Old School Pen and Paper Journaling

Everyone seems to have a journal or grimoire these days. Us bloggers and journaling folks are everywhere. If you are looking for some inspiration on starting your own personal or Tarot journal, maybe this post will be a good starting place for you.
It can be intimidating to start a journal in the first place, I can tell you that from my own experience. No matter how hard however, I do believe that keeping a journal is a really awesome thing to do, and honestly, I think everyone should at least try it. I have been keeping a personal journal since I was eleven and have continued to add to its volumes over the past seventeen years (annnnnd that sentence just made me feel really old!). The journal that I have been keeping holds all of my secrets. If you ever made an impact on my life your name is probably scribed on one of those pages. There are things in those books that no-one knows:  joys, sorrows, adventures mixed with misadventures and of course, a lot- like an embarrassing lot, of teenage angst.  My journals are my most sacred possession. Like all things some have gotten lost but I am content to still have most of them kicking around. My hope is that I keep adding to its volumes for the rest of my life. It has been a lot of work and dedication but I know when I am old and can barely remember who I am, I will have these books to remind me. I will have a chance to read the names of those I love, those I have lost and maybe laugh at myself along the way. A gift from mostly able minded me to not so able minded future me. The pièce de résistance of my life.
I started my Tarot journal when I started my classes with my teacher. I read a lot about Tarot journaling in books but never really knew how to get started so it was something I always put off. I knew how to write a personal journal but to write on a specific topic, that was tough. I had too high expectations of myself and ended up giving up because it wasn't coming out "text book" enough. I would focus more on the wording than what the actual card was about. When I started to study, A. recommended that we start a journal. She said that it would help us get our own interpretations out of our minds and on to paper. She said it would be easier to remember the cards this way and she was right. After my first lesson, I was assigned a card and was told to write about it. I was told not to focus on the sentences or it making sense. No one was going to read the journal but me. I was not writing for a public platform. Realizing this was just a personal journal about a topic was an "a-ha" moment for me. I was no longer writing a text book, and with that my first Tarot journal was born.

Bumblebee book is the first one. What? Bumblebees scream TAROT! No?

I was told to just look at the card and write my first impressions down about it. Like I was meeting it for the first time. Did it make me feel happy? Sad? Did I want to run away from it or be a part of it? I would go through the deck starting with the Minor and just write down my thoughts on each card. There were no fancy pictures in there or beautifully written poetry. No flowery spells for psychic clarity or anything like that. Just the name of the card and my first impression. It was the most basic of basic, but it worked. If you want to start your own book, try doing this little meet and greet through the cards. You don't have to write a paragraph, a quick sentence or even a word jotted down quickly will do. Use this as your start. Before you know it the pages will start to fill up- the most gratifying part of any journal- if you ask me! Its crazy the little hang-ups we get before we starting writing in a new book. Push through the "fear of tainting the shiny new book" and just go to town on it! No one is going to care if your writing is messy or if you use different pens. You will be too busy having your mind expanded with Tarot awesomeness that you too will stop caring about your penmanship or choice of Bic.

The rewards of keeping a journal are too many to list but I will try a few in a last ditch attempt to get you writing. 

You will: 

• Learn more about yourself than you ever thought you would.
• You will remember odd things and strange memories will surface that you thought you buried six feet under and covered in cement. 
• You will be surprised how much life without auto correct both sucks and doesn't suck. 
• There will be no phrases such as, "The 3 of Swords makes me really ducking depressed". When you use a pen and paper journal.
• You gain a creative outlet.
• You will be able to document your awesome Tarot journey and someday turn it into a real book or blog- if you want too!
• You can always add to it, start again or make your existing one better. *See pretty glitter book above, behind the bees. LOL. 
• You can bring up in conversation that you, "journal" which will add to your already sexy mysteriousness.
• You can literally do whatever you want. You could even write your own Tarot-Sutra or Tarot-erotica. Maybe the next 50 Shades of Grey cash cow is sitting in your Tarot cards right now! Hubba hubba! Toot-Toot! 
• You do not have to write in it every day. I don't write in either my journals daily. I only write when the mood strikes me. I find it is so much easier to commit to keeping a journal this way because it stops it from being a chore. Try this method if you struggle with daily journal writing.
• Every time you write in it, its an escape from this world to somewhere magickal and who doesn't want more magick in their lives?

