This summer, I am celebrating the days between the summer solstice on June 20 and the beginning of July with a simple, soulful, meditative ritual.
Join me as I turn over an oracle card every other day, share its meaning for this season, and reflect on how that message can be embodied in our everyday lives.
This simple ritual is a tool for celebrating + welcoming the season of fire + light. Meant to help us commit to a few moments of meditation to discover and celebrate the flame within each of us.
Join me in soaking in the light of the sun + discovering how we can radiate fire + passion in our everyday lives. Now that we're in full bloom, just like the earth, it's time to burn brightly. It's our season to shine + glow + radiate.
Hello, my friend.
Are you settling into July? How is it feeling to you? As much as I felt lots of things in my July podcast and letter, I am not quite sure what I am feeling now except for pure joy at the fact that I have two days of work left before my four week vacay. Ahhhh. Even though I have been productive at work, it has been at a much slower, more intentional pace, which has allowed me to begin to slowly move into vacation mode. And it has been soooo nice.
And now, on Wednesday evening, after a yummy salad dinner, I’m sitting in my studio with my candle lit, sipping on a cheeky lemon hard seltzer, and ready to write my last Summer Solstice series letter to you.
I can feel that it is time to move on. It is time to discover the last message for us as we close out this time together. And, my friend, what a perfect message it is.
Look closely at the card. What do you feel? What is your soul telling you? Is it dark and foreboding? Look and feel a bit longer. Now, go a bit deeper. And wait there.
Stay with me now, ok? I know that this card seems a bit dark with the skull and cemetery headstones and Mary Shelley (author of Frankenstein). But, it only takes a few moments of daring to sit with this card in order to see it in a whole new light. And to understand how it is the perfect card for today.
Of course, when I turned over this card, my first thought was that this was a dark card symbolizing death. And, it is. I felt icky and kinda freaked out. But, as I settled into my breath, and let my thoughts come and go, I quickly realized that it was not a menacing fortune-telling card of catastrophe; but, that it was a reminder of the cycles of life. Of change and loss, yes. But, with change, with each loss, with each death, there is also new birth.
Soon, I felt the message for me rising up from within: This is a message of endings. But, also of beginnings.
It’s true that loss and change and death are indescribably, painfully difficult. But, they are also the way that we grow and develop and evolve and are reborn. These cycles are the way of nature, the rhythm of the seasons, and the story of our lives. Endings and beginnings. Beginnings and endings. Constant movement upward, downward, onward, inward, outward. Spiraling and rising and becoming.
Without this card, without loss and death and endings, there would be no life.
So, today, on the last day of this series and this little ritual I have shared with you since the summer solstice, I turned over the card of endings. The card that says to me… it is time.
July is here and June has ended. The energy has shifted, and we have entered the month of pause. I do not feel as if I am still wrapped up in the height of the solstice energy of June, but I do not feel that I have left it either. It’s hard to explain. I know that things have shifted, but I feel as if they have come to a pause, as if I have entered a magical, liminal season of rest and restoration.
Nudged in-between the ever-growing, buzzing, abundant energy of May and June and the waning energy of August, July is the month to just be. To bask and soak it all in. Everything slows down in nature. And, I am deeply grateful that my vacation falls right in the middle of this time of the year.
I mentioned in my last post that July has the same energy as January - it is a pause after the height and and depth of summer and winter, respectively. And it is meant to be savored, whether it be through slow, lazy summer days of gardening, reading, relaxing, and gathering under long, balmy nights or whether it be wild, adventurous days of exploring, traveling, and inspiration. These are the days of carefree wonder and delight.
And, if we are not willing to release and let go of the sweet, summer moments of June, then we will not move into all of the new moments that lie ahead of us, just waiting to be soaking in and savored.
Sometimes, though, the moments that are waiting for us are just another ending.
The last time I was with my dad before he passed away last October was last July. It was the July from hell and my heart broke over and over again all month long. I could feel my dad slipping away, his ending drawing closer with each passing July day. I didn’t want to let go, but I also knew that I had to. I had no control of the rhythms and cycles of life and death. So, I soaked in every smile, every giggle, every little touch to his arm. And, come the end of July, I said goodbye. I knew it would be the last time I would see him or be near his physical presence on earth. No one had told me this, I just knew it.
In October, my daddy died. And my world changed. I’m still figuring out what is being born and grown from his passing. And I am still evolving and discovering. But, his ending on this earth was most definitely a beginning. But, that is something I will be uncovering for years to come. Perhaps even until my own earthly ending.
Today, after turning over this card of loss, I immediately thought of my dad and my heart hurt. Especially, knowing that this July is a year since I last saw him. But, then I rememebered what I know from some ancient, deep wisdom that is within me and runs through me.
Loss and death are endings. Endings bring about change. And change is how something new is born. So, whatever lies ahead for me this July, I am ready to embrace it, whether it be an ending or a beginning.
After meditating a bit more on today’s card, I rose to dress for work. I pulled out my dad’s plaid flannel shirt that I brought home with me and slipped it on over my navy blue tank top. And I headed out to start my day, wrapped in the love and spirit of my dad. Feeling endings and beginnings swirl and float around me, giving me pause. Perhaps they are the same thing?
And, with that, my dear friend, it’s time. Thank you ever so much for being here today. And, if you have followed along through all of these seven letters, then I am more humbled and honored than you will ever know.
I’ll be taking a break now from writing for the rest of July. Making space for basking and soaking in July. Creating days filled with rest and adventure. Ready to welcome whatever endings and beginnings come my way. If you want to follow along, then you can find me on Instagram right *here*.
Otherwise, I wish you a most blessed and beautiful July. And I’ll be in touch again on August 1st - as we shift seasons once again, celebrate Lughnasadh, and welcome the energy of a new month.
Deep love to you. xoxo. liz.
My take- When I looked at the card it was like a weight lifted. With the shape of her shoulders and the lightening from the hands, it says to let things go. All of those things under her slipped off her shoulders and she let the weight of them go with her own power. It’s freeing. Have a great vacation.
Enjoy your July! 💗