Day 24: The Daze- What forms of ecstasy can you find outside of traditional means? Card: None of these cards make me feel ecstasy. Not a one of them. Maybe the Knight. That’s it. King of Pentacles RX, Knight of Swords, 4 of swords reversed.
I can find ecstasy by no longer giving a sh!t about what others think and run, headlong into all of the things that I can fit into a day before collapsing into a heap on the floor out of pure and utter exhaustion. I mean… maybe?
That knight of swords keeps following me- I’ve got a new stalker card. Why can’t I ever have the 10 of pentacles stalking me, eh?
Day 18: What practices or rituals can I add to my daily routine to incorporate more self-care?
Card: The World: I can bring in an element of reflection (which is funny because I came to the same realization this morning when I was raking myself over the coals for old crappy things I’ve done), and maybe incorporate some gentle low key travel, or some travel plans for the future. I like that idea 😉
Day 19: What changes can I make to make life easier (card 1) and how will these changes benefit me (card 2):
Cards: The Hierophant Rx (card 1), and 4 of Cups. I can start to follow the beat of my own drum and go against the status quo. I don’t feel like that necessarily makes life easier though… so maybe it’s more that I need to stop taking stock in the kind of concerns and beliefs that those in power in my life seem to have. I can let go of that need for approval. In doing that, I can re-evaluate what’s important to me, where I want my life to go and what I need to do to get there. I feel a bit like I’ve lost my way recently, so maybe this will help.
The deck used is one I’ve had for a while but haven’t used in ages that I love from Lo Scarabeo. It’s called The Tarot of Oppositions and if you’re interested in getting into reading reversals (which some tarot practitioners do not do for lots of different reasons), then I would highly recommend it. It has a beautiful duplication where you can see the reversed (or opposite meaning) in the reflected image- if the card is upright, you see the upright image clearly, but if you pull a reversal, then you can see the reversed image clearly. You can also use this as a way to just balance your concepts of multiple card meanings. I find once it gets into like 5+ in each suit, it can be a little harder to read, but I still really enjoy it for this purpose. The card quality is also pretty good for a mass-market deck, the price point is reasonable, and the artwork is pretty cool. I like most of the decks I’ve bought from Llewellyn (and most of the witchy books they sell, too). They routinely have site-wide sales that are pretty awesome.
Card: Two of Wands: I can give myself options, and ideas, make plans for the future and show up for myself in whatever way I can.
Day 17: Where can I be more generous with myself today?
Card: Ten of cups RX: I can be kinder on myself regarding the mistakes I’ve made with relationships and the friendship issues I’ve had in the past. I can be kinder to myself on the cringe moments that I think about- everyone has them. Not just me.
Day 25: In what area can I use the beauty of nature to find joy or rekindle my passions? Where do I begin?
Card: 4 of wands Rx: Private and inward work on goals and private personal celebrations- I can use nature as a way of continuing to understand myself better, and I can start by rewarding myself for the small accomplishments and private achievements I’ve accomplished so far. 🙂
Day 26: In what way or area(s) have I found myself this month?
Card: 8 of pentacles Rx: I’ve found myself through self-improvement, through wishing to perfect and dwell on the imperfections in my life from the past. It’s been a strange month, of that I can assure you and the anxiety that has bubbled up at weird times has not been helpful, but I have been working on finding a way through it. I hope that it helps.
Listen. Listen. Listen. I used to be a blogger, alright? Back when I was in university, and in high school- when I was in my early 20s and the internet was still a fresh young beast. I was a blogger extraordinaire! I’d write multiple posts a day, and they would be so chaotic, ridiculous, awesome, unfiltered and so… cringe. But, I’d write! I would be writing! These days, I’m lucky if I wash my hair correctly every other day. Keeping up with multiple blogs? Impossible. So you’ll have to forgive my lapses. They will be often. They will be long. But hopefully, they will not be forever 🙂
So let’s get crackin’ then shall we?
Day 20: What can I learn from the wind,, the sky or the air element right now?
Card: The Magician Rx: I learn to take control of the things around me, push forward with power- something I’m lacking at the moment. I can tap into my intuition, see where my power can reach to, and see where it fails.
Day 21: How can I harness the warmth around me to fuel my inner fire?
Card: Guardian of Swords (Queen of Swords) Rx: It’s ok to be emotional- to get upset- to burn brighter and stronger at the things that are unfair in the world. I need to take care not to let the fire consume me, and overwhelm me.
Day 22: How can I use nature as a source of creative inspiration?
Card: 5 of Wands: I can use nature to unravel the anger and resentment coiled away inside of me. The inner battle that rages between making money, making others happy, and making myself happy can be fought and soothed through nature.
Day 23: What should I let flow in? What should I let flow away?
Cards: Flow in: 9 of pentacles Rx, Flow out: Greed (the Devil):
Embrace what I’m worth, I am enough, and I need to recognize it. Let go of overindulgence, hanging onto things I don’t need, and desiring more and more.
Day 24: Where should I give myself freedom?
