the Heart from the Gaia Oracle by Toni Salerno. This is actually my second attempt of writing this post because my laptop managed to shut down Word without prompting me to save the Doc I was working on. You can imagine I didn’t whisper then.

Any way in this depiction we see a woman kissing a tree and while doing so making a connection with the heart, the source of life of this tree. And in turn the tree enfolds her in waves of his energy. 

This card encourages us to become silent. We don’t always have to sit down to meditate in order to find those still moments in a day. We can be working in our garden, riding our bike, washing the dishes or taking a stroll, as long as our mind is quieting down. Often it is even easier for me to be still when I am not meditating but doing something relaxing. As if my mind objects against  this practice of meditation and gets even louder than usual. It is almost as if I have to trick myself into listening to my inner voice.

So these spontaneous quiet moments are great for listening to your intuition, to this little voice, to whatever you name your gut feeling. For that is what it is most of the time: a feeling. I’ve always wondered  how do you hear that inner voice? Well this card tells us it is a silent whisper, a feeling, a flutter but never the less it is there and you have to be ever so mindful to catch it, cherish it and to listen to it with all your heart and most importantly: to trust it!

Affirmation from the guidebook:

I focus on my inner world . . .

I am one with all creation. . . .

All is energetically connected. . . .

I trust my intuition. . . .

My awareness expands through love.

Peace –Bathing in Sunlight

My card for today is Peace- dissolving unwanted or disturbing thoughts from the Gaia Oracle by Toni Salerno.

Here we see a radiant sun, painted in mostly orange and yellow with a touch of green symbolizing the illuminated Earth. This warmth, this light is so precious to the soul.  No wonder the Sun has been a symbol for Divinity since a long as we can remember.

The Sun itself is the center of everything, while its rays burn away our worries and outdated obstructing thought patterns. This card invites us to take the time to find our own center and reconnect with our spiritual sun, our Divine spark. The most commonly used practice to do this is also the most difficult to maintain.  And yet it is through mediation we can learn to let go and stop clinging to our thoughts as if they are the only thing that really matters. When we will let our thoughts go like clouds in the wind, the sun will come out again and will start shining bright.

Literally: Finally Summer is here! The sun is shining so brightly today and I am going to enjoy it while it lasts

Sacred Heart – A new Project, a new Oracle Deck.

My card for today is Sacred Heart - Passion, Love, Spiritual Communion, from the Gaia Oracle by Toni Salerno. We see a beautiful crimson red heart in the center of this card. The heart is burning with passion and desire but it is not consumed by it. It is perfectly balanced between the sun and the earth. It has exposed itself fearlessly to the radiant fiery sunrays and at the same time it is deeply rooted into the earth. This is causing the perfect centering of the heart.

This card is all about following your passion, doing the things you love most, without being afraid of failure. Trusting Spirit will keep you motivated and  inspired to express yourself creatively.

Yesterday I’ve gifted myself the Dutch version of the Gaia Oracle. I’ve bought it because I love the artwork and the warm color tones. Also I want to use it to for a more in depth exploration of the Divine Feminine. I love it that Toni Salerno has depicted the men and women in this deck not too detailed so we can veil them with our own perception of divinity.

I will be using this oracle also on my Dutch blog: “Tarot bij de Koffie”. A few days ago I’ve  written, after a very long time, a post for this blog again. I think I am going to do this regularly without neglecting  “Greylady’s Hearth”, which feels so like home to me. Writing has always been a passion of mine. I could live without making art but my life would feel incomplete without writing. Writing in Dutch allows me to flow just a bit more than writing in English. Less searching for words or looking for phrases. Besides wording my thoughts, writing an English post is sometimes also a bit like solving a puzzle. J

I’ve put a tab for “Tarot bij de Koffie” at the top of this blog and if you like to pay me a visit there you are always welcome.

