Well, the post I wrote last night pretty much revealed the simmering concerns I have over the trajectory we’re on. There are so many threats being waged – daily – on our physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well-being. And these threats are being experienced by all of us, both personally and collectively as a nation and even as a planet. So it was comforting when Turtle showed up as my ‘pick’ today.
Of course, I’m referring to the tradition Karl and I have of starting our mornings by choosing Medicine Cards*, and chatting over a cup of coffee about how our selections might apply to the day ahead of us. Sometimes we may only discern the relevance of a particular selection after the day has unfolded. And sometimes a pick is obviously a direct response to something we’re thinking or feeling or worrying about at the moment we chose our cards.
In fact, sometimes I have to laugh because I realize that a card I’ve chosen is directly addressing something I’ve not even spoken of out loud – and barely admitted to myself. That’s one of the gifts of opening ourselves up to exploring our intuition and the unseen guidance that’s merely waiting to be ‘asked.’
Mother Earth
The message I received when I chose Turtle this morning was that my day would be enhanced if I reconnected with Mother Earth. I took that to mean consciously. Quietly. Introspectively.
And with Black Panther underneath, my sense was that in choosing to consciously root or ground myself, by giving myself an opportunity to step away from my laptop and phone (other than to take photos so I could share my experience in some small way with you), I very well might literally ‘embrace the unknown.’
I chose to pay a silent visit to my Tohickon, my source of sustenance and rejuvenation, and I was amply rewarded. A blue heron greeted me, bringing joy immediately to my heart. But it was my immersion in a holographic cocoon of hundreds of shades of abundant life force that filled my senses and helped me remember: there is so much more.
Grandmother Moon
And just now, right before I’m posting this, I took Sheila outside and was dazzled by the brilliance of Grandmother Moon. A catbird singing reminded me of my discovery of that beautiful gift last year.
And all I wanted to do was run inside and share all of this abundant sustenance with you.**
Night Shot – Photo: L. Weikel
*affiliate link
**One other thing? Don’t forget, tomorrow is the first day of July. If you’ve been making the effort to bring diversity and balance to the land on which you live (big or small) by participating in the Perelandra Biodiversity Project, make sure to set aside the five minutes it takes to engage in the very simple yet powerful exercise described here and here.
Back when I was only a year into writing this blog (yes, well before beginning the 1111 devotion, which I began on 12 November 2018), I had an idea. I engaged in a form of “the 12 days of Christmas.” Only it was actually the “Nine Days of Solstice,” leading up to 12/21/2012.
In that exercise, I chose a card each day, a “Point of Reflection,” for myself and my readers to apply to our lives as we awaited the much-ballyhooed ‘end’ of the Mayan Calendar.
As I was sitting here a few minutes ago pondering what I might write about this evening, I found my eyes scanning the bookshelves surrounding me, causing me to appreciate the embarrassment of riches I’ve accumulated over the years. Ever since I invested in my first set of Medicine Cards*, I found that I have a predilection for divination tools – which gave me an idea.
Divination
Yeah…as I glance about the walls in my living and dining room I’m realizing just how much I enjoy exploring the various means we have at our disposal which help us tap into our own inner knowing or, perhaps, the guidance provided to us by unseen allies or forces.
Dictionary.com defines ‘divination’ as follows:
the practice of attempting to foretell future events or discover hidden knowledge by occult or supernatural means;
augury; prophecy;
perception by intuition; instinctive foresight.
To be clear, when I access a divinatory tool, I am not ‘attempting to foretell future events.’ The reason I say that is because I don’t think ‘the future’ is something static or fixed to which we’re inexorably bound to ‘arrive.’ Since we have free will, we can change ‘the future’ at any moment. Thus, there are an infinite number of futures to which we can travel.
Usually, though, when making a decision, we are faced with only a limited number of options at any given time. We could call the paths that each of these decisions would set us upon ‘strands’ of destiny. And each strand we choose at any given moment weaves together to form the fabric of our reality.
My perspective on divinatory tools, as I’ve undoubtedly expressed in various other posts, is that our souls know, at the deepest levels of our being, the lessons we’ve chosen to learn in this lifetime. We’ve set a course for ourselves before we were born. Tools that help us tap into our own inner knowing can help us make choices that can are in greatest alignment with our chosen destinies.
