During challenging times, stumbling across something inspirational can be a blessing.
It not only keeps you going but also encourages you to aim higher than you thought possible.
Often, the simplest piece of advice can make everything fall into place and guide you in the right direction.
When I came across this quote back in December 2014, it changed my perspective on a difficut situation I was trying to resolve.
✨The time around the Winter Solstice is about new beginnings, rebirth, vitality, illumination, enlightenment, and revelations✨
Now is the perfect time to focus on making your dreams come true and truly make it happen.
But where do you start?
Well, “ask yourself what is really important and then have the courage to build your life around your answer".
Change can be overwhelming, but to avoid stagnation, it is sometimes necessary to face your fears and recognize your reasons for reluctance to move forward.
Journaling can help, not only to formulate your goals but also to take a step-by-step approach to get to where you want to be.
Instead of using a blank journal, you could try a guided journaling workbook to help you focus.
Check out the Tarot Moon Journal, a gift that will last a whole year, and perhaps even longer, depending on how you use it to transform your life.
In the meantime, I wish you a blessed holiday season full of joy, healing, and peace. May you have the courage to make your dreams come true💚
Back in April 2021, after the Covid pandemic had wreaked havoc globally for the past twelve months, we learned that sometimes all we can do is surrender and accept what we cannot control.
And it has taught us so much more. Humans have always managed to rise from destruction and disaster.
While we are still trying to process our trauma and losses, light is also shining through the cracks.
Here are some lessons many of us learned from the pandemic:
Enjoying our own company
Being inventive and resourceful
Collaborating with others
Serving our communities
Practicing discipline
Cooking and even growing our own food
Becoming aware of our strengths and weaknesses
Realizing what we truly value and what is unimportant
Understanding the vulnerability of our way of life
What lessons have you learned from the pandemic, and how do they continue to impact you today?
Take a moment each day to recognize and acknowledge your achievements, a-ha moments, little wins, insights, flashes of delight, and the peace and beauty of a moment.
Celebrate the little things that bring you joy and a sense of satisfaction.
Even amidst doubt and uncertainty, there is always a reason to celebrate something, no matter how small, even if we have to celebrate alone.
Creative tarot journaling is easier than you might think, and crafting visual art journal pages to explore your life and personal growth can be one of the most therapeutic activities you engage in.
But where do you start if a blank white page is putting you off?
I asked myself this question back in 2018, which led me to design my creative tarot journaling ebook Cosmic Journaling Through The Year.
This ebook contains a variety of colourful journaling templates (and much more!) that can help boost your imagination and creativity.
One of the journaling templates is Circles, and in this post you can see my first completed version of this page.
Once you have printed the template from the ebook, choose a topic or prompt for your journal entry.
Here are some ideas:
• I am grateful for…
• What makes me happy…
• Setting boundaries
• Self-care habits I need to practice (looking after myself…)
• Imagine…
• Adventures
• New beginnings…
• I love this…
• Making Magick happen…
• My Doodle Universe
• Embracing Change
• etc.
For my circle page I have chosen Raise Your Vibration:
Once you've chosen your prompt, let your intuition guide you and draw a few tarot or oracle cards for inspiration.
It's perfectly fine to jot down keywords on your page, and there's no need to complete it in one sitting.
Take your time, working on it over a few days or even weeks, allowing yourself moments to unwind and reflect with your journaling.
Treat yourself to stepping through a mysterious and magical doorway.
Add colour and variety with glitter, felt-tip pens, ballpoint pens, and pencils.
Collage with cut-outs from magazines and stickers.
If you find yourself with some free time during the Christmas/Yule holidays and aren't too swamped with family commitments, why not indulge in some creative tarot journaling me-time?
In December 2016, I created a special tarot spread to help you reflect on the gifts you give and receive.
This spread is a wonderful way to take a moment and explore the unique blessings in your life.
Here's how it works:
1. A gift you give to the world
2. A gift you receive from the universe
3. How to make best use of your gifts
Draw your cards and see what insights they reveal about the gifts in your life.
All the images are my own photography. You can view most images in individual blog posts, which also include my personal interpretations for each card. Simply click on the label Cosmic Faery Tarot Deck.
