Together in the Light

The thought for today comes from my Message of Life deck by Mario Duguay. You can click here to check it out or go to your local (metaphysical) bookstore.

This card says:

Together in the Light: I see others as exactly who and where they are supposed to be. They are in the perfect place to contribute to my own personal growth.

Each emotional reaction another may cause in me is a gift from their soul, given to me out of love, to help free me of my conflicts. I work and look at myself without seeking to blame others. Thus I become one with the Divine in all of us.

The hardest thing to realize when I'm upset with someone is that what they did and my emotional reaction to it is an opportunity for growth. Usually when I let my emotions calm down and allow time to go by, I can see the lesson and embrace the situation with forgiveness and love.

For me, this card is a perfect reminder of how we are all divinely connected....together in the light.

Intuitive Tuesday -- Six of Hearts (Cups)

Every Tuesday I select one card and give you my interpretation of it. See how it applies to your life. What messages are here for you?

Each Thursday I choose one reader's comment from Intuitive Tuesday and pull an additional card for more clarity...so check back on Thursday to see what cards come up.

I pulled today's card from the Tarot Discovery Kit by Amy Zerner and Monte Farber. My dad gave me this as well (he's a great guy) and I love it because there is a small book and a DVD that teaches you about the history of tarot, meditations, and information on the Major Arcana and Minor Arcana cards. Plus...the tarot cards are very pretty.

Today's card is the Six of Hearts (Cups) and the key word provided for this card is JOY...and not just any joy, but childlike joy!

The Six of Hearts is about remembering a happy childhood...and if it wasn't happy, possibly remembering happier times. I have a friend who has taken my Intuition Through Tarot class who teaches a class called Lost and Found: Creatively Reinterpreting Your 'Challenging' Childhood, where you get to recreate your childhood memories. Doesn't that sound like a great class?

The Six of Hearts is about renewing old ties, restoring harmony and recalling happy memories. Since it follows the Five of Hearts (feelings of loss and disappointment), this is also a card of feeling relaxed and enjoying some success following what may have been a tough time.

Today, instead of focusing on what has been emotionally tough (recently and possibly in the past), immerse yourself in the energy of the Six of Hearts and relax, be at peace with what is and make it a point to play like a child.

And once you do give into these wonderful, childlike pleasures (playing outside, sitting in the rain, walking through a puddle, starring at the sky, etc.) allow yourself to be in the now. At the moment you go into the energy of the Six of Hearts, thoughts cease and you can be in the wonder of life. No worries about what you did earlier in the day or what needs to be done later...just be in the moment.

Today's card encourages you to release your worries and do something fun and creative. The Six of Hearts prompts you and gives you permission to do so.

Strength and Healing on 9/11

Today let us honor and remember the people whose lives were impacted by the tragic events in 2001...which I believe to be ALL of us, some more directly than others...but all of us nonetheless.

I remember that day vividly -- not only what happened, but how I felt. I remember the exact place I was standing and what I was doing when I heard how the twin towers were under attack. How could anyone purposely do this to another fellow human being? And yet, they did...and we are forever changed by it.

With the Strength card, I offer a pray and affirmation for all of us as we continue to heal and remember:

Heavenly Father, Divine Mother, Friend, Beloved God --

Be with us as we continue to heal from the past, make peace with the now and look forward to the future.

For everyone whose lives were directly impacted, may you find Strength to move forward each day and release hatred and sadness. May you move through the emotions of what happened and how your life has been impacted to find forgiveness in your heart.

Even if you are not ready for this to happen now, pray that this peace and God's love shower you with understanding when you are ready.

For all of us...let us move forward with this new knowledge of what can happen and take from it the wisdom to create more loving, peaceful ways to communicate, love and forgive each other. Amen.

Intuitive Tuesday -- Ten of Swords (reversed)

Every Tuesday I select one tarot card and give you my interpretation of it. See how it applies to your life. What messages are here for you?

Each Wednesday I choose one reader's comment from Intuitive Tuesday and pull an additional card for more clarity...so check back on Wednesday (tomorrow) to see what cards come up.

Today's card is Ten of Swords (reversed), which when its in its upright position signifies the end of the cycle and possibly being stabbed in the back. Yes, on the card there are ten swords being projected towards the collapsed man's back. OUCH!

Luckily in its reversed position (upside-down), this card means that the worst is over. It is reminiscent of Intuitive Tuesday two weeks ago when The Tower (reversed) came up. The Ten of Swords (reversed) indicates that the worst is over and you are ending one cycle to begin another.

Perhaps this similar message is given again to confirm what you felt two weeks ago when the Tower Reversed appeared. It is over and it's time to move on.

