Blessed Litha

Blessed Litha, or as I call it: Midsummer (a few days late)!

Celebrating another turn of the Wheel with Summer Solstice celebrations means gathering late into the night, burning the brush in a bonfire, releasing the shit in the way of an awesome harvest season. Some call it Midsummer, Summer Solstice or Litha or Leetha, as others pronounce it. I could not get a clear pronunciation of it. I found an Irish speaker who said Litha, but Wiccans will sometimes say Leetha. Ultimately, the word for the holiday comes from the Anglo-Saxon name for the month of June — Ǣrra-Līða. That essentially translates to “the first liða” — and July is effectively named “the second liða.”

I am holding an online healing circle and guided shamanic journey with dragon in honor of Midsummer! You can find more information here.

Tarot: you asked, I answer.

One of my favorite sayings (and something I repeat quite often) from my mentor Pixie Lighthorse is that we need to name it to tame it, then we need to feel it to heal it. Recently, a friend said that we also have to live it to give it.

Live it to give it hit me right in my truthiness center. YES! This is the nucleus in the atom of my teaching and my work. We have to live it to give it—meaning we can only pass on our experience and truth. This is the principle ethic of recovery—only one addict or alcoholic can help another, because it is inauthentic to share recovery and preach the wisdom of that if you haven’t hit bottom and rebuild your life.

In spiritual circles, this is the same. You have to live the spiritual life, to walk it, to integrate it. You can spot a poser a mile away. Someone regurgitating something they read in a book. Or someone who doesn't practice what they preach. One of the reasons I never hide recovery and my nearly 14 years living a sober, spiritual life after hitting my own bottom is because you need to know that recovery is possible. I am not an unmentionable. I am not living on Skid Row. I recovered. I sought healing.

I found out a truth about myself that meant I had to change, and so I did. Not just from alcoholism, but from desolation, loneliness, isolation, trauma, inner child tantrums, avoidance, unhealthy attachments, stuckness, self-loathing and all the other wounds we carry from the suffering of being human. We can be curious and open and wild and forgiving and honoring not despite our wounds, but because of it.

So, yes, we have to live it to give it.

As you probably already know, I have lived with the Tarot for over, gulp, thirty years of my life. First as a dabbler, then as a student, then a reader and now a teacher. I have been where you are. Maybe you are curious, or maybe you have a deck and you pull cards, and then look at a book, interpret each card, but cannot make sense of how it relates to what you want to know.

On January 1st, 2025, I start my signature move in my business—the Complete Tarot. It is a combination of a recorded class and a live class. I think that works best for most people, because watching classes can be on your time, the time you need to watch, absorb, do your thing. Pause the recording, take notes. Then we meet live and I demonstrate the readings I am teaching, answer questions, laugh. By the end of the nine weeks, most people will have some mad Tarot reading skills.

So, do you want to study with me?

I am now enrolling for the Complete Tarot

I thought I might answer some Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) I get about Tarot.

How did you learn Tarot?

I learned by doing lots of readings on myself and others, reading books, talking to other Tarot readers, looking at the cards, asking questions, and getting Tarot readings. Taking a Tarot class could be an incredibly enriching experience for me, but I didn’t know that was an option (and maybe in 1989 when I got my first deck it wasn’t). I would have loved a Tarot mentor, someone to do readings with, and to help me interpret Tarot, but I learned through my research monkey, introverted book person way. One of the key elements for deepening and understanding Tarot was keeping a Tarot journal.

I have so many journals. So. Very. Many. I journaled nearly every reading I did for myself. I wrote the question or focus of my reading, then the different cards that I pulled in what position. I also wrote any intuitive feelings or thoughts that came to me during the interpretations. I made connections between one reading and another, for example, when a card I'd been getting in the future position came into the present. I could therefore see how these aspects grow and morph. I often pull oracle cards with my Tarot readings, and so I noted them and what messages came through from those sources.

The second journal I kept focused on individual cards. So I would meditate with a card, note any symbols or images on the card that seemed significant. Sometimes I would sleep with a card and then write about the dream I had in the morning. When I looked at books, I often resonated with an interpretation more than another. One thing I find interesting is to look in the background of cards, they can tell you so much about the card's meaning. What is the background color? What symbols do you see? All of this lends to a mood. I just wrote about what I thought all of it meant individually, then together. I cross-referenced them with some books to see if someone else picked up one something I didn't see. I do find it fascinating and amazing how alike my interpretations were with some books. (This picture is me many moons ago when I still had boobs reading a new deck and cross-checking the book.)

