GEMINI Reading Giveaway!!!

CALLING ALL GEMINI!!

If you are a Gemini (born between May 21 and June 20) you can WIN A FREE, PERSONALIZED Reading! Enter now! Drawing will be held on June 14th!

The Giveaway;
One Lucky Gemini will recieve a personalized Astrology and Tarot reading. This will include; The Tarot cards which represent your personality and challenges ( a brief Astrological Tarot Profile) AND a Gemini tarot card reading which will give you further insights and clarity about your current life situation and your relationships.

To Enter;
Leave a comment on this blog post with your name and birthday (Day/month) and send an e-mail to tarotbyjosephine@yahoo.com with "Gemini Giveaway" as the subject line of the e-mail.

Don't forget to check back on June 14th to see if you have won!

Tuesday's Oracle - Visualization

I'm feeling drawn to the Fairies this week. Yesterday, for my Daily Draw, I used The Fey Tarot, and for this week's oracle reading I decided to use the Healing With The Fairies oracle deck by Doreen Virtue. I love this deck, but I have found that the Fairies who bless it are quite particular about how it is used. Visualization works best, and I will always visualize myself in an outdoor setting, with grass, a creek babbling nearby, and Ivy bushes near the creek.


Today I took my deck outside and sat in the sun. I closed my eyes and went to the Fairy place. Morning sun was reflecting off the dew in the Ivy branches, and birds were chirping loudly in the cottonwood trees. As I shuffle I just breathe in and out, letting my mind paint the details of my surroundings. There is movement in the ivy. Little glimmers of light tell me that there are fae playing in the branches. My eyes still closed, I draw one card. A small fairy comes out of the ivy and walks towards me. She doesn't come too close, but she has a message for me. I open my eyes to see what card I have drawn.


Visualization!
Well, they seem to be happy with my visit. But this card is more than a pat on the back. I have proved to myself that I do have powerful visualization abilities, and the fairies are telling me to use them more often. It wasn't always this easy to visualize things. I have practiced many times, mostly when I use this specific deck of oracle cards. I visualize the same place each time I use this deck, and now it comes easily. But today, the fairies are telling me I need to start practicing this powerful tool of manifestation in other areas of my life as well.

From the Guidebook by Doreen Virtue, Ph.D.;


"Your clairvoyance, your dreams, and the pictures in your mind's eye are becoming more clear and powerful. This card asks you to trust and develop your visual skills, and to use them in conscious manifestations.


The fairies know the power of conscious visualization as a tool of manifestation. By drawing this card, you are guided to sit quietly on a daily basis and to visualize yourself living a healthy, happy, abundant, and meaningful life. Visualize only what you desire, and avoid picturing that which you do not desire."


This is a confirmation to me, and an important reminder. Ironically, it is also the same message that the Angels gave me two weeks ago (remember this post; "Tuesday's Oracle - Visualize Success) I had planned on taking time DAILY for meditation and visualization. It went well that first week, but last week I fell away from it again. Today's card seems to be saying "get back on track!" I'm guessing that there might be others who follow my blog who might need a little reminder as well. When I do my Tuesday's Oracle readings and blog posts, I ask for a card with advice not just for me, but for advice for others as well. I trust that those who need to see this message will find it.

I have heard so many people say "But I'm not good at visualization", or "I don't know how to do that". It takes practice, and it takes faith in yourself. The first few times will be hard, and even if you don't get a clear picture in your mind's eye, it is always your INTENT that matters above all else. If you sit down with the intent of visualizing youself happy and healthy, with paid bills and a clean house, and just try to picture what you will look like, what you will be doing, what you will be feeling; then even without a crystal clear picture of this, you have sent your message to the universe. Don't let your fears and your doubts get in the way. Maybe it will help you if you imagine you are watching a movie of your future. Picture the movie screen or the tv screen and just see what images come across the screen. You are the director of this film, so if you begin to visualize anything negative, cut that scene from the movie and replace it with a happy scene. Even if you just take 5 minutes a day to practice your visualization, you will find it gets easier and you get better at it each time!! Here is some further advice from the booklet by Doreen Virtue;


"You have powerful visual skills, even if you are not aware of them. Affirm daily, "I am a highly visual person." Any blocks that you have about calirvoyance will begin to lift. Know that it is safe for you to see the future, the spirit world, and the truth about your life. By releasing any fears about "seeing", your visualization powers will be greatly magnified."