The Times We’re Experiencing Now
Because of my lifelong interest in acquiring tools that would help me develop my intuition and also access the inner knowledge I hid from myself at birth, I have access to a vast array of such items. From oracles such as runes, the I Ching, and oracle card decks to the almost limitless number of tarot decks that exist, I have a sweet collection. This work – this dedication to discerning our inner wisdom and accessing the guidance that is available to us is part of my livelihood – but even more importantly, it is part of who I am.
Right now, I think it’s indisputable that humanity has entered a whole new phase of existence. Indeed, we are at a confluence of many different paths, a crossroads of epic proportions.
Not only are we each being asked, individually, to stop our relentless running in what we sadly but accurately call the ‘rat race,’ but we’re also being asked, collectively, to decide – to choose – the path, the strand, that best serves humanity’s destiny or evolution.
We Could Use Some Guidance
We’re all in this together. We’re each facing situations that probably none of us expected (consciously, at least) we’d ever encounter. Each of us has our own unique constellation of factors influencing us, not least being the life lessons we set out for ourselves long ago. But again, we’re all, also, in this together, and each of our decisions impacts everyone else, even if we don’t realize it or see those impacts on a daily basis.
I have access to all these cool tools. Some will appeal to one person while others will appeal to someone else. Many of the decks I have do not resonate with me on such a level that I use them often. That doesn’t mean they don’t have value or might appeal and speak to someone else quite powerfully. And it doesn’t mean that one or another of them might not be absolutely perfect for the particular day – or moment – it’s used.
My Idea
My idea, which you probably all saw coming a mile away, is to periodically choose a card or a rune or throw an I Ching ‘for us.’ The intention I will set is to ask for a message or guidance for us, both individually and collectively, and then report it here. Depending upon the day or what’s going on for me, or for us, I will offer my perspective. But I’ll also encourage and ask you to contemplate what the particular oracle might be specifically telling you.
How could whatever I choose apply to you and your unique life?
Do you notice that you resonate with one particular oracle more than another?
Maybe allow yourself to think about what I’ve chosen for the day or days that it applies (which is until I choose another). You know, maybe write about it in a journal that you’re starting precisely because of these times we’re experiencing – so you can remember how you felt, what you experienced, and how you’ve been changed by these extraordinary times.
And if you discover a tool that particularly appeals to you, then you can buy it for yourself and work with it more extensively. I’ll provide links where I can (and full disclosure, if they’re to Amazon, I am an affiliate, so I might earn a couple pennies if you purchase through a link from this blog).
I should’ve started writing this post on themes and messages earlier. It’s getting late and I’ve been a total hog this weekend, indulging in sushi (yes, Karl does know my weakness – witness his Valentine’s Day ‘score’ this year, too) and two – two! – birthday cakes.
Last night I baked myself one of ‘Carol’s chocolate cakes,’ so Karl and I could celebrate all weekend. You know. Be totally decadent and use my birthday to justify the massive stress eating we’ve been engaging in lately. <<Ahem>> As you can see from the photo below, someone very neatly ‘edged’ along the entire width of the cake tonight with her fork. I think it looks decorative.
Carol’s Chocolate Cake – neatly ‘edged’ – Photo: L. Weikel
I couldn’t help it.
But to make matters exponentially worse (not a good word to use, come to think of it) – lo and behold! – my d-i-l Tiffany baked and delivered to me this gorgeous and delectable berry torte with whipped cream and cream cheese icing!
Oh my goodness…take a look at that baby. Tell me you don’t gain five pounds just by looking at it.
All of which is to say that I’m sitting here on the couch in a semi-stupor.
Tiffany’s Berry Birthday Torte – Photo: T.Dollar
Last Year/This Year
There are two sets of pretty interesting themes and messages that I noted last year on my birthday – both of which I want to reflect upon. But if I’m honest, I fear the sugar and fat coursing through my system at this point is not conducive to me writing anything even remotely coherent.
So I will ‘set up’ the stories, if you will, and promise to flesh them out for you in future posts.
Living Breathing Messengers
Both last year and this year, oddly, I was pulled from my slumber by two different types of birds. Last year, a pileated woodpecker literally hammered its way into my dreams until I awakened and saw it clinging to the bark of the maple tree just outside my bedroom window. What a sight that was! They dwarf most of the other birds that hang out around (or swoop through) our yard.
