Serenity Sunday

Gratitude Spell


What You Will Need:
~ Green Candle
~ Patchouli Oil


Instructions:
During the waxing moon, annoint your green candle with patchouli oil. Light the candle and say the following several times to Lakshmi, Hindu goddess of wealth and beauty: "OM Mala Lakshmi, Lakshmi, Lakshmi, Namah." This chant thanks Lakshmi and opens the door for abundance to come into your life. Let candles burn themselves out safely, or repeat for consecutive days until larger candle is gone.




My List:


1.) My kids


2.) My pets


3.) Ibuprofen


4.) Herbal tea


5.) Turkey sandwiches


6.) Puffs tissue


7.) Fresh baked bread


8.) Great friends


9.) Classical music


10.) Laughter is the best medicine

Serenity Sunday

Just as “Milk does a body good,” Epsom Salt may be one of the most perfect nutrients for flowers and plants. And mid-to-late spring is the ideal time to nourish the soils and roots of your favorite foliage and flowers with this inexpensive and easy-to-use compound. According to the Epsom Salt Council, research indicates Epsom Salt can help seeds germinate; make plants grow bushier; produce more flowers; increase chlorophyll production; improve phosphorus and nitrogen uptake; and deter pests, including slugs and moles.


I have a small rose garden in front of my house and each year I treat them to 1/2 cup of epsom salts in mid spring, along with the rose food I feed them regularly. I learned of this little trick years ago when I worked at a local nursery and later as a master gardener in my area. At first I scoffed and was very skeptical but one year I figured that I would be open minded and try it, lo and behold my roses started pushing new canes from their graft and were generally hardier and more full. I promised myself that I'd be open minded from then on because sometimes...you just never know when a great tip might turn up!



My List:

1.) My children

2.) My friends

3.) My cats

4.) Learning from past mistakes

5.) My willingness to let go and let the Universe handle it

6.) Time for myself

7.) The scent of the air after a rainstorm

8.) Finding the positive in a negative situation

9.) Knowing hope is always present

10.) Seeing joy on another's face

Serenity Sunday

Gratitude Spell


Gratitude will get you everything. To make use of this kind of magic, set your altar with a suitable incense such as frankincense or myrrh, as well as a safe incense burner and a lighter. Light the incense and smell the sweet smoke, then say:


Lord and Lady, I give thanks
For Sun that warms and wind that sings.
You have given me so much,
Now I give thanks for all these things.


Spend as much time as it takes to count your blessings, and speak what you appreciate about each blessing. Thank your divine patrons as you would thank a family member for a perfect birthday gift. Ask for nothing.


My List:


1.) My kids


2.) My pets


3.) Great friends


4.) Good times


5.) Sunshine


6.) Tarot


7.) Red licorice


8.) Calculators


9.) Packages in the mail


10.) Fishing

Deck Review- The Connolly Tarot

The Connolly Tarot, created by mom Eileen Connolly and illustrated by son Peter Paul Connolly is a wonderful visually pleasing deck, reminiscent of medieval stained glass often associated with majestic cathedrals found all over Europe. 

Peter Connolly has created stunning imagery using colored pencils and rich colors, making this a truly stunning deck. The images follow the Rider Waite symbolism and are easy to follow, making it a great deck for beginners and intermediate readers and  has a great positive feel to it. The cards are laminated lightly and the design on the backs make it able to be read upright or reversed.

Although following the Rider Waite symbolism, the Major Arcana does have a few minor differences like card number 13 titled Death in most decks has been softened and renamed Transition reflecting transformation and the change of life's path and card 15 normally titled the Devil, renamed Materialism which reflects that perhaps the tools of life have been abused.

The Minor Arcana are just as beautiful and detailed as the Majors and each have Roman numerals at the top of each card. There are a lot of chubby little cherubs in this deck and adds a sense of charm and spirituality that runs through both Major and Minor Arcana. I just love the colors, they are striking and the symbolism is gentle and easy to interpret. This would be a great deck for any collection.

