I use tarot and oracle cards as tools for reflection and contemplation. Rather than divining the future, they are a way for me to look more deeply at the "now."
"The goal isn't to arrive, but to meander, to saunter, to make your life a holy wandering." ~ Rami Shapiro

Thursday, April 2, 2015

Fear of Fear

From the Shadowscapes Tarot, the Moon; from the Cedar Runes, "Jera:"
          The Shadowscapes book mentions the fairy ring of mushrooms in this card. Perhaps it is because I'm tired this morning, but I saw them as psychoactive agents instead. Now I no longer dabble with drugs, but I do remember during those times feeling happy and high one minute then paranoid and afraid the next. Ricklef, in his ebook Pithy Tarot, gives two of his own quotes that I find useful for this combination today. The first is: "We all have blind spots where our fears lie." That speaks loudly to me. If I'm feeling overwhelmed, it's easy to want to turn a blind eye to what I fear in hopes it will disappear. But the anxiety lurks within, building up like lava ready to erupt. But the Jera rune (meaning cycles and harvest) reminds me if I keep doing the work, I'll reap the fruits. Those results may not be perfect, but they're probably going to be better than my paranoia thinks they'll be. Ricklef's second quote says: "You can’t banish the darkness by ignoring it, but you can light a torch and explore it." I have a feeling if I take his advice, I'll see that it is my fear of fear causing my anxiety, not reality itself.

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5 comments:

  1. EllenApril 2, 2015 at 11:22 AM

    Then Ken would be a perfect rune for you when you go exploring in the shadows. :D
    I can relate to having fears which when not addressed keep getting bigger and bigger. and how great the feeling of relief is when you finally do face them.

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    1. thesycamoretreeApril 2, 2015 at 11:30 AM

      I can think of several areas in my life where there is the fear "This won't get better." And it might not. But I don't have to believe I won't have the strength to deal with it (which is what my fear would like me to believe!).

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    2. UnknownApril 3, 2015 at 9:09 AM

      Oh ya Bev, I sure relate to that, 'fear of fear". Hits the nail right on the head. Fact is, for me it borders on OCD sometimes and some phobias. As a kid I was fearless. Then as an adult I did things that some would say I had cahonas (not sure how to spell that one). But fact was I didn't want to be filled with fear or fear, fear. I tried giving it the fearful finger! Seemed to have worked and got me through a lot of fearful experiences. But being courageous does mean we aren't afraid. Right? We just try to use our head and heart and give fear the old finger!

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    3. thesycamoretreeApril 3, 2015 at 9:43 AM

      I like Mark Twain's quote: “Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear - not absence of fear.”
      :)

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  2. UnknownApril 3, 2015 at 10:49 AM

    Ooo I like that too! Thanks Bev. <3

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