This year it was a completely different bird – but one that seems to have been ‘stalking’ me for a couple weeks now. The fact that I’d noticed this bird had left me a good handful of feathers from all different points along our walks over the past few weeks, flown across my path a number of times, and simply made itself quite obvious, I had to smile as I lay in bed this morning, my consciousness rising up from the depths, when I realized the insistent voice I kept hearing was this very same bird.
Mind you: for weeks, I’ve noticed it and thought solely of the one snippet of knowledge I have about the ‘message’ of this bird. I kept telling myself I needed to look it up, but never seemed to get around to it. I was also dismissing that it was really showing up for me, talking myself out of the mystical sense I was feeling when I kept finding its feathers, and telling myself that these birds have always been in our vicinity (which is true). I used that fact to actively attempt to deny that there was anything ‘special’ about their appearance this year.
Medicine Card Messengers
The other comparison I wanted to make, which if I type fast I may be able to spit out and thus not belabor were my Medicine Card* ‘picks’ on my birthday last year and now this.
I had to look up what I chose on my birthday last year. Luckily I write them down every morning when Karl and I sit, have our coffee, choose our cards for the day.
Last year I chose Dog/Lizard. Dog’s primary message is all about loyalty. Loyalty to ourselves, loyalty to others – and loyalty that’s shown (or not) to us by others.
When I looked that up just moments ago, I had to tip my hat to Spirit. Without question, the lessons I learned about loyalty and how it played out in my life were the biggest, most difficult, challenging, hurtful, and enlightening ones of my entire year. I certainly didn’t see them coming – at least not from the direction they came – and as they unfolded, their very nature was so surreal that the whole situation felt like a very bad dream.
This year’s pick, today’s cards, were Armadillo/Snake.
Given everything that’s going on all around us, from the pandemic to the personal, these cards feel like an amazingly perfect selection as a theme for my personal year. The need to cultivate my skills in setting and defining boundaries – both to give myself space and to protect myself – and shedding a number of things (beliefs, roles, relationships), including perhaps the outer identity I’ve had for some time, in order to reveal a new aspect of myself and my path.
It’s been six days since I managed to get any serious walking in. Between the weather and work and other obligations, I’ve simply not logged the mileage. And I have to admit: I yearn to get back in the saddle and return to Mother Nature.
Last week was a bust. And the most frustrating thing about it, to me, is that last week I probably could’ve most used the exposure to nature and the physical connection to the earth.
I just checked the tracker on my phone and see that from last Monday to Saturday, I averaged less than half a mile per day. My top day I managed to walk 0.51 miles and my worst I only walked 0.29 miles. Not good.
A Re-New(ed) Leaf
I’ve at least managed to start this week out on a much better foot. I averaged 4.3 yesterday and 4.1 today.
I have to admit, I was both excited and delighted by the mild weather today. Simply having sunshine brightening my windows made a difference in my mood. And that’s double-edged warmth and sunshine, since they’re coaxing dramatic spring growth to not only sprout but now blossom here and there.
Cloud Raptor – Photo: L. Weikel
Bits of Magic
But the best part about getting back out on my walking circuit is the opportunity to stumble across random messengers in the sky and discover assorted bits of magic on blankets of moss simply awaiting my gaze.
For instance, I was given a timely reminder to rise up and shift my perspective on recent events in my life when I looked up and saw what appeared, to me at least, to be an obvious cloud raptor hovering above me. “Get up, Lisa! Rise above the shock and sadness,” I could hear it admonishing me. “See what’s playing out, where it originated, and where it’s headed.”
No small task, but absolutely do-able; at least the first two suggestions anyway. Hard to tell where anything’s headed in the world right now.
What’s the Lesson?
Funny you should ask. Only several hundred yards from where I first discovered the cloud raptor, I started taking photos of little yellow flowers blossoming in a cluster on hillock of moss surrounding a maple tree.
There it was, plain as day (to my nature-starved eyes, anyway). A piece of bark in the shape of a wolf’s head. Hmm. According to the Medicine Cards®*, Wolf might represent the teacher, the pathfinder, or the forerunner of new ideas that need to be shared with the clan.
Maybe. Maybe not.
At the very least, I feel I’m being told to ‘look for teachings’ no matter what is happening – and trust my intuition. Nothing is random; and I can only imagine (and trust) my eyes needed to be opened.
One thing is for certain: it feels great to be back in the saddle, seeing the signs, listening to Mother Nature, and feeling her love and support.
