Retreat

 

Hopefully this will be me, sooner than later. Retreat to my place of comfort and joy, my own little backyard for Spring and Summer. Then I can figure out where to go from there, or stay put. It's okay to say to ourselves, "Enough"

Not sure I will make it to the beach this year. I can still go to the local park and hobble my way to a bench located just under a huge and lovely tree and bathe and bask in tree magic!

The Enchanted Forest

These days

 

So many have shared with me in my life. Many I appreciate. Some I could do without.  All are woven into the fabric of my being. In this last trimester of my days as Carolyn, I am becoming comfortable with who I am; Spending time in the Garden of My Life.

Marco Polo Tarot

Yes - No

Whew that's a lot of yellow in this card.  Lots of sunshine in her garden grove.  I asked myself a question this morning and wanted the cards to give me a yes or no answer, I say this lovely Nine of Pentacles would be a yes.
I wonder why this gal is dressed in such heavy clothing for such a warm and sunny day.  The grapes are ready to be picked and looks to a good return on investment of time.  So maybe she put on her Sunday best for fun because the next few months are going to lots of hard work bringing in the harvest.  My yes might be another's no.  Life is good in it's diversity and choices.

Reflection

The Nine of Pentacles draw today feels like a reversed draw.
Why do self-important people both me?  They bother me or do they mirror something within myself?  Why not just ignore them and be on my way.  I understand that it is mostly a self-esteem issue on their part.  We each have to find our way, so if they need a little more attention, than okay.  Still, something something.







The Linestrider's Tarot - Siolo Thompson

Move along

December 1, one month and counting down till the end of 2018.  Another year for the books.  As I stand in my garden and contemplate the year behind should I begin to plan the year ahead?  But wait there is not a a full year behind me in 2018, still thirty one days to finish up what needs to be completed.  This card is a bit at odds. Painted bright yellow bodes energy and vitality; there is something about those pentacles being 'tamped down', a hooded hunter, and the slow progress of the the snail.
A reminder that things are not always as they seem.
I also find it interesting the Nine of Pentacles was my draw for October 31 and is first draw after my thirty days of Gratitude.  Though I took a break in my garden of gratitude, I have to pick-up right where I left off.  On-wards


Rider Waite-Smith Tarot

Ripples

The World has righted herself and returned to her safe haven.  Another niner card today, the Hermit yesterday and the Nine of Pentacles today.  I have traded the lantern for a companion to spend the day with.  Today is the completion of three years doing this blog.  I began with thirty days of Gratitude on November 1, 2015 and tomorrow I begin a new cycle and thirty days of gratitude.  I am grateful to this forum and a couple of great gals that converse with me through the blogasphere.  If I hadn't started posting three years ago I would have not met my couple of long distance friends. Sharyn and Bev, you have enriched my life with our conversations. Thank You!




The Fountain Tarot

A mile

I drew the Nine of Pentacles from the Green Witch Tarot and decided to compare it with the Rider Waite-Smith version.  Seemingly they are completely different, but yet, satisfaction, security, and appreciation of the life that one is living is apparent in both.  Sometimes I wonder of the roads not taken.  I can speculate but unless one walked the journey of the other we/I don't really know. 
Be happy in the moment, that is really all we have.


The Green Witch Tarot - Ann oura

Plant an olive tree

Another day in paradise.

Yesterday I was having a conversation with a few friends and they mentioned again how lucky I was to still be alive and getting through everything.  Six years later and I can still be the hot topic.  Like the gal in the Nine of Pentacles I found myself quietly alone in my garden of paradise more and more often.  Sometimes it is to shut out the noise, and not the stuff in my head.  Sharyn my friend, you caution on depression and rightly so.  I am working on it.  Some recent medications for my nerve damage didn't help at all on my outlook prospective.  Quiet time in the garden is just what I may need. 

In the moment

Can paradise be defined?

To be apart of this field of lavender would be a paradise to me.  The soft lovely scent, the whoosh of wings as the heron flies by, and the whisper of the soft rhythms of the sea as it meets the shore.  Could there ever be a better way to spend a Saturday or any other day?  There are also rainy days like today, when being tucked indoors where it is warm and dry, snuggled in with a good book and the surrounding stillness is only disturbed by the pitter patter of the rain on roof and window.  I cannot forget the joy of beachside as I soak in the penetrating warmth of the Sun and search the water for my mermaid cousins. The common theme to these snippets of paradise is me and my chosen way to experience the moment. To take the time to be present and aware is the lesson of the Nine of Pentacles.

Gaian Tarot - Joanna Powell Colbert

Can't put my finger on it

Roses are beautiful but they have thorns.

Something is amiss.  You know that feeling you get when everything looks right but your intuition nudges you with 'beware.'  I get a curl to my right lip and my nose twitches and my right squints when looking at something that just...well just something.  You can't quite put your finger on it.  This Nine of Pentacles is like that; all those lovely polished pents lined up nicely and yet the backdrop of rocks and storm clouds on the horizon indicates that first appearances are not seemingly.  The RWS is somewhat the same, a lovely woman in her abundant garden and yet she has a falcon, a hunter, at her beck and call.  Something just out of sync with that as well.
Today I will try to beware of things that are not what they seem

The Sacred Circle Tarot

Own it

Sometimes we realize we are right were we are supposed to be, in the garden of our own making.

There are days that I question myself, " how did I get here?" I have always made my choices and owned them, good and not so good.  Change is upon me and I will remind myself that I made the choice and did not wait for it to come to me.

"One is the loneliest number that you will ever do, Two can be as bad as one, it's the loneliest number since the number one."
ONE -Sung by Three Dog Night
Being alone does not have to be lonely.  Sure there are days of isolation, but you can experience that with another or a room filled with anothers.
I like this card of Nine of Pentacles, surrounded by the things of my own making.

The GOOD Tarot - Colette Baron-Reid

Realization

The elusive missing 'something'

Most of us are still searching for the that elusive something-something.  Well at least I am.  Just about the time I have all my cups in a row, I feel like there should be 'something' else.  In the Eight of Cups the search began and once found, we may possibly realize that we had everything we really already needed.

 It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt?”
― John L. Betcher, The Missing Element 



The CHINESE Tarot -Guoliang

Wider perspective

Not your traditional garden of good fortune.

These nine pentacles reminds me of the at least nine people demanding my attention.  Everybody in this last day or so is clamoring for attention.  Me, me, me..pick me next.  Line 'em up and then work on each one at a time.  If I try to work on all issues at once something is going to get lost or mixed up.  Best start with one at the top, so the whole bunch doesn't collapse on top of me.  
Makes me wonder what shifts in our energy fields that in short notice everybody(subjective) has to be fixed.  An all or nothing occurrence, that regularly happens.

Better get to it; there are storm clouds on the horizon.







The Sacred Circle Tarot - Anna Franklin & Paul Mason

Ponder

This Fairy in the  Nine of Autumn(Pentacles) appears to be spending some time alone contemplating her lifestyle, music, and other bits of this and that.

I noticed looking back at my draws this week, most of the cards have communicated or hinted at a reflective state of mind.  The Moon yesterday, the Four of Autumn - viewing myself in the mirror.  King of Winter during a reflective winter walk in the woods and Balance.  Balance, definitely a contemplation on what brings balance to my life.
I have written this later in the day to see what might have possibly been revealed to me about what my higher self or subconscious might be trying to tell me..Nada.  I spent most of day working; no time for reflection today.
Maybe this evening I best turn everything off, disconnect, and listen to some classical music and see if I can quiet my mind and give myself over to some thoughtful, deliberate, reflection and contemplation.