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[Tweet “Tarotscopes for October 12-18, 2014 help me get my week started.”]
Gaian Tarot
Card of the Week: MAGICIAN Movement works. Using tools, creating tools, making magic is on tap this week. Throw yourself into the energy.
AQUARIUS THE GARDNER Abundance. Creation. Life. Gratitude brings more gifts.Show others how to indulge in their own powerful selves. Be strong.
PISCES CHILD OF FIRE What draws your eye? What makes you curious? Investigate this week like a child. Poke, pry, ask questions. Play a lot.
ARIES GUARDIAN OF WATER Emotional stories need to be told as well as heard. Diving deep will bring up treasures but you have to face a few monsters.
TAURUS THE BUILDER Details matter so focus on them. Reread everything before signing. Use a highlighter to understand. Family needs come first.
GEMINI NINE OF EARTH Be kind to others. Show them where you were. Appreciate where you are now. Learn to define prosperity differently.
CANCER FIVE OF FIRE Focused conversations this week. Make sure you let your frustration as well as your happiness be known. Direct energetic talks are best.
LEO GUARDIAN OF FIRE Fire needs to be fed. Passions need play time. May be a busy busy week but you can get it done. Burn a little energy!
VIRGO SEVEN OF WATER Dreams seem out of reach? Focus on one to make that happen. You aren’t given up on the others. Just focusing on the one.
LIBRA BINDWEED So many things tying you down. How many could be cut? How many are you feeding? Don’t give up. Resolve to cut those ties.
SCORPIO STRENGTH Embrace your power. Understanding the connection between ownership and being owned can enlighten. Dig deep for your inner resolve.
SAGITTARIUS GUARDIAN OF AIR What are the messages you need to deliver? Focus on hearing what needs to be said. Say it directly. Fast cuts hurt less.
CAPRICORN ELDER OF FIRE Your questions are answered when you understand death means life and life means death. Balance passion with meditation.
Have you listened to this month’s TarotCopes podcast?
Share today’s post to be entered to win the course. Leave a comment with your link. Winner will be drawn 10/18 and announced on the 10/19 Tarotscopes post.
Today I’m blogging at WitchesAndPagans for their SageWoman blog. It’s about Tarot and a spell you can use for healing.
[Tweet “I joined @tarotbyarwen on the @WnP_Official blog. It’s #tarot and spells today.”]
Shadowscapes
Today I’m blogging at WitchesAndPagans for their SageWoman blog. It’s about Tarot and a spell you can use for healing. Check it out.
Today’s affirmation:
I heal myself. I accept healing. I am healthy. I am a strong, beautiful, loving human. I am blessed beyond measure. I give thanks for unknown blessings already on the way. Love and loving, I love each of you.
Seek joy, y’all. Pass it on.
Two of Cups, Shadowscapes Tarot, Llewellyn Worldwide
[Tweet “Got my Tarotscopes read. What’s yours? Good one? Bad one? #tarot”]
I have a book recommendation for you. If you like paranormal romance/urban fantasy, you should check out Deborah Blake’s Wickedly Dangerous. Or you might prefer Marilu Mann (that’s me!) Changing Paths. Here’s an .
Prefer to write your own? .
Now on to this week’s TarotCopes.
CARD OF THE WEEK: TEMPERANCE Change is coming. You must balance what you want w/ what you have w/ what you need. Easy-peasy, right? 😐
AQUARIUS SIX OF AIR Working with others is good. Choose effective means of communication. Learn their way of speaking first. Language counts.
PISCES CHILD OF FIRE Let your passion out. Be playful. Be fun. Explore back roads. Investigate what fires you up. Good week to let your hair down.
ARIES ACE OF FIRE Curiosity followed brings rewards. Imagination chased opens up new worlds, relationships. This is about letting passion start.
TAURUS EIGHT OF FIRE Busy week. Sneakers and power bars recommended. Last-minute meetings. Unexpected deadlines. Get as much done now as you can.
GEMINI SEVEN OF AIR Not sure where to do? Put down the map. Goal is closer than you think. Short trips favored. Good wk to explore neighborhood.
CANCER CHARIOT Work on good habits you want to create. It’s better to focus on those than what needs breaking. Drive your own life forward.
LEO LOVERS Show others how to love themselves. Write sonnets to trees. Serenade a squirrel. Good week to be silly. Playtime brings love.