Daily Draw - The Empress (Fey)

I had a pretty simple day today, but one that has left me feeling quite empowered! It could be that this is the card I drew for myself this morning; it's message reminded me that my duties as a mother may seem mundane and repetetive; but if they are done properly and with the right attitude, it can make all the difference.

Card of The Day; 3 The Empress. From The Fey Tarot by Riccardo Minetti and Mara Aghem. "The Empress is the earthly mother, governess of the world. Contained within her are the links with the femininity of the Universe. She knows how to use intuition to decide; she knows how to fight with the heart. She grows things and cultivates the world like a garden."

I spent some time thinking about this as I started my day. I mean, it's Monday, so I knew I was going to spend the day cleaning. But after seeing this card and thinking about it's meaning, my duties didn't seem like "chores" any more.

"The dominion of the earthly world is governed by the alternation of powers. Just as the moon rises and falls and as the day becomes night to return dazzling tomorrow, the Empress governs half of the dominion of things. She governs between earth and sky. In her arms, strength; in her face courage, in her bosom she cares for and loves all things that are born and grow. She is mother and mistress; the infinite generative force. The Empress is power born from life."
~ Riccardo Minetti, The Fey Tarot, illustrated by Mara Aghem.

Amazingly, after putting in 25 hours at work between Friday night and Sunday night, and with a sore back, I managed to prioritize my housework and really bless my home for the week ahead. It feels "ready" to nurture my family. Then another amazing Empress moment;

I realized I had enough money to make my car payment... a whole week in advance! Usually I am 15 days late! So, the temptation was there, spend the money on something else.. something for the house, the garden, the kids.... but, this Empress made the wise choice. Rather than indulgence (though it would have been well-deserved), I paid that bill in advance. Now next week, next MONTH, that is one less thing I have to worry about. In retrospect, I look at the image of this specific Empress, and I see how she is looking off to the distance. Looking forward, ahead, to the future. I'm not always one for prioritizing, making wise choices, or following through with what I know needs to be done. But today, I had help. Thanks to the beautiful Empress of the Fey and her cuddly unicorn cub.

Facebook Friends Giveaway!

Have you added me as a friend on Facebook? Have you "liked" the Tarot by Josephine fan page?? I post links to my blog, my website, and other cool stuff on facebook with my Fan page!

So here's the deal...
My fan page has 216 fans. Once it gets 250 fans, one of them will get a FREE Tarot or oracle card reading! So click that "like" button if you haven't done it yet! Not only will you get my blog updates directly on your facebook news feed, but you will have a 1 in 250 chance of winning a free reading! Suggest the page to your friends who are interested in Tarot, Oracle, or Astrology type stuff, and if they "like" it, they will be entered to win too!!

http://www.facebook.com/lady.josephine#!/pages/Tarot-By-Josephine/129999540288?ref=mf

Weekly Housewive's Report 5/2 - 5/9

Last Sunday I did a Weekly Tarot Reading, pulling one card for each day of the week. It gives me a heads-up on incoming energies, though I still find myself pleasantly surprised at how accurate it all turns out to be. Plus, it gives me a focal point for daily meditation, if I so choose to use it that way. I didn't blog each day on each card, but I figured I would include last week's reading in my Weekly Housewives' Report!

