Medicine Cards

Raising the Roof on My Comfort Zone – Day 213

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Clouds parting and bringing clarity – Photo: L. Weikel

Raising the Roof on My Comfort Zone

As I mentioned last night, my decision to raise my rates has been a long time coming. It wasn’t a decision I made lightly, by any means.

Many factors played into my decision, as you might expect.

But yesterday, as I contemplated making my announcement public by writing about it here, I felt all my worries and doubts lining up for one last swipe at my decision.

The wind yesterday was brisk and it was chilly on our porch. I picked up the deck of Medicine Cards and walked, barefoot, onto our lawn, shuffling all the while. I looked up into the sky and watched the clouds, which had blanketed the sky only moments earlier, open up to reveal brilliant azure clarity above my head. I felt myself connecting with the cool green grass beneath my feet as I opened my heart to receiving one last oomph of GUIDANCE.

As I meandered, I said out loud to anyone who would hear (but really, I was addressing Spirit), that increasing my rates was really pushing me out of my comfort zone, that I was really feeling anxious and conflicted over it.

The Wind Steps In

At that, the wind whipped in, picked a card off the deck as I shuffled the cards in my hands and swept that card face down into the birdbath, which was full of fresh, clear rain water from the storms of the night before.

Miraculously, the card landed on the surface of the water gently and without a sound. I snatched the card up, refusing to allow the card to get ruined by plunging into a birdbath, gently wiping it to ensure no permanent damage was done.

The card that Spirit had chosen ‘for’ me was Ant. The keyword for Ant is Patience. Glancing at the rest of the deck, which I continued to clutch in my left hand, I saw that Black Panther was stalking my pick, informing me on how I should interpret that “Spirit-assisted” pick. Black Panther’s keyword are ‘Embracing the Unknown.”

Wow. OK. I felt totally OK with having PATIENCE, which was interesting, because years and years ago, that was the single-word response I received when I took one of my first journeys and asked for guidance. I simply saw the word PATIENCE – in all caps – right in front of my closed eyelids. That frustrated me to no end.

Patience/Embracing the Unknown

But this time? It felt good. It felt OK. I felt that Spirit was telling me to FOLLOW THROUGH with this shift (of which raising my rates is a part) and to have patience. Yes, it may cause me to ‘lose’ potential clients that would have come to me had I left my rates where they’ve been for 15 years. But if I have patience (and accept that this IS a leap from my comfort zone – “into the VOID OF THE UNKNOWN”) things may work out in ways I cannot even fathom right now.

Yes, I must leap (Black Panther), but first and foremost, I MUST EXERCISE PATIENCE. Which means yeah, I’m probably going to encounter some backlash and some scary times. Yeah, it’s not necessarily going to be easy or a walk in the park. But it is the right thing to do.

I’ll admit that this was my first true ‘hit’ on what the Ant/Black Panther combo was telling me.

Doubt Rears Its Head

But then, of course, my freaking nemesis, doubt – that Spirit could actually, truly, be encouraging me to think bigger, dream bigger, to believe that I am here to help deliver a message, in service, that people will benefit from hearing and incorporating into their lives – kicked in.

I chastised myself: Maybe the Ant card landing in the birdbath meant, “Yeah, you need to just settle down. Don’t act in haste by raising your rates so dramatically. Settle the $#%@ down. Be patient.”

And that thought just felt awful. I felt every cell in my body droop. It deflated me and made me feel sad – as if I were letting myself down in the worst way.

Realizing how profoundly my old habits of indulging my doubt and second-guessing the message I’d intuited with such crystal clarity in those first moments made me feel utterly defeated, I chose, then and there, to honor my knowing.

I’m revealing these thoughts and the process through which I butted heads with my doubts to show that I understand how tough it can be to honor our knowing. When I ask clients to do hard things, it’s not as if I’m asking you to do anything I wouldn’t demand of my own self.