VIRGO SEVEN OF WATER What are your dreams? Worried they won’t happen? Let that go. Time to indulge in at least one of them. Dive all the way in.
LIBRA FIVE OF AIR Competition. Squabbles. Stop fighting with yourself. Each idea has a place. A good week to untangle emotion from thought.
SCORPIO HERMIT Grab a good book. Shut the door to the world. Take-out Chinese. Ignoring the world’s noise is best. You need a time out.
SAGITTARIUS TEN OF WATER Emotional cycles. Completion of old relationships. Understanding the why of things helps you move forward with grace.
CAPRICORN GUARDIAN OF EARTH Figure out what’s next by examining progress. One project needs more time but the other is ready to go. Make it happen.
Ready to get your own personalized three month TarotCope forecast? I’m running a special this month. I have ten openings for this twelve week forecast for $75. Interested? Contact me now so you don’t miss out.
[Tweet “I read my tarotscope every week. Do you? Check it out.”]
Welcome to this week’s TarotCopes. No, I’m not misspelling tarotscopes. 😀 I’ve decided to rename them since I hope you can use them to cope.
Before we dive in, I want to show off the gorgeous Tarot bag made for me by Rowan&Raven. Using antique fabrics and embellishments, Rowan&Raven create truly beautiful pieces. I own three bags. Trust me when I say, I will own more. The work put into these is nothing short of master artisan level. You won’t be disappointed with a treasure from Rowan&Raven. (and no! I’m not getting paid to say that.)
Bag by Rowan&Raven
CARD OF THE WEEK: ACE OF WINTER Things unthaw. What’s been stuck finally begins to wriggle loose. Remember thoughts create situations. Seek joy.
AQUARIUS ACE OF SUMMER Sometimes enlightenment comes from letting your passions unfold. Indulge in creativity without expectations. Scary, huh!
PISCES KING OF AUTUMN Ruling your heart means being honest with yourself. You made the rules so you can change them. Time to express love.
ARIES HERALD OF AUTUMN Fall in love again. With life, silly. What’s holding you back from just being giddy about living? Make it a fun week.
TAURUS HERMIT When you study nature, you learn about yourself. Make time for walks + talks with spirit self. Writing it out brings revelation.
GEMINI SEVEN OF WINTER Working hard is good but remember to relax. Down time lets you renew that battery. Don’t overdo it this week, please.
CANCER THE STARS Check your goals. Celebrate achievements. Mark off to-do’s. You can go higher than expected this week. Just aim for the stars.
Victorian Fairy Tarot
LEO KING OF SUMMER Make sure you are letting them love you. Open up your heart to let love in as well as out. Passion needs to be experienced.
VIRGO TEN OF AUTUMN Happy family, happy home. Work on sharing your bounty. Give gratitude + say grace. Being thankful will show you your blessings.
LIBRA AWAKENING Exploration of shadow self helps you move up. Transcending fear brings peace. Work with shadow rather than against.
SCORPIO SIX OF WINTER Where do you need to be? What is keeping you where you don’t want to be? Identify both to move forward. Accept help.
SAGITTARIUS TEN OF SUMMER Make it last by truly enjoying it. Don’t try to take on more than you can enjoy. Relish what you have. Finish what you start.
CAPRICORN SEVEN OF SUMMER You do what you can. Let others do their own work. Your work can stand up to theirs so stop comparing so much! Disengage envy.
Some days there are just too many foxes in my world. Do you ever have this problem?
[Tweet “#affirmations Some days there are just too many foxes in my world. Do you ever have this problem?”]
Shadowscapes
#affirmations Some days there are just too many foxes in my world. Do you ever have this problem?
I get an idea of what I want to write about but I’m not sure of the direction. Today’s thought was dissatisfaction.
A rather unusual thought for me since I am a professional joy seeker. But still, that’s the word I had so I went with it.
I’ve had a lot of stress-inducing situations in the past two weeks–nearly all of them out of my hands.
Someone’s health
Foundation of a building
Foundation of a company
A loved one’s very hard battle
Nothing that I could point a finger at to merrily say, “Seek joy, y’all.”
In fact, I think if someone had reminded me of that, I might have just cracked. Yep…stress.
So when I pulled this Knight of Wands from my app, I snickered. Then I giggled. Then I guffawed.
