Good day, soul friends! Happy last week of the first month of the year. January has felt so long to me! Hoping February brings more healing and a lot more ease.
I hope your week was fantastic and that your weekend brought you some rest!
Today's guidance comes from the Animal Kin Oracle deck by Sarah Wilder.
Which card(s) do you feel drawn to today?
Left - 1, Middle - 2, or Right - 3...
Focus on the image and chose which cards you feel drawn to before scrolling down.
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Did you choose your card, yet?
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almost there!
If you selected Card 1:
Cardinal - Passion
Kin Essence: Tell your story with pride to attract your tribe.
Cardinal birds are known for their territorial nature and elaborate nest construction, which the male and female birds build together to provide a safe and comfortable home for their chicks. Their passionate, musical calls and songs connect us with feelings of peace and joy. During courtship, the males often collect offerings of seed for their females and feed them beak-to-beak.
Male cardinals sport the vibrant plumage of bold red tones, while the females are usually fawn or grey. Their crested heads and masking facial markings add to their beauty and almost regal-like stature. Cardinals are monogamous birds who sing heir love songs to each other and even perform duets together, demonstrating their love and passion. The males also mark their territories with song, which is a true example of how a seemingly innocent (but beautiful) gift can create huge impact and help us to stand out and hold space for others.
Crimson red is the color of passion, confidence, and strength. Therefore, we an draw upon this standout feature and learn that in order to lead a life full of passion, we must draw on our own inner strength, confidence, and sexuality to excite and energize us to move forward by doing the things that really make us feel alive. Cardinals teach us to examine what is really important to us, thus giving insight into what work we feel called to do in this lifetime.
If you were drawn to Card 2:
Cicada - Cycles
Kin Essence: Every experience has its place in shaping your unique voice.
The Cicada is the ultimate representation of the cycles of life, teaching us the importance of each stage of life that we are gifted with. In their infancy, their eggs are protected from the outside world, hidden away in the safest place their mother can manifest. Upon becoming nymph, these creatures move towards the ground, close to where their mothers lay them, and dig burrows into the soil, creating chambers in which they can often dwell for up to 17 years.
This is symbolic of the time in our lives in which we live simply as children, learning how to use our basic instincts to survive, while feeling protected and choosing to live more in the moment, and drawing on key basics to grow and thrive. With this sense of protection and security deep down in the soil, they burrow and build a sacred space for themselves, feeding on the sap from the roots of their tree.
When they teach their final stages of nymphal instar, they are strong and old enough to create a tunnel up and out of their dwelling, allowing them to shed their skins on a nearby plant and emerge as an adult cicada, leaving the shell of skin casing behind.
This stage is representative of the shedding of our status as children and entering into adulthood and independence. This stage is where the cicada begins to live int he trees, choosing to reproduce, and attract their tribe around them through their vibrationally force and song.
The cicada is our reminder that all the stages of our life hold a significant place in determining the life we are meant to lead, and that everything we go through is just a phase. With each stage come huge inner and outer lessons about our environment and ourselves, shaping us to become who we are as individuals. These stages also remind us that we are all choosing to live out our cycles in our own ways. The bigger picture is that our mission in life is to continue moving through each cycle, taking with us as much learning and growth as possible.
If you chose Card 3:
Sloth - Wisdom
Kin Essence: Strip back and dig deep to find peace and insight.
The slowest moving mammal on earth, the sloth has a clear understanding of what is important and what is not. The sloth makes decisions with intention and is resourceful when it comes to avoiding predators and finding food. Sloths may seem as though they would make an easy target for predators, but they are actually master of disguise - easily blending in with their tree homes and moving very slowly to avoid detection.
This creature is wise, peaceful, and curious in its approach to the world. The sloth can rotate its head 270 degrees and perceive the world from many angles. This unique quality invites us to find a new perspective, see the whole story, and change negative beliefs about others... and others maybe even find forgiveness.
Sloths may stay in the same tree for many years, recognizing that if its need are being sufficiently met, then there is no need to want for more. They are true teachers of being comfortable and confident in our own stillness. They digest things very slowly, which is a fantastic reminder for us in this fast-paced world to take things in slowly and allow them to fully move through our body, until we feel called to release them.
Being at one with the earth and embodying her core essence can awaken our own inner wise woman or crone energies. In times like this, we are reminded to strip back to the very basics and dig deep on what is truly important to us. Feelings of not being enough or not doing enough are holding us back from evolving into our most deepest and wisest spiritual selves. Less giving and more taking may be in order to regain a better perspective.
Thank you for participating in my card drawing for today. I hope that you enjoyed it! Did the card(s) you felt drawn to give you some guidance to think about?
Don't forget to check back next week for another card drawing!