This is why I ask my students to journal, because all the Tarot wisdom lie within you dormant and ready to begin reaching for the light. The archetypes of Tarot are universal and ancient. They only need you to activate them by study.

How can I learn Tarot?

You can study with a teacher, or you can study on your own. All of the great Tarot teachers pretty much became obsessed, like me, taught themselves and became students of the Tarot. If you have that gene, awesome, Primo. But if not, you can take my class where all my obsessive research is synthesized into these teachings. The workbook is primarily keywords, but the class is a deep dive and I talk much more in-depth about the cards, their history, etc.

So, wait, I thought as a Tarot Reader, you were not supposed to do readings on yourself?

Doing readings on yourself is the key to learning Tarot. Basically, learning Tarot is learning the symbolic language in which Spirit speaks to you. You already know about you--what you have been through, what you are facing now, what is most important to you in this phase of your life. So, if you know what issues surround your life, you will be able to match that with the card that applies. So, for example, when I pull the Queen of Pentacles, which is the Earth Mama card of the Minor Arcana, I can see how she would represent that aspect of my personality. My identity for the first five years of my parenting has been as a stay-at-home mother. In this way, this would give me hints about the cards around me. For example, if I pulled the Queen of Pentacles in the Past, I could see how I am moving out of this aspect of how I once saw myself, but how it still informs my present situation. Now, if I moved into the Present as the Emperor, the paternal figure of the Major Arcana, I can say that I am finally moving into a place where I know who I am, what I want, what I need to do to follow my soul path, and how to also lead benevolently and compassionately in the next phase of my life. This is because being a mother has helped me prioritize my life and figure out what I truly want in my career.

But I think the core of what is meant by this question is this: when you sit in front of yourself for a reading, can you be objective? I wrestle with the answer to this question all the time. I wrestle with it when I do readings for good friends and family, and when I do readings for myself. Personally, I find it terribly difficult to be objective about my own life, easier to be objective with friends and family, easiest to be objective with strangers. There are times I am really hard on myself, and other times where I cannot see my role in a situation no matter HOW much soul-searching I do. And neither of those is objective.

So, yes, I do readings for myself, but I am careful to temper it with other advice and opinions from people I trust to be honest with me.

I heard that I need to be gifted my first deck of Tarot. I keep dropping hints, but no one will buy one for me. Is that true?

I have no idea when this notion of being gifted a deck of Tarot came into being, but it's hogwash. I think you SHOULD buy your own deck and make sure it is deck you connect with.

What kind of layouts do you teach in your class?

Well, I teach a number of very basic layouts in my class. I start with a one card draw. Obviously pulling one card is a very focused Tarot reading, and in this way, I can say I use it all the time. But we build very quickly into the Three-Card draw, which is a very versatile layout and great for quick answers. I teach a number of different ways to approach the Three Card. Then we add the Four-Card layout and I offer two varieties of this layout. A Four=Card Obstacles layout and a Four-Care Goals layout, so it starts giving some depth to the Three-Card. From the Four-Card, we build to the Mystic Seven layout. This is the cross in the Celtic Cross, and then an outcome card. This layout is perfect for twenty-minute readings. We then work with the Celtic Cross.

When I do a full reading for someone, I do what is called the Ancient Celtic Cross. The Celtic Cross layout was developed by Arthur Waite who wrote in his book about the Celtic Cross: “I offer in the first place a short process which has been used privately for many years past in England, Scotland and Ireland. I do not think that it has been published — certainly not in connexion with Tarot cards; I believe that it will serve all purposes.” Arthur E. Waite published the basic Tarot deck that I teach and use and is the base of most of the Tarot decks published in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. His seminal book, published in 1910, A Pictorial Key to the Tarot, was the first book about Tarot and it accompanied the Rider-Waite-Smith deck. From all the information I can gather, we thank Waite for this (and Pamela Coleman Smith for the art and archetypes we associate with the Tarot.)

But as a bonus, you get a pdf copy of my layouts book to work with after our class is done.

What do you love about Tarot?