Over the past five days, Turtle has shown up in my ‘picks’ for the day three times. Sixty percent of the time. Given that there are 56 cards from which to choose (four of those being blanks), it’s pretty obvious that Turtle was trying to bring me a message.
On those days, especially, I made a point of paying attention to my connection to Mother Earth by getting and staying grounded. No matter how crappy the weather, I committed myself to walking at least two miles – and on two of those days, I managed to sneak in the entire four mile ‘walkabout.’
Staying Connected
To be honest? I assumed Spirit was counseling me to get grounded, to refrain from flights of paranoia or thoughts of unkindness or intrigue or backstabbing. I took solace in Turtle’s advice to get and stay connected to Mother Earth – knowing in my heart that She would never forsake me – and remembering it’s the times of greatest stress and challenge that ask us to remember from whence our strength and comfort is generated.
So I walked. I walked and watched and listened. I noticed the changeability of the weather and listened to the wind whooshing through the very tops of the pine trees lining the road. I paid attention as flocks of birds responded to the shifts and adjusted their trajectories in order to make the most of the changing conditions they encountered.
Is It the Shell?
I wondered, as I walked, “Is it Turtle’s shell I’m being called to notice?” That’s such an obvious aspect, the protection afforded by its shell, its home; the ability to withdraw, tuck in, retreat. Yet, I wasn’t sure.
Yeah, I could withdraw. I could. But as tempting as that was, the message felt less a call to withdraw as it was a demand for connection.
“If you have chosen the Turtle symbol, you are being asked to honor the creative source within you, to be grounded to the Earth, and to observe your situation with motherly compassion. Use the water and earth energies, which represent Turtle’s two homes, to flow harmoniously with your situation and to place your feet firmly on the ground in a power stance.”*
Gratitude
And then it dawned on me. Two of those three days I chose Turtle, it appeared reversed. I realized I needed to pay particular attention to what the reversal of Turtle could be trying to convey to me:
“The idea of a Turtle helplessly trying to right itself after it has been flipped upside down can also symbolize contrary Turtle. You are not a victim, and you are not helpless, no matter how much it may see like this is the case in your present situation. To right the ill-dignified Turtle, you need only list the things you are grateful for, and from that grateful place in your heart, look for the abundance of alternatives that Mother Earth gives.”* (emphasis added)
Ah yes.
It’s essential to make the effort to be present and aware of my life, my friends, my connection to Spirit, including the amazing array of blessings my life offers me every single day. It’s important to feel snowflakes flecked with sleet nick my cheeks only a day after hearing peepers prematurely sing their spring songs.
In embracing my connection to Mother Earth and realizing the protection the shell of my blessings provides me, I realize: She really does provide us with an abundance of alternatives.
Another Turtle Altogether
So tonight, I chose to indulge in the joys provided by another Turtle altogether:
Sometimes, my friends, we just need the comfort and love that a milk chocolate cashew turtle from Pierre’s Chocolates can offer. And so? I indulged.
A different type of turtle – Yum – Photo: L. Weikel
*excerpted from Medicine Cards, by Jamie Sams and David Carson – affiliate link
I’ve been keeping pretty quiet about the Medicine Cards®* I’ve been choosing lately, mostly because they’ve been cosmic pokes in my side. Either that or they’ve been hard to figure out.
For instance, I picked Coyote reversed twice in the past five days. Coyote reversed is tough, because by its very nature, it is inscrutable and hard to figure out. It also comes with the explicit admonition:
“Contrary Coyote may signal a time when everything you touch backfires.”
Trust me, when I choose Coyote reversed, I do my best to lay low and refrain from engaging in anything too sensitive.
When Coyote reversed shows up in my life, I make a point of choosing activities in which I have as little contact with the outside world as possible. That’s not always possible, but it’s generally a good rule of thumb. Let me hasten to add, though: I don’t go traveling into other worlds, either. No, a Coyote reversed day usually calls for channeling my energy into mundane, tangible activities such as clearing away clutter, vacuuming, and doing my best to gain internal awareness of what’s going on within myself, so I can bounce back into the game the next day with greater clarity.
Salmon Reversed
So after not choosing Coyote for a very long time – quite possibly since before I even began my 1111 Devotion – I find it fascinating to have chosen it twice in the past five days (and technically, it was twice in four days, since I chose it last Friday and then again this past Monday).
But today? Today I chose Salmon reversed with Butterfly underneath. And I have to tell you, it so accurately captures my feelings of late, particularly this morning as I struggled to swim to the surface of my consciousness as I woke from a deep sleep.