Card: 3 of swords Rx: Give me the freedom to forgive maybe? To let go of any pain I’m carrying and give myself some kindness- the kind of kindness I give to others but not myself.
The deck used is the Tarot for all ages- a cute one though sometimes tricky to read as the court cards are a bit different and some of the major Arcana are renamed, but it’s a good deck!
I did absolutely nothing all day yesterday and it was magical, although now it means a day of catch-up! So I present to you, the prompts from the last two days :).
Day 7: How can I use nature to cultivate a deeper sense of inner peace?
Cards drawn: 6 of Pentacles Rx, and Page of Swords Rx.
Surrounding myself with nature will help to replenish my empty tanks, and give myself the opportunity to be a bit ‘selfish’ and focus on self-care (6 of Pentacles Rx). In doing this, I can help to silence the constant uncertain questions that bounce around in my head, wondering if I’m making the right choices, or if I’m headed down the wrong path (Page of Swords Rx).
You know it’s a bit strange but we do seem to think of self-care as selfishness when we first get into it. Why should I be spending on myself, focusing only on myself when I should be giving to and thinking of others- and while a healthy sense of altruism is a good thing to have, you cannot give to others if you have nothing within you to give. The old saying ‘you can’t pour from an empty cup’ is true when it comes to taking care of yourself. There’s nothing wrong with making sure you’re meeting your own needs first.
Day 8: What inner strength can I draw on to empower myself?
Card pulled: 7 of Swords
I can use my ability to strategize to my advantage- or maybe I can steal a bunch of stuff? hahaha 🙂
The deck I’ve used here is one of my favourites, and I’m so happy I bought it- It’s called This Might Hurt and it’s one of the decks I personally have connected really well with. It seems really easy for me to read, most of the time, and I really like the way the creator has designed and linked the ideas through her own lens. It’s queer inspired and you’ll see a lot of female kings, and mix gender pages. There’s also representation for all sizes, shapes, skin tones and of different disabilities. I really like this deck, and if the indie printing price tag is too high for you or it’s not available where you are right now, you’re in luck! It’s been picked up for mass production and should be available this summer on amazon or other witchy metaphysical shops near you at a much lower sticker price.
So, what do you like to do for self-care? What cards did you pull? What do you think of my interpretation? Tell me in the comments!!
Tardy to the party for day 3 (sorry) I’m going to combine those mofos together.
And also? I am not very good at tarot photography it turns out. I am not bad at photography generally, but I am terribly out of practice. This is less than ideal. I know. I’m sorry. Hopefully my photos get better!
Today I’ll be using an oracle deck as well. Oracle decks aren’t the same as tarot decks- they have no set number of cards, or set imagery that they should cover. They mean whatever the creator wants them to mean (and usually they come with a little book to explain what they mean). They can be used on their own, with tarot decks and tarot spreads, or a mixture of both- there’s no wrong way to use oracle cards! Now! Onto the prompt:
Day 3: What part of me and I encouraged to show, express or share (more)?
Cards pulled: Strength reversed (Rx), The Empress, and 4 of wands Rx.
For me, this reading means I should be proud of my current physical transformations* because I’ve managed to stay the course and not falter on my goals. I’m beginning to feel tired, and I don’t really want to do it any more, and I think this reading wants me to be more self-confident and proud of what I’ve achieved, so I can continue!
The deck used here is The Modern Witch Tarot– one of my firsts and one of my favourites (and in my opinion: one of the few mass market decks with decent quality card stock for not a billion dollars but whatever). Highly recommend this deck: female-centred, traditional RWS-based deck for those on a budget.
Day 4: Where am I to use my instincts and follow my intuition? Why is this important for me?
Cards pulled: The Duck and Chrysanthemum (Luck), The Hare and the Oak (new opportunities), The Hound and Pear (loyalty).
Hmm… I keep getting cards about new opportunities lately- and choices, they seem to be following me and I’m really not sure why because I thought I knew everything on the go at the moment. I think this reading is telling me that I need to keep my eyes open and follow my instinct when it comes to new opportunities and lucky chances (maybe I should be buying lotto tickets, lol). Loyalty could be why this is important to me- maybe it’s telling me that I should follow my intuition when it comes to the new happenings in my life and that the loyal lovelies in my life will have my back, no matter what.
The deck used here is an oracle deck! Very popular at the moment, it’s Woodland Wardens– a series of animal and plant pairings and a cute little guide book to go with them.
What do you think? What cards did you pull today? Let me know in the comments!
Happy readings 💛💛
-Madame Starbeam
*I’ve been trying to lose weight, as I’m quite heavy, and it’s at the point where it’s bad for my health, bad for my back, bad for the longevity of my mattress, etc. I would like to be able to climb a flight of stairs and not feel winded, and I would like to feel comfortable flying economy- not like I’ve been crow-bared in and out of the seat. I’ve been at it since October, and I’ve lost just about 22lbs (the bigger thing is, I’ve stuck to my eating plan, something I’ve never been able to do before).
Madame Starbeam's Tarot Journey 