Because this, my darlings, this is the perfect expression of what I am feeling.
So much to do…so many foxes to direct. I see each fox as a thing that I might do. A project that needs attention.
And there I am straddling a lionzelle (my word for this gorgeous lionesque creature with gazelle horns.) The beast is ready to go, but I have not yet leaned forward. I have not yet committed to the events underfoot.
I can so see this as the root of my dissatisfaction. No action has been taken but there is a clarion call to action taking place.
The problem, as I see it, is too many foxes. Which one of the five is it to be? Once I figure that out, I think this general ennui will dissipate.
Perhaps this niggling, just out of reach itch of need is my clue that I just need to move. I need to pick one and go with it. Those other foxes?
Well there’s good news and there’s bad news.
They will always be there.
What? That’s the good news AND the bad news.
So how about you? What projects are calling to you? What do you need to move on? Is it a time of action or of rest for you?
Today’s affirmation:
I choose to take action. I am responsible for my own happiness. I make time to create. I open myself up to the infinite possibilities of joy. Seeking joy is my way of life. Loved and loving, I love each of you. Seek joy, y’all. Pass it on!
So I decided I would share a recipe post. Luckily I have an index of them. I also have an index for my Tarot poetry project. This recipe has a lot of sentimental energy for me. Enjoy!
[Tweet “What should religion remind us of? Cabbage? Rain? Strength? #seekjoy”]
For today’s Magic Up Your Blog challenge, our leader, Amethyst, has asked us to recycle an old blog post. This was harder for me than you might think. I am pretty vain about my writing if the truth be told. Writing as Marilu Mann or writing as Arwen, I put a lot of work into things.
So I decided I would share a recipe post. Luckily I have an index of them. I also have an index for my Tarot poetry project. This recipe has a lot of sentimental energy for me. Enjoy!
“Our religion keeps reminding us that we aren’t just will and thoughts. We are also sand and wind and thunder. Rain. The seasons. You learn to respect everything because you are everything.” ~ William Least Heat Moon 1939-
Mama
I was blessed with a mother who wasn’t overly religious although she was a faithful woman. She grew up Catholic, then raised my sister and I in the Episcopal faith. She attended the Methodist church with her second husband while beginning her drift back to her childhood faith of Catholicism. She allowed me, albeit regretfully, to leave the Christian path without making it hard on me.
She didn’t like it. I know this. I also know that she wanted me to be happy and secure. So she didn’t make my religious choice a bone of contention. And she certainly could have. She was a strong woman from some very strong women. In my family, the matriarchs have always stood out.
Chrysalis Tarot
My Mama had a German-Scot Mama and a Scot-Irish Papa. While her mama, my Grannilu, was not someone I remember as a good cook, Mama said there were good cooks in her family. She passed her love of starchy potatoes and stinky cabbage on to me with this dish. It’s one she found later in life.
Like her, I’m a collector or recipes. I even cook some of them. 😀 She made this for me for one of my homecoming meals and I loved it then as I love it now. Even die-hard cabbage haters will fall for this treat!
Because it’s something I closely identify with Mama, I knew this one had to be a Queen (the Empress was already taken, sorry Mama!). The Queen of Cups might seem like the perfect choice but my Mama was a sharp edged Scorpio. She was funny–brilliantly so at times and almost always pointed and sharp insightful humor. I knew her as a widow most of my life (she remarried when I was in my early 20’s).
Her friends were classy, stylish women (when they weren’t being redneck haints). She was a a classy, stylish woman and I adored her. She wasn’t the cookie-baking, soccer mom but she was the take-you-to-the-library, defend-you-tooth-and-nail mom. I’m lucky to have had the time I did with her. So she is the Queen of Swords to me.
World Spirit Tarot
Queen of Swords Cabbage Au Gratin
1 head cabbage, shredded
4 cups water
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup dry bread crumbs (divided)
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 beaten egg
1-1/2 cup grated cheese (divided)
1-1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 pound bacon
Brown bacon, set aside
Cook cabbage in water 10 minutes. Drain.
Beat egg, cream and seasonings together.
Layer cabbage in casserole pan with egg mixture and remaining ingredients,except bacon. Reserve some of the bread crumbs and cheese for topping.
Place chopped bacon on top of casserole, dot with butter and bake in a preheated 350° F. oven for 30 minutes.