In other words, leave your problems behind and move forward. You are ready to break habits or patterns that have been self-defeating and adopt new attitudes about you and your life. Swords indicate an intellectual standpoint, so check your thoughts and see what messages are playing through your head.

Sit quietly today and reflect on where and how you may have experienced the Ten of Swords (feeling as though you've been stabbed in the back) recently. Release yourself of the burden of carrying these hurts further by letting go of the blame and resentments about what happened. Turn to a higher power for assistance in this and ask for direction and patience as you move forward.

It's time to move on...aren't you glad?

Intuitive Tuesday -- Seven of Swords (reversed)

Every Tuesday I select one tarot card and give you my interpretation of it. See how it applies to your life. What messages are here for you?

Each Wednesday I choose one reader's comment from Intuitive Tuesday and pull an additional card for more clarity...so check back on Wednesday (tomorrow) to see what cards come up.

Today's card is the Seven of Swords (reversed). At first it's natural to think something "bad" or think something might be "wrong" when you see a reversed card. Why else would a reversed card come up?

In my tarot classes, we talk about the "good" and "bad" nature of the cards and how even when something feels "bad," it can turn out to be something "good," which usually turns into a discussion on duality. My philosophy is that it's tough to tell whether something is "good" or "bad;" it just IS. And it is our reaction to it that deems it as good or bad.

Today's card is the Seven of Swords (reversed). Sevens can indicate a choice of some sort, vision, a turning point or fate. In numerology, the seven is a very spiritual number. It can refer to looking within, contemplation and choice. Swords typically refer to intellect, mental challenges and/or conflict.

The Seven of Swords in its upright position has to do with being cunning or sneaky. It can mean finding an ingenious way of solving a problem or feeling cheated or uneasy about something you have done. When reversed, it can indicate to allow things to take their own course. It may show that people might change their minds and/or may find a new appreciation for you and your ideas.

When you draw the Seven of Swords reversed, know that if something has been taken from you unfairly, it may be returned. If someone has been mean to you or talking about you behind your back, you may receive an apology.

The feeling of the Seven of Swords (reversed) is one of appreciation for who you are and possibly exoneration. You did what you needed to do and people may not have understood it at the time...but now they do OR it doesn't matter to you or to the situation.

I've said this before, but it's good to reiterate...Remember that right now is just a slice of what's happening. If you get caught up in the fairness of the situation at this point in time, it may affect how you move through what comes next and what comes after that and so on.

Take a moment now to step out of the drama and see that this is just a SLICE of the story. Yesterday someone may have been unfair to you and today someone apologizes to you. Watch the story of your life unfold.

Just as in tarot, life is a series of cycles. When you are able to step out of the drama and see it for what it is, it becomes less of a personal affront and more of a tool for growth. Where are you in the cycle? How can you step back and learn from what's happening right now?

Book Review - The Shack

Book Review -- The Shack: Where Tragedy Confronts Eternity, by William P. Young, Copyright 2007 by William P. Young.

When my friend suggested this book, she said, "It is the type of book that will change your life."

I smiled and said, "You'll know I've read it if you don't recognize me the next time you see me." Well...she may not recognize me because reading this story really touched me.

After reading the back cover, I was reluctant to read The Shack because it begins with the abduction of a child. But I pressed on...

In the first chapter the main character, Mack, receives a mysterious note from God (who his wife refers to as "Papa") which invites him back to the shack where his daughter, Missy's, blood-stained clothes had been found years before. Her death was never confirmed and Mack had lived since then in what he called, "The Great Sadness," a heavy fog of grief that hangs over his life.

Mack accepts "Papa's" invitation and returns to the shack to hopefully answer the questions that have haunted him for years. This is when the real story began.

While Mack is at the shack, through his personal encounter with "Papa," he discovers things about himself, God, religion, forgiveness, judgment and love, and he learns lessons that help him heal in his heart and in his soul.

I highly recommend The Shack and believe each reader will get out of it what they need the most. I re-connected with the holy trinity -- God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit -- and remembered how that energy is always present in my life, even as my spiritual beliefs change and grow.

I plan to read The Shack again to fully capture its richness. I bet each time you read this book, something new comes to light.

Here are two of my favorite quotes from, "The Shack:"

"So many believe that it is love that grows, but it is the knowing that grows and love simply expands to contain it. Love is just the skin of knowing." (pg. 155)

"If anything matters, then everything matters. Because you are important, everything you do is important. Every time you forgive, the universe changes; every time you reach out and touch a heart or a life, the world changes; with every kindness and service, seen or unseen, my (the Holy Spirit's) purposes are accomplished and nothing will ever be the same again." (page 235).

If you are interested in reading The Shack, I've provided a link below for more information and to order your own copy.

And, if I don't recognize you the next time we meet, I'll suspect that you read The Shack and it changed your life like it did mine.