Sunday - 10 of Wands - Control * Burden * Weariness
Finally I have some control in my life. More income, more hours at work, taking care of business. But all this control means that I have taken the world upon my shoulders once again (typical Capricorn move), and it is tiresome. At this point I realized that I needed to take time each day for spirituality, prayer, and meditation, and I made a tenative schedule of Daily Devotions to fit in with my FlyLady routines. (Another typical Capricorn move - making schedules for EVERYTHING) But at this point I also must have reached some sort of breaking point, because as far as my cleaning and FlyLady routines, I majorly fell off the bandwagon.

Monday - Six of Swords - Revelation * Transition * Better Times Ahead *
As usual, I did a lot of housework on Monday. But I was very distracted and didn't really seem to get anything done. But as the card suggested, it seemed like a transitional state. I could physically feel myself finally settling in to the Taurus Sun energy after the wildly active Aries cycle was finally a couple weeks behind us. Also, the moon in Capricorn seemed to help me get grounded. I found myself feeling positive, just not about housework.

Tuesday - Six of Cups - Nostalgia *Innocence * Old Flames
This card surpised me. When I first saw it, I thought, oh, maybe I will just be having a relaxing day or something. Then I ended up finding (thru facebook) an ex-boyfriend from Highschool whom I hadn't spoken to in YEARS, and we chatted and caught up. It was very cathardic, rather healing, and this card's meanings were rather precise and exact for this day's card. I pretty much neglected my housework, but once again focused on grounding and spirituality, as can be seem in last week's "Tuesday's Oracle" blog post. The day was refreshing on many levels.

Wednesday - 4 of Wands - Reward *Tranquilty * Relaxation

Wednesday was supposed to be Anti-Procrastination Day. As this card reflects, it was quite the opposite. Don't get me wrong, I think I got some more cleaning and housework done on this day than I did tuesday, but no special projects. No detailing, decluttering, zone work, etc. Actualy, I don't even know for sure what FlyLady Zone we were supposed to be in last week. The bathroom? Who cares, I would rather blog. And blog I did. This was the day I posted the "Taurus and The Hierophant" post of last week. Very rewarding!

Thursday - 5 of Wands -Competition * Struggle * Inner Strength

Hmm... I found my motivation. It was hiding under my bed, begging to be left alone. My Capricornian competitiveness came in handy as I posted my 30's at my Fluttering Flybabies group. Even though we don't get a prize or crown a winner, I love showing off how much I can get done in 30 minutes, and how many 30's I can do. Just when I was feeling confident and really whipping the house back into shape, I got a phone call asking me to work. Hell-to-the-yeah. Need the money, shifts, whatever. Unfortunatley, by the time I got home from work that night, the kids had the house wrecked again. Oh well. Challenges build character, right? Is that what the "Inner Strength" portion of this card was refering to?

Friday - 3 of Pentacles - Praise * Recognition * Completion
Friday was a good day. I kept busy. I still didn't do as much as I would have liked when it comes to housework (I STILL have a huge mound of wrinkled laundry on my couch waiting to be folded and put away.) But I came away from the day with a sense of pride. Perhaps the Praise and Recognition mentioned in the description of this card came from within - I think I realized that even though I had fallen off my FlyLady routines, I was still doing the best I could, and that is enough. Plus, at work that night I had several very happy customers praise me for my wonderful service. It's always nice to hear those good compliments.

Saturday - Knight of Pentacles - Ambition * Entrepreneurship * Reward

Not much to say about Saturday. I worked my butt off. Ambition must have been propelling me thru that 12 hour shift. And reward?? Well, $220 is a good reward for a full day's hard work, wouldn't you agree?

SUM OF THE DIGITS - (Add together the digits of each card drawn in the reading and reduce them, and you get one Major Arcana card that will shed some additional light on the reading as a whole) The Chariot - Travel * Decisions * Risk

Physical travel? No. But I feel like I came a long way this week. It was almost like returning home. I had to let go of some old routines and let myself loosen up a bit; for a Capricorn, this is considered risky behavior - trust me! I made a choice in the beginning of the week to start some new habits (Daily Devotions, more blogging) and I stuck with those goals. (YAY for kicking my ADD in the gonads!) And overall, I came away from the week with some more wisdom and fulfillment than I had started out with. A different kind of Weekly Housewives' Report, but a good one.