Tarot has deep symbolism, meaning and spirituality. Every piece of the Tarot card has meaning—the color, the elements, the facial expressions, the mood, the pieces of each picture. Tarot combines art, archetypes, history, religious studies, faith, myth, storytelling, psychology and the mystery of existence. It taps into a kind of universal consciousness, esoteric arcane knowledge that alchemizes in the individual consciousness.

Tarot tells a story—the story of your energy. Many people think I have some kind of crazy psychic abilities. I just tell the story of the cards. Storytelling through pictures is as ancient as the Earth. Our society, our political system, our religions, our psychology is entirely rooted in myth & narrative. Tapping into this through the cards helps us tap into something ancient and important.

I love that Tarot helps me get out of my own way. I can sit in meditation, ask the cards, find some insight about my life that just doesn’t consciously occur to me. The wisdom of Tarot, the synchronicity, the “HOLY CRAP” moment, the patterns and connections we make. I love the combination of visual and spiritual, emotional and mental. As my friend Pamela said every class when she took my Complete Tarot class, “You cannot make this shit up.” And you really cannot.

If you are still with me, and you are like, “Yes, Angie, I want to live Tarot too,” then I am here to pass on the medicine of Tarot through my nine-week class called the Complete Tarot

Do you want to join me?

Click here and learn more, register and get in there.

Some basic info:

- The Complete Tarot runs nine weeks, but you have lifetime access and can finish on your own time.

- There are so many bonuses they are difficult to list them all, but suffice to say, I am extra, and so is this class.

- Yes, it is based on my workbook, or rather the workbook is based on this class

- Everything is recorded if you cannot attend live.

- It is $500 for nine classes, a shit-ton of extra lessons and one-on-one time with me.

- Yes, there is a certification available, but you don’t need a certification to read Tarot. I am just offering that for the Earth signs in my audience who might need a certificate to prove they are ready. (I joke, but with some truthiness as a Capricorn sun with a Taurus moon.)

- Yes, I can answer any questions you may have! Just hit reply to this email or drop me a line at angie@themoonandstone.com

Registration closes on December 31st, so register today to be start your 2025 off on the right foot!

Much love,

PS: I have a few payment plan options for those who are struggling with a full payment. Just check out the webpage for all the deets.

PPS: ALSO, If you already took the class and want to take it again, you can take it for a discounted price. I have students who took the class more than one just for a deeper understanding. LEGACY pricing is only for former students.

PPPS Did you know that if you have a spouse or someone you live with that likes my classes, you get both take it with one registration? I charge a wee fee if you both want to be certified, but it just makes sense to not get all hung up on paying double.

PPPS Did you also know you can give this as a gift to someone you love? Check the gift button at checkout and it will walk you through the entire process!

The Skull: history, iconography, ritual use, and ally

Long associated with death and rebirth, skulls, whether crystal or not, often evoke that deep fear within people, so much so they have become a staple of Halloween and horror movies. However, skulls have been one of the oldest symbols found ritual, religion, artwork, cultural celebrations, and iconography in human history.

In our not-so-distant past, death was part of human life. Humans were not shielded from death. People died at home, sometimes in the streets. Humans, of all ages and genders, saw war, accidents, disease, pandemics, and death. What is left of the human body, the bones, represents the impermanence of the human body. Even before we studied anatomy, dissected humans, or understood medicine, humans held bones as representative of death. They held skulls and bones. Humans understood that these parts of us were all that remains after death.

The Skull, or rather, the human head houses vision, hearing, speaking, and thoughts. It is what we look at when we talk and when we recognize a person—so it holds the seed of identity and spirit for many. Skulls are human-shaped with a mouth, eyes, and nose, but no longer house the Spirit or Soul of the human. The skull becomes an important symbol in depicting the cycle of creation as a whole: birth, death, mortality, and, at times, immortality. We see skulls represented in artwork, mysticism, religion, and spirituality.

The mystical and metaphysical symbolism intertwined with their very real structure brings in a feeling of grounding, the structure of life with the mysticism and mystery of death. Spiritually, we work with the skulls in altar work, ritual, symbolism, and meditation. I do think skulls are some of the most potent symbols one can work with. Shamanically, they are totally my jam.

