Shining the Light on Your Shadows

 

 

Welcome to the Yule Tarot Blog Hop!!  

 

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Hermit card from Snowland Tarot by Ron and Janet Boyer

 



Welcome to the Yule Tarot Blog Hop!  I am but one stop on the beautifully lit journey.  You should have gotten here from Karen Sealey's blog.

Traditionally, since farming couldn’t be done in the winter months, the dark time of the year was a time of rest and introspection.  Although things have changed tremendously over the years, for many, including myself, we still use this time to go within ourselves and decide what has been working and what has not.  Like the Hermit here, we use that inner light to search our inner depths, getting to know our true selves.  

 

As we celebrate the rebirth of the sun this Yule, many people are preparing for the New Year, making plans, goals and resolutions so the next year will be the best that it can be.  Some resolutions are chosen to live life to the fullest, such as learning a new hobby or crossing some things off of our bucket list, while others are chosen to better ourselves, such as quitting smoking or losing weight.  The idea of the resolution can really be a fantastic thing because they come from a place of us wanting to change for the better.  Our desire is there, however, a majority of resolutions fail.  We have the best of intentions but our desire for that particular change fizzles out for one reason or another leaving another “failed” resolution.  The problem can be that we are putting a band aid on a wound that we think is something minor but actually goes a lot deeper.  Of course this is not the case with all resolutions, but it is with some.  To have success, we have to dig a little deeper and get to the root of the deeper issues.  In other words, we have to do some shadow work.   

 

For those that are unfamiliar with the term, the shadow is those parts of ourselves that we keep buried deep down inside refusing to acknowledge them until they come out at the most inopportune times, sometimes wreaking havoc in our lives.  Our behaviors can be erratic, seemingly irrational and we can have issues making changes to ourselves (thus the “failed” resolutions). 

 

In order to free ourselves from our shadows, we must bring them to the surface and learn to live with them rather than fight them. When we start making resolutions, these are our shadows starting to peak out, wanting to be acknowledged.  We get a glimpse of them by wanting to make those changes to ourselves, but when we do not follow through with those changes, the shadows go back into the deep, barely acknowledged and we make our shadows worse because we may think less of ourselves because we weren’t able to follow through with our resolutions. 

 

When we make a resolution, we want to bring the shadow of that resolution to the surface, shine a light on it and reveal it for what it is.  Here is a spread that will help get to the bottom of things.

 

Ray of Light Spread

 

                                      2

                              3

         1             4

                               5

                                         6 

 

1. Issue at hand/Shadow to work on
2. How the shadow holds me back
3. How does it help me
4. What can I learn from it
5. How can I heal it         
6. What gift will I receive after it is healed

By revealing and healing our shadows, we celebrate ourselves and the light within us while also becoming a beacon of light for others.  Celebrate the return of the sun by celebrating the light within you.

Next stop on your journey is Shari B. Yetto's blog.

 

Happy Yule and happy hopping!

 

Shine on everyone!!

 

 

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Keeping It Clean

We have reached the time of year when we make our lists, check it twice, find out who is naughty or…wait, wrong list.   But we are making our lists….lists of things to do, goals to make, etc., everything that we need to do to make 2014 a fabulous year.  Unfortunately, there are a few steps that are missed by many, simply because they either forget about it or they simply aren’t aware of the impact that it can have.  Here’s a hint…..you have to remove the old to make way for the new.

 

You’ve all heard the saying, right?  When we hold onto the old, things that no longer serve us, they end up cluttering our area, creating obstacles, keeping us from reaching our goal.  Think about it.  You can’t make it to the front door if there are obstacles in your way that you have to walk around or step over.  Sometimes you end up tripping and falling.  It’s common sense, right?  Of course it is, however, people don’t necessarily consider everything clutter.

 

 Inversion from Snowland Tarot

 

Negative thoughts are clutter.  They hold you back, keeping you from obtaining your goals. If you think that you don’t deserve your aspirations, you won’t receive them.  You have to be positive and believe that you do deserve them.  If you believe that you have a positive attitude and that you have been doing everything physically necessary to reach your goals, try changing your perspective, just like the Inversion (traditional Hanged Man) card shown here.  Put yourself in someone else’s shoes and see it from their perspective.  If a friend was in your shoes, what would you see?  If they asked you for advice, what would you tell them?  Often, if we look at things from the outside looking in, we can more easily see the answers that are right there staring us in the face.  Change your way of thinking.  Whatever the issue is, take the time to change it to your benefit. I’m not telling you anything that you don’t already know, but we sometimes need the reminder, especially since this piece is on de-cluttering for the New Year.  Moving on……

 

4 of Material from Snowland Tarot



 

Now here’s what many people don’t think about when they are preparing for the New Year.  Remember that physical clutter we talked about earlier?  Yep, that’s it.  If your house or office space is cluttered because you are being a miser and holding onto to everything you can, like the man in the 4 of Material, how do you expect new things to be able to enter your life?  That pile of mail on the table, the junk drawer or closet, the book shelves that have so many books thrown on them that the shelves are bowing, those papers with business ideas just thrown on your desk.  There are many areas that clutter can accumulate and even the smallest amount of clutter retains old, stale energy.  That stale energy that hangs around can keep great things from entering your life.  You know the feeling after you’ve cleaned your house, everything is in its place and you sit back and just enjoy it?  Do you feel a sense of a cloud lifting after you clean no matter what the state of your house was in?  That feeling is what you want to accomplish.  That cloud lifting is the old stale energy leaving the area, allowing for a new attitude and new energy.  Wouldn’t you rather work in a space that is newly cleaned and refreshed rather than a space that makes you feel like you are Pig Pen from Peanuts?  If your house is clutter free and you still have that feeling, burn some incense, sage or a nice smelling candle.  Sometimes after a bad day or a fight, those feelings can hang around so clear the area.  You’ll be amazed at the difference.

Remember to keep it clean!

Have a great week! 

This weeks affirmation – I am committed to having a clutter free life

 This weeks song: Car Wash by Rose Royce

 

Tarot cards courtesy of Snowland Tarot by Ron & Janet Boyer