Salmon, which has as its key words “Wisdom/Inner Knowing” is not, as one might be tempted to assume, about struggling upstream. It’s not about struggle at all (in the upright position, anyway). Indeed, I love the first paragraph of Salmon:
“Salmon is the sacred keeper of wisdom and inner knowing who, despite strong river currents, will always return to the place of its creation. Its determination is driven by the wisdom of instinct and inner knowing, which yields a sense of purpose that cannot be thwarted by external forces. Coming full circle, Salmon medicine people finish what they begin, bringing life’s events and cycles to closure.”
Salmon – Photo: BBC.com
At First Glance
Superficially, I’ll admit, I may have felt as though I was struggling to “return to the place of (my) creation” today. Everything sort of felt like a hassle, and I wasn’t sure if it was my own frustrations with certain situations in my life or if I might just be sensitive to and reflecting the energies ‘out there.’
That might seem counter-intuitive, but sometimes direct action mitigates a sense of overwhelm. I care about what’s going on in Washington D.C., and yet I feel stymied by just how little I’m able to actually do to contribute to a solution to that situation. I envy those attorneys, representatives, and their staffs that are involved in the process because they know they are fighting the good fight. They’re actively engaging in work that makes a difference.
For myself, I know that my greatest joy comes from being of service to others, whether it’s by direct one-on-one work or engaging in efforts that benefit many at once.
My sense of self resonated today with these words contained within Salmon reversed:
“If you have been seeking the approval of others by being a follower instead of listening to your personal knowing, it may be time to reclaim you own authority. (…) If so, get out of your head and get back to the wisdom found in your heart and feelings. Like Salmon, people sometimes need to backtrack upstream to see where life’s meandering tributaries flowed away from the original headwaters of their certainty, wisdom, instinct, and inner knowing.”
Yes, these words struck a chord. And underneath that Salmon reversed? Butterfly. CHANGE.
Yesterday I chose Hawk reversed with Dog underneath, and as I wrote in my post, my usual ease in interpretation just wasn’t cutting it. And I grant you: there are definitely days that I remain in the dark on why I chose the Medicine Card I did for that day. But after decades of practice, I’m fairly decent at discerning the messages conveyed by the wide variety of creatures represented in the Medicine Cards®*.
Which makes my difficult yesterday all the more amusing – since Hawk is traditionally the ‘message carrier.’
And as I stated toward the end of last night’s post, with Dog underneath my Hawk reversed yesterday, I felt I could not escape the fact that somehow, in some way, loyalty – either in delivering a message for others or in being loyal to myself enough to receive a message I need to hear – was underlying this message from Hawk.
As the Day Unfolds
As I’ve mentioned before, sometimes we’re quite sure what our ‘pick’ on the day means – we know exactly the issue it relates to and how we should best address it. Other times we have an inkling, but have found it best to keep an open mind. And then there are the days when we have no clue. Those are the days when we reflect on our pick throughout the day, to see what is revealed as the day unfolds.
Yesterday was such a day.
Before I’d even picked yesterday morning, I’d remarked to Karl that my post on Silence seemed to erupt from deep within. The words came to me sort of like slow moving magma – they may not have erupted from me in an explosive torrent of hastily scribbled words, but they did feel as though they were originating from a very pensive place deep within – and their flow was not easily stanched.
The post had a different feel to it, and I wondered how – or if – it landed with anyone.
Unexpected Appreciation
Imagine my surprise, then, when a neighbor (who I didn’t even realize reads my posts) approached me from across her yard to specifically thank me for writing my Silence Abounds post. She said it was “just what she needed to read this morning.”
I was delighted. But I have to admit: if Karl hadn’t pointed it out, I probably wouldn’t have recognized my neighbor as the messenger she was, and in particular, one bearing a message to be loyal to the posts (and not second guess their value).
Yet Another Messenger
Finally, later last night, I received an email from a person I worked beside nearly twenty years ago. (Is it possible it’s really been that long?! I kept trying to make it only ten years ago, but alas…). Receiving this email was a wonderful surprise, for as relationships are wont to come and go when people’s paths no longer cross, we rarely correspond anymore.
But the best part about receiving this email was my friend’s relaying of two brief stories that interconnect in their shared power to provide inspiration and hope to others – and his specific and pointed message to me that these stories matter. Our stories matter.
