How is your 2023?

It’s been a while since I last posted. I read an article from John Beckett last week asking How’s your year going?

I want to echo the sentiments he expressed there. How is your year going? What are the challenges you are facing? What moments of enjoyment have you had?

I like assessing how things are going halfway through the year. I want to use this article to look back at what I was expecting to happen and what happened. Think of it as a programming test 🙂

I will use the Oracle reading I did at Samhuinn to see the expected vs the actual. Oracle cards are a divination tool that can give guidance and insight into aspects of your life. Each card has a unique meaning and interpretation. The whole spread can mean something. They are less specific than Tarot cards and tell you the general energy that might be present. I usually do at least a reading around Samhuinn.

• Centre: Self (Cow)
• North West: Samhuinn (Owl)
•  North: Winter Solstice (Reversed Sow)
•  North East: Imbolc (Reversed Fire Dragon)
•  East: Spring Equinox (Reversed Blackbird)
•  South East: Beltane (Reversed Salmon)
•  South: Summer Solstice (Dog)
•  South West: Lughnasadh (Reversed Earth Dragon)
•  West: Autumn Equinox (Boar)

Self: Cow

Part of the lesson for myself this year was about resources. I learned recently that my internal resources within the self can and should be restricted to give more fully and freely in areas I want to focus on.

North West: Samhuinn: Owl

Around Samhian, I faced a very challenging time. Those that know me will appreciate that. Part of my journey this year has been about turning that initial disadvantage into an advantage. It also meant a great deal of learning about outward appearances. Being a creature of the night, the owl showed that the initial disadvantage might happen at night.  

North: Winter Solstice: Reversed Sow

I decided around Winter Solstice to seek a therapist to discuss my challenges. I found 3 after a search online that appealed to me. The one I met first of all was brilliant. My second option had great potential. He presented as being very progressive with new techniques and “person-focussed therapy”. I paid a small amount for the first meeting, and boy, was I in for a shock. We went through the whole checklist:

• What happened to you wasn’t as bad as other people’s, so why did it affect you so much?
•  Everyone is a little bit “on the spectrum,” and I don’t think you’re all that autistic (thank you kindly, but that isn’t why I am paying you and nor are you qualified to make that assessment)
•  I can see that you like to try out different therapists; maybe you should try all the therapists in this building to see which you like (again, thank you for your opinion, but this simply isn’t how life works)

This was a lesson in what not to do in a therapy session and a great class because appearances can be deceptive. While the sow in my reading could represent nourishment, fertility and giving, drawn reversed in this context, I will take the meaning that it was pig-ignorance and not my own!

North East: Imbolc: Reversed Fire Dragon 

Between Imbolc and Spring Equinox, there was an explosion of challenges, starting with a trip to Devon. This was where the Fire Dragon’s energy came into play, and since it was reversed, it was directed at me.  

I began having occasions where I would close my eyes, see complete darkness and then zone back between 5 minutes to an hour later. It was scary, and my therapist suggested it was an autistic shutdown.  

An autistic shutdown is where your body is so overstimulated that it can cause you to become unable to communicate, need to lie down in a darkened room or become completely silent. You can read more about it here. Part of the solution is to give me time to recover and remove the factors making me overstimulate.  

This has led to a greater understanding of myself and working out some routines that might help me calm myself. This is slightly different from a meltdown, where if too many things happen simultaneously, my brain stops processing them, and I stop making logical sense, or I go quiet.

East: Spring Equinox: Reversed Blackbird

On the Oracle reading, the Blackbird drawn reversed sings a song calling for you to create a life of passion and purpose. These discoveries have led me to a path where I felt drawn to help others.  

Based on what I have learned so far and thanks in part to Google Bard, I will learn to understand tarot cards properly for answering questions and understanding chakras.  

After that, I will learn Celtic Reiki through to the Master level. I need to pace myself carefully with these lessons so I don’t overwhelm myself.  

The third strand of my self-paced learning will be understanding astrology. This is a longer-term goal, and I would aim to be able to use that to understand various aspects, including the natal birth chart, counselling, and business astrology.  

My purpose will be to help people with work-related stress and bullying at work.

South East : Beltane: Reversed Salmon

The Salmon of Wisdom, drawn reversed, told the tale of me trying too hard to reach my goals. When I realised the initial plan that the Blackbird had proposed, much effort was put into researching the best way forward. I learned about pacing myself and only doing 1 task per day.  

One of the courses I had been doing – Deepening your Connection with Nature- ended at Beltane. It taught me how to let go, how to understand nature and when to zoom in or out. This helped me develop a few self-soothing rituals when I felt overwhelmed. I can do these when out and about.  

South: Summer Solstice: Dog

Looking forward to Summer Solstice, I learned about my new loyal companion. We adopted a cat called Mo in February. He’s become my faithful companion and is one of the gentlest cats I’ve encountered.  

South West: Lughnasadh: Reversed Earth Dragon

Lughnasadh is the harvest time, and the Earth Dragon protects the crop. Drawn reversed, it indicates I may need to use my inner reserves differently. A meeting is coming up about the allotment, and it could mean that the relationship with some of the allotment holders will be more challenging. Properly utilised, though, the Earth Dragon is my friend and should be respected.

Interestingly, this came directly opposite the reversed Fire Dragon, and the energy could feed the Earth Dragon. Indeed, the allotment became challenging with relationships with some of the plot holders in spring.

The other potential meaning here is for me to realise that I have been fortunate to utilise the money saved from Airbnb to improve things that guests reported. We replaced the front door to the building, which lowered my heating usage by about 50%. We then fixed the front doorstep and path. Sometimes, guests take photos outside the building like you would for a hotel! We replaced our 40-year-old fridge freezer with a newer, more energy-efficient model. We’ve learnt a great deal about business and how to provide a great guest experience.

West: Autumn Equinox: Boar

The Boar is my warrior spirit. He invites me to the forest to discover an untold secret about myself. I plan to start my training in Celtic Reiki around the autumn. This could indicate that it will reveal some secrets I had buried about myself. It might bring me a closer connection to the Goddess.

One thing that became apparent with the reading was that the timings were slightly off. The period between Imbolc and Lughnasadh has accelerated very quickly. This partly reflects the speed of events happening in the world just now. Every other week, something new happens, and this is set to speed up.

Now, I would ask you to reflect on your year?