The Road Ahead – Photo: L. Weikel

(T-898)

Sometimes It’s Not Obvious – Day Seventy Five

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boyslife.org

Sometimes It’s Not Obvious          

Even though I haven’t talked about it in quite a while, Karl and I continue to pick Medicine Cards each morning. And even though we’ve been consistently picking them every morning for the past, oh, twenty five years or so…sometimes it’s not obvious what Spirit’s trying to say through them.

For instance, I’ve had Bat in some configuration of my cards for the past four days in a row. And that damn Beaver’s shown up with it half the time. (You may recall Beaver was underneath my Prairie Dog on January 1st, setting the agenda for the year.)

Bat, Bat, and More Bat

So, yeah. On Tuesday I picked Bat/Beaver. Wednesday, Beaver reversed/Bat. (How’s that for weird, when you remember Karl shuffled and chose his cards between my two picks). Thursday I chose Fox reversed/Bat. And today I chose Bat/Eagle.

To be honest, I’m a little frustrated. Bat is one of my favorites. I love when it shows up in my cards. Not only do I love bats in the wild, but I also love what Bat represents archetypally, which is rebirth. And of course, in order to bring about rebirth, there has to be death.

Birth/Death/Rebirth

Bat is all about the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth.

On the one hand, that’s a tad scary. It’s a cycle of rather cataclysmic experiences, when you think about it. Giving birth is no walk in the park, although I can honestly only consciously reflect upon what it feels like to give birth. Not be born. And even if the cycle doesn’t pertain directly to our physical bodies, there is a finality to death that can be unsettling, at the very least.

And sure, there’s always rebirth. But will any remnant of that which died be recognizable in that which is reborn? Who knows.

Truth be told, I like to look at Bat as an opportunity to start anew. Yeah, something has to die. But I’d prefer to think I’m being asked to give up a way of being that no longer serves me (or maybe never did, and I’m only figuring that out now).

“Symbolic Death to the Old Ways of Life and Personal Identity”

“Bat embraces shamanistic death. The ritual death of the healer is steeped in secrets and highly involved initiation rites. Shaman death is the symbolic death of the initiate to the old ways of life and personal identity. (…)”

I love the idea of initiation, because for me it speaks of the sacred and signifies beginning – a fresh start – the act of setting foot on a new path of exploration and growth. I love the mysterious challenge inherent in the prospect of learning something unique and (hopefully) heretofore obscure, for when the word initiation is used, it always calls to mind, for me at least, something esoteric.

For the life of me, though, I’m not sure what I’m supposed to be relinquishing.

Another paragraph that leaps off the page when I read Bat is:

“If Bat has appeared in your cards today, it symbolizes the need for a ritualistic death of some way of life that no longer suits your new growth pattern. This can mean a time of letting go of old habits, and of assuming the position in life that prepares you for rebirth, or in some cases initiation. In every case, Bat signals rebirth of some part of yourself or the death of old patterns. If you resist your destiny, it can be a long, drawn out, or painful death. The universe is always asking you to grow and become your future. To do so you must die the shaman’s death.”

I’ll be honest: I do not want to be so obtuse that I force myself into a long, drawn out, or painful death. And I am willing to embrace, and am even a bit excited at the prospect of, growing and becoming my future.

I sincerely yearn to ‘get the message.’ And I would much rather figure it out and consciously  let go than dither around bullshitting myself. So that’s what I’ll be contemplating this weekend.

Sometimes it’s not obvious.

Or maybe it is, and I just have to open my eyes (and my ears) and pay attention.

I’ll keep you posted; (wink). Pun intended.

(T-1036)

worldatlas.com

Retreat! – Day Sixty Four

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Photo: Prime.peta.org

Retreat!

“Prairie Dog medicine teaches that strength and inspiration can be found by retreating into the stillness that quiets the mind. The strength of this medicine is also knowing when and how to replenish your life force. Prairie Dog medicine people tend to seek self-empowerment in silence and inactivity, where they can access dreams and visions without the intrusions of worldly chaos. When they reenter the world, they are profound and powerful anchors of calm resolve amid life’s storms.” (Medicine Cards, p. 225)

 

On the first day of January, I chose Prairie Dog not only on my day, but also as an indicator of the essential theme for my 2019.

