Blooming Wand

January 13th Full Moon Tarot Insights: On Feeling Stuck

• Emily O'Neal • Season 3 • Episode 1

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Feeling confined by comfort? I found myself in a similar position as the New Year loomed, surrounded by routines that felt safe yet stifling. By intentionally leaving my home altar spaces empty after the Yule season, I stumbled upon a powerful sense of freedom and possibility. 

This episode takes you on a journey through self-reflection and embracing the natural ebb and flow of our energy cycles. With the guidance of the Star Seeker Oracle and Tarot decks, we uncover the wisdom needed to honor these cycles, inviting you to trust the process of growth without forcing change.

We explore the art of creating space for transformation as a path to clarity and inspiration. Amidst the pressures of the New Year's energy, there is liberation in pausing and simply doing nothing for a few minutes each day. 

I share personal stories of breaking free from routines and the beauty of spontaneity, inspired by the full moon's intentions. By leaving your calendar open, you might just find new experiences waiting to unfold. 

https://www.bloomingwand.com
https://www.youtube.com/@bloomingwand_emilyoneal

Speaker 1:

Welcome to Blooming Wand, your home for grounded and intuitive spiritual guidance. I'm Emily O'Neill, evidential psychic medium, intuitive healer and coach, and I'm here to guide you on a journey of self-reflection using the wisdom of the tarot. And before we begin, I just want to remind you that if you're enjoying these full and new moon readings, make sure to subscribe to the Blooming Wand podcast, wherever you listen to your podcasts. And another gentle reminder that Blooming Wand has a YouTube channel, so don't forget to sign up to that, or subscribe to that, rather. And also, blooming Wand has a newsletter, bloomingwandcom, to sign up for the newsletter, and this is where I really give updates on what I'm offering, what I'm doing, things going on within the community. It's also where I present some spiritual insights as well. So you've got three resources that are free right there where you can engage with the Blooming Wan community, and please do so if you're called to.

Speaker 1:

Moving on, let's get to the fun stuff. As the moon waxes and wanes, you know me I like to recognize that so do our own inner tides. And as a way to honor moon cycles and life cycles, on each full and new moon, I pull three cards which inspire an intention and affirmation to illuminate your path. I like to think of them as themes that can guide us as we move through coming days. So grab your journals, light a candle and settle into the present moment. Let's delve into the enchanting archetypes of the tarot, uncovering the magic and messages that they hold for all of us. I'm so glad you're here, us, I'm so glad you're here.

Speaker 1:

And as we gather today, on or around the January 13th full moon, we're exploring something that many of us might be feeling in these early days of the new year the sensation of being stuck While everyone around us might be charging forward with their new year's resolutions, which is a practice I gave up long ago. We might be feeling a different kind of call, one that asks us to pause, to reflect and to honor where we truly are in our own personal energy cycles. So, just like nature, we ebb and flow. Just like the moon, we ebb and flow, and right now, in this month of January, you might not be feeling all charged up and ready to go with new resolutions. Now, if you are a person who's made some resolutions and you have that energy of like, yeah, I'm ready to make some changes, that's awesome, and it doesn't mean that this episode isn't for you. I think there's actually going to be a lot in it for everybody, because this is an experience that, one way or another, we're all going to have.

Speaker 1:

So I wanted to start by sharing something with you that's been with me lately, and that's this idea of what happens when we outgrow something. You know that feeling where something that once fit just starts to feel confining. It could be a relationship, a home, a job, a routine, anything, and it used to work for you and it felt good, and now it sort of feels restrictive, like it's limiting you, it's not offering you the freedom to learn and grow in the ways that are maybe calling to you. That's what we're talking about. So I recently had this experience while clearing out my Yule decorations. So if you know me, you know I love winter, I love the dark, I love tucking in and I love to decorate for the season. So I put a lot of decorations up and when I took them down as I normally do after the first of the year instead of rushing to fill my home altar spaces like my mantle and I have a couple of altars in different places throughout the home I did something different I just left them empty places throughout the home. I did something different I just left them empty, and I was telling my sister who I live with. I just don't feel like filling the space up. I feel like I don't know, leaving it blank just to see what that feels like.