6 servings
Arwen says: Mama didn’t do the bacon and I don’t either. Just a sodium overload!
I hope you will let me know if you try this. I think I’ll make some this week. If you are Catholic, maybe you’d like to light a candle at Mary’s altar for my mama. Her name was Marilu. I’ll light a candle on my own altar. Don’t let religion come between you and those you love. It’s really not worth it. Instead, share a meal and a blessing that you have friends and family who care about you enough to worry about you.
Here’s to all of us. We are blessed to have the ability to choose who we call family. “You learn to respect everything because you are everything.” Thanks to William Least Heat Moon for that.
Today’s affirmation:
Today I understand my self. I accept me for all of who I am, past, present and future. I celebrate the tears, the laughter, the good times, the bad times. I acknowledge how my family forged me. Loved and loving, I love each of you. Seek joy, y’all. Pass it on.
We would all be dancing from the center of our own passion.
[Tweet “We would all be dancing from the center of our own passion. #seekjoy”] Gaian Tarot
#affirmation Today I’m answering a question posed by Amethyst Mahoney in her Spiritual Badass blog challenge.
“If you were in charge of things, what would the World look like?”
Joy. That’s what the world would look like if I were in charge. JOY.
There would be rewards for those who made it their life’s work to bring happiness to others. I have so many things in my head that it is hard to get them all out.
Things like…could we end world hunger if everyone who had enough to eat went without one day a week? That they sent the money they would have spend on food for that one day to some place where there isn’t enough food.
Things like…could we end wars if everyone agreed to the basic fact that we can all worship who we like? What would happen if the Protestants and the Catholics agreed to that? The Jews and the Muslims? The Christians and everybody else? Can you imagine a world where we don’t say, “Oh she’s not a member of our church” as if it were a slur?
I can.
I work daily to remind people, to teach people, to exhort people to seek joy.
This Explorer of Fire is the perfect example of what the world would look like. We would all be dancing from the center of our own passion. We would move through life knowing that what we said and did affected others. We would understand our place in the Universal web.
And we would live as though we mattered.
Today’s affirmation:
I matter. I am important. What I do is sacred. What I think is precious. I choose to live an intentional, authentic life. Loved and loving, I love each of you. Seek joy, y’all. Pass it on.
By the way, have you listened to this month’s TarotCopes podcast? There’s a contest that end 8/15.
Explorer of Fire, Gaian Tarot, Llewellyn Publishing
Starting my week off with advice from the stars. What does your @tarotscope say?
[Tweet “Starting my week off with advice from the stars. What does your @tarotscope say?”]
Gaian Tarot
Card Of The Week: TEN OF WATER Remember the cycles, y’all. Up, down, in, out–it all repeats. Learning to ride the waves brings success.
This week’s deck is the Gaian Tarot by Joanna Powell Colbert. My must have! No, seriously! I have five copies.
AQUARIUS THREE OF FIRE Let them see your passion. Make them understand what drives you. Your fuel, your life. Don’t drink from their wells. PISCES EIGHT OF FIRE Trip this week can help you reenergize. Put your excitement in the driver’s seat if you want to get buy-in for this project. ARIES STAR Set some stretch goals. Lazy dreams don’t get you anywhere. Nudge that comfort zone aside, honey. Let your wings unfurl fully. TAURUS GAIA THE WORLD Open your arms. Receive the gifts. Be generous in return. Friends stand ready to help. Please let them. #seekjoy GEMINI ACE OF WATER Expand your love. Go deeper than before. Growth comes in the scary depths. Open up to the love offered. Use your heart. CANCER ELDER OF WATER Stop worrying about the journey so much. Enjoy the stops, the dips, the bumps even. It will make for a better story. LEO TWO OF AIR Got too much input? Shut down the outside world. Focus on your own inner guide. Take your own pulse of what’s important to you. VIRGO EXPLORER OF EARTH Work goes better if you move forward. Stop digging in thos stubborn heels. Get involved with others to succeed. LIBRA NINE OF FIRE Yes, you actually can do it all. Good week to meditate. It works better when you do it regularly. Bring passion in. SCORPIO MOON Listen to your self. Take some time to slow it down. Re-examine self-illusions. Try to get clear on what’s self-deception. SAGITTARIUS CANOE You must drive your own life. Stop letting others be anchors. Let them be distant shores–either coming or going. This is about you. CAPRICORN TWO OF FIRE Time to dance. Time to move. Shake off those doubts. Reach out to light up someone else’s world. Partnership focus.