Publisher: US Games Systems

Creators: Eileen Connolly and Peter Paul Connolly

ISBN: 0-88079-437-2

Images used with permission from US Games

Serenity Sunday

Friends For Life

We are Friends
I got your back
You got mine,
I'll help you out
Anytime!
To see you hurt
To see you cry
Makes me weep
And wanna die
And if you agree
To never fight
It wouldn't matter
Who’s wrong or right
If a broken heart
Needs a mend
I'll be right there
Till the end
If your cheeks are wet
From drops of tears
Don't worry
Let go of your fears
Hand in hand
Love is sent,
We'll be friends
Till the end!!!!


Angelica N. Brissett

My List:


1.) My kids


2.) My pets


3.) Best friends


4.) Sunny days


5.) Hope


6.) A shoulder to cry on


7.) An ear to listen


8.) Tarot


9.) BBQ's


10.) Text messaging

Deck Review- The Fenestra Tarot

Created by Thai artist Chatriya Hemharnvibul, The Fenestra Tarot is an elegant blend of soft mauve, cream and olive watercolor tones influenced by elements of Egyptian history, Japanese manga, western art and classical mythology. This is a truly beautiful deck both graceful and artistically appealing.

The card stock is nice and sturdy yet flexible when shuffling and the cards have a wonderful glossy lamination that really makes Chatriya's artwork pop. The deck itself measures 2 3/4' x 4 3/4" making it a perfect for any sized hands to shuffle. Each card has a wonderful border around it which makes a wonderful window like frame around the images and the word Fenestra itself means window which I found both enlightening and charming at the same time.

The Major Arcana features a stylized and gorgeous border with two graceful roses at the bottom of each card. This deck follows the Rider Waite tradition with it's imagery and makes it a very nice deck for beginners and experienced alike. The Moon card is quite lovely and features two female figures above and below a moon showing half and full phases. The Moon is always one of the first cards I look at in a deck and Chatriya has painted this card exceptionally well in my opinion.

The Minor Arcana are equally as beautiful with their ornate yet distinctly different border from the Majors. It is in the Minor Arcana where you can really notice the Japanese manga influence in the imagery of it's characters but the modern depictions are quite pleasant and comfortable to look at. This is a great deck, I love the colors and it's imagery appeals to me. It is very easy to read with and gives pretty detailed and accurate readings. I definately would encourage one to add the Fenestra Tarot to their collection!

Publisher: US Games Systems

Artist: Chatriya

ISBN: 1-57281-560-4

Images used with permission by US Games

Serenity Sunday

Before I was a Mom,I never tripped over toys

or forgot words to a lullaby.

I didn't worry whether or not

my plants were poisonous.

I never thought about immunizations

Before I was a Mom,

I had never been puked on.

Pooped on.

Chewed on.

Peed on.

I had complete control of my mind

and my thoughts.

I slept all night

Before I was a Mom,I never held down a screaming child

so doctors could do tests.

Or give shots.

I never looked into teary eyes and cried.

I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.

I never sat up late hours at night

watching a baby sleep

Before I was a Mom,I never held a sleeping baby just because

I didn't want to put her down.

I never felt my heart break into a million pieces

when I couldn't stop the hurt

I never knew that something so small

could affect my life so much

I never knew that I could love someone so much.

I never knew I would love being a Mom

Before I was a Mom,I didn't know the feeling of

having my heart outside my body..

I didn't know how special it could feel

to feed a hungry baby.

I didn't know that bond

between a mother and her child.

I didn't know that something so small

could make me feel so important and happy

Before I was a Mom,

I had never gotten up in the middle of the night

every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.

I had never known the warmth,

the joy,

the love,

the heartache,

the wonderment

or the satisfaction of being a Mom.

I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,

Before I was a Mom!

