The Lotus Pond

Lately I’ve been reading a lot of books about happiness.  Some talk about the search for happiness, and some say we already have happiness within ourselves.  One says that we can reach happiness by not complaining (I like that one), and another says that learning to let go of things is the way. And one, my favourite of all, says that we are all divine and that we only need to recognize that to find happiness.

On the surface, all of these books seem to be saying something different.  Do I need to stop complaining to be happy, or do I need to give up want, or do I need to realize I am a goddess?  Well, yes.  The way I see it is if we recognize the divine in ourself, really honestly recognize it, than the other things come naturally.

Think about this: do the gods complain?  No, they go out and change what is bothering them.  Do the gods want? No, because everything and nothing belongs to them.

Okay, we obviously don’t live our lives that way, even the most centered and divinely aware of us.  So, what does that mean for happiness?  For me it means finding a balance, being the change I want to see (as Ghandi says), and knowing at a deep level that the Buddhist teachings are true, like suffering is caused by cravings.  (That has been a big theme in my life lately.)

I’m not sure I am completely in a place in my life to enact the changes I want to make.  Having a toddler in my life makes some things very difficult.  I start the day intending to practice equanimity, but then he accidentally bats on the knee with a chopstick and I begin to lose my temper.  (Hey, it really does hurt a lot.  Baby Man is a strong boy.)  But that doesn’t mean I give up.  I try to reset myself, which is easier some days than others, and move on.  It is important to me to model a way of life that I would like to see my son lead.

Like everyone, I want to find happiness.  I want to find a balance between want, need, and detachment. I want to know at the deepest level that I am special, and that everyone around me is too.  Day to day life gets in the way a lot, but that means I also need to remember that it is in day to day life that I most need to practise these things.

It has been about six months since I’ve added any new content to this site. I haven’t abandoned it. Not at all. The Lotus Pond is almost always in my thoughts. But I haven’t had much to say lately. My life has been full with my little two-year old son, with knitting and cross stitch, with work and family. And. somehow, my spiritual practice and Tarot have fallen to the side.

I almost said that it was my faith that had fallen away, but that isn’t true. Even though I may not been actively practising, my faith is always a part of me. It informs all of my decision. It is a part of me. And I feel it is time now to pay more attention too it. My little guy is more independent now, and I am starting to feel an empty spot that used to be filled by my spiritual practise. It is time to fill it.

With that in mind, I’ve added two new pieces to the site:

• Working with Deities
• A Personal Approach to Magic

I have also decided to begin using this first page of The Pond as a blog as well as a place to post site updates.  I do have another blog, Reflections in the Pond, that used to be about my life and my spiritual journey.  However, over the past year or so it has become more about my crafting.  Since I have built up a small audience of readers there, many of which would not be the least bit interested in Wicca and Tarot, I have decided that this would be a good place to post those entries on esoteric subjects that don’t quite rate an entire essay but I still want to write.

To close off, I would like to leave you with a little prayer.  It is inspired by a prayer in Seasons of Your Heart by Macrina Wiederkehr.

O Lord and Lady, help me to believe the truth about myself, no matter how beautiful and joyful it is.

The old Adopt-a-Deity post from Reflections in the Pond are now available here on The Lotus Pond.  You can read short entries on Athena, Heqet and more.

If there is a deity you would like me to research, please contact me.

Learn some methods for breaking in your stiff new Tarot deck: Breaking in a Tarot Deck.

Finally, a new article for the Wicca Section! You can read about my take on the history of the Rede and how we can live it every day in this essay: An Examination of the Wiccan Rede.

Also, if you happen to be interested in cross stitching, head over to my blog and check out the draw I am holding. Leave a comment on this post before midnight Eastern on June 7, 2009 to enter.

I’ve added my blue and purple colour conversion of Nora Corbett’s Letter H fairy to the cross stitch section.  You can find it here.

Interested in what else I’m up to?  You can follow me on Twitter.  My user name is @silverlotus152.  Or check out the Twitter feed in the sidebar.

This evening I posted two new Tarot articles:

• Getting to Know the Cards – an exercise you can use to introduce yourself to all the cards in your new Tarot deck
• Selecting a Tarot Spread – hints for picking the right spread to give your sitter the best reading possible

I’m also working on an article about the Wiccan Rede, but my notes seem to have gone missing.  The last time I saw them was Earth Hour, so I’m starting to give up hope.  With luck, though, they will turn up soon.

The navigation menu problem has been fixed.  Yay!

New articles are being written and should be posted in a couple of days.

It appears that a plugin has broken my navigation menu.  I’m not sure how to fix it right now.  In the meantime, you can get around the site by using the site map.  With luck, I will have the navigation menu running by the end of the day.

As I was sitting down to type up some new material for the website, I realized that it had gone missing. To be fair, these were notes from before I had the baby, written more than a year ago. Goodness knows where they have gone. Normally I’m very organized, but as anyone with a child knows, chaos follows babies. I’ll try to find the notes, or do my best to replicate them. I’m still aiming to have a couple of new reviews up by the end of this week.

I’m also considering offering free one-card Tarot readings again, via email. I’m curious if anyone would be interested. As always, you can contact me here. Please don’t request a reading at this time, though. Just let me know if you might be interested.