The Snow Angel by Jasmine Becket-Griffith

The big message with this card is “HEY! YOU!  I’m here!  Hello…is this thing on?!”  You’ve asked for signs, you’ve asked for guidance, whether it was from the angels, the faeries, the Gods, and while you’ve asked and asked the signs of their presence has been presented but you haven’t opened your eyes to see them.  It’s not the presence of your guardian that is missing but your acceptance of the signs themselves.

Many of us will say “I just want a sign that you’re there, that you’re watching me and protecting me”, or we may be more specific and ask for a sign to help with something specific.  What is it that we are really waiting for that causes us to discount and dismiss so many of the gentle and subtle signs that the angels, our spirit guides, and the Gods send us?  We seem so determined to have a major experience like something out of a movie that little signs like a feather on the hood of our car every morning or finding pennies in our path whenever we ask for a signal doesn’t seem to be enough.  Our egos get in the way of really seeing the signs that have always been there when we’ve asked for them.

The Snow Angel says that today you need to stop talking, stop asking for signs, and instead just look and listen.  She seems to be saying to me “If you’d stop talking and start listening you’d realize the signs have been coming non-stop since you asked but you don’t want to listen to what I have to say!”  Rather than denying that the signs are there it’s time to accept that they just might not be what we wanted.  But we asked, they have delivered, and now it’s our job to honor the work they the angels and spirits have done to try and help us.

Goddess of Beauty
You are a wondrous being of light; there is nothing to change or fix

Sometimes when we’re going through times where things feel off or things are in a transition stage we can find ourselves feeling like there is something wrong with us or something that we have done wrong that has added to the problems or confusion we’re experiencing.  This isn’t always the case in reality and it’s just a matter of our perception.  Instead, if we stop and take the time to really look at ourselves and what we have added to the situation we’ll often find that we’ve done nothing wrong and have probably added light to the situation.

In this card three chakra points are highlighted.  The third eye has a bright white teardrop marking on it, the throat has a rainbow teardrop marking, and the heart has a butterfly over it that is sending out streams of white and blue energy.  If you’re dealing with a period of self-doubt or feeling that you’re not the light-filled being that you are, take a moment to focus on how you perceive (the third eye), how you receive (the heart), and how you express (the throat).  There could be some things in these processes that need attention in order to express your light more fully into the world and to be able to inject it into a situation that needs it for healing.  Truly see what is going on in and around you without the filter of ego.  Receive that loving healing energy of those around you and the energy that the Universe and the Divine send you when you need it.  Then take all of that and, together, find ways to express yourself and your true essence in to the world.

It’s interesting seeing this card today because on my Facebook page I’ve been doing a daily Soul Card posting using a great set of cards called Soul Coaching Oracle by Denise Linn.    Today’s card was Essence, a card that talks about peeling away the layers of falsehood to get to our true soul essence so that we can express it into the Universe.  I see that card mirrored in this one a great deal.  We can transform just about anything when we are willing to transform ourselves and do the work to strip away the things that aren’t serving us or our goals.  When we get down to our true essence we find our true beauty.

Today’s Affirmation
I am a being of light and beauty expressing my true essence in the world.

Dreaming Heart

This is a little funny for me, personally, since in our first class we were all given cards to work with and this was the card that was picked for me, and here it is again.  I was unable to find the image anywhere online so I’ll describe it as best I can (which is what I’m being guided by the angels to really do when this card comes up for me…work with really “looking” at things).

The image is full of blues, many of a deep cobalt color, with touches of white.  The image shows a female figure, somewhat in shadow so that her face cannot be identified.  Behind her is what appears to be a night sky but not a dark sky; there are what appear to be stars and even little flowers around her in the background.  Around her head is a radiant, yet contained, white aura.  Three bands of energy flow across her face; one in the same bright white which covers the eyes, and then two dark blue ones which run around where the nose and mouth would sort of meet and then over the throat.  In the center of her chest is a large, bright red heart, also with the a bit of a white aura, and a white cross with what seems to be almost another little, mini blue heart, rests over it.

The things that I get from this card have mainly to do with how we see things and how we radiate things.  With the energy bands across the face the focus is at the eyes but there is attention drawn to the mouth and throat as well shows that we need to see more clearly and then be mindful of how we express what we see.  The heart and it’s radiance remind us that we need to radiate from a place of love and trust when working with others, as well as ourselves, and we need to be open with our heart to receive as well.  The aura around the head reminds us that, not only do we need to be mindful of what we put out there and how we express ourselves in the world, but also remembering that we have a connection to the Divine and we can be a clear channel for sharing the love of the Divine through our heart if we are open to receiving and being that channel.