My List:

1.) My kids

2.) My pets

3.) Opinions

4.) New tarot bags

5.) Home made vegetable soup

6.) Patience

7.) Sage

8.) Funny videos

9.) BBQ's

10.) Sweet tea

Tarot Tuesday

I drew these cards one day last week, as I have a routine of doing everyday and found myself quite surprised. I usually sit and ponder my daily draws as I sip my morning coffee and this day was really not much different this day until their meaning suddenly came to me...it was the Serenity Prayer. I'm not sure if many are aware of this prayer, it's one of the sayings from Alcoholic's Anonymous and goes something like this...

God, grant me the Serenity

to accept the things I cannot change, 

the Courage to change the things I can

And the Wisdom to know the difference.

It was so surprising because my little inner voice came through loud and clear and there was no doubt in my mind that this was their message to me and as I glanced at the calender, I happen to notice the date...May 19th, my mother and step-father's anniversary. Tarot never ceases to amaze me because you see, my parents met at a meeting many years ago and are still happily married today, it had slipped my mind but my cards knew. I was reminded to call them and wish them a very Happy Anniversary.

Deck Review- The Medieval Cat Tarot

Being a tarot lover and cat enthusiast, I get to combine my two most favorite things with a deck illustrated by Lawrence Teng and text provided by Gina M. Price and Lawrence Teng called The Medieval Cat Tarot offered by US Games Systems Inc. This is a charming deck featuring dapper little felines, all in elegant fifteenth century finery.

This is a 78 card deck measuring 2 1/2 "x 4 3/4" based loosely on the Rider Waite tradition but differing in the aspect that it depicts images of folk art style illustrations and limited symbolism. That, however, does not affect this decks ability to convey concepts and feelings found in more symbolically detailed decks.

The Major Arcana are not numbered but do have the name of each card found at the bottom so that if one were to prefer Strength and Justice to be in a traditional or reversed order this can be accommodated. The one thing I did notice about these little kitties is that the usually titled High Priestess and the Heirophant are called the Popess and the Pope respectively which adds a certain flair, given the unique nature of this deck.

The Minor Arcana are also not numbered but have each suit in the appropriate number shown on each card along with a small cameo in the middle expressing the feeling or concept of each card. The Courts Card images are richly pictured with the Pages in renaissance style cloaks, each holding the symbol of their suit, the gallant Knights on their decorated steeds, the Queens primly sitting on their thrones with imagery of each suit along side of them and the regal Kings, also sitting on their thrones showing the nature of their suit in the background behind them.

All of the cards are bordered attractively and the shiny lamination is absolutely perfect for showing of these little cats at their best and comes with the standard LWB ( little white book). This an excellent deck for beginner to intermediate tarot readers and the cards read wonderfully and quite accurately too. I absolutely love this deck, not just for it's subject matter of cats but the style of the cards and colors used in the deck. I highly recommend this deck for any collection.

Serenity Sunday

Tolerance


Tolerance refers to an attitude of openness and respect for the differences that exist among people. Although originally used to refer to ethnic and religious differences, the concepts of diversity and tolerance can also be applied to gender, people with physical and intellectual disabilities, and other differences, too.


Tolerance means respecting and learning from others, valuing differences, bridging cultural gaps, rejecting unfair stereotypes, discovering common ground, and creating new bonds. Tolerance, in many ways, is the opposite of prejudice.


Society was founded on freedom from religious persecution and on tolerance of differences in beliefs and cultural heritage. The differences (or diversity) that come from people from all over the world enrich our culture, bringing new ideas and energy.


But does tolerance mean that all behaviors have to be accepted? Of course not. Behaviors that disrespect or hurt others, like being mean or bullying, or behaviors that break social rules, like lying or stealing, should not be tolerated. Tolerance is about accepting people for who they are — not about accepting bad behavior. Tolerance also means treating others the way you would like to be treated.




My List:


1.) My kids


2.) My pets


3.) Uneventful Saturdays


4.) Comedy


5.) Tarot


6.) Scented candles


7.) Koi


8.) Ponytails


9.) Ficus trees


10.) Baseball