Gaian Tarot Artist's Journal

Last Night's Full Moonrise

We sat on the beach for three hours or more, watching in awe as the huge orange orb rose in the southeastern sky.   She shimmered and danced for us as the tide went out in ripples and waves.  Her reflection on the water sometimes looked like an undulating snake and sometimes like a bellydancer,   We sang to Her, and in response Sister Heron came flying out of the darkness to circle round between Her in the sky and us on the beach.  Later we were graced by the presence of Owl and Bat and Mouse.  We lifted our stones nestled in a clamshell up to Her and asked for boons to be granted.  We thanked Her for the blessings of our lives.  We giggled and laughed and played in the warm water.   We left before midnight with our hearts very full.

You know it's Midsummer when . . .

. . . there are blossoms and falling leaves at the same time.

what i miss most about the island

watching the full moon rise over mountain

the quiet

the fresh salt air

the darkness at night and the brilliant stars

my neighbor colleen

the feeling of safety when I walk alone late at night

the water’s edge

the herons and eagles

the community

watching the full moon set over water

the quiet

the dark

the fresh salt air

the quiet

the water

the moon

Offering to the Queen of Summer

Moments of Grace: Summer Solstice Sunrise

These are the Tweets of Our Lives

Have you ever noticed how there's a direct correlation between the amount of sunshine and the number of blog posts that get written?   At least for me, I mean.  I have not wanted to spend hours here at this screen, just enough to keep up with Work for Clients.   I have, however, been Twittering. Because! it's! so! short!

In case you are one of those folks who have wisely decided to avoid this distraction, here's a few of my Tweets from the last few days:

Rainbow Alert! Late afternoon sun + prisms in clerestory windows = rainbows dancing everywhere. Then poof! they're gone. Until tomorrow.

Headed into the studio for an Art Day . . . working on the Eights, Air and Fire.

@almatierra I want some sparkling cranberry ginger mead!

Just in from an afternoon of weeding out front. Communed with Mother Sun and made friends with the neighborhood canines & crows.

Listening to the wind rustle leaves in the alder woods, and to birdcalls and birdsong wakening the morning.

Just sent out Waverly's newsletter - love the article on Complaint Free Zone! 

@caryszina I wish you were part of our Tarot group too. I'm cogitating on doing something like it via webconferencing . . . we'll see!

Overheard in the pool this morning: "Do you think Obama will bring down the price of gas?" Conservative senior citizens want to know.

This mermaid is completely, utterly and totally thankful that she gets to spend several mornings a week in the water.

Have a wonderful near-Solstice MoonDay!

Moment of Grace: First Wild Roses of Summer

Moment of Grace: Pinkness of Petals

It rained and rained and rained. Then we opened our front door to this:  the path ahead was strewn with almond blossoms.  Made me feel like the Queen of the May.

Seven of Earth

With the arrival of summer here in the Pacific Northwest, I've been spending as much time as possible outside. I've either had a weeding tool in hand or a fistful of colored pencils.  Yesterday I finished the last of the Sevens.  Here's my 7 of Earth, which is a bit different from the usual "waiting for the harvest" theme of the RWS 7 of Pentacles.

Remember that in the Sevens, we set a new goal for ourselves, one that reflects our inner work (as opposed to a goal in the everyday world).  With the 7 of Earth, we set some kind of practical goal that manifests in the physical world.

A woman plants a red cedar sapling near a creek where salmon spawn.  She is volunteering for a habitat restoration project in an area that was once heavily logged.  Western Red Cedar is a slow-growing species that won’t reach a mature height of 150 feet for twenty years. As it grows, it helps to shade the stream, keeping the water cool so young salmon can thrive.

When the Seven of Earth appears in a reading, we set a goal for ourselves that involves long-term planning.  We don’t expect to see results immediately but are content to know that we are working slowly and steadily toward our goal. We learn to be patient. We’re not on our own timeline here — instead, we’re on Mother Earth’s timeline!  We learn to live in synch with Her rhythms and cycles.  We trust that our efforts are worthwhile, even if we don’t see the fruits of our labors for a very long time.

Summer's Here!

It's a glorious morning . . . 70 degrees now and going up to 82, they say.  Can you believe how thrilled we are? Remember, it was snowing here less than a month ago.

I'm having a grand time getting to know my new "secret spot", aka my new back yard.  I know my herbs and my native plants pretty well, but I don't know most of the ornamentals that are planted here.  So it is great fun to watch things bud and bloom, and try to figure out what they might be.   

Instead of herons, we have quite a neighborhood of Steller's jays, and we've watched Deer and Raccoon roam through our yard.   Lots of LBB's too (the ubiquitous Little Brown Birds).

I'm going to take my art supplies outside and spend the day there.

Cleo and I are very excited!