Full Moon reading with the Crystal Visions Tarot

Yesterday the moon phase widget on my blog indicated there was a full moon. Yay for the widget, because the weather has been very cloudy for days, so the moon was nowhere be seen.

After my daily (yes, I am slowly getting into the habit again) meditation, I’ve pulled some cards from my Crystal Visions tarot by Jennifer Galasso, using the Full Moon Spread I’ve found on the Aeclectic Tarot forum.

The positions are the following:

0. Yourself in your current situation (from the base of the deck)- Queen of Pentacles

It seems this queen is very popular these days. She has been popping up on several blogs in various capacities and now she  has arrived here too. She is highlighting my effort to be more active, both physical and creatively and to get my nose out of the books and experiment with my new art supplies. I’ve also been working and playing with my Crystals a lot more. You can see in the depiction this queen is really loving them too. Also I would love to take my bike out for a ride but the heavy wind and the rain here are spoiling the fun. I feel I definitely take better care for myself lately

1. What can be seen with clarity, so bright that it can even blind you? - Ace of Pentacles

Since I feel a lot better than a month ago, it feels like I am much more capable  to bring my ideas into fruition. This ace is a symbol of abundance, wellbeing and manifesting your intent and for all these aspects I am truly grateful. E.g. I am more mindful of my diet, I make art, I want to revive my Dutch blog, I‘ve stopped biting my nails, I journal and meditate more regularly, so all and all I feel good about myself and the things I accomplish

2. What gets completed. What closes a cycle? - Four of wands

This feeling good is represented in the four of wands. Here we see a prince and his princess celebrating their union. They radiate joy and optimism for the future. I feel like they symbolize two parts of me who are now accepting and embracing each other: making me stronger and more resilient.

3. What begins to fade away, to darken, to abandon you... or what needs to be?- The unknown Card.  

This is the very first time I’ve pulled this card from the deck. This card is all about a hidden factor, an uncertainty. Since it is fading away I am not going to give it much thought. Perhaps it will reveal itself in my upcoming New moon spread. For now the crystal ball stay cloudy and unclear….

I like how this reading accentuates that I am feeling so much stronger than  a few weeks ago. For me the Full moon is all about celebrating your accomplishments of the last four weeks and expressing gratitude for what you have received . And I know I do have lot to celebrate and be grateful for.

Celtic Lenormand- a very feminine Line of Five

For my daily draw I’ve used the Celtic Lenormand by Chloe McCracken and Will Worthington. First I’ve shuffled my deck thoroughly and then I searched for the Woman card with the spindle in her hands. This is the one I identify the most with. The Lady card feels more like a representation of the Goddess to me. Then I picked up the two cards on either side of her...

My cards are: Birds - Chickens + Bear  + woman + Lady + snake - fierce

For me these are all cards who have a very strong  feminine energy. Of course the bear can also represent a businessman but for me she screams: Mother!!! But back to the reading:

Chickens + Snake – This week S. is visiting her boyfriend’s family up North and M and I are staying at home together. I want to keep in mind to be more socially aware and to spend time with her. We do love to talk about  almost everything and like to have very in-depth discussions, but we both have the tendency to spend to much time behind a screen . I do want to be careful not to get irritated and snap when our social time “exceeds both our limits”. J

Lady + Snake – I see these two cards as a advice to protect my boundaries this week  and be firm but kind about it. Also it is better to use my wits and humor than my ability to “bite”.

Chickens + bear – Social interaction with a great dinner: baked salmon, bread + herb butter, salad and wine

Bear + Lady – These two are literally me, applying my skills at the stove tonight and baking us a beautiful piece of salmon. Or at a more spiritual level:  My  relationship with the Mother, the Goddess which is lately strong and fulfilling.

Al together I think we will have a lovely week together as long as we keep an eye out for the snake.

It was a bit of a challenging combination of cards, since  three of the additional cards from the deck appeared in my line of five but I loved it to figure out what they mean for me today.