Use of Skulls in Various Cultures

Skulls have always held a special place in mythologies, legends, and traditions across different ancient cultures. While the meanings varied, skulls carried powerful symbolism and were often considered sacred, sometimes even used as offerings to gods.

Aztecs

For the ancient Aztecs, skulls weren’t just about death—they were seen as something more positive. Yes, they were tied to death and facing the fear of it, but they also symbolized life and the promise of a new beginning. To the Aztecs, skulls represented regeneration and rebirth, emphasizing the natural cycle of life. It was all about humanity and the idea that new life emerges from death.

Celtic Culture

In Celtic traditions, skulls were also considered sacred and were often placed on altars as offerings. For them, the skull was linked to the soul and seen as a symbol of power. The openings for the eyes and mouth were thought to be holy, offering a pathway to wisdom and knowledge. Beyond being a “house for the soul,” skulls in Celtic lore were sometimes symbols of creation and transformation, representing the ever-turning cycle of life.

Ancient India

In Buddhism, skulls were closely connected to the concept of emptiness. The belief was that everything in the Universe, at its core, is neutral, and only loses that neutrality based on how we perceive it. Emptiness wasn’t negative—it was a key part of understanding the true nature of things.

In both Hinduism and Buddhism, skulls were also tied to Munda Mala and the sacred syllable, OM. Deities like Shiva and the Mahavidyas Goddesses often wore garlands of skulls, representing divine power. Skull jewelry symbolized the gods' greatness, showing that they were beyond fear, danger, and even death itself.

Christianity

In Christianity, skulls symbolize mortality. Saints in many religious artworks are often depicted holding skulls, representing wisdom and a higher understanding of life. This act symbolized letting go of earthly concerns and turning toward spirituality, placing trust in the Divine.

At the same time, the skull, being part of the human body, also represents the link between the spiritual and physical worlds, connecting life and death, the seen and the unseen.

Día de Muertos and Skulls in Latin American Culture

As a Latina, I have consistently grown up with ghost stories, skeletons, and the honoring of ancestors. My mother kept and still keeps a fancy-cut crystal glass with water for death, sometimes putting food next to it on a window sill for the dead who may visit our home.

Skulls have a significant role in Latin American culture, especially in the context of el Día de Muertos or the Day of the Dead.

Day of the Dead

Of course, there are pre-Hispanic origins of el Día de Muertos.  Aztecs and other Indigenous peoples in pre-Columbian Mexico celebrated death as a natural part of life. They believed that the dead were not gone, but rather that they had a relationship with the living. The Aztecs celebrated the death of their ancestors with a festival that lasted a month, honoring the goddess Mictēcacihuātl, the Queen of the Underworld. Mictēcacihuātl was known as the “lady of the dead.” She ruled the underworld, and watched over the bones of the dead, which the Aztecs believed were a source of life in the next world. Her grinning skull face is strongly associated with Dia de Muertos.

Spanish influence

When the Spanish arrived in Mexico, they brought Catholicism and forced many Indigenous people to convert. The holiday was moved to coincide with All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day, which are celebrated on November 1 and 2. But are these two celebrations the same?

Both are centered on remembering the dead, but they approach this remembrance in different ways. All Souls Day focuses on praying for “all the faithful departed,” while Día de los Muertos invites the spirits of loved ones back for an annual family reunion.

All Souls Day has been around for centuries. By the 9th century, monasteries were setting aside a day to pray for the dead, and it was a Benedictine abbot who first established November 2 as the official day to remember the departed. After the devastation of World War I, Pope Benedict XV extended the observance to the entire Catholic Church in 1915. On All Souls Day, people of faith remember those who have passed and pray for their peaceful journey into the afterlife with God.

Día de los Muertos, on the other hand, is not only about remembrance—it’s also a celebration of life. Families gather at gravesides, turning them into festive picnic spots where food, drinks, music, flowers, and fireworks are shared with the dead. It’s a joyful gathering that celebrates the memory of loved ones. Altars are set up in homes, adorned with flowers, photos, and offerings like food to welcome the spirits back and honor their presence.

Many offerings are sweet treats, like candy skulls, coffins, and sugar rolls called pan de muerto. The celebration also includes playful elements like toy skeletons and papel picado (colorful tissue paper cutouts of skulls and bones). These joyful touches bring a sense of sweetness and lightheartedness to the otherwise somber