Copyright notice (Tarot of Quotes):
You are free to download all the images I’ve created so far to use on your website, blogs, personal files etc. as long as you don’t alter them in any way. You can even use the images on your professional/commercial website / blog, include them with paid tarot readings and in ebooks that are offered for free without asking for permission first. Again, please don’t alter/crop the images.
Thanksgiving Day in the US serves as a gentle reminder for everyone around the world to pause and consciously appreciate all the goodness in our lives.
But why limit practicing gratitude to just one day? Cultivating a habit of appreciation can significantly improve your mental health.
If you're struggling to find things to be grateful for right now, you're not alone.
Life can be tough—relationship breakups, unemployment, poverty, illness, bereavement... It's easy to become cynical in such situations. I get it.
A time of year so devoted to being grateful for what we have can also painfully highlight what we lack or have lost.
You can approach practicing gratitude with the Tarot in two ways:
1. Go through the whole deck and choose one thing for each card you are grateful for.
2. Or just pick a few cards at random to explore what you can be grateful for at this moment in time.
Examples:
Wheel of Fortune – grateful for those lucky turn of events in my favour
Three of Pentacles – grateful for all the experience gained from working with fantastic people King of Swords – grateful for having stopped all the emotional drama in my life once and for all
The Moon – grateful for the magic, mystery and imagination in my life Two of Wands – grateful for new opportunities I’m excited about
Remember to make a note of them all in your journal (check out the Tarot Moon Journal).
Why not giving this gratitude tarot exploration a try and raise your vibes today.
Pick as many cards as you like, and perhaps you will even enjoy drawing a daily card to express your gratitude for something (or someone!) good in your life right now.
Special journaling prompt:
What can I be grateful for in my life that money can’t buy?
Madame Endora's Fortune Cards is a 48-card oracle deck first published in 2003, and I bought it back in those days, shockingly, that's 21 years ago 😱😂
This is the kind of dark deck I still love especially at this time of year.
It was designed by the creators of the Gothic Tarot, hinting at its moody and mysterious atmosphere.
When I revisited the website the other day after all these years, I was delighted to find that the deck is not only still available for purchase, it can now also be downloaded as an app, although sadly just in the Apple store.
Nevertheless, it's come a long way 😄
So here I'm talking about the good old-fashioned analogue card deck, that you can hold in your hands.
There is a nice feel to the card stock; it’s somehow grippy and therefore easy to shuffle.
The cards themselves measure a standard size of 12.50 cm x 7.50 cm.
The artwork blends fantasy, Egyptian and Celtic themes, and the style of the deck is described in the accompanying booklet as “incorporating mythical lore and old world concepts of the Tarot with New Age mysticism”.
The colours of the card images are vibrant with lots of gold on a black background.
The title of the card is on top with a short explanation at the bottom, for example “The Gate – A barrier keeps you from your goal.”
This allows the beginner to start reading the cards immediately.
The deck is divided into five suits:
The Royal Court—representing people influencing your life or aspects of yourself
The Realm of Fable—various beings from ancient lore representing outside forces affecting your destiny
The Bestiary—creatures of legend representing valuable lessons and truths to be discovered
The Treasury—mystical tools and treasures symbolising aid and guidance in achieving your goals
The Elements—consisting of celestial bodies and the natural forces, which all surround and influence us on a daily basis
The mini booklet included provides brief explanations for each card and also suggests some specially created spreads for this deck, such as the Oracle of the Dawning Day and the Seer’s Fan.
The cards are meant to be read upright; there are no reversed meanings. However, there is definitely potential to introduce reversals for additional depth.
This deck always proves a hit with my friends around Halloween and cosy get-togethers by the fireplace on dark cold days. Readings are fun, eerily accurate and to the point (surprise!).
Some of the cards suggest a link to dark magic, such as The Raven, The Hand of Fate and The Mystic Circle.
Unlike the traditional Tarot deck, Madame Endora’s Fortune cards are specifically designed for fortune-telling, with statements such as “darkness looms on the horizon” and “your luck will soon change”, but it’s certainly worth a try using them for more insightful readings offering advice and guidance.
