Today I had a specific question: how can we stay centered and focus on service when there is so much terrible scary stuff going on in the world?
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And here’s what came through:
Remember that a lot of what’s happening is meant as a distraction tactic, to overwhelm and immobilize you.
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If you’re feeling overwhelmed, come back to who you really are and what really matters. You are here to make the world a better place for everyone. You can be sad and angry and still full of love for your fellow humans who are suffering. You can be scared and still help. You are strong enough to help.
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Part of the overwhelm comes from knowing there’s a lot to do, and not knowing where to start. There are many ways to act, but they’re not all for you. There’s only one action you have to take now. Do the first thing that comes to mind. You’ll come to the others in time.
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There are a lot of distractions, but there is only one truth. You likely already know what that is. You’ve gotta act on the truth, not the distractions. Limit your media consumption. Look at what’s actually happening, not what people are saying about it. You can stay informed without reading the entire internet or watching 24 hours of news.
Daily Tarot: 7 of Cups & Temperance
Thank you to everyone I got to read for at the Red Hook Regatta, and thanks for having me, @pioneerworks! The cards that came up over and over were 7 of Cups and Temperance. So they're our collective message for today.
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7 of Cups comes up when our attention is divided, we're trying on what-ifs but not acting on anything. Underneath that, the reason we're indulging in distraction, is that we already know which cup is going to keep us full and we're afraid of committing to it. There's something frightening to our ego/lizard brain about how powerful our attention can be when it's totally focused. So when this card comes up, look at where you've already chosen in your heart. Trust that, and act on your choice.
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Temperance is our lady of casual miracles. She speaks of balancing your human action with miracles and magic that are beyond your power. You do your stuff and then make space for the divine to do its stuff. This is like leaving a chair for Elijah at Passover, or cookies for Santa, or Roman temples to the unknown god. There are lots of ways in our web of cultures where we have tokens of respect for the mystery.
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The thing with Temperance (and where it picks up where the 7 of Cups leaves off) is that when you trust your intuition and act on it, you are working in flow with the divine. That opens up the way for everyday magic in the form of synchronicity, good timing, and connections. Temperance says, when you choose your true cup, I keep it full. When you're paying attention fully to where you are right now, you are tapping into the part of you that is divine, and letting it work through you. That's why so much magic/spiritual practice is about developing focus. It is incredibly powerful.
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I want to share an experience with this card from a reading today. As the boat race announcer was counting down 5 4 3 2 , right at 1, this card blew off the table and the querent (bless him) ran after it and caught it. Then we had a laugh about the universe butting in with messages. Temperance is like, idgaf what you call me, as long as you recognize that I'm here. I'm the mystery right in your face every day, let’s dance.
Daily Tarot: 7 of Cups
Sometimes life is so full of magic and mystery and everything sounds exciting and you don't know where to start.
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But sometimes (like when you pull the 7 of Cups) all the exciting things catching your attention are in fact distractions from the one thing you actually need to pursue.
When that happens, you're using this fun stuff to avoid doing some inner work. The first thing I find myself doing when I'm avoiding some inner work, is pursuing some metaphysical study. Sometimes that's what I actually need to do, but when I'm reading up on Mayan astrology because I don't want to deal with my feelings, then I'm not doing justice to the study or myself.
When this happens, all you need to do is be gentle, and see what you're avoiding. Because that's where your attention is best spent.
In tarot, the 7s speak of times that an outer experience seems to be going on, but all the action is really on the inside.
So just bring it close in today. You can still go for all of those exciting ideas, just be sure you're choosing them consciously rather than as an escape.
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(@wildsoulhealing posted about this card recently, go read it for more soul level insight)