Do you hang out with crows? Do you have a continual stream of negativity from others? Do you condone it by staying? Do you encourage it by commenting on it?
Shadowscapes Tarot
Today’s card reminds me to rise above. There will always be those who demean others to make themselves feel better. Sadly, this seems to be part of the current human nature. And it truly makes me sad because it is just as easy to praise others as to condemn them.
This Six of Swords is from the gorgeous Shadowscapes Tarot. She rises above the five crows. She’s chosen to take the swan’s flight up and over the naysayers.
Choices. It’s all about choices. She could have chosen to stay there with the crows. Even with her beautiful swan companion, she still would have been surrounded by crows. Instead of staying there, she took herself away.
Sometimes, it seems safe to stay with the crows. At least then you know you aren’t the target of their attack. At least then you feel protected from the incessant peck peck peck of their negativity, right?
It wears a soul down. Rubs it thin. Like cloth that is constantly abraded by wind, it becomes tattered on the edges. We can mend the holes, mind the frayed threads, but eventually we are worn down. Eventually we either become shadows of ourselves or, worse, crows ourselves.
(Please note that I happen to like crows but in this card the symbol of the crow is a negative one.)
Crows gather in flocks. We call them murders.
Do you hang out with crows? Do you have a continual stream of negativity from others? Do you condone it by staying? Do you encourage it by commenting on it?
I have requirements. I require that seek joy. I require that I acknowledge the pissed off moments, the sad moments, the moments of sheer heinous what-the-fuckery. I have them. We all have them. But my requirements are that I let them pass on through. I don’t hold on to them. I have to let them go.
[Tweet “Sometimes I have to KEEP letting them go.”]
I won’t stay with crows. I won’t allow my negative feelings to drive my life. They happen. I move on.
Because my life has changed so much since I started actively seeking joy, I won’t stop. The day I first named myself a professional joy seeker truly galvanized (word of 2013, y’all) my world.
So don’t let life’s crows take over. Ride that swan up and out. Keep riding. Keep moving up and out. Don’t sweat the slumps, the slips, the slides. Keep moving up and out.
Six days left to get your free reading. Buy any downloadable version of from that link. Then tell me you did it. I’ll get you set up for your free reading.
I’m getting asked truly amazing questions like “What was I born to do?” “How can I accomplish my goals this year?” Big questions and I’m loving the answers the Universe is giving out.
What question would you ask if you had the chance?
I’m fairly thick-skinned with most but those closest to me can hurt me the worst with this. I have to monitor my reactions and decide which sword I will pick up.
Today’s card is a reminder to me that I don’t have to accept all invitations to arguments. I know a few people who seem to relish picking at flaws of others. They love to point out any mistakes. Perhaps they see it as a way to help others improve. For me, it can hit me one of two ways.
I can see it as an opportunity to review things in my life for improvement.
I can see it as someone needing to feel superior because their own life isn’t fitting their needs.
Really depends on the context and how often it occurs as to which I see it as.
I’m fairly thick-skinned with most but those closest to me can hurt me the worst with this. I have to monitor my reactions and decide which sword I will pick up.
Will I pick up the one that allows me to parry back sharp and swift?
Will I pick up the one that lets me thrust straight to the heart in defense?
Will I pick up the one with the blunted tip so that I only bruise in return?
Will I pick up the one that requires two hands and all the force I can bring?
Will I pick up the ceremonial sword that shows I am ready to learn new moves?
I can attack back (and is it really back if the person truly means well but delivers poorly?)
I can stop and listen to my own intuition. A self-check to see if the advice is warranted is never a bad thing.
This Five of Swords from Lisa Hunt’s Fairytale Tarot reminds me that the sword I choose today will have repercussions. I must breathe. Maybe even count to ten or perhaps one hundred. Swords tend to have more than one way to cut–pointed tip, sharp edges, double edges. As the one wielding the weapon, I am the most qualified to NOT use it.
So what about you? What do you think? How do you react to criticism?
Five of Swords, The Fairy Tale Tarot by Lisa Hunt, Llewellyn 2008 (out of print but available as an app for your iOS phones. Not sure about Android. :D)