Speaker 1:

And in the emptiness something really interesting began to percolate and it was a sense of freedom and possibility. And it dawned on me from leaving some of these spaces open in my home that I needed to do that in my life. I needed to create some emptiness, I needed to allow space in my schedule, in my heart, in my mind and in my spirit for just being expansive and not filling things up, not forcing anything to happen. And it was a really interesting shift that happened inside of me. Just because I made a shift in the routine of how I adorn my home and how I adorn my altar spaces, I just felt like Emily, don't fill up the space right now, and so I didn't. And from that came this insight, and the cards that we pulled really have just helped me deepen into this perspective, which is why I really love working with the tarot and oracle cards, because they can help us explore things we might otherwise turn a blind eye to. So I've pulled some cards for us this moon cycle and, just like I said, they have told and revealed such a powerful message about exactly what we've already started talking about.

Speaker 1:

So let me share what came through in our reading for this moon cycle, and I'm so excited to do so. First, I want to tell you I use the Starseeker Oracle deck and the Starseeker Tarot deck, which play very well together. The Star Seeker Oracle deck was a little Christmas present to myself and I was so excited to get it and to use it and share it with you this moon cycle. And I really do like what the artist did with the imagery, because it's pretty easy to read intuitively. And you know that's my preferred mode of reading the tarot is to just look at the imagery and let it speak to me.

Speaker 1:

And so, first of all, we pulled from the Starseeker Oracle the stuck card, and if you're looking at it with me, you'll notice the figure is in a cramped and confined position. There's this sense of limitation, of being unable to move freely. But here's what's fascinating about this card Sometimes the feeling stuck is actually the first sign that we're ready for a breakthrough. It's like when you've outgrown a space, a relationship or a way of being, and that discomfort is not a bad thing. It's actually your spirit telling you time for a change.

Speaker 1:

Now, moving on to the tarot cards that we pulled from the Star Seeker Tarot, we've got the Two of Swords, and this shows a figure standing blindfolded. Their arms are spread wide, with two swords balanced in one in each hand. Now look at how they're positioned. To me it looks like a moment of choice, but notice how the blindfold suggests that this decision isn't one that can be made with the logical mind alone. The arms spread speak to an openness to receive guidance, even when, like, there's no way to see what's going to happen. We don't know what the path forward is going to be. So we open ourself up and allow that intuitive guidance to emerge. So to me, the posture in this card is just very much in opposition to what we see in the stuck card, opposition to what we see in the stuck card. It goes from confined to sort of. I'm open to receiving some insight that can maybe help me shift this from the stuck energy.

Speaker 1:

I think there's an interesting contrast between these two cards. I'd be curious to know what you think. So, and then you know, moving on from the stuck card and the two Swords, we've got the Five of Cups, and in this card we see a figure mourning over spilled cups. And this is crucial. There are still two full cups right behind them.

Speaker 1:

And to me, the earthy tones in this card remind us me that this is about being grounded in reality, not lost in what could have been, should have been, have tos future, tripping or dwelling in the past. It's such a perfect metaphor for how we sometimes focus so intently on what we've lost or what we don't have or what's changing, that we miss the blessings that remain. And together these cards weave a story about transformation through acceptance. They're telling us that this feeling of being stuck, this moment of maybe necessary blindness and this process of letting go there, it's all part of the same journey. So let's dive into this moon cycles. Intention and affirmation here's our intention to release what constrains us by embracing what remains, and to guide us from spiritual blindness to clarity through gentle self-reflection. Here's your affirmation I release what binds me and open my heart to see the fullness of my blessings, trusting that even in darkness, even in the not knowing, my inner light and wisdom is guiding my way is guiding my way.