Namaste!

* I am irritated with the format of this blog, but too tired to change it. Sorry!

** If you want to read more of my past Weekly Housewives' Reports, click on the tag below to see past blogs like this one!

National Day of Prayer

Since today is the "Un-official, official National Day of Prayer, it had me thinking about how I pray. It's funny, I have met so many people who are suprised when they find out that Wiccans, Pagans, or Witches pray. Somehow hollywood and society have made it seem like Prayer is one of those things simply reserved for the Hebrew faiths.

So, what is Prayer? Prayer is simply talking to God. About anything. I believe that Prayer is the simplest form of Magick, yet also one of the most powerful. In magick, one has to believe that what they desire will happen... it's all about Faith and Intent. When you pray, you simply give your desires over to a Higher Power. It's the simplest and pursest act of Faith and Intent that there is... trusting that the Universe, or Divine Being, has things under control.

I think that Prayer should be a part of our daily lives... but not necessarily in the ways that you would think. I pray often throughout my day, yet honestly I think I could pray more. Here are some examples of how I pray throughout my day.

When I wake up in the morning, even though I despise the thought of crawling out of bed and am really NOT a morning person, I look at my altar next to my bed. There is the Goddess statue I painted. I say, "good morning". The words are few, but it IS a prayer. I simply acknowledge the Goddess, and that she is with me. Just saying Good Morning to a symbol of Mother Nature and the Divine Feminine reminds me that my life is good, that I have a purpose, and reminds me to pray throughout my day.

When I make my bed (this does not always come next, but sometimes later in the day, LOL), I pray for peace. The motions of making my bed remind me that today is a new day, and I am "putting to rest" any worries of yesterday or the night. This simple prayer of thoughtfulness helps me 'Be Here Now" and live one day at a time.

I pray for my children's safety and happiness as I send them to the bus stop.

While I clean house, I find that the acts of cleaning have become prayers within themselves. Wiping down tables and surfaces, I pray for my life to be wiped clean of stress and "dirt". Washing the Dishes has become like a meditation, I can plan my day, talk to god about my worries, or sing a happy song while I wash the dirt away with the hot water. While I sweep and mop, I pray that good energy is swept into my home, and bad energy is swept away. When I cook, I pray for my family's health, and that the foods will nourish our bodies.

I say bedtime prayers with my children at bedtime. I pray for spiritual and emotional cleansing when I bathe. I pray for safety while I am driving. I pray for prosperity and cheerfulness while I am working. This has been my way for many years. But I still think I should take time for a couple more prayers.

I am always getting prayer requests from people, seeing prayer requests on facebook, etc... and to be honest, I felt like I didn't have time to pray for everyone. But I do! I'm going to start keeping a list by my computer where I can write down these prayer requests. Then I can remember all the requests I have seen, and at night when I am saying my prayer of thankfulness, I can pray for others as well. Not that I never pray for others, but it just hasn't been a regular daily thing latley. And there are some things I forget, because I hadn't written them down. I know that if I make an effort to do this, it will become habit just as my other prayers have become habits, ingrained into my daily life and routines.

And tonight, I will pray for YOU. I will say a prayer for anyone who has read this blog today, for you to have peace and wisdom about whatever your current situation may be.

Have a great night, and a wonderful National Day of Prayer! Namaste!

Taurus and The Hierophant

The Hierophant and Taurus

The fixed Earth sign, Taurus, is related to the number 5, and the Major Aracana card, The Hierophant. Taurus energy is Powerful, yet patient, with a great deal of reliance on the physical senses. The Hierophant rules over the physical world; the earthly realm, and worldly concerns such as material possessions, marriage, religion, and academic knowledge. Taurus' nature is to not only accumulate things, but to preserve these things... whether that be material possessions, people, or knowledge and understanding.