But instead of having Raven underneath, as I did last year, Beaver showed up.

I have to admit, I was surprised. It was (and still is) feeling like this year is going to have a distinctly different flavor than 2018. So, given my assumptions about last year’s Prairie Dog and how they played out, I wasn’t expecting to pick it again this year.

In fact, it’s almost amusing. As I was walking along our dirt road two weeks ago, passing the entrance to the state park near our home, enjoying the unseasonably balmy weather of that first day of the year, I distinctly remember thinking to myself that I’ve let go of the idea of writing a sequel. At least for now, anyway.

There’d been at least three distinct moments last year when I’d set aside time and immersed myself in my old journals, taking a deep dive into the thoughts and feelings surrounding that time in our lives that feels so important for me to share as the next step in our grand adventure. Each of those entry points into manifesting my intention, however, seemed to be derailed by something momentous occurring within our family that demanded my absolute attention.

My Assumption Wasn’t in the Cards

What I’d assumed that Prairie Dog was bringing me just wasn’t in the cards. That doesn’t mean, however, that PD had been a pick that made no sense. Quite the contrary. I was forced to withdraw from a lot of engagement with the outside world in order to address the stuff that needed attention here at home. And I needed to take care of myself, so I didn’t blow out.

I believe the Raven underneath reflected some major magic and healing that Karl experienced, which translated into coloring my entire world simply because our lives are that inextricably linked. I think I can safely say that neither of us saw it coming. I know I can say the ripple effects will certainly extend well into the future.

And so, here I am. I’m not assuming the Prairie Dog that showed up for this year has anything to do with my writing. And let’s face it: taking on this 1111 Devotion has changed my relationship to my writing profoundly, even if my posts, on average, are pretty short. Writing every day for public consumption is weird. And I’m not sure if or how it’s going to influence whether I tell the next chapter of my story in the form of a book. We’ll see.

Prairie Dog’s Literal Message

“Prairie Dog…calls me

     when it’s time to rest,

When it’s time to honor

     the internal quest.

I go into retreat

     so I may see,

A way to replenish

     The potential in me.”

As I mentioned yesterday, it’s pretty obvious that Prairie Dog could be giving me a very clear and literal  message that I am to lead more retreats this year. (Speaking of which, I need to tell you about a really cool one I’ll be co-leading in May. But I’ll give that its own post.)

Beaver’s Contribution to the Message

Truthfully, given the presence of Beaver underneath this year’s pick, it looks like that could very well be where these critters are leading me. That’s because, beyond the above quote about going ‘into retreat,’ Beaver is all about teamwork and building something with others.

Indeed, a salient paragraph of Beaver is as follows:

“To understand Beaver medicine, you might take a look at the power of working and attaining a sense of achievement. In building a dream, teamwork is necessary. To accomplish a goal with others involves working with the group mind. Group mind constitutes harmony of the highest order, without individual egos getting in the way. Each partner in the project honors the talents and abilities of the others, and knows how to complete the piece of the puzzle that belongs to them. In working well with others, a sense of community is achieved and unity ensues.”

The fascinating thing about this is that this will be the first year I’ve run a retreat with a partner, a co-presenter. And it will be held in a completely different setting than any retreat I’ve run prior to this, with lots of other people involved, and even a different core audience. So there will most definitely be ‘group mind’ at work on a lot of different levels.

Back to Waiting

Now, whether this is how Prairie Dog/Beaver works out in the long run, we’ll just have to wait and see.

Which brings me back to my theme yesterday: waiting.

Is this the year of an active or passive Prairie Dog? Guess I’ll find out.

