Happy Birthday Aries, and welcome SPRING!!!! 

It’s time for some fresh new energy and action ’round here! Also time to think about what "seeds" we'll all be planting in our lives.

The Major Arcana card associated with the sign of Aries (ruled by the fiery planet Mars) is none other than the Emperor. Carrying the energy of the number 4, The Emperor is all about structure, foundation, action with purpose and being accountable for your actions.

In the Emperor we find qualities of leadership, authority, problem solving, truth seeking and “law & order”, as well as the “Great Father” archetype. He is an impartial ruler and protector of the oppressed. Jungian psychology connects the Emperor with the animus, or masculine aspect of feminine energy, which helps us act on and express our own thoughts and ideas. Through the Emperor our attention is called to how we “rule” our lives, how we order, organize and motivate ourselves in our activities.

From the article “Karmic Astrology” by Martin Schulman:

” And it was morning as God stood before his twelve children and into each of them planted a seed of human life. One by one each child stepped forward to receive his individual gift. To you, Aries, I give my seed first that you might have the honor of planting it. That for every seed you plant one million more will grow in your hand. You will not have the time to see the seed grow for everything you plant creates more that must be planted. You will be the first to penetrate the soil of men’s minds with My idea. But it is not your job to nourish the idea nor to question it. Your life is action and the only action I ascribe to you is to begin making men aware of My creation. For your good work I will give you the Virtue of Self-Esteem.”

On the Emperor’s throne we see the symbol of two ram’s heads. These symbols associate the Emperor with the Egyptian god Amun-Ra, and indicate his reminder to us that we have the power to set and follow our own goals. This card also contains references to the Egyptian god Zeus, as well as the mythological story of the retrieval of the golden fleece in “Jason and the Argonauts”.

Meditation 
Focusing on the image of the Emperor, think about what “seeds” you wish to plant in your life. Know that you have the power and the ability to make great things happen all around you. Even though you may not want to (or be able to) stick around and watch ALL those seeds you’ve planted grow to maturity, your task may only be to “get the ball rolling” for some of them; or to be an inspiration to others. All that fire energy behind the Emperor commands a call to action. Be bold, go out there and make your desires known. Form a solid, structured plan, then follow through with action!


Keywords
Structure, order, impartiality, truth, law, father, protector, defender, authority, regulation

Hi!  It's been a while since my last post (sorry)....  things have been very busy here in the Jones house as we eagerly await and frantically prepare for the arrival of my grandson.   

I wanted to take a moment to pop in here and let you know about this excellent new book that has just been released by my friend and longtime author, Chassie West.  

Many years ago, when I was just dipping my toe into the waters of spirituality, in my search for truth I "happened" to stumble upon across a group of like-minded folks on the internet, some of whom I remain friends with to this very day.  The common bond we shared was that we each had a story, an experience that took place after the loss of a loved one that could not be explained away by logic or science.  Chassie was one of those people I met along the journey and after reading our stories and having her own experiences, she decided to take the journalistic brilliance she had honed over many years to the next level.  She collected our stories, consulted with us individually to make sure she had all the details right and compiled them into one finished work.  I am thrilled that our stories can now be shared for years to come with the rest of the world.  

These stories are from REAL people, like you and I, from all across the globe.  They provide confirmation that life and love really are eternal, and I can tell you from experience, the first-hand experience of an ADC is life-changing.  

Also, Chassie has asked Laura, myself and a few others who submitted experiences to be regular contributers to her blog:  No Reason For Goodbyes: Messages From Beyond Life.  I'm honored to take part in this and hope that you'll visit her blog and click "follow" to receive regular updates as they happen.  

After Death Communications have been happening since the beginning of time.  It's time to talk about, learn from and appreciate each experience for the gift that it truly is.  

 

Behold, the Fool.  About to step off a cliffside and freefall into the land of the unknown.  Carefree, smiling, completely unaware, inexperienced and going along blindly with the flow of life.  All of his possessions are packed up in his sack, and yet he has no idea what they are capable of nor how to use them.  He skips along, daydreaming, humming to himself, with his barking companion trotting alongside his heels, maybe trying to warn him of the potential fall ahead.  Paying no attention and enjoying the sunshine on his back, the Fool happily continues on with outstretched arms, embracing the energy of the universe with his mind on his dreams.  Ahead of the Fool, anything is possible!  He is stepping into the future without fear, hesitation or judgement, open to all possibilities.  He places such complete trust in his path that he does not question what lies ahead...he simply allows his feet to continue walking and enjoys each moment of the journey. 

When we find ourselves facing challenge after challenge and obstacle after obstacle along our own path, often it's a signal we're trying to fit a square peg into a round hole and it's time to be the Fool...just let go, trust in God and allow the synchronous ways of the universe to guide us along.  Though he may wind up facing a different direction than he intended, the man who is struggling to swim against the tide would expend much less energy if he floated and allowed the waves to carry him.

"Many great actions are 
committed in small struggles."                                                                                         ~Victor Hugo 





A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared, he sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and it could go no farther. 

So the man decided to help the butterfly - he took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily. But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings. The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time. Neither happened!

In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It never was able to fly. What the man in his kindness and haste did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were nature's way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon. 

Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If we went through our life without any obstacles, it would cripple us.We would not be as strong as what we could have been. And we could never fly. So have a nice day and struggle a little. When you are under pressure and stress, remember that you are a better person after you have gone through it.   ~Original author unknown       

New for 2011:

I have had an absolute blast participating in #amtarot and #pmtarot with @thetarotlady. (<---follow her, she rocks!)  It's so great reading other people's interpretations of the cards, because as I always say, we each bring our own frame of reference to the language of tarot.  I've enjoyed participating so much, that I've decided to "follow suit" (pun intended! ha ha ).

Follow me on Twitter and keep an eye out for #DailyDraw.  Each day I'll pull a random card to talk about and offer my thoughts and interpretations...and feel free to chime in with yours!  

Today's #DailyDraw - 6 of Wands 


An affirmation:  "I move forward from the past & embrace TODAY, with the knowledge that I am supported by like-minded friends."



 

So like many of us you've made some resolutions for the New Year.  That's the easy part.  Have you thought about HOW you'll keep them?  Check out this great article by Prof. Richard Wiseman who recently took part in an experiment exploring the psychology of willpower.  Based on the findings, he has some excellent tips on sticking to those goals and achieving your desired outcome.