Today be mindful of how you use your words and spend more time observing and really watching what goes on around you and how people around you act with one another, holding your judgments and letting your heart dictate how to respond if a response is even needed.  There is a wee bit of yellow in the band of light that goes over the eyes which makes me think of the solar plexus chakra and the idea of trusting our gut reactions.  Many times your first impression can be the right one, so don’t spend too much time analyzing.  Instead go with what you feel from what you see and let your heart be the filter that it passes through.

Today’s Affirmation
“I open my eyes and heart to the world around me.“

Visualize Success
See yourself doing well in this situation, and have faith in a positive outcome.

I like this message today because it fits in well with something I was reading yesterday and something that I had wanted to bring up to discuss.  Clearly it’s something that needs to be talked about with this card coming up today.

When we talk about magick we do a lot of talking about visualization.  You need to visualize your goal and your success when casting a spell; you should always visualize yourself being how you want to be if you wish to bring change into your life; you should visualize yourself successful if you want to manifest success.  While this is all very true, visualizing can be difficult.  Not every has this great ability to create images and scenes in their minds, nevermind hold on to them long enough to raise focused energy and direct it somewhere.

Visualizing is very important and it’s a key technique in many parts of life, magick, and success, but another part of that which is important is letting go of that visualization so that it can do it’s work and manifest in your life.  If you create your visualized image, or become so focused on creating it and creating it “right” that you never let go of it, you’re likely to miss on a few points in actually creating your goal.  First, you will have likely created doubt in you mind by hanging on to and recreating your visualization over and over.  Creating doubt means creating blocks to success and certainly that isn’t what we want.  Secondly, you’ll have just held on to that energy and never really released it so it could do it’s work!  And lastly, you will likely have been spending so much visualizing that you have forgotten to get out there and act in accord with your visual.  And that is the first step to NOT getting what you’re after.

Should you visualize and try and create an image in your mind of your goals and your successful accomplishments?  Absolutely.  But you have to also know when to let them go and just get on to the act of living and creating your path to that goal.  If you don’t let go the Universe can’t do it’s thing.  So today, take time to visualize a specific goal or successful outcome that you desire in a situation but then release that visual and that thoughtform into the Universe and let it do it’s magick.  Otherwise, if you hang on to it, what’s the point in creating the energy with that work in the first place?

Today’s Affirmation
“I visualize my success and release it into the Universe to manifest.”

Angel of New Life
An exciting new chapter in your life is about to unfold.

It probably wouldn’t be too crazy to think that some of the feelings of things being unsettled and on edge these days would be lingering right before a big change was about to happen.  This could be where we’re headed right now; a change for us all could very well be on the heals of all that is happening in the world around us right now.  But let’s talk about things on a more personal scale.

We often talk about wanting to make changes, wanting to see something new come into our lives, but we often follow that us with a lack of change via our actions.  Like they say, actions speak louder than words, and we can talk all day about wanting to make a change in our lives but that isn’t going to get us any closer to actually doing it.  There is a specific quote that comes to mind when I look at this card and hear the messages that the angels are bringing through with it:

“And the day came when the risk it took to remain tight inside the bud was more painful than the risk it took to bloom.”  ~ Anais Nin

I’m especially reminded of this quote while looking at the picture on the card where a female figure is rising up from the center of a lotus flower with the moon above her head, a golden aura around her, energy swirling, and a rainbow stretching behind the moon.  It’s a very evocative card and the message in it reminds us that the power to change is within us all but the act of rising to the challenge is an act the we alone have to do; nobody else is going to be there to pick us up and make us stand and take action.

The message here is simple today; stand up and take form.  What form do you desire to take?  What change do you need to make to move into something more powerful in your life?  What path in your life do you wish to walk down and what do you need to do to get your feel on that path?  Normally I would say to take time today to answer those questions and find some answers about what changes you wish to make, but instead today I say no more thinking!  No more meditating and contemplating!  Instead, today, take action!!!  Get up and rise to the occasion today and take a step, no matter how small, to make the changes in your life that you have so longed for but haven’t yet realized!  You have to power to do anything and be anything you want if you’re willing to stand up and go for it.

Today’s Affiramtion
“I stand up and take charge of my path and direction in life.”

Angel of Union
“A partnership is blessed and destined for greatness.”