Either way, it seems obvious I will need to take extra care of myself, since “…Just as Native American warriors knew when to charge forward and when to become invisible, the Marmot tribe knows how and when to retreat. The Prairie Dog runs for the tunnels when a predator is on its trail; in the winter (ahem), it conserves energy by hibernating during the scare time of the cold moons.”

I think I’ll go hunker down now.

Wikipedia.com

(T-1047)

Resistance – Day Forty Two

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Resistance

I hate being faced with my glaring deficiencies; resistance being one of them.

Sometimes they just walk up and stand in front of me, though, and no matter what I do, I can’t get around them.

One of those that’s staring me down at the moment is a resistance to marketing. Marketing myself in any way, for anything, primarily. But marketing in general is always a persistently vexing subtext.

I might as well speak substance, since I don’t have a big window tonight: I’ve been invited to participate in the I AM Winter Solstice Symposium, arranged and produced by my friend, Renee Baribeau. Renee is the author of Winds of Spirit, which was published by Hay House this past spring.

I AM Winter Solstice Symposium 2018

Renee did our interview ahead of time. Mine airs tomorrow. The entire program began on Thursday evening, with an opening Fire Ceremony in honor and celebration of the Solstice. I dropped the ball by not sending out an announcement about the Symposium to my Hoot List several days ago, a lapse which I really must rectify tonight, if possible.

The problem is, beyond (or perhaps in tandem with) my resistance to marketing is my reluctance to get knee deep into technological endeavors, such as trying to figure out how to insert into a Hoot Alert the graphics Renee so generously provides me.

Seriously, I should have this stuff figured out by now.

Join the Wind Clan on Facebook

So let me just say this now: My presentation is airing tomorrow (Christmas Eve) at 1:00 p.m. EST. In order to access it, you need to join the Wind Clan on FB at this link. (And if I haven’t figured out how to add that link before I have to hit <publish> on this post, please check out my Hoot Alert, which I intend to write and get sent out before I go to bed tonight!)

Above and beyond my presentation, though (the subject of which will not surprise you if you’ve been reading these 1111 Devotion posts), are the presentations of 17 amazing women with unique and inspiring messages and suggestions for making your life a little bit richer, creative, and sacred.

Join us! And help me push past this resistance to marketing by enjoying my offering. Who knows what inspiration awaits!

(T-1069)

Owl Medicine & Akashic Records – Day Thirty Eight

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Searching for a Chapter

Earlier today I found myself taking a harder look at my book, Owl Medicine, than I have in, well, years. By which I mean I actually cracked it open and started reading from it, as opposed to just looking at its cover.

I was searching for a specific chapter in which I discern the deeper meaning of a dream I’d had by reading in the Medicine Cards’ book about an animal that appeared in that dream. At the time, I thought I had a pretty good grasp of what the dream was showing me. But when I read the actual text in that book, I was astonished by the synchronistic use of certain words that were so obviously linked to the details of my dream that it was akin to Spirit bonking me on the head.

It’s important to remember that, when I describe how I marveled at that time about the specificity of the text and the apparent ‘message’ of my dream, I had only just started using the Medicine Cards. They were not a regular part of Karl’s and my daily routine. They were simply a neat set of oracle cards that played a part in helping me figure out what in the heck my discovery of a dead Great Horned Owl meant.

Anyway, as I was searching for that specific chapter, I obviously had occasion to once again read snippets of my story, as I was searching for something quite specific. Quite fortuitously, this reminded me of a correction – or rather, explanation – I’ve wanted to publicly make with respect to my book for quite some time.

Etheric Translator or ‘ET’

Specifically, there are a couple of references in Owl Medicine as to the great skill of my mentor/teacher at that time as an ‘Etheric Translator.’ Those of you who have read the book may have wondered what the heck an Etheric Translator (or ‘ET’) is, as you’d undoubtedly never heard of it prior to reading my book. That’s because I made the term up.

It’s not an inaccurate term. In fact, it’s an excellent definition of someone who reads the Akashic Records, which is what my teacher did. And still does, as far as I know. (Although I haven’t looked for her, to tell the truth, so I really can’t say.) And if you don’t know why that might be, you really should read the book.

