Asking about Life
I decided to ask this time for some tips on how to complete those things
in life that are so hard to stick to. Whatever that is in your life, be
it dieting, sticking to an exercise plan.....or whatever. All the
things we know we
should do for ourselves and even try to, but that are so hard to stick to.
This month I am going to ask the cards, for all of us who have had this
experience (and who hasn't?), for some tips and advice that could make
it easier and help us to stick to it and see it through. I thought of
this topic right now because
as usual, I am having trouble sticking to my diet lately. LOL
But it can also apply to anything you are having trouble with sticking to.
This deck is the Pearls of Wisdom Tarot, by Roxi Sim and Caeli
Fullbrite. It has always been and always will be a very special deck to
me as it was given to me by a dear friend who will always be a part of
my heart. Just my taste in a deck too, bright pretty colours and a lot
of depth to it.
So I asked the deck for advice that would make it easier to stick to
those things we want to do and accomplish but have so much trouble
sticking to.
Here is what came up:
Card 1:The Fool (reversed)
This is a nice, bright, encouraging place to start this reading.
And it is a very strong card here. It's a Major Arcana card, saying
that we can view each of these times when we are finding it hard to
stick to something as learning lessons. If we pay attention they each
have some important lessons that they can teach us about ourselves and
life. They are meant to teach us these lessons. That is why they come
up, because we have not yet learnt them. It might even be a good idea to
stop when you see this happening and ask yourself what can you learn
from the experience that will help you in your life.
This is also a reversed card,
which emphasizes the importance of it all, saying that if we look there
are some very important life lessons we can learn at this time. So all
this shows a positive side to it.
The Fool is really a beautiful little card. In essence it asks to
just let go of all else and have faith in life. The Fool is about the
kind of faith that a young child has in life. That belief that if they
want to and try they can be and do anything they want to in their lives.
That true belief in that happily after ending. Seeing it as the norm,
expecting it and believing that that is truly how life works. And that
all really does work out for the best in the end.
This card says that if you want to succeed, this is the attitude to go
in with and to hold onto Try to make this way of thinking your goal,
your norm. BELIEVE that you can be and do anything at all that you want
"when you grow up". And if fact this is just what this is. Each
experience will teach us just what you need to know to learn what we
need to if we pay attention, just as a child learns that it needs to in
school.
When The Fool comes up in a reading it tells you to have that pure faith and trust in life, because it is merited. You do have what it takes to succeed, or this card would not come up. The more strongly you allow yourself to believe it, the easier you will make things for yourself.
The
image shows the person in the boat (representing us) with her eyes
closed. Pretty much floating down the river without a paddle. This says
that at those times when we want to give up, it is because
we have our eyes closed to (and cannot see) the fact that we actually
do have all that we need to complete our goal, right there inside us.
And also maybe because at those times
we are focusing on the wrong things and turning our backs on what is
most important. Maybe we tell ourselves that a storm is coming because
we sense there may be some choppy waves beneath us, things start to
feel hard. When in reality the sun is shining brightly behind us and a
rainbow is shining, showing that we can succeed. This pretty well says
it is best to try to focus on positive thoughts than on the negative at
these times.
Card 2: Queen of Cups (reversed)
This is a Cups card, about our feelings. And of course so much on this
issue can be related to that. When we feel the desire to let go and give
up, that is of course a feeling. And that feeling is likely a reaction
to other feelings we have been having.
A reversed Queen, for me, generally says that we will be guided and/or
it talks about fate. Either way, it is saying here that if you make up
your mind to do something, your life will work with you
to help you achieve it. You are not all alone in that sense. This card
is saying that if you look around you as you are working on something
you will see some signs and guidance that will help you on your path.
And feeling that we do have this help and do not have to do it all on
our own, can feel....well...helpful. The card image is asking you here
if you feel tempted to give up to remember that you live in a universe
of love. You are loved and if you want to complete something life wants
to help you. All the red roses in the image reflect that thought.
And all the spreading ripples in the water are a reminder that one
thought or feeling spreads out to other similar ones which lead to
others. And that in reality, it is just as easy to think a positive
thought that will lead to feelings that make things easier for you, as
it is to think a negative one that makes things feel harder. It is just
as easy to think the positive thought and it too will spread and make
things easier if you do. Purposely look for something
positive at these times and focus on it and see what it leads to. It
will lead to the truth. That is the advice of this card.
Card 3: 10 of Swords
This card made me laugh because the
image felt so perfect here. The 10 of Swords is really all about that
one thought of kind of thought that you just can't get out of your mind.
It just keeps coming back like a song you can't get out of your head.
As soon as you have a moment to think, there it is again. That is what
this card is talking about. And it can certainly apply to what we are
talking about in this question. ....whatever thought it is that tries to
make you want to give up on working on that goal.
Whatever that is for you, it's likely different thoughts for each of us,
but this card is about that. The image shows it almost like a tornado.
It may feel powerful or convincing, but in reality, the image is saying
here that it prevents you from seeing clearly or seeing things from
another viewpoint. This card is saying that when this happens we get so
wrapped up in it that it becomes hard to see things in any other way.