As I look at the card in the deck for this image the one thing that stands out the most for me is the white dove that creates a canopy over the two figures in the foreground of the image.  The dove is what speaks to me the most today and that message is one which is a reminder about how much peace between two people matters in order to see thing accomplished.  You and another person, be it friend, family, life partner or even a business partner, can have a great deal of care and respect for one another but if there is no peace to guide you in your union then nothing can really come of it.  This can be difficult at times and just as much as we may love one another we can also have moments of great frustration that, if left unchecked, can become viscous and heavy emotions that can suck the real life out of any partnership.

In order to attain this greatness within whatever union in your life is most important, think today about how you create, contribute and maintain peace between you two.  Is there a lack of balance of peace?  Do you need to work to bring more peace into this relationship in order to feel truly united?  The dove doesn’t just bring us peace but also acts as a guide, as a messenger and symbol of the Divine guidance and Divine peace that we all have access to.  If we can only close our eyes, clear our heads, and truly listen from the heart rather than from the head we can find the messages of peace and guidance that will bring us to our ultimate greatness.  Honor each other, honor the Divine, and bring love and peace into all you do together.

Today’s Affirmation
“I create peace for my partners in life, work and play.”

Angel of Relaxation
“Let go of desired outcomes and you will get what you want”

The thing that strikes me first about this card is the coloring and how it looks like a woman’s face bathed in blue evening light with glistening touches of silvery moonlight dancing off her face and her hair.  In the image her third eye is covered with a white ball of flame and her physical eyes are closed.  This lends a lot of energy to this message about letting go.

So we’ve talked before about the “Let go let God/Goddess” and the need to detach from things from time to time in order to actually achieve what we’re after.  We so often find ourselves so heavily invested in the outcome of something that we aren’t able to really advance and make anything happen because if the very thing we want can’t manifest in the way we want it to then we have no interest in seeing what will come to pass.  We’ve all been there and that’s just part of the human condition; we want what we want and we want it now.  This is where the angels and the Gods come into the picture.  They can remind us that if we let go of expectations we can often see that what we really need is different from what we wanted and what we needed will come through.

The Angel of Relaxation is here to remind you that you need to relax and let go and make way for energy to move and for things to manifest.  In the image the woman closes her eyes and by doing this, letting go of the physical world in front of her, her third eye is able to open and take flight.  She is able to gain new information and new understanding by not being so attached to the physical and the desired and instead can really hear and see things from a deeper level.  If there is something that you find yourself worried about, stressed about, or becoming overly invested in an outcome it may be time to sit back, close your eyes, and let yourself inner sight rule things for a bit.

Take the time in meditation this evening to consider something that has you so attached to the “real world” outcome that you have become clouded in how you feel about things on a deeper level.  If you find that something has you drained, this could be another opportunity to step back and let another form of wisdom take over and help you.  Close your eyes, set your intent to let your third eye chakra open, and ask what it is that you really need to know and what it is that you truly need to gain from this experience or situation.  Don’t focus on what you want, but be open to discovering what it is that you truly need.  You’ll likely be amazed how different yet similar the two may be.  You may very well find that, when you’re done, you don’t feel that attachment to the outcome anymore and instead you have become more trusting and comfortable in knowing the Gods and the Universe will give you all you can handle and all that you need.

Tonight’s Affirmation
I release what I want and make way for what I need.

Archangel Raphael
“The healing angel is with you, supporting your healing work.”

The message that I get today from Raphael when we’re talking about this card is one of really being open to exploring the different forms that healing can take.  Healing doesn’t have to be something traditional like seeing a doctor or therapist, and it doesn’t have to mean new age or metaphysical healing like Reiki healing or crystal therapy.  Healing with the angels can be something as simple as taking a walk outside with a mindfulness of connecting to healing for any purpose or even just taking some time out for ourselves can be greatly healing.  We often find ourselves thinking that if something is supposed to be healing we need to be in an active healing process, but with the angels, especially working with Raphael, we just need to set the intention and ask for the healing and he will begin the process for us.  Our biggest part is to live in accord and let that energy flow within and around us.

If you have a need for healing in your life today is a great day to begin the process of welcoming that healing by connecting to Raphael and asking for him to connect with you through that stream of divine healing energy and light that we all have the ability to tap into.  You may know it as Reiki or you may just know it as the power of mindful prayer.  Whatever way you know of this loving, healing energy, ask Raphael to help facilitate your connection to it and then welcome it by living in a way that really allows the healing to come in and do its thing.  If you are asking for healing for something specific you want to be sure that you’re not doing things that would aggravate or worsen the condition while the healing connection is happening.  You can’t expect to have relief from a nagging cough or respiratory infection if you smoke a pack a day!  When you ask the angels to help you need to also be willing to help yourself by working with them by making room for them to do their job.