If it's the first time you've heard of this deck, then you might be interested in buying it.
Created by Joseph Vargo & Christine Filipak, it comes with a small but useful instruction booklet and is available online including the publisher's website Monolith Graphics.
If you bought it back in those days and still use it occasionally today, I'd love to hear from you! Share your experiences and thoughts in the comments below 🤩
Until next time,
Christiane🦄
⭐Check out my video, in which I give a fun little reading with this deck (fast forward to 2.39 to dive straight in)⭐
There is much beyond our control, but we can choose how we react to what life throws at us.
Rejections, breakups, abuse, loss, or simply just the crazy world we're living in….
Once you become aware of how your life experiences have influenced and affected you, you have the power to choose what kind of person you want to be, and what kind of life you want to live.
When I first started my tarot website back in 2005, I never thought it would last this long.
But when it began to take off in 2012, I decided to ride the wave and have a good time.
So many years and a pandemic later, I'm a totally different person today.
I still love tarot and everything magical.
I still love creative journaling, making my own meditation and divination cards, and I still love pulling a card once in a while from one of the few decks I still own.
But over the last four years, major shifts and changes in my life have taken me into a new direction.
I feel like the Fool on the image above.
I see the craziness ahead, but I want to hitch that ride rather than staying put.
It's a journey into the unknown. Scary but also exciting and fun.
Spring is the time of new beginnings, starting afresh, getting out and about, longer days, warmer weather and nature waking up from its long winter slumber.
How can we make the most of this get-up-and-go energy?
Here are 22 Spring self-care ideas to nourish your soul:
Get up earlier in the morning to watch the sunrise and listen to the dawn chorus.
Open the windows more often to let fresh air into your rooms.
Buy yourself spring flowers like daffodils and tulips.
Plan and book a holiday or short break for a change of scenery.
Start a regular savings account for a minimum 12-month term and watch your money grow.
Colours of Spring: green, yellow, white, soft pink and turquoise - good to know if you want to freshen up your home, wardrobe, crafty projects etc. with some seasonal colour magic
What's your favourite spring self-care practice to nourish your soul?
Even at times when you think nothing is happening and your path ahead seems clear, change is on its way.
My life is constantly changing, most often in subtle ways.
It's those little things that can have the most profound impact.
"One new perception, one fresh thought, one act of surrender, one change of heart, one leap of faith can change your life forever."
Robert Holden
Having worked with the Tarot for so many years, it used to be tempting to catch a glimpse into the future by pulling a couple of cards, but not anymore.
I have learned to accept the unknown.
Uncertainty can be scary, but once you can overcome that fear, there is no need to consult the Tarot to answer questions such as
"Will it go well?" "Will I be okay?" "Is everything going to work out?"
To be honest, I don't want to know. That's the beauty of uncertainty.
Ignorance can be bliss, so your vision isn't clouded by cryptic messages from the cards, which can often lead to more confusion.
What really counts is the journey forward.
Each step you take. Progress you make.
The outcome will always be unknown depending on the actions you take along the way.
Of course, sometimes fate can deal us some painful blows out of the blue, and perhaps the Tarot would give an indication, which in many cases is only recognised too late in retrospect.
But then life goes on, and we are the masters of how we want to proceed.
Change, uncertainty, the unknown and impermace an all be deeply unsettling.
The feeling of being out of control prompts many of us to seek some kind of reassurance.
But I don't want any reassurance. I don't want to know in advance, if all goes well or not.
I just want to embrace uncertainty and enjoy the ride.
At this moment in time, it feels good.
As long as it feels good in the present moment, I am happy to choose this path regardless of where it might lead.
At this moment in time, I don't need any more clues.
Although not everything is clear, I know that as time goes on, everything will unfold as it's meant to be.
Before you rush to have a reading about your future, I invite you to consciously embrace uncertainty.
Will you get married and have children? Will your marriage last? Will your new job be your best career move ever?
Just be okay with not knowing.
Be prepared for all possibilities including the not so happy-ever-after ones.
Life is a gamble. As long as you follow your heart, you will enjoy the journey and create the life you want to live along the way.