The light went on.
In spite of all the exhortations I make to others about the value of our thoughts, feelings, and experiences, and especially the value of writing them down, I’m not always loyal to the value of my own writing, my own stories.
It just might behoove me to bring loyalty to both the messages and the act (and privilege) of being a messenger.
I’m listening.
You listening? I’m lookin’ at you. – Photo: L. Weikel
I chose Hawk reversed on my day today – with Dog underneath.
As you may be aware, the so-called* Weikel Way of choosing Medicine Cards** interprets that as Dog adding color or somehow guiding or laying a foundation for interpreting the meaning of the primary card, in this case, Hawk reversed.
Hawk is a messenger, and of course, choosing Hawk could indicate that either I was going to act as a messenger in some way today, or I would receive a message. At least, those would be the two scenarios I would expect to arise as primary interpretation possibilities.
Perhaps at least partially due to my post last night on Silence, I’ve had a rather extraordinarily quiet day today.
Didn’t Really See It
I read out loud the text of both upright and reversed Hawk this morning, as recommended by the authors, Jamie Sams and David Carson, in the instructions. (When a card is chosen upright, however, it’s customary to read only the upright narrative.) As we not all that infrequently have happen, Karl and I both chose the same card, in this case, Hawk reversed as our primary today – so we listened and contemplated Hawk’s message twice. (Karl had Elk underneath.)
A few salient lines are as follows:
“If you have drawn Hawk reversed, it may be because you have shut down your powers of observation on some level. If something in your life has become too painful to feel, too unbelievable to hear, or too dark to see, it is time to examine the point at which you chose to let yourself become emotionally involved, and to no longer be the observer.”
I’ll admit, there have been a couple of recent instances in my world in which each of these descriptions of circumstances could reasonably have applied. While I’ve done my best to exercise vigilance and remain the observer, that detachment is not always easy to maintain.
Nevertheless, I didn’t really see it. What was I being told to look at and, possibly, remediate?
Another clue might have been these lines:
“Freedom of flight is a privilege, and being a messenger is an honor. The responsibility for delivery of the message is up to you. Take your flight and forget about interpreting the omen your own way. Let the receiver decide what the message means. After all, unless it was sent specifically for you, you would be tampering.”
I could see how this might apply to some of the more difficult challenges I’ve encountered recently, but I still couldn’t really see it. Maybe…but it was a stretch.
So I let it go and hoped the meaning and its application to my life might reveal itself to me as the day wore on.
Regarding Dog underneath (at least in my case), I couldn’t help but imagine I was being asked to examine whether I was being loyal to either my role as a messenger or loyal to a message I was receiving (and perhaps not taking in).
Wondering Aloud
As a result of wondering aloud about these questions, I received answers, I think – in both respects – from some unexpected sources.
I’ll fill you in tomorrow, since time is running away with me and I want to deliver the message accurately. (Wink.)
I haven’t written many posts lately referencing my Medicine Card® * picks. That doesn’t mean Karl and I haven’t been choosing a card on our day each and every morning. It’s just that sometimes the applicability to my day isn’t all that interesting. Or at least interesting enough to warrant sharing with you.
As the title to this post indicates, I chose Turkey squared this morning. (As you may recall, when I say I chose a card “squared,” that means there was a blank card on the bottom of the deck, which I interpret as ‘squaring’ the impact of the top card – or the card I ‘chose’ as my main card.)
Oooh, that piqued my interest! A day with double the opportunity to experience a gift of some sort!
Turkey’s Meaning
Of course, I anticipated I might experience a gift as a result of choosing Turkey squared because Turkey is considered to be the ‘giveaway eagle’ by many Native American people, as it sacrifices its life to sustain us.
Sitting here contemplating what I might write about this evening (since, no, if you must ask, I haven’t remembered all three things referenced last night), I realized the many gifts I’d received today – and then recalled that I’d chosen Turkey squared while having coffee with Karl this morning.
First Gift
Not to sound trite, but the first gift I experienced this morning was that very act of sitting here in our living room with Karl, all five of our pets in various states of repose on blankets and couches and pillows. Our fireplace was burning, wrapping us all in toasty warmth, and Karl was exclaiming how delicious his freshly brewed coffee tasted, having just bought a pound of his favorite roast only yesterday.