Today’s Affirmation
“I ask for healing and make room for the energy to flow.”

Goddess of the Sacred Path
“Let go of logic and trust your intuition.”

Letting go of our logical mind and letting our intuition step ahead and take control can be a little scary for us, especially if this is something that we normally don’t do or if we’re still venturing out into the realm of working with our intuition.  Like the saying “you can’t win if you don’t play” you also can’t know the power of your own intuition and psychic mind if you don’t use it.  Letting this aspect of ourselves come out and play can be really important and can help us to build our confidence when it comes to working in a mystical or magickal way as well as with working with tarot, angel or oracle cards (should this be something you like to do).  The problem is setting aside that logical mind.

One of the best ways to start working with learning to do this is to learn to feel the difference between logical mind and psychic mind.  For most people this is first discovered by learning to meditate, especially learning to do guided meditation or meditations that are more of a shamanic journey.  When we learning to work with these sorts of settings we have no choice but to let our magickal mind come forward and our logical mind take the back seat for the 15 or 20 minutes we’re meditating.  You being to feel the difference between how the two feel on both an energetic level and even on a physical level.  If you don’t have a meditation practice in place, now is the perfect time to start one!  Start slow, 3 to 5 minutes a day, and then allow yourself to gradually build up to a longer session.  Start with just working to clear your mind and quiet your inner voice.  This is the begging of learning to set aside the logical mind.  As you build up your practice, start looking for guided meditation CDs like the Celtic and Goddess meditations from Mara Freeman or find books with guided meditations that you can read through or have a friend read to you and guide you through.  Michelle Skye has several books on Goddess work that include some of the best guided journeys for meeting and working with different Goddesses that I’ve ever read.

Another way to start letting your intuition come through more is to just follow your heart and not feel you have to judge and guide all that you do during the day.  If you’re driving home from work and you just suddenly feel the urge to take a different route home, do it.  Don’t feel you have to do things the way you usually do just because it’s routine.  On more than one occasion I’ve had this happen over the years and come to find that my usual way to and from a place was backed up due to an accident or construction that I didn’t know about and by taking this other way I saved myself a lot of time and grief.  You might also have the urge to suddenly call a friend you haven’t talked to in ages and when you do you come to find they are in real need of someone right now and you’re there to help them just in the nick of time.  Much like any muscle the more we use it the more it works for us; the more you let your intuition take a role in your life, the stronger it will become.

Setting aside a little time today to meditate and honor your intuition will be helpful in connecting you deeper with your own divine path and allowing you to connect more with your spirit to what you truly desire.  Again, the simple act of meditation and then allowing your intuition to do it’s thing without your logical intervention is the best way to do this since this is the way to truly honor your intuitive abilities.

Today’s Affirmation
“I am using my intuition with confidence every day.”

Angel of Prayer
“Ask the Universe and the Angels for help and guidance.”

There’s a saying that you hear in a lot of Christian circles that I think we, as Pagans and other earth-based believers, could benefit from affirming every now and then.  “Let go and let God.”  Make it “Let go and let Goddess” if you wish, but the sentiment is still the same.  We know that we have a very powerful, direct connection to the Divine and the Universe, but we often forget to let it work for us and instead feel that we need to do all the work and just ask for it’s assistance.  The Divine, however you wish to see it, is there to work with you.  The God and Goddess will work on your behalf in a way that the angels and the Universe necessarily can’t (you need to give the angels expressed permission where as the God and Goddess can always intervene).   But we sometimes forget that, while we might want to see the Goddess come in and lend us a hand, she might not feel she needs to and thus doesn’t, leaving us feeling like we aren’t getting the help we want from the Divine.  This can also sometimes put us in the position of working extra hard without the divine help that we might need.

So today, “Let go and let God/dess”.  What is stressing you?  What has you on edge?  What has you feeling like you’re getting buried under a pile that you’ll never get out from under?  Ask for the God, Goddess and/or angels to come in and lend a hand today.  Ask for them to help take away stress and help with getting things done in whatever manner they can help.  If there is something very specific, like a difficult decision that you need to make and you can’t pick a course of action, ask for help on that specific thing and meditate while listening for an answer or sign for your next step.  The Divine, the Universe and the Angels are all there waiting to help and willing to help, but you need to let them know what you need and you need to give them room to work.  Once you ask, make the space for them to do what they need to do.

Today’s Affirmation
“I am making room for Divine aid in my life.”