In that state of mind we are, in a sense, asleep to any other
possibilities or realities than to that one that is going round and
round in our minds.
And as we then cannot see things from another angle to make a
comparison, then we cannot really be sure that that thought is true or
accurate.
This is basically saying, that if you
get that one thought that keeps coming back repeatedly, don't just trust
in it blindly. Try to see things in a number of other ways. And if you
can't, then give yourself a rest and don't make any decisions until you
can once again. Because in life there is never only
one option. Very very few things are all black and white. There are
always choices. Try not to choose until you can see a number of them
clearly. Keep asking yourself, "What else could I do (that would be
helpful here) instead?" until you can see lots of options. Don't be
afraid to try to break out of the box and see things in different ways.
Card 4: Page of Swords
This is a Swords thought, about our thoughts and the way that we think.
And it's also a Page. Pages are about facing something new unlike
anything you ever really have before. In this case, the card is advising
you to try to think in new and different ways that the way you
traditionally do when you feel the urge to give up. Challenge yourself
to find new ways. Make a game out of it. See how many different ways you
can come up with see the exact same situation. Pull yourself out of it
and imagine it was happening to a complete stranger. What advice would
you then give to that person.
This card is all about finding new ways to think about the situation at
these times. The first card of this reading tells you that you do have
all you need to complete your goals inside you. Our thoughts become
feelings that make us want to stick to it or not. Logically then, if the
thoughts you are thinking are not leading you to where you want to go,
try to find new ways to think about it. This card says experimenting
with this should really be helpful.
You know the old saying about how if you always do what you have always
done, then you will always get what you've always gotten. This message
takes it one step further. And it says that if you keep thinking about
it in the same way that you always have, then those same thoughts will
always take you to the same place.
The image looks to me like one of realizing and recognizing your true
inner strength, by pulling that sword from the stone. And all of life
is shining rainbows of promise on you as you do so. And of course the
sword again represents your thoughts. The message of this card all goes
back to that. It says that your thoughts can make you strong enough even
to pull a sword from stone if you choose the right ones. It's about
experimenting and finding the right ones that give you that power. And
holding onto them, using them as a well-valued tool to create what you
want.
Card 5: flipped 4 of Cups
This card and the next came up as flipped cards (cards that "flipped"
out of the deck during shuffling. Flipped cards are important in that
they contain a deep kind of message that can be seen more clearly if you
take the time to stop and think about it.
This card is the 4 of Cups. Cups again are about our feelings. And the
4's are about the totality of a thing and about completion. It's about
trying to see the big picture. To understand something in all of its
aspects. Here about understanding our feelings in depth, all the
feelings surrounding the issue of completing our goal.
Right now, the message here is that feelings are just feelings. They do
not represent the totality of the situation. The reality of a situation
is complex and cannot be represented just by one feeling. This is why in
some life situations we feel conflicting emotions. We can feel happy
and sad at the same time. The desire to move on at the same time as the
desire to avoid change. But the point here is that a feeling does not
cannot ever represent the totality of a situation.
That means that if you FEEL you want to give up or cannot succeed, there
are only feelings. They are not accurate representations of the
totality of the reality of the situation. You can feel inside that you
cannot complete what you set up. But just feeling it does not mean that
feeling is truth. You can feel you cannot see it to completion and
succeed. But the feeling is only a feeling and does not mean that it is
true. (When this reading has already told you that you have inside you
all that you ever really need to succeed).
The gist of this message is to not treat feelings as if they were Truth.
No feelings can accurately represent the complexity that is any
situation. And some feelings reflect something untrue. The images just
says to try and give yourself a little vacation from any feelings that
are overly negative. Put them aside for the while and trust in the
future. And when you look at the future imagine it positively. See the
Cups as full and over-flowing, not half-full.
Card 6: flipped Knight of Swords
Last card of this reading: the Knight
of Swords. Swords, again about your thoughts and way of thinking. And
Knights, for me, are about empathy. About that feeling of oneness with
others, and about taking the time to really imagine what it would be
like to be someone else.
This card tells you to think about your connection to others. Imagine
what it would be like to be in their place, living their lives, to be
them.
This card asks you to look around you. To think about what it would be
like to be the others you see around you. To look and see who is working
on similar goals as you are. Who is succeeding at those goals and acing
them and who is ready to give up.
Try to imagine you were them. What does that person who is doing well
this his goals have that the other person does not? What attitude, what
beliefs, what feelings, what thoughts, what life background? Talk to
these people about it too if you can.
Imagine inside you what it would be like to feel as the people who are
succeeding feel and have their beliefs. Then how it would be to have the
feelings and beliefs that the other group has. Which feels better, you
can already see the consequences of each.
The image says to me to also look
inside yourself for signs of things that have made you balk at thinking
and feeling what those are succeeding are thinking and feeling. See
where they come from. And find a way of thinking that feels more and
more comfortable while destroying those seeming boundaries for you.
