This is an intuitive card that I made a few years ago. It’s only two images and now it’s one of my favorite cards. 
Here’s what she said to me recently:

Who are you?
I am the one who has paused on my journey. 
I am the one who stands on a magical sparkling rainbow path-way.
I am the one who is looking down at my feet.
I am the one who is wearing  a sparkling rainbow dress.

What is your message for me today?
My message for you today is this . . .
You are in a pausing-place on your own journey right now. Instead of feeling frustrated or guilty about pausing, I suggest you look down with gratitude at your own feet that have brought you this far! Notice the magic that is all around you! Savor this new colorful place that is meeting you where you are. The journey will continue soon enough, when you are ready. You will know when you are ready, and the magic will go with you, not to worry.

I made this card several years ago, in direct response to this quote from songwriter Leonard Cohen’s “Anthem.”

There is a crack in everything,
that’s how the light gets in.

I keep this card in my deck because it’s a soul-tending reminder that what I perceive as faults, flaws, difficulties with others . . . are merely pathways for me to open to Spirit (or God, the Universe… whatever you choose to call this Higher Power that unites us all).

Who are you?

I am the one who sees and repairs the cracks in this broken vase.
I am the one who is watched over by the brilliant beautiful flower growing through the crack in the wall.

What do you have to say to me today?

My message for you today is this: look at the cracks in your own life and relationships today. Can you see the beauty there in spite of the cracks? Can you let the Light of Spirit shine through those cracks?

Thoughts to Ponder:

What does the Leonard Cohen quote mean to you?

Identify some of the “cracks” in your own life this week. Health? Relationships? Life’s work? Family?

Choose one and identify where the larger Light might be shining through.

Do you ever feel like giving up on a goal or a dream? I think it’s common ground for most of us, so when I found myself drawn to this image of these people on the ground, I resonated with this part of me who sometimes wants to give up. 

It’s important to remember that this Neter is only ONE PART of me whole, kaleidoscopic self!

Who are you?

We are the ones who are tired and discouraged. We are the ones who want to give up. LIFE IS HARD, we say.  Writing is hard. Sometimes being kind is hard. Stopping over-eating is hard. We just want to stop it all and give up. Please don’t make us keep going.

What is your message for me today?

Our message for you is this: we know you want to be on this journey with your new book and your inner work, but we are tired and it is hard. Could you please give us some love and encouragement instead of being mad at us for wanting to give up?

Same Card, Different Day

Who are you?

We are the ones who want to give up. We are weary and tired from trying to make all these changes. We feel cracked and dry and parched. We are the ones who are trying to stop you from achieving your dreams.

What is your message for me today?

Our message for you is this: We NEED you to HONOR our fatigue. We need you to reassure us that we can rest first, before moving on. We just want your acknowledgment that this is hard for us. We need you to notice that all the Trying makes us want to give up sometimes. We want you to not push us away.

We don’t REALLY want you give up… we just need time to rest before going any further.

Questions to Ponder

Feel free to ponder these questions in your journal, or respond to one or more of them in the comments below.

1. Is there a part of you who sometimes just wants to give up? If you were to ask this part “What do you want and need most right now?”, what does it say to you?

2. What does this “let’s give up” part of you look like? What does he/she/they need? Do you have a card that represents this part of you? If not, try making one!

3. Sometimes it is important to let go of a dream or a goal because it just isn’t realistic any more. How can you tell the difference between Giving Up and Letting Go?

I fell in love with the image of this woman the first time I saw here and she fits right in on this background of an autumn sunset.

This is what she said to me in a short daily reading this morning:

Who are you?

I am the one who is old but not feeble.

I am the one who is laughing out loud.

I am the one who is sitting on an old wooden chair.

I am the one who is content with who I turned out to be.

I am the one who is wearing Mala beads because my faith is important to me.

I am the one who is in the winter/sunset of my life and who isn’t worried about a thing.

What do you have to say to me today?

My message for you today is one of acceptance with where you are sitting right now. 

Slow down and ENJOY every little thing that is happening to and for you.

Look around you. Is the sun REALLY setting on your life right now? I don’t think so!

When was the last time you laughed like this? Give yourself more moments like that, more laughter.

Does this woman have something to say to YOU today?
Ask her “who are you?” 
Then just listen…. listen for what she says.
If you want to capture her wisdom, then write her words in your journal and carry them in your heart.

There’s a wonderful scene in an old Ally McBeal episode that I love to refer to when talking about the SoulCollage® Committee Suit.  If you’ve never seen it, Ally McBeal was a delightful comedy about a quirky lawyer and her life and loves in Boston in the 1990’s. 

In this scene, Ally is telling John Cage (another lawyer, even more idiosyncratic than Ally) about how a small dancing baby has been following her around.  This baby has been appearing to her at the strangest moments and it’s really starting to drive her crazy.  She has tried ignoring this imaginary baby, and she has even tried kick-boxing it out of her life, but it still continues to “haunt” her.

At this point, John tells her about a time in his life when he kept dreaming about his long-deceased aunt, who was insisting that he have tea with her. 

Ally is fascinated, because John’s problem sounds so similar to her own.  “So what did you do to stop the annoying dreams?” she asks.

“Simple,” John replies.  “I had tea with her.”

I think of this in relation to all of my own parts that make up my Inner Committee.  If there’s one that’s really pestering me for attention, then the very best thing for me to do is to sit down with it and listen.  Instead of ignoring it, or  trying to kick it away in frustration, I invite it in to my inner play room and have a little tea party with it. 

Putting It Into Practice

Take a moment to see if there are any dancing babies and/or long-deceased relatives following you around this week.  Or any other inner voices that are acting out and causing you bewildering moments of embarrassment. 

Instead of wishing it would go away, simply name it and then find some time to sit down with it. 

You can do this by making a SoulCollage® card for it, or by asking it “Who are you?” and writing down its answers for a few minutes.