I will one last time beg humbly before your supreme sexy mysterious awesomeness and ask you to please, please, please give this a try. I think you will be happy with the results! 

Next up we will get risky, explore the unknown and take a ride on the Wheel of Fortune! 

Here are some more pics of my Tarot journals.

Bee book first page. I was 15 when I started this book. 

Bee book, love my Periwinkle nail polish by the way. Totally reminds me of Mother from Psycho! Almost Halloween!

I should have been a hand model, dammit! This is my more recent Tarot journal that I am currently writing in. 

I am no artist but wanted to add little pictures of symbols that stick out to me. 

Finding Peace With the Hermit

The Hermit IX

Fancy seeing you, old man from that Led Zeppelin album hanging out here!

Well its official, Fall is here! YAY! Its time for delicious desserts and sweet glorious sweaters. My chubby legs will no longer fear "short weather" this alone makes Fall extra special! The leaves are starting to burst into bright displays yellows, reds and oranges, in nature death if so beautiful, if only we could go out with the same bang! (I am feeling a touch morbid today). This is my favourite time of year.  At night it is cold and you can see your breath and the ground is covered in little frozen diamonds. If the wine wasn't blurring my vision, I think a seen frost a couple of nights ago. This is the time when things start to go quiet.  I feel like you can feel magick in the air. 
This is a good time to start planning for Winter and any inner work that you want to do.  My favourite aspect of the dark side of the Wheel, as I said above, is that everything is quieter. No more loud unruly children outside interrupting my beauty sleep. No more expectations to be going out at all hours and times of the day. The whole wildness of Summer, is coming to a sweet glorious end. Can you tell I am excited? On top of all this, this is also a perfect time of year to talk about the Hermit. The perfect mascot for those introverts we all know (and love!) or are *raises hand*! I say this a lot but I really do love this card. It makes me think of peace, quiet and self reflection- all things I am desperately in need of! It is here to say that it is okay to relax and just take some time out of the humdrum of life to spend some time with yourself. 

When was the last time you spent some time on your own? When you were cut off from the distraction of those in our lives? Have you had a break from your children, your spouse or your family and friends? Or work even? When was the last time you decided to do something for your spirit? Or for your own wellbeing? I bet for a lot of us, these questions are impossible to answer because life has a tendency to get in the way of the relationships we have with ourselves. The Hermit wants you to turn off your phone, get off social media and even avoid the family, if even for only a little while. He wants you to take a long look in the mirror and get to know the person who is looking back at you. When was the last time you spent time with that person? He wants you to meditate on what makes you happy. He wants you to nourish YOUR spirit and finally deal confront those inner demons. Recognize both sides of your nature and be OKAY with who you are. Are you up for the challenges that this card presents? I hope so! 

If you are doing a reading for someone and this fellow decides to make an appearance, I would recommend that maybe the person needs to hit pause for a little while and make time to be alone. This card can also indicate someone who is lonely and is looking for a positive omen that this dark period will come to an end. The light that the Hermit is holding is knowledge. Knowledge of oneself and what truly matters to you. Its a quest for knowledge. This card is never fun in a love reading, the querent will probably be waiting a little longer for that spicy lover to come into their life. They are waiting however because they need to learn to love themselves and embrace who they are before anyone else could love them. Take some time to get to know you. This card is about slowing down and the energy is very quiet, almost non-existent. Time will move slow for those involved with the Hermit, but that may not be a bad thing. 

Keys to remember: alone time, inner mysteries, quiet, contemplation, non-romance, knowledge, meditation. 

Hermit Homework

Here is your Hermit homework. If you are reading this right now, I want you to take out a notebook and write down some promises to yourself. Make a list, draw a picture, or whatever floats your little boat. Set some goals on what you want to accomplish this coming Winter. Do you want learn a new skill? Paint a picture? Write that amazing novel you never have time to write? Maybe its something as simple as just taking five minutes a day to show yourself some love *wink wink*- sorry that got too pervy but not pervy enough to delete.... I also want you to think about the things that bring you physical and spiritual pleasure. I want you to make a point before the next Full Moon to make sure you do something to fulfill both of these needs. Whatever it is, no matter how simplistic or extravagant, make time for it. Let the Hermit show you the way. 

PS: I tried to find online who this Hermit is or whoever inspired Pamela Coleman-Smith to draw him, but had no luck. If you know this little fact, can you please share it with me for my own inner work?