1. Ten of fire in this deck the 10 of fire asks you if you are overwhelmed and over burdened because something got out of control?
Take a breath, see if there is anything you can let go of, any way you can get help or support and work your way through that which is truly yours to carry. It is hard but you can do it. 
Once you get to the other side, look at how things got to this point with your friends and allies having taken off and left you to carry things all on your own. Set a strategy for how to prevent things from getting this difficult in the future. 

2. The Emperor  has the power of all four Kings. This card reminds you that you have all the power you need. You do  not need to cower down and appease those who seek to intimidate or manipulate you. Nor do you need to use force or intimidation to get your needs met. Set strong boundaries. Claim your power and let the strength of your best self shine.

3. Four of Earth asks you if your relationship to material things is in balance. Are you enjoying the money, things, resources you have? Are you fearful of losing what you have or not having enough? This card suggests that you take a moment to enjoy the less material things. Watch the sunset, spend some time with loved ones.  Practice gratitude and then see what is really going on. Are you truly in hardship where it is time to set your most important priorities and align your schedule and budget to support the essentials while you get caught up? Or is your spirit hungry for something that you are trying to satisfy with material things?

The mention of Reiki Attunement can sound pretty mystical and the use of symbols might seem strange to people unfamiliar with Reiki. Receiving attunements can feel pretty magical as you become very relaxed and peaceful like there isn't a care in the world. 

At each level the Reiki practitioner is attuned to different frequencies. Each frequency is represented by a symbol that has a name. This is very much like a musical note. When you practice listening for the sound frequency of the note A and you practice making the sound on an instrument and reading the symbolic notation for the A, you become better and better able to recognize it and transmit it when it is appropriate. 
When a tuning fork, let's stick with the note A,  is struck and begins to vibrate with sound, if there is another tuning fork,  in A, the room, the sound waves will vibrate and create resonance with the other fork and it will start to vibrate as well. This is basic a physics concept of resonance. 
In an attunement the Reiki master holds a certain frequency (Like a state of mind, relaxation, well being, etc.) The Master Teacher will hold that frequency for the student for a length of time and with a level of strength and intensity that they begin to resonate with that feeling in a way that they can recognize the feeling after learning its name and symbol just like a musical note. Then the student can access that energy as desired. The more they practice, the more finely tuned instrument of healing they become. 
Why the symbols? Why the names? It gives us a way to communicate about them and more importantly, it gives us something to do with our mind. When we become distracted, as all humans do, we can set our minds on the task of drawing the symbol and thinking of the name of the energy we are using. 

When we think of love, many of us think of something all soft, pink and fluffy. We forget that love can be many different things, all badass.

My heart has been through the ringer many times and I have been temped to harden it and shut it down. But Had I succumbed to that urge I might have missed out on more and acheived less. Instead I have maintained a fierce commitment to keep my heart open and allow it to lead the charge into a better and better life.

I challenge you to do your own version of a heart centered life. I challenge you to build a life that you love even if it makes you seem weird. To fiercely and lovingly commit to yourself. To stay true to your own health and happiness. To refuse to abandon yourself and your truth even of it means some people whose approval matters to you disapprove.

The Sun - In this case The Sun represents the divine masculine element, that which is in charge and that which we see in the light of day. 

The Moon - The Moon represents the divine feminine and what lives in the mystery. As the moon eclipses the sun it brings to the light what has been hidden but perhaps what our intuition has known all along. Once the eclipse passes things return to their normal appearance but what has been seen cannot be unseen. 

​1. Death - Empty yourself. Go deep, release and let go of anything that is holding you back or that you know you need to bring to an end. From a place of emptiness and and clarity, you can rise up from the ashes and begin fresh and new. Replenish your depleted energy and generate a sense of optimism and new beginnings. 

2. The Tower - Represents a we're not in Kansas anymore Toto moment. Things feel like they're falling apart but truly what is collapsing are the false walls that have held you captive. It may be a bumpy ride but hang on and breathe. Sink into your core where the part of you who knows all of your answers lives. Find your own truth. The beliefs and structures that have been imposed on you no longer serve you. You can create something new. 

3. Eight of Swords - You are not as stuck as you feel. You are given the gift of stillness for a period of time to gain clarity. Time to make some adjustments in order to make your life fit your vision and align with your highest values. Revisit the life you have imagined for yourself. Does is ignite joy? Have you put yourself in the picture? When you imagine yourself living in that picture that is your dream life, what do you need to adjust in order to be happier and more comfortable? What do you need to care for yourself and your well being within your dream life. 

​In my spiritual studies, I have often heard that it is important to have a beginner's mind. It is important to be able to empty my cup of preconceptions and the belief that I already have things figured out, to replace judgement with curiosity.

"Learn new things." They say in studies of both happiness and brain health.

I believe the world is rich and fascinating things to explore and discover. I believe that curiosity and discovery are an important part of a happy and badass life.

But, holy cow! Have you tried doing something you haven't a clue how to do recently? We live in a world where children are asked what they want to do when they grow up long before they have the capacity to imagine what adult life entails. And we and they expect that they will have an answer. Our educational system rewards or punishes children for what they can show mastery over, not for their curiosity or their understanding of what helps them learn. 

I grew up in a family where mistakes were not allowed. Learning was not allowed. Only proficiency was allowed. 

I am learning how to play banjo, claw hammer style. This doesn't feel easy to me. I might spend an entire hour just hammering one string at a time and still not be able to hit each string accurately. I might spend a couple of hours playing one measure (non musicians, that's 4 beats. Yep, 4 whole beats, and never get it right.  

The thing about banjo is that anyone nearby can hear. Unlike knitting where the frustration of making mistakes or needing to repeat that one stitch thousands of times before you get it right can be a relatively private thing. But with the banjo, anyone within earshot can clearly hear that I suck, oh right, I'm working hard at learning.

As I practice with my teacher or when my sweetie is home, I am transported to the humiliation of my 3rd grade self trying to learn multiplication tables. 

Most of us avoid these feelings. It is easier to just do what you know or only learn new things that are similar enough to things what we already do well that we can avoid feeling so terribly incompetent.

But they say, "To have something you have never had you you have to do what you've never done" I believe this is true. I believe that in order to have a badass life and to achieve the things you have always dreamed of, you have to want it badly enough to throw yourself into new territory. Do the hard things. Give yourself permission to really suck as something and do it anyway. Do the thing badly and shamelessly until, eventually, you no longer suck. What an awesome feeling that is. To realize that you no longer suck at that thing that once seemed like an impossible ball of humiliation! 

So I encourage you. I encourage you to go for your dreams and do the things that you have always wanted to do. Even if you have no clue how. Read, explore, ask questions, hire a teacher or consultant, trial and error, whatever it takes. Do the thing, you just may find your life becoming more and more badass.

Here is a little inspiration for you. It isn't banjo but it's awesome:

Play Your Ukulele