There was something so wonderful in that moment, and I just felt so…lucky. This was before I chose my Turkey card, too, by the way. So yeah, maybe my choice of Turkey was influenced by the fact that I was already feeling permeated by a sense of gratitude.
Second Gift
We had an opportunity to listen to a presentation and take a tour of the grounds of the authentic Rosicrucian Fraternity in Quakertown. This is actually the world headquarters for this organization, which was first established in Germany in 1614. The purpose of this Fraternity was to bring together into one organization the various associations of individuals previously known as the Hermetists, Pythagoreans, Magi , Platonists, Gnostics, Alchemists, and Paracelsians.
I believe it was established in North America well before the Revolution, but in 1774, the governing body (Council of Three) was composed of Benjamin Franklin, George Clymer, and Thomas Paine.
There is much to be explored and understood about this Fraternity, and I found the ‘taste’ of their teachings to be very much in line with much of what I’ve learned through the years through my exposure not only to ancient wisdom teachings (through the auspices of the teacher Karl and I studied with and about whom I wrote in Owl Medicine), but also to the varied indigenous traditions I’ve had the honor of being introduced to and in some cases initiated into.
It was a unique pleasure to walk the grounds and observe the fascinating architecture with our host, the Rev. Arlene Curley, Ph.D., and I’d like to thank her for the introduction (and Susan Duval, for arranging it).
Third Gift
The sunset this evening was an exquisite blend of deep oranges and blazing reds. The colors were so rich it was hard not to taste them.
Alas, none of the photos I sent myself from my phone have come through. Thanks again, Verizon Wireless, for your inconsistency. Maybe I’ll include some in tomorrow’s post!
Anyone who makes an effort to pick Medicine Cards®on a regular basis knows how odd – but almost always significant – it is to go weeks or months or perhaps even longer without choosing a particular card, only to suddenly begin doing so. And it’s even weirder when you start choosing that card repeatedly, whether it be ‘on the top’ (meaning it’s the primary card you chose) or ‘on the bottom’ (meaning it’s literally the card on the bottom of the deck no matter where in the deck you chose your ‘main’ card from). The ‘bottom’ card is used to add context or sometimes a hint or clue as to what area in your life to which the main card might apply.
Well, over the past week, I chose Swan for the first time in a very, very long time. Specifically, the first time, I chose Swan/Weasel. Then I chose it again today. Swan/Skunk.
Two days before the first time I chose Swan (six days ago), Skunk started showing up, too. Indeed, Skunk showed up two days before Swan appeared, then for two days running a few days later, then one last time again – today.
My apologies if this seems a bit ‘in the weeds.’ My point is to show that Swan has not been an integral player in my life for a very long time, nor has Skunk – but now they’re both showing up. And I think I better pay attention. So I do…
Spirit’s Not So Sure
I assert (to myself, to Spirit) that I’m paying attention; I’m ‘all good,’ and indeed, I’m doing just fine thank you very much.
Yes, hmm. Swan has shown up in my life. OK. I’m supposed to ‘trust’ and ‘surrender’ – perhaps even literally journey for myself (as opposed to all the journeying I do on behalf of clients), in order to determine what my ‘next steps’ are.
I wrote about it a bit in my journal. But I’ll confess: I did not write much. I was sort of blowing it off; thinking I knew what it was driving at. Assuming. Indeed, I was acting as if I knew, at least superficially, what message Swan was bringing me.
Smack Upside the Head
Imagine my surprise, then, the other day, when I was sitting by the creek writing in my journal, when the following vision appeared before my eyes:
Special Delivery Messenger? – Photo: L. Weikel
I’ll be honest: this felt pretty freaking momentous. It felt playful – but insistent. After all, in some ways, a big blow-up golden Swan floating into my life was even more startling and clearly a message than had a regular, full-feathered Swan made an appearance.
Nevertheless (I’ll admit it), I blew that off, too. Well. Not entirely. I took a photo of it. I wrote about it in my journal. But I didn’t sit with it in all seriousness. I didn’t truly reflect on its meaning.
Which Brings Me To Today
Yet again, I chose Swan/Skunk today. These two archetypal energies have been hanging around me now for about two good weeks. Slipping in and out of my daily picks, flirting with my consciousness, floating down the Tohickon in real life and marooning itself on a rock right in front of where I was sitting and writing.
Yeah. I’m thinking there’s a message Spirit wants me to pay attention to and receive. Perhaps, if I’m diligent, I’ll figure it out tomorrow.
