Tambourines and Tea Leaves…

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This post is part of the Tarot Blog Hop set by Arwen Lynch Poe, who gave the following prompt:

Samhain is the time of the feast of the dead in many cultures. For our topic, I would like you to post about a loved one or someone you admired/disliked (historical figures are fair game) that ties in with Tarot, Lenormand or an Oracle deck. You can do a Tarot reading for them. You can talk about what they would have thought about you reading the cards (good or bad). You can write a poem to them using a Tarot/Lenormand/Oracle card. You can post their favourite recipe along with thoughts on what Tarot card might represent that meal.

***Commune, Communicate, Commemorate with those who have gone on before us. ***

So without further ado, allow me to introduce you to my Grandmother…

I have very few memories of my Grandmother as she left this world whilst I was still a toddler… These are the only two photographs that I have of her… though the one on the right, you see very little of her as she is the figure behind the handbag behind the pushchair… The cheeky monkeys in the pushchair, well that is myself and a tiny thief who stole my lollipop which was promptly replaced by a whole bag of treats that appeared in my hands after my Grandmother magically pulled them out of her bag…

In my mind, I always envision her in monochrome… I have very few memories of her face… One memory comes from the black and white photograph, that sat upon the piano in the living room, of her and my Grandfather dressed in Salvation Army uniforms… But mostly my memories of her are of the feelings of warmth, that came from her being behind me.

The memories that she created within my mind are full of colour… sitting on her knee in the backroom looking into the flames of the open fire as she would ask me to tell her what I saw…What colours could I see? What figures did I see dancing in the flames? And on the days when the fire was not lit then the game was still played but instead of flames to draw on there were the tiles either side of the fireplace… dark metallic looking squares filled with the kinds of rainbows you see when oil has spread across a puddle in a gutter…

She has always been an intriguing character to me, as she has always felt very close by but she was never spoken of… conversations were always cut short… there were two topics in particular that were hushed up…

Any mention of the Salvation Army was silenced with – we don’t talk about that since the argument your Grandfather had about the funeral…

Any talk of anything remotely paranormal was fielded with a brief blunt tale of – Yes, your Grandmother was a medium and a tea leaf reader and her mother too but we’ve not spoken about that since your Great Grandmother almost died in trance…

So I have these two images of her… A religious uniformed woman and a kitchen table mystic…

I’m not sure if I ever saw her in either role… I have no distinct memories…

My memories consist of babbled words of colour spouted on her knee and then many silent conversations in my mind over the years… in none of these do I recall her speaking… only listening… patiently letting me roll my words out…

I wondered how she came across to those who knew her… so I’ll do what she taught me on her lap and speak of what I see in the colours…

She feels to have had very distinct and separate public and private personas… I think she came across as a very striking woman, a force to be reckoned with… bold and colourful, vibrant and full of life and maybe well known and recognised in several different areas and I also feel, probably very vocal and would speak out freely… yet to those who knew her behind closed doors and on a more personal level, she was a very grounded, salt of the earth type and a listening ear and silent observer … They feel to be extremes at opposite ends of the spectrum but tied together by a heart that knew and had experienced pain… that didn’t shy away from the harshness of life but knew how to walk through it…

So that’s all well and good but I feel yet again, I’m ignoring that elephant in the room… so…

Lydia!! Talk to me of Tambourines and Tea Leaves!!

Religion? Psychic ability? it doesn’t really matter… whatever you’ve inherited by bloodline is meaningless unless backed by experience and wisdom… To draw upon the subconscious mind, the intuitive mind requires the merging of opposites… the synergy that is created by uniting inner/outer or self/other or any other duality… Things do not exist as either/or, they are composite alchemical blends…

A curious mind needs to develop into a conscious mind… this requires patience… a lifetime and them some… it’s an organic process that should not be hurried… these things need to run their full course… yes you can seek out memories from past lives and ancestors but ultimately clarity of mind develops by being present in the present…

Grasshoppers and Waterfalls! in the pursuit of knowledge, new possibilities are always available… some paths can lead to loneliness and ostracism… and beware… there’s a reason that they say that ignorance is bliss… sometimes knowledge is a cross to bear as what is known can never become unknown… When seeking answers, use your judgement… somethings are simply not worth knowing… others best left for later days when you are fully ready rather than risk destroying your peace of mind now… Timing! Waterfalls and Grasshoppers! Know when to go with the flow and when to hop out of the way… stay mindful… you cannot put toothpaste back into a tube…

There are times in life where you can feel trapped and frozen… times that make us wish for earlier days, halcyon days, salad days… times with less responsibility… these feelings pass. As you go through life you find meaningful tasks, whether that is through work, family or hobbies… any or all of those,  or none of these and something other, but somewhere you will find yourself engaged in a task that is deeply meaningful to you and it is by continued commitment to that, that over time you develop a sense of your core being, your true essence… these are the skills that if developed and worked with consistently. will open up transcendent dimensions…

Create your world but don’t confine yourself to a tiny world of your own making… Don’t stagnate in ponds, swim in large oceans! Live life like the dolphins! Rejoice in friendships! Share in good times! Recognise the power of play and the bonds that it forms!

And on that note… I’ll wind things up here and let you swim off with the rest of the pod…

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