Correcting the Record

I’ve long felt I wanted to correct the record, so to speak, and make it clear that a so-called Etheric Translator is actually someone who reads the Akashic Records. It feels important, somehow, that people understand what I was actually referring to when I called her an ET.

The reason I did it was this: When Owl Medicine was going to print, the internet and ‘Google’ were really just getting off the ground as far as the regular public was concerned. I did an internet search of the term Akashic Records and – lo and behold – there was my teacher, front and center, at the top or close to the top of recommended readers.

Given the nature of my experiences as described in my book, I did not want anyone to even remotely guess who she was or make any connections to her by doing such a search. This was true even though I changed her name.

In the intervening years, the explosion of interest in all things esoteric has resulted in hundreds of people becoming adept at reading the Akashic Records, and a plethora of books and articles have been written on the subject. I did a search tonight and did not find her appearing in any of the top search pages.

Hence, I am hereby letting people know that I am not some doofus who didn’t know what the Akashic Records are really called. I called a person who reads them an Etheric Translator because I wanted to assure the anonymity of my first and probably most influential teacher.

(T-1073)

Messenger – Day Thirty Six

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Messenger

I’m thinking perhaps the Medicine Cards®took pity on you today, my wonderful 1111 Devotion companions.

My last two posts have been sort of on the intense side, and may have actually ruffled a few feathers. That’s especially true given what I might characterize as Pollyanna-ish lenses through which many people look upon prayers and ‘good intentions.’

But lucky for you, I chose Hawk with Deer underneath, so this message carrier is going to take a more gentle approach today. (I hope.)

Indeed, I wasn’t sure what message Hawk was bringing me when I chose and read it this morning. One interesting possibility that presented itself was when one of my readers sent me a message letting me know that she chose Hawk reversed today, and didn’t that contrary description of Hawk contain the very word I’d focused on in yesterday’s post? Tampering. Yes it did. So being astute, and having that somewhat odd word show up in her experience two days in a row, she definitely felt like she needed to pay attention. Well-spotted!

The word was used in the context of Hawk being the message carrier and therefore needing to focus upon and remain dedicated to its job: delivering the message. Its charge is not to ‘interpret’ the message for the recipient, because obviously, everyone perceives life through the filters of their own thoughts, feelings, and experiences. So when the messenger puts their unique spin on that message, they are tampering. For it is entirely possible that they could be way off base and sending the recipient into a spiral of confusion.

I’d forgotten that that particular word is used in Hawk reversed – and I probably wouldn’t have remembered it this morning had Janice not called it to my attention, since I chose, and thus only read aloud to Karl, Hawk upright.

As my day unfolded, I found myself feeling overwhelmed by end-of-year responsibilities. In beginning the process of reflecting upon my accomplishments during this year, I found myself wanting. It seemed as if everywhere I looked, I was coming up short, and I even started questioning just what I was doing with this blog and this 1111 Devotion.

All of this took me somewhat by surprise.

Deer to the Rescue

And then I realized that I needed to apply a little Deer to myself. I take the responsibility of being a messenger (Hawk) very seriously. I talk a good game, saying that I ‘know’ there will be days that my posts won’t deliver a compelling or even entertaining message. But I hate the thought.

Deer underneath, though, had perhaps foreseen that I might take the downward path of self-criticism today – and was telling me to go easy. Don’t be such a harsh critic. Be a little kind to myself.

It’s not always easy, is it?

(T-1075)

Magic – Day Thirty One

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 Magic

Once again, if you’d asked me this morning what tonight’s post would be about, ‘magic’ would not have occurred to me, just as ‘trust’ wasn’t on my radar yesterday.

In case you didn’t notice, I was feeling a bit…passionate when I wrote last night’s post. Hard as it may be to believe, I’d actually brought it down a couple notches by the time I wrote the post. (You can imagine what it was like earlier that evening; it wasn’t pretty.) Indeed, I actually think I’ve been suffering from an adrenaline hangover all day today. My body aches and I’ve felt exhausted. Like a wet dishrag, actually. Just wrung the heck out.

