Melisinka

A new year, indeed a new decade, brings with it an exciting energy that is full of potential – epitomized in the Tarot by the Aces. I love every Ace – each one a gift of Spirit, an offering to take up the energy and use it’s magic to manifest our dreams. I find at these times the overwhelming desire to clean and clear out any old energy to make space for the new. For me, it’s started with my bedroom. I’ve taken down my purple curtains and the blind I never liked, sneezing with the dust of past dreams, and given the windows a good clean (excellent in terms of bringing in new clarity!). Now I  have pale pink silk curtains softly framing my antique bedhead, and it feels so much lighter…. I also completely emptied my bookshelves and am gradually putting back only the books and c.d.’s that I  actually want there – again, leaving lots of space for new treasures. I also find that something green, as in a plant or some beautiful ivy in a bottle, helps enliven the space and impart tranquility. It’s amazing how getting rid of old things can feel just as good, if not better, than actually buying something new. It’s so liberating, you can literally feel the lightness as you take out the bags and boxes full of unnecessary stuff.

I believe that our surroundings very much influence our mind. An environment which is beautiful inspires me to feel beautiful myself. There is a sense of harmony and balance which enables the mind to somehow rise above difficulty and aspire to something beyond old ways of thinking and being. As I go through this process of cleaning and clearing, I imbue it with my intent to move forward mentally and emotionally, therefore making it magical within the mundane. I invoke each element just as I would when casting circle, drawing in the energy of each Ace and manifesting it’s presence as I go.

Starting with the East, the Ace of Swords, I welcome the energy of Air into my space. I open my window to allow the breeze to come in. To be honest, I rarely close my window, I find fresh air so important to my well-being. Even when there’s a howling wind I love my curtains blowing and the almost scary energy that comes with it, flickering my candles and shivering my timbres. I burn pure frankincense and copal for love, and use a feather fan to waft it around the room and my own body. As I do all this, I visualize lightness in my mind. Lightness in every cell of my body, renewing and replenishing  my chi, my life-force energy. I breathe it in, deeply and calmly and ask for the gift of clarity and truth, both epitomized by the Ace of Swords.

I then invoke the exciting energy of the North, of fire, the Ace of Wands. There is always at least one candle on my altar, varying in colour depending on my mood and whatever it is I’m wanting to manifest at the time. Today it is green, to honour the forests and the trees and to bring prosperity. I make my wish as I strike the flame and ignite the wick, summoning all the passion and creative energy of Fire to illuminate my world and fill my home with warmth and positive energy. Fire brings the burst of creativity I love, so I use this energy to rearrange furniture or objects that need shifting to come alive, and usually at this point I put on music and get totally distracted dressing up in new combinations of clothes and shoes. Playtime!

Then, ahhhhhhh, the lovely energy of the West, the chalice, the divinely feminine element of water, the Ace of Cups. As I write, it is pouring with rain outside (and of course, some of that rain is coming right inside my open window). We have had the wettest summer I can ever remember, hardly a day goes by without a downpour. I leave my rose chalice and my gothic faery chalice outside to fill with fresh rainwater before bringing them back inside to place on my altar. With a bowl of water and a few drops of lavender essential oil, I clean my beautiful desk and shelves, then follow with a Marveer polish which makes the mahogany shine and reminds me of my Nanna. Mirrors are another aspect of this element (I always think of mermaids with their mirrors) so I also clean them and as I look into my reflection clearly, I invoke the Goddess energy of the Ocean, call in Aphrodite for blessings, beauty and love, clearing past hurt and disappointment, and allowing the innocence and purity of the Ace of Cups to return to me my lost self, gently and with grace.

Finally, the deep, dark, mysterious Earth – divine Rose of Southern lands, intoxicating scent of all that is lush and sensual and fragrant with life, the Ace of Pentacles. I lie on my bed, arms and legs outstretched to make the shape of the five-pointed star of magic, connecting with my body and the flow of my breath. Closing my eyes, I reach into my bowl of crystals and feel for the one I want. Today it is Ruby in Zoisite. The Crystal Bible claims this stone ” activates the crown chakra, creates an altered state of consciousness and facilitates access to soul memory and spiritual learning..promoting individuality while at the same time retaining interconnectedness with the rest of humanity and powerfully amplifying  the biomagnetic field around the body.” (Well that one was certainly value for money at $6 ) Being an earth sign myself, I delight in the beauty of nature, and at this point fill vases with flowers and my beloved ivy, gaze at pictures of winter trees and generally have a total green-out. I massage ylang ylang and rose oil into my skin. I also eat. Something, preferably, without crumbs. Like cashews and a nectarine, which was surprisingly sweet and refreshing, as a nectarine should be…. As I continue happily beautifying my room and enjoying all my lovely things (so Taurean right now!) I contemplate lying back on my new white sheets and pillows and being fed grapes – yes, that will do for a start, anyway, in terms of manifesting opulence compliments of the Ace of Pentacles. My boudoir of earthly delights!

I have now set the stage for my own personal production of Life, and ask for divine blessing and protection to seal the space. I can literally feel the amped-up energy synergizing with the serenity of my room. I welcome in the new, and give thanks to what has passed, sending it on to whoever may benefit from it, or simply returning it to the earth. As we go through massive global change in the coming year, I connect with the magic of 11:11 (hey I just realized that if you put all the aces together it makes 11:11, get it? Four ones…)  and my own sense of connection to life and all it’s mysteries. I ask for courage to face whatever comes, to draw on my warrior-goddess spirit and remember who I am. To take my place alongside my sisters and brothers when I need to, in  whatever way necessary. And I ask that we humans wake up and save the world, or something epic, or at least save the honey bees!

So, anyway, Happy New Year to everyone! May the Energy of the Aces enlighten, excite, and delight you in a myriad of unforseen and maybe wished-for ways.