Some musings about finding sources of hope in difficult times.
(Image description: A photo of three, rustic-looking oracle cards on a black cloth with two shades of blue Celtic knotwork overlapping each other. The first card is The Curragh, with the second and third cards being Honey and Lady’s Mantle.) Credit: My work.
Lately, every day feels like another day of something awful happening. Another day of “what else can go wrong?” In reality, this mindset isn’t the case.
Even in difficult times, tasks still have to be taken care of, whether that’s a job, a grocery store trip, or laundry. It’s the mundane in the midst of all the mayhem.
However, I have to remind myself that I need to find joy in some way to keep going. It’s all too easy to get into a routine and not have anything to break up the monotonous nature of it all. So, what can I do to bring measures of happiness into my life?
Reading and drawing were a couple of my favorite activities to do as a child. Unfortunately, those hobbies have significantly fallen by the wayside. I want to change that, even if it has to be done in baby steps.
A recent oracle reading had me pull three cards instead of the usual one, and all of them had relevance to the matter of bringing joy into my life despite the steady stream of upsetting current events.
The first card I received was The Curragh, which symbolizes freedom. It calls back to when St. Brigid had Her fellow nuns take the corners of Her mantle and go as far as they could in order to attain land for their convent.
In the US, this message seems ironic and even hard to accomplish. I can’t do miracles, but I have to remind myself what freedom means. Freedom means being able to live a life as I want, despite what others would prefer. Learning to know yourself is one of the world’s oldest mysteries, and it’s a freedom that people often ignore or take for granted.
The second card was Honey and symbolizes the sweetness of life. Showing gratitude can serve as a reminder of what you do have and grounds you in the moment, rather than speculating over what-ifs. It’s one thing to hope for the best and prepare for the worst, but taking count of what’s there can calm fears as you show gratitude.
The third card was Lady’s Mantle and indicates finding ways of creating sacred spaces. Doing small activities can create sacred in the mundane, a reminder that even in hardships there can be moments of holiness and beauty. I think the idea to read and draw more goes well with this card’s message, but I’m sure other small “rituals” can bring peace of mind as well.
While the world can seem quite dark and hopeless, I know I have to find respites to re-energize when the news is overwhelmingly negative. Otherwise, events can grind you down and leave you spiritually, mentally, and physically drained, and then you don’t see the need to push on despite everything going on around you. Finding those buoys of hope are essential to staying afloat.
May you discover what brings gladness and hope in these rough periods of life!
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