Lighten Up

This week I'll be using the Touchstone Tarot, created and self-published by Kat Black. Along with it I'll be using the John Waterhouse Oracle, created and self-published by Elaine Wilkinson. Today's draws are the Happy Squirrel and Windflowers:

You be greater than your feelings. I don't demand this of you - life does. Otherwise, you'll be washed away by feelings. You'll be washed out to sea and never seen again.

― Philip Roth

I had forgotten all about the Happy Squirrel card until it turned up this morning. Originally from an episode of "The Simpsons" many years ago, it is a satirical look at fortune-telling (how rigidly and grimly some folks read the cards). Kat Black describes it this way: "Lighten up. Do not take yourself, or anything, too seriously. There are no simple answers, life is very complicated and the most important thing is to take joy in the journey." Windflowers, sometimes called Windswept, shows a woman and a field of flowers buffeted by gusty winds. It is a caution about letting our emotions sweep us away without questioning the validity or perspective behind them. We don't have to attempt to squash our feelings, but neither do we need to self-identify with them either. This is just a moment in our lifetime, not an era. 

Effortless Smiling

From the Prairie Tarot, the Jackalope:

Part jackrabbit, part antelope, this card is a version of the "Happy Squirrel;" Ator writes " A creature rarely seen, this jackrabbit wearing an antelope's horns embodies the fantastic, the unexpected, the surprising…. It can signify luck, a bolt from the blue, or the crazy gamble."  What does it mean to me?  Don't take life so seriously all the time.  Here are three "thought goals" for myself:
1. I can take care of my responsibilities and still have fun.  The trick is to let other people take care of their own obligations so I'll have the time.
2. Life is short.  I don't want to spend all my time being so serious that I miss the beauty, relationships, and belly laughs around me.
3. Fun and laughter can relieve stress and ease pain; they remind me that perfection is just a figment of my imagination.

From the Medicine Cards comes the "Buffalo":

For the native people of North America, the buffalo represented survival.  Nothing from this magnificent animal was wasted when it was hunted (which was done in a sacred manner rather than for sport).  Buffalo is a reminder for me to look at all that is good in my life and be grateful.  These blessings are highlighted today as I will be driving to visit my mom, while a dear friend will be traveling many miles to bury hers.  I do have much to be grateful about that has nothing to do with material possessions.  And being thankful leads to effortless smiling...