Some Key Characteristics that describe Taurus are;
Practical, Materialistic, Determined, Stubborn, Affectionate, Possessive, Sensuous, Self-Indulgent, Loyal, Rigid, Unyielding, Patient, Preserving, Unimaginative.

Some Key phrases that describe the Hierophant are;
Education, belief systems, conformity, group identity, pursuing knowledge, seeking a deeper meaning, adapting to the system, fitting in, expressing loyalty, working as a team member or team leader, seeking religion or spiritual truths, making choices, conforming or non-conforming, the quest for meaning in life, organized institutions.

The Hierophant in Mythology -
Mythologically, the Hierophant is related to the Centaur. Half man and half-horse, the centaur is a teacher on a quest for the meaning of life. He is there to guide the spiritual seeker to find a connection between the physical and spiritual worlds. The Hierophant has also been related to Chiron, the teacher of Apollo - the Sun God and Healer. Either way you look at it, the Hierophant's understanding goes beyond organized religions and dogmatic principles, transcending the truths of the physical world through studying and learning the ways of the world.

The representation of Taurus as The Bull comes from the Greek Mythological tale of Zeus and Europa. Zeus, the King of The Gods, became obsessed with a Phoenician princess, Europa. Zeus knew that his godly masculine form would frighten the young maiden, so he transformed himself into a Bull. Europa saw the magnificent yet gentle bull, and became intrigued. She went to pet the bull, and eventually climbed onto his back. Immediately, Zeus turned back to his godly form and flew away to Olympus with Europa on his back. Taurus is the great bull who abducts us into pleasures of the body and the rapture of our passions. Beyond our physical experiences resides the essence of the Hierophant, helping us guide our passions toward self understanding and knowledge but continuing to remain grounded and gain a respect for our physical realm.

The Hierophant and Astrology -
Taurus is the Fixed Earth sign, which explains why many Taurus individuals are seen as stubborn and determined. The Hierophant acts as the preserver of Human experience, the collector of ideas and philosophies. The Heirophant recognizes the importance of certain social institutions such as education, marriage and religion, while urging us to either find our own place in these institutions or challenge them. Taurus is ruled by the planet Venus, which attributes to Taurus' innate sensuality. Just as a Taurus has the tendency to over-indulge in physical pleasures such as food, sex, or gaining material possessions - the Social Institutions in the world have a tendency to over-indulge themselves in power trips and controllers of the people. The Heirophant represents the power to direct these passions. In a reading when one sees the Hierophant, they must ask themselves, who has the power here? What am I doing with my passionate energy and power? Am I self indulging, or am I seeking knowledge and understanding? Am I being controlled by worldly institutions, or have I found my place within them?

Tuesday's Oracle - Visualize Success

The past few weeks I have been working on getting settled. Settling in my new house and new environment, adjusting to my new routines, (and old routines, applied in new ways), adjusting to having a few more hours scheduled at work, etc. I guess you could say that my Aries cycle was one of action, as the fiery sign of the sun definatley gave me a boost in physical drive and productivity. I also took a bit of a break from my spiritual life... I wasn't doing any readings; for others or for myself. It wasn't a bad thing, but I realized I can't go for long without the spiritual being a part of my daily life!

Taurus energy kicked in last week as the sun entered Taurus, and I slowly felt myself becoming more grounded and centered once again. It was kinda like I had been on overdrive for the past month, going at high speeds and getting a lot done... but once I was able to shift into a slightly lower gear I could see more clearly. No longer a blur of life passing me by... but a beautiful landscape on the horizon, and I can appreciate it's beauty. How very Taurean... (if that is a word!)

So here I am, ready to pick up my spiritual studies, readings, meditations, and blogging once again. I was thinking it would be nice to do some kind of Daily Devotional. Many Christians (and other faiths) set aside a time of Daily Devotion, to read the scriptures and pray. I have realized I need this in my life too. But without one set of "scriptures" as a focal point, what should I study? What should I read or pray about? There is still SO MUCH I want to learn about, how do I pick just one thing? I have my books, my tarot decks, my oracle decks, the internet, the library.... what to do, what to do?? Then I realized... I could do something different each day. Then, another epiphany.... I follow the FlyLady weekly schedule, with a different focal point and project each day of the week, and since taking care of my home and family can also be spiritual excersizes... why not incorporate my Daily Devotions with my FlyLady routines??