Anyway, although Raven (which is associated with ‘Magic’ in the Medicine Cards), was not what I picked on my day this morning, it did end up being chosen by me in another context. And as the day unfolded, I honestly could feel Raven exercising its influence, even after the primary purpose for choosing it had passed. Indeed, I felt it working with the situation about which I was so upset yesterday.

While there are a couple of particularly salient paragraphs I could quote, I’m going to settle for just a few portions:

“If you have chosen Raven, magic is in the air. Do not try to figure it out; you cannot. It is the power of the unknown at work, and something special is about to happen. (…)

It may be time to call Raven as a courier to carry an intention, some healing energy, a thought, or a message. Raven is the patron of smoke signals or spirit messages represented by smoke. (…)

Remember, this magic moment came from the void of darkness, and the challenge is to bring it to light. In doing so you will have honored the magician within.”

Hurt Feelings Abounded

As it turns out, hurt feelings abounded last night, and not just on my end. Out of the darkness of that sense that I had unwittingly uncovered a betrayal from a completely unexpected source, the two of us were able to bring light to the situation.

Reflecting on the heartfelt emails that went back and forth between us today, I can only say that I know for certain both of us encountered magic. The volcanic eruption that occurred yesterday took us both completely by surprise. And yet, because we do have the level of trust that I described as only one tier below that of my inner circle of closest family, we each cared enough to express ourselves with utter vulnerability and honesty.

Need I say how startlingly rare that is in the world?

In the end, I am called upon to trust. I do not need the documentary proof that may or may not exist. I choose to rely on my instincts, and trust. I choose to listen to Raven, and embrace the magic.

Oh – one last thing? Moose was underneath that Raven. Wow.

(T-1080)

Trusting the Leap – Day Nineteen

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Trusting the Leap

I’m having a hard time coming up with something to write about tonight. Nothing is jumping out at me; I had a long day, I’m tired, and I didn’t experience any major “Ahas!” regarding this morning’s ‘pick.’

Technically, my full pick this morning was Black Panther/Beaver. Although I always love when I choose Black Panther – since its title attribute in the Medicine Cards© is “Embracing the Unknown,” I always enter my day when I choose it with a sense of anticipation and a bit of mystery – I can’t say as though I noticed it applying to the way my day unfolded.

Beaver’s title attribute is “Builder,” and my usual default sense of Beaver when it’s underneath is that it somehow has something to do with working with others, or ‘teamwork.’

Applying My Cards to My Dilemma

And now I will admit to something:

It is only now as I am writing this post that I am sensing the application of my card pick.

My receipt of Black Panther was the cards telling me that I needed to “leap empty-handed into the void with implicit trust” in writing tonight’s post. I just had to dive in. And as soon as I wrote that first sentence, I felt like I might be onto something. Just admitting that I had no subject was a subject!

That’s when I thought to consider what I’d chosen on my day – at least it might give me a jumping off point.  So, while it may have been more accurately described as an empty-headed leap into the void with implicit trust, here I am, embracing my Black Panther.

And the Beaver underneath? Well, that sort of just falls into place for me now and underscores that Black Panther is appearing in reference to my 1111 Devotion . Beaver’s placement underneath is you. Why? Because we are a team. We are a community. By taking the time and according me the honor of choosing to spend a few precious minutes with me each day (or whenever you can), you are respecting my Act of Power. You are respecting my dedication to this crazy devotional practice. And honestly? Knowing that you (and yes, your single self is absolutely precious to me) are going to read this has spurred me on to put one sentence after another and follow through.

Sometimes They Make Sense Only Later

It’s also another way for me to show how the Medicine Cards©work for me. They do not always make sense to me as I read them at the outset of my day. Some days I honestly have no clue as to how my pick will apply. Some days I can honestly say I never figure it out.