Speaker 1:

Now let's talk about what feeling stuck really feels like, especially in this New Year's energy. It's not always what you would expect. Sometimes it shows up as that pressure to immediately transform when January 1st rolls around, or that anxiety when everyone else seems to be charging forward with the resolutions while you're still trying to figure out what you actually want. Sometimes it shows up as that comfortable discomfort and this is what it's been showing up for, how it's been showing up for me, rather which is sort of like I don't know, you know that feeling of when things don't feel quite right but they're familiar enough that we keep going through the motions and doing it. It's like being caught in an eddy in a river. You know where it pools and swirls, there's movement, but you're just like going in circles and kind of looping back to something I just said, which is sometimes that stuck feeling can seem like that pressure to immediately transform January 1st. Do you feel that pressure every year? Are you running in, looping in a circle every year that brings you back to January 1st and tells you you shoulda, woulda, coulda be doing something? Or do you tend to feel in January, that anxiety of like I need to make a change, but I don't know what it is. So it's really interesting how stuck can manifest in our lives, and I'm certainly not going to be going over every example of what that could be, but I am inviting you to explore what it might manifest, how it may manifest for you. So sometimes we have to take a step back and think about it.

Speaker 1:

Maybe you're scrolling endlessly on your phone or maintaining relationships that maybe you don't need to be anymore, or following routines simply because it's what you've always done. Now, these aren't moments of dramatic crisis. They're quiet signs that you've outgrown something. And for me, I have routines and habits that are very comforting to me and they do fill my time quite a bit. And lately I've been noticing, I've been thinking like why am I doing this? Just because I'm used to doing it, or is it because I want to do it? And I don't necessarily have the answers, but I do know that one way I can figure that out is by not maybe doing those things and seeing how I feel.

Speaker 1:

And that's kind of where I'm inviting you to do is to identify where in your life are you just doing things out of habit because you've always done them, or where in your life are you just doing things out of habit because you've always done them? Or where in your life might you be doing that circling, circling, circling. These things keep me comfortable, they keep me in the same place, but they don't help me to move the needle more towards who I am right now, today. They were behaviors or patterns that started long ago. They've worked for you, they've worked for me and they feel pretty good, but something just isn't quite right. Maybe you're soul weary, maybe you're feeling confused, maybe you're feeling like how come this stuff doesn't feel so good to me anymore? And again, sometimes that's an invitation to try something different or to not do said thing.

Speaker 1:

So here's what I've learned about these moments where we feel confined or restricted or stuck. They're often invitations to create space. So when I left my altar bear after removing all of the Yule decorations, something shifted. The emptiness wasn't lacking, it was breathing. It wasn't begging to be filled, it was asking for a breath. It was inviting possibility. And it made something shift in me. And isn't that exactly what our cards are showing us? The two of swords figure. They're not stuck because they're blindfolded. They're being invited to trust a different kind of vision. Just like the figure in the stuck card isn't trapped forever, they're in the process of discovering where they need more space.

Speaker 1:

So how do we begin to break free when we feel stuck? Well, it starts with something that might seem counterintuitive. We don't need to do more. In fact, sometimes the most powerful thing that we can do is cross things off our to-do lists, not because they're done, but because they no longer belong. So I want you to try something with me this moon cycle. See if you can find 10 to 20 minutes a day, or a couple of times throughout the week where you do just absolutely nothing no phone, no tasks, no filling the space and just sit there and be. And it might feel uncomfortable at first, and that's okay. That discomfort is often where the magic begins, and the intention behind the 10 to 20 minutes of doing nothing is to create space in your day so that maybe you can create some space in your heart and in your soul and in your mind for nothing, for nothingness. I will admit this is not an easy thing for me to do, but it is a practice that I do have, and it's a simple practice. But simple doesn't mean easy, I'll also admit this. It has yielded some wonderful insights that have helped me to make some modifications in my life that feel really good.

Speaker 1:

I am a creature of habit. I love routine, I like to do the things that I've always done and I can get really stuck in that routine and for some reason this makes me think of the Hobbit and Bilbo. At the beginning of the Hobbit, he has his routine, he's in his hobbit hole, he has his tea, he's comfortable pondering the world and writing his book and, literally out of nowhere, gandalf shows up and is like dude, you're going on an adventure. And he's like, no, I'm not, I don't want, I like my routine. And he does go on that adventure and it's not one that's like cushy or comfortable. It's very challenging, but he learns a lot and it brings him so many wonderful things to his life and to his life experience.

Speaker 1:

And I think that's kind of one of the things I want to talk about a little later, which is like it's comfortable, discomfort, we're comfortable, but we feel a little bit of a call to do something different. So I really also want to point out that when we make changes, we're going to have feelings about that. They represent the blessings that remain and new possibilities waiting to be discovered. And I again I'll mention that the earthy colors in this card remind us to stay grounded as we navigate this transition. And staying grounded really just looks like grounding into the earth with your energy. Just looks like grounding into the earth with your energy, finding some an anchor in some simple day-to-day routines that aren't keeping us stuck but that actually help keep us grounded. Maybe that's going for a walk, maybe it's that 10 to 20 minutes of do nothing time, but it's really in letting us feel how life goes from moment to moment to moment. But our brain will go to the past, to the future, everywhere but the moment. But if we can ground into our breath, our inhale and our exhale, and into the moment, we realize that every breath is an opportunity to just begin again to root into the moment. We realize that every breath is an opportunity to just begin again to root into the moment, to root into the now.

Speaker 1:

Now I've noticed something really remarkable, since my spaces are more sparse. I have filled the altar spaces a little bit and very differently than I ever have before, but they're still pretty sparse and with kind of keeping things less filled in terms of my physical space. I am actually in my time. I've tried to open up some time in my day for not doing tasks. My inner power is starting to slowly grow. I feel it building. I feel this pulsing and this growing. I don't know where it will go or what it will lead to, but I feel it building and it's because I'm doing less and that's so interesting to me, that in the doing less, there is something powerful growing within me, and I would liken it to this it's like finally having room to stretch after being in a cramped position for too long, when we feel like we're not confined by old promises, tasks, commitments or New Year's resolutions that maybe really don't fit for us or things that don't really serve us anymore. We will create space for something new to emerge and we are the tenders of our own garden and, in the winter, those of us that have yards and access to natural spaces. There's nothing there, nothing is growing, it's pretty empty, and but what's happening under the soil is the building of the power, of the seeds, and we're no, we're no different than nature. So I think that that's a good analogy and hope. Hopefully it makes sense.

Speaker 1:

Now, as we sit in this full moon energy, I invite you to look at your own life. Where are you feeling stuck? What have you outgrown? And remember that feeling stuck isn't a failure. It's often the first whisper that we're actually preparing for growth. And I think, like I said, it's easier said than done to just sort of be with what is and not worry about what will be. And the more you do that, the more you're able to watch yourself as you're going through your day and feel into how the tasks feel to you and if you want to be doing them anymore. Feel to you and if you want to be doing them anymore.

Speaker 1:

So I know, for me, I am changing up my routine a little bit and I'm not planning it. In fact, I'm doing the opposite. Normally I would map out a new plan in my calendar and like write down all of the things. I'm actually leaving the calendar blank and sort of waking up and yes, there are some things I just have to do every day, just like you, but outside of that, I'm not adding a whole heck of a lot in and I am feeling that something will come of that that feels fresh and new and I feel a sense of unburdening. I think that's another thing that I would say you know that I love to hear from you and you can email me at emily at bloomingwancom to share your insights about what you think about this full moon's intention and affirmation. If you're watching on YouTube, you can leave a comment, and I think even on my podcast, when it's published, you can send a text or a message and I'll get that and you can share your insights from that as well.

Speaker 1:

So let's go over our intention and affirmation one more time before we close. So our intention is to release what constrains us by embracing what remains after we've let go of what no longer suits us, and that we are being guided from spiritual blindness. So the not knowing and that kind of cramped, stuck position to clarity through gentle self reflection. Here's your affirmation I release what binds me and open my heart to see the fullness of my blessings, trusting that even in darkness, my inner light and wisdom guides my way. Now don't forget to get your journals out, to take good care of yourselves, and that I'll see you on the new moon. And I just want to say that sometimes the bravest thing that we can do is simply create space and wait to see what wants to grow there.