Monday is Weekly Home Blessing Day - a day for a good basic cleaning where you do stuff like mop, vaccuum, dust, etc. So this would be a perfect day to take the Cleansing a bit further each week, with a personal energy cleansing ritual like smudging, chakra clearing, ritual sweeping, etc.

Tuesday is Pampering Day - a day to do your normal cleaning, but to also make sure you take time to do something for yourself... a bubble bath, a manicure, that deliciously evil drink from Starbucks... So, I think this would be a good day to give myself an Oracle Card reading each week... as these cards usually are fun, relaxed, and have great advice for how to take care of yourself, or "Pamper" yourself on a spiritual level. Feel free to follow along with my weekly Tuesday's Oracle posts... though the readings are for me, they will contain advice that will apply to any of my readers as well!

I made a list of other types of Daily Devotions I can do that fit in with my FlyLady routines and personal work schedules, but I will share those another time. For now, it's time for me to quit rambling and get on to this week's Oracle Card!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

VISUALIZE SUCCESS
"See yourself doing well in this situation, and have faith in a positive outcome"

This is a good reminder for me. Sometimes I get so caught up in planning, that I forget to focus on the outcome, or the success. As a Capricorn, I love the planning stage, the organizing, the list making, the scheduling. But so often I will find myself stuck in that cycle, and never really reaching my goal or completing the project. Why? Because I focus so much on the building and working that I forget to visualize the outcome. Without a clear sense of the desired outcome of my projects, I think the energy just gets lost along the way. The booklet that came with this deck had one particular phrase that caught my attention today. It says "Give any concerns about how this particular positive outcome will occur to God and the Angels. The 'how' is taken care of by God's infinite wisdom and love." I needed to hear this, because, well- I'm a control freak and a perfectionist. I live by the law of "If you want something done right, do it yourself." and I like to think I am the one in control of manifesting my own success. It is true that I still need to work toward my goals and I can't just sit back watching Twilight and sipping Frappuchinos all day and expect my life to get better. BUT, I also need to learn to "Let Go, and Let God." when it comes to the things that I cannot control or change by myself. My new Law to Live by should be "If you want something done right, let God do it." My job, aside from doing the best I can in my daily life, is to Visualize Success.

Visualising Success can be a little harder than it sounds. It's so much easier to visualize disaster, wouldn't you agree? How many times have you found yourself worrying about things such as car accidents, sickness, money problems, etc.... to the point where you actually visualize one of these things happening? How many times do you visualize yourself attaining your goals and being happy and content? If you're human... you probably do the first much more often than the latter. Why is this? Why do we have such a hard time visualizing that happy outcome? We could blame the media, society, our parents, etc. But I think that the truth of this matter is that we don't believe we DESERVE success. But here's the kicker - we all are deserving of success and happiness. God wants us to have success and happiness, and the Universe is just waiting for us to open that door and love ourselves enough to accept it's wonderful gifts. Visualizing the negative only builds a wall, but visualizing positive outcomes and success will help us break down that wall - one peice at a time.
Here is my goal for the day, and for the rest of the week. I am going to be more conscious of my thought patterns. Every time I find myself thinking negatively or "visualizing disaster", I will stop, and ask God and the Angels to help me Visualize Success instead. Then I will visualize in my mind the positive outcome that I should be focused on. For my meditation today, I will simply sit in silence and visualize myself accomplishing my goals, being healthy, safe, and happy. I hope you will join me in Visualizing Success. You deserve it!

Namaste!

*Angel Therapy Oracle Cards, by Doreen Virtue, Hay House Inc. Artwork on this card by Audrey Rawlings Arena*