But then there are days like today, when the meaning or application has not had an opportunity to manifest until the sun has long since set and I am starting to grow sleepy.

The cool thing (for me), though, is that I still feel the magic. I’m delighted that my choice of cards this morning taught me something this evening. They came to my aid by informing me that sometimes we just have to leap into the void, even if we are empty-handed (or empty-headed), with implicit trust – in order to keep building on our commitment to the ‘team.’

So again – thank you for being there for me.

recinet.ca

(T-1092)

Turkey Day – Day Eleven (T-1100)

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Turkey Day

Funny.  I never call Thanksgiving “Turkey Day,” but here I am titling my blog post for today “Turkey Day.”

I didn’t eat turkey today, nor did I even see one (either in the wild or on a platter).

But I thought of turkeys today – and the meaning of Turkey as conveyed by my beloved Medicine Cards – and in spite of myself, kind of felt a little sad.

One of the paragraphs in Turkey goes as follows:

“Spectators unfamiliar with the cultural phenomenon of the pot-latch or give-away ceremony are often mystified by it. A tribal member may gladly give away all he or she owns, and do without in order to help the People. In present-day urban life, we are taught to acquire and get ahead. The person with the most toys wins the game. In some cultures, no one can win the game unless the whole of the People’s needs are met. A person who claims more than his or her share is looked upon as selfish or crazy or both. The poor, the aged, and the feeble have honor. The person who gives away the most and carries the burdens of the people is one of the most respected.”

What’s Mine? Yours? Ours? Theirs?

There’s a lot of focus these days on what’s ‘mine,’ what’s ‘yours,’ what’s theirs,’ and what’s ‘ours.’ And there are a lot of people claiming an astoundingly greater portion of a lot of our resources than could even remotely be considered their ‘share.’

And I will be the first to admit that I do not consistently embody the spirit conveyed within this paragraph. I don’t even come close. But I aspire to do so.

And I wonder how much better so many people in the world would feel if everyone just thought a little bit more about someone else. Not only the people who were ‘thought of,’ but also the people who do the thinking of others. It could be such a colossally ‘win-win’ of a situation.

The joy of making another person smile and know they’re loved – it’s huge. The joy of letting another person know they make a difference in your life and you appreciate them for it – can change their life forever. The joy of taking a moment to be kind, to be generous, to be patient, or to be compassionate – can make your life worth living.

Sometimes the smallest gestures, such as looking directly into a person’s eyes when you listen to them, can make everything seem a little bit brighter.

Aspire to make a difference. Smile. Be grateful. You matter.

Happy “Turkey” Day.

Picking Cards – the Weikel Way – Day Seven (T-1104)

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Embracing Moose

Initially I was going to ‘apologize in advance’ for yet another blog post referencing the Medicine Cards©  by Jamie Sams and David Carson. But you know what? No apologies.

If you are still with me after six days of my posts (without me even giving you the option to receive them personally delivered to your email inbox – a feature coming soon to an inbox near you – perhaps as soon as tomorrow or the next day!), then you probably have surmised that these wonderful windows into understanding ourselves via Mother Nature’s creatures are a big part of my life.

With one thousand one hundred four blog posts on my horizon (at the very least), I can assure you that at least a half bazillion of them will center on, or in some way reference, the Medicine Cards© and how they impact my understanding of something in my life in one way or another. And I will write about it. And therefore you, if you’re as devoted to reading my blog as I will be to writing it, will read about it.

Feels like a full circle to me. Or at least some weird type of metaphysical co-dependency – but I’d rather think of it as a “circle of appreciation,” and perhaps even “wisdom sharing.” I would insert an eye roll here if I were texting.

Today’s post marks the completion of a full seven days of 1111 Devotion posts on Ruffled Feathers. In the grand scheme of things, this is a miniscule accomplishment. Not even 1%. Exactly 0.63%, to be honest. Hardly something to crow about. (Don’t go there.) And that is my human, perfectionist, egotistical, relentlessly critical perspective on my process. The one that says, “You can start to feel like you’re ‘all that’ when you get to, maybe, oh I don’t know, Day Five Hundred Fifty Six. But NOT ONE DAY BEFORE.”

But Spirit is different. Spirit is not an asshat to me. (I almost wrote the other word, but it just felt wrong – because Spirit’s not an asshole. Woops.)

On the contrary. Right out of the gate Spirit knew I would need reassurance that I had indeed “heard right” (i.e., listened) to the message that the best way to honor my son’s life was to engage in a substantial act of Devotion. 1111 sub-acts, to be precise.

Because let me tell you, since creating Ruffled Feathers in March of 2010, up through the day before writing my Devotion post, I had published a grand total of 31 entries, or an average of 3.5 per year. So committing to this Act of Power, as I’ve also called it, has almost every evening this past week caused my stomach to sort-of bottom out.

Yes, Spirit knew I would need a lot of coaxing to refrain from talking myself out of the fact that I’d actually received and correctly interpreted an inspiration (Spirit-nudge? Marching orders?) to write 1111 blog posts. I’m a lawyer. It would not take a lot for me to muster a pretty compelling argument that I’d somehow misheard that directive from Spirit.

But the fact remains that last Sunday (11/11) was the day I received the inspiration (and the confirmation from several sources, which I wrote about this past week) to do this thing.

Monday night I published my initial Devotion post, publicly committing to this Act of Power.

Tuesday morning, I picked:    Moose2. Yes, that correctly reads “Moose squared.” And what it means is that I chose Moose right side up, and the card on the bottom was a “blank.”

Remember, Karl and I choose cards virtually every single day at the start of our morning. Our ‘picking process’ is as follows:

Karl chooses first, shuffling, softly breathing his request for guidance on his day into the cards, shuffling some more, keeping his feet firmly planted on the ground to root him to Mother Earth…and then he picks what he picks. I read out loud the full main text of the top card, if it is upright, but if his top card is reversed, or ‘contrary,’ I read both the upright (main) and reversed passages in the accompanying text. I do not read out loud the information for the ‘underneath’ card. We just look at it, note it, and discuss how it might hone in on or otherwise clarify the application of the message of the top card.

Eventually it’s my turn, and I engage in essentially the same process.

So, to be clear, I’m never just picking up the deck and not shuffling, or doing anything else that might be odd or nefariously manipulating the deck, or my ‘pick,’ for the purpose of later writing about some amazing ‘coincidence.’ In fact, I shuffle and shuffle relentlessly, deliberately turning cards this way and that, just to ensure that they’re properly ‘mixed.’

Also, the Medicine Cards© deck comes with five or so ‘blank’ cards, which the authors or publishers suggest can be used for people who want to draw their own animals or insects or whatever. That’s not our thing. But we keep them in the deck for a two-fold purpose:

First, if we shuffle and shuffle and choose a “blank,” we take it to mean that we’re not grounded. Oftentimes we may be talking about extraneous things, joking around, being irreverent, or otherwise not being fully present to the task at hand, and we’ll get smacked by pulling a blank. So when we pull a blank, we know we need to settle ourselves and really get grounded and as clear as we can muster.

The other way we interpret the blanks is if they show up on the bottom of the deck after choosing our top or main card. If there is no other specific card showing up on the bottom to give the top card ‘context,’ then we consider that top pick ‘squared,’ and figure Spirit is telling us that the top card is either really important and we need to pay attention, or it’s influence is going to show up in our life very powerfully that day. Or both.

And so ends our ‘Medicine Cards© Tutorial/the Weikel-Way,’ which was not what I initially intended to focus upon in this post. But I’ve rambled on far too long, and if my posts take up too much time for you to read, you may never come back!

Who am I kidding? Yes, I should keep my posts to a reasonable length. But this one went long, and I have 1104 left to write after this one, so I might as well save my Moose discussion for tomorrow. Thank you for reading; it really means a lot to me.