Another Perfect Pick

Ocean Oracle – Fog/Stillness – Photo: L. Weikel

I don’t know about you, but between the relentless heat and mugginess that’s blanketing us (if you live on the East Coast of the U.S.) and the relentless and increasingly horrifying events unfolding in our country on a daily basis, I feel like I’ve reached my saturation point. So when I asked the Ocean Oracle (by Susan Marte) for a fresh message we could all hold as a new Point of Focus, I chose what feels like another perfect pick (PP).

As can be seen from the photo above, I chose Fog – Stillness.

Why do I feel this is a PP? Because I am finding it increasingly difficult to continue ‘going with the Flow.’ Don’t get me wrong. There’s no doubt that keeping Flow as a Point of Focus in my daily life has served me well. And it’s not even as though I intend to just throw Flow out the window.

No. If I sense Flow is an appropriate response to a particular situation or stimulus, I will continue to embrace its wisdom. (And I have to mention, Karl and I were amazed at how often, since I chose that card for our collective contemplation, the word flow has shown up in the Medicine Cards* I’ve been selecting on my day, as well as tarot cards I’ve been consistently choosing in our early evening walks.

I’ve been receiving, “Flow, flow, flow” over and over again. So yes, this message has been received and reinforced.

Recent Escalations

And if you’ve been joining me each day or at least mostly keeping up, you know that the guidance we’ve been receiving from other oracles (The Crone Tarot, by Ellen Lorenzi-Prince for instance) has also been pretty consistently advising to come together to recall wholeness, goodness and caring.

While I can only speak for myself, and I probably need to bear in mind that I’m still a bit sleep-deprived, I feel it’s important to acknowledge that making the conscious choice to remain in the flow, and do our best to heed the call to encourage wholeness and goodness while in the midst of a pandemic – is no small feat. While it sounds relaxing and easy, it’s actually a lot of work.

Yes, we can do our best avoid getting caught up in (or snagged) by the rocks and branches we encounter every day, the fact remains that it takes a lot of energy to keep our heads above water. And over the past couple of days, I started to question just how much more ‘flow’ I’d be able to manage.

Photo: L. Weikel

Dearly Needed Respite

And so it was with a huge sense of relief that I chose the Fog card this evening. Stillness. It feels like the perfect message for me in this moment, and I trust it will offer you some welcome permission to be still too.

I want to share what the guidebook offers:

“The Story

She sat in the hollow, surrounded by fog. She didn’t know which way she had come, or which way to go. The vapour was tangible, but her direction was not. She wasn’t scared – the veil of fog felt safe. She had never realized the stillness of fog, the cloak of silence it offered. She was in her own little world, fully present to herself, yet removed from that which was ‘out there.’ It was a chance to just be – to be in that stillness. She didn’t feel the desire to venture forth without direction. She was happy to have this time to be by herself, hidden from view. She felt this fog was the earth’s way of surrounding her by the nurturing embrace of water, without drowning her. She knew she was strong enough to rely on herself and her intuition, away from the watchful gaze of others. She had faith that when the fog lifted, she would be in the perfect place – in the place she was meant to be.

The Messages

What are you hiding from? What is hidden from view? What is visible? What is invisible? Trust that what you need to see is either right in front of you, or will soon present itself. Focus fully on your self. In the busy-ness of the world, take time to be still, to recharge yourself and recalibrate your bearings. Allow stillness to envelop you and be present to the gifts it offers. Use the cloak of protection stillness provides, to stretch into who you are. Walk the path of your instinct – it will lead you in the right direction. Even when feeling alone or isolated, know that you are completely supported by the universe. She is keeping you safe in your sacred place.”

My Take

The bottom line of guidance I receive from this new Point of Focus is that it is ok for us to step out of the flow and take cover. Wrap ourselves in the cloak of invisibility that Fog provides us and rest in the Stillness.

Before we take a stand or make any decisions about how to react to anything that may be happening in the outside world, the perfect response in this moment is to step back. Recharge. Recalibrate.

Indeed, when we remember that, in addition to witnessing armed troops being deployed by a fanatic to manhandle and essentially kidnap fellow citizens in specifically targeted Democratic cities (nakedly politically motivated by our own president) we are in the midst of a pandemic that is exploding in our country – seems to me the most comforting thing we can do in this moment is cloak ourselves and rest up.

Definitely another ‘Perfect Pick.’

We need to gather our strength for the coming storm. But for now: We must practice Stillness, my friends. Wrap ourselves in a Fog that holds and hides us and permitting us to safely gather our strength and wits for what’s to come.