Here’s my favorite story of synchronicity that plays out in my deck.  There are four cards involved and although they were created out of order, they tell a complete story. Some were created intuitively and some were created intentionally.

This is the first card that I made in this series, although at the time, I had no idea I was making a series!  I made this card completely intuitively, and it baffled me for a long, long time.  The most I could ever get out of this Neter was:

We are the ones wearing colorful robes. We are the ones who are standing on the other side of the river. We are the ones who are covered up. We are the ones who are looking at the other side of the river where the Light is and where the bright buildings are.  We are the ones who are unsure of how to get to the other side of this river.

 

 

This card came next, although not immediately. Several months down the road or maybe even a year or more. The first time I asked these women “Who are you?” and they started talking about wearing colorful robes, I had a little shivery AHA moment!  So I went back through my deck and found the first card and put them side by side.

WOW!  My brain synapses were having a field day making connections!

In light of the first card, these Rainbow Women were saying to me:

We are the ones wearing colorful robes. We are the ones who have turned around but whose faces are still hidden. We are the ones on the edge of the river. We are the ones who are imploring you to help us get across the river.

I had another shivery AHA moment when I realized that there were BOATS on this card but that the womens’ backs were to the boats so they couldn’t see them!

 

A few months later I came across the image of the four women in the lower left of this card, wearing bright dresses of similar colors as the hooded/masked women.  Thus ensued another shivery AHA moment as I immediately thought of my hooded Rainbow Women.  Look, I thought to myself, here they are… and now they are unmasked and happy, because they used the boats to get to the other side of the river, where they longed to be!

I made this card intentionally, adding a woman wearing bright purple and the same image of the boats in the background, and voila!

We are the ones who have come into our own. We are the ones who found the boats and used them to cross the river to where the Light is and where the bright buildings are. We are the ones who got there on our own power. We are the ones who no longer have to be covered up and masked, but we still love wearing bright colors!

 

Much later I found these images of women completely robed in black and gray and darned if I didn’t have another shivery AHA moment!   I immediately remembered the story of my Rainbow Women and instinctively knew that these robed women were related to them so I made this card intentionally as a precursor to the series.

We are the ones who are completely robed. We dare not show our faces.  We are completely covered. No one can see us. No one can hear us.  All is dark. We are unknown, unseen, unheard.

Now… from this series of cards which were made over a span of a few years, I have learned a huge lesson about synchronicity.

Carl Jung defined synchronicity as “meaningful coincidences.”  Ah, yes!  Lots of meaningful coincidences were involved here for me.  Such a coincidence that I found these images of robed women in similar colors!  Such a coincidence that the boats were right there, to help those robed women get across the river.

And the huge lesson I’ve learned?  Pay attention!

Pay attention to those shivery AHA moments when you are looking at an image.  You know what I mean… that tingle in your spine, a trembling in your fingers, your breath catching in your throat, your heart starting to beat a little faster… those are signals, dear ones… signals to pay attention to whatever you’re looking at, whatever you’re hearing, whatever you’re thinking or feeling.

Pay attention to those signals from your body because it means you’re onto something good!  It means something important is about to be make its way into your consciousness. New insights and deep discoveries are on the horizon.

So… if you come across an image that startles or shocks you, pay attention.  It might shock you in a delightful way, or in a way that brings up fear.  Either way, don’t dismiss the image!  Add it to your pile. You don’t have to do something with it right away. Just let it know that you saw it, that you are paying attention, and give it some room, some time, some space, to let it breathe.  After a while, it won’t seem as scary to you and it will be easier for it to tell you who it is and what wisdom it has for you.

Because I paid attention to those shivery aha moments from my body, I now have a complete series of four cards/Neters that tell a whole story. I made them in a completely different order, but here is the whole story of my Rainbow Women:

 

 

 

 

 

The Secret Country of Yourself, by Jenya Beachy.
Discover the Powerful Magic of Your Endless Inner World.

Oh! Oh! Oh!  I feel like this book was written just for me!  For about 35 years now I have been spending time each week (sometimes every day) journeying inward in a realm I call my “Inner Sanctuary.”  There are many rooms to explore in this inner architecture that is my self, and much beautiful landscaping outside as well.  Up until now, I have never found another book with a similar experience, and I am just delighted to be diving into this masterpiece of inner exploration. The author is taking me deeper into my own inner world with her immense knowledge, background, and experience of journeying within. The activities and inner work that she suggests are organized into three sections: The Preparation, The Expedition, and Through the Gates of Magick.  This book is powerful medicine for anyone who wants to delve deeper into their own inner “secret country.” Highly recommend!

I promise to honor Christmas in my heart
and try to keep it all the year.

~ Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol

This is my very favorite quote from one of my favorite stories of all time, A Christmas Carol.

Every year one of my holiday traditions is to see the North Shore Music Theatre musical production of A Christmas Carol. Sometimes  I go alone, sometimes with my husband or a friend, and sometimes I take one or more of our grandchildren.  For me, the story embodies the true meaning of Christmas which is all about loving  and giving. If I have to skip a year, I feel like something is missing from my holidays.

I made this SoulCollage® card several years ago as a way to give image to how I feel about “the holidays” and what I love about Christmas.

Do you have a favorite quote about whatever holiday you celebrate this winter?  Try making a card to express it.

Ageless Soul,
by Thomas Moore

Having just turned 61 this year, I’ve been looking for a book that would help/guide me through this sometimes scary terrain known as “aging.” This is just that book! I offer heartfelt thanks to the author for taking the time and energy to write this book because I now have a way to approach my own elderhood with grace and positive expectations. I especially enjoyed the section on “Imagining Aging Differently” and the chapter towards the end of the book called “The Angel of Old Age.” Highly recommend.

Six years ago this month (right now!) I was struggling with the knowledge that I had cancer again, for the second time, and that I was facing another long and winding road of treatments including a mastectomy and chemo.  I am posting this card here in honor of both of those “long and winding roads” I traveled through both of my cancer journeys.  It helps me to remember, when I look at this card, that yes those roads were dangerous and scary and cold and lonely, but I kept going through those wintery seasons and now I am standing in a lovelier, warmer place of vitality and creativity.

I especially love this Neter’s message for me (see below) about not looking back anymore on those difficult journeys, but focusing on where I am right now.

I am the one who has come here into this vibrantly alive, red, pink, and orange flower and am standing still in the midst of its lush beauty. 

I am the one whose road to this vibrant place was long and difficult and icy and dangerous and COLD.

I am the one who has come from a cold and wintry place to a place of warmth and color, a place of new, rich, abundant growth.

My message for you today is this- stop looking back on the cold, frightening, difficulties of your cancer journeys.  Be aware of the vitality within your life right now and look ahead to more growth and abundant life.

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