Gaian Tarot Artist's Journal

Giveaway! "Daughters of the Witching Hill" by Mary Sharratt

I'm fond of historical novels that reframe familiar stories, especially when they involve women accused of witchcraft.  Mary Sharratt has done a wonderful job of looking at the infamous Pendle witch trials of 1612 with fresh eyes.   

Would you like to win a copy of this book?   Just leave a comment by midnight Sunday night May 2nd, and I'll choose the winner out of a hat.  (US and Canada only, sorry) 

Here's an excerpt from the book, and a fascinating Q&A reprinted from her website. 

Enjoy!

Snippets from the Readers Studio, 2010

I'm home from another wonderful experience at the Readers Studio in New York. These conferences just keep getting better and better.  I was thrilled to see so many Gaian Tarot decks made an appearance — there was at least one at every table and often more.  I'm still in "rest and recovery" mode but wanted to post a few photos today.  There's lots more on Facebook, here and here and here and here.

Here's Tarot Goddess Mary Greer and me, both dressed in turquoise for the Sat. night banquet:

Happy Earth Day

 I may be spending Earth Day inside a hotel for the Readers Studio, but I can still dash outside to touch Mama Gaia, throw cherry petals into the breeze and give thanks for all She does for us.  Blessed be. 

Wordless Wednesday ~ Storm Comin' In

(That's Gracie's house on the right.)

 

Seven of Earth - Gaian Tarot Card of the Week

Seven of Earth

A lovely card to get as I release a restful week with family and start to work again.  I’m so grateful that my work in the world is the work of my heart, that touches other people, satisfies my soul and gives me a good income to live on.  I’m headed down to New York for the annual Readers Studio, where I expect to have a royally fun time with my Tarot buddies.  I’m looking forward to meeting a number of folks who have purchased the Gaian Tarot Limited Edition

 too.  I’ll be vending, teaching a workshop and giving readings this time.  So it’s sure to be an intense few days.  The Seven of Earth is telling me that my work at RS10 is part of the foundation of building my business for the next few years. It reminds me that the Llewellyn version of my deck hasn’t even been published yet. And that the young sapling that is my deck and my business will someday grown into a huge cedar tree . . .

Here’s what the Gaian Tarot companion book has to say about this card:

When you get this card in a reading . . .

It may be time to set a goal for yourself that involves long-term planning on a practical level. Don’t expect to see results immediately, but be content to know that you are working slowly and steadily toward your goal. Be patient. You’re not on your own timeline here — instead, you’re on Mother Earth’s schedule. You are learning to live in synch with Her rhythms and cycles. Trust that your efforts are worthwhile, even if you don’t see the fruits of your labors for a very long time — like a red cedar sapling reaching toward the sky, transforming a clearcut into a temperate old growth rainforest.

What does this card say to you, dear Reader?

Gracie in April: Sun, Rain, Snow & Painting

Craig and I spent the last few days in Maine, visiting our granddaughter Gracie, and her parents of course!  Gracie is talking up a storm these days and has become her own little person. She was a joy to be around.  I'm already looking forward to October, when we'll see her again.  (More photos found here.)

A walk around the neighborhood in the bright sunshine. 

Wordless Wednesday ~ Fields of Tulips

(My friend Jill took this photo in the Skagit Valley last week.)

Secrets of Spring ~ The Language of the Birds

Guest Post by Chris Chisholm, Founder, Wolf Camp and Wolf College, Puyallup, Washington

Joanna's note: Hope you are enjoying the birds in your neighborhood this Spring! I'm very excited about the robins that are building a nest right outside my back door. I asked my friend and naturalist mentor Chris Chisholm to share this teaching about learning the language of the birds. (Chris is the model for the 5 of Earth and Explorer of Air.) Hope you like it! 

My second grade teacher was giving us a written test in language arts and I smugly turned in my paper, laughing at how easy the questions were this time. She was quizzing us about the ways of nature. The next day, I hurriedly looked at my paper, expecting to have aced the test.

I was devastated to realize I had gotten wrong what I had thought was the easiest question on the test. Do animals talk to each other? Of course they do. After playing in the woods of northern Minnesota every day of my young life, and befriending the robins of our family garden, I knew that animals — especially the birds — talked to each other all the time.

But Mrs. Stromwick, bless her heart, marked my answer wrong, and it was a life changing moment. I’m not sure I ever felt a part of nature again for the next fifteen years of my schooling, not until I read Tom Brown’s Field Guide to Nature and Survival for Children after graduating from college.

Upon finishing his book, I went outside to sit quietly, in my garden. I listened, just like I had done as a child, and the birds woke me up again to the spirit of nature. I heard more than bird songs and calls. I heard what Brown referred to as the “concentric rings” of communication in nature.

The concentric rings of nature are, simply, animals talking to one another. Don’t dismiss it, but don’t believe it, until you’ve really listened to them in action. Mostly, the birds are the newscasters of nature, although the squirrels, frogs and other animals are very vocal as well. 

Consider for a second the possibility that a whole new world of nature may remain hidden from if you don’t take time to learn the language of the birds. Don’t you have the vague feeling that you hike past a lot of hidden wildlife — the deer laying in the thicket, the coyote silently watching your every move, or the minutes-old cougar tracks indicating that she heard you coming?

Many of us love gardening, maybe for the beautiful flowers the birds pollinate, or to witness the interaction of plants with the elements, or simply to breathe the clean, fresh air hovering over the upturned soil. But how often have we stopped to wonder what a bird visiting our garden is saying to us? We may love bird watching, and we may even be able to identify many species by their songs. But what happens when we finish our checklists? 

5 of Water - Gaian Tarot Card of the Week

       What do we most need to consider this coming week?

       Five of Water

Well I have to admit I kind of feel like this card, this morning:  Depleted.  Tired.  Verging on the blues. I’ve been working hard, confronting my own workaholic tendencies and fantasizing about dialing the workload way, way back for the summer. I have some health issues that are bothering me.  Meanwhile we leave day after tomorrow for the east coast — several days with the kids, then on to New York for the Readers Studio.  I’m looking forward to “slow time” with Gracie.  Reading books, playing with blocks, going for nice long walks around the neighborhood.

But the question when we pull a “negative” card is this:  Are we going to stay in that despondent, weary place?  And if not, what are we going to do to work our way out of it?    

In my case, I’m headed out for a doc appointment, then I’ll follow it up with a walk by the bay before I get back to work.  That oughta do the trick.

And you, dear Reader?  What does this card say to you?

My New Office Away from Home Office

I loved working in this cafe on the bay today.  Just enough of a change in location to shake the creative juices up and get 'em moving.  And of course I got to be near my beloved Mama Ocean.  

It was a wild, cold, sunny, blustery day.  Utter perfection IMO.  And after the cafe and the writing and the lattes, a nice long walk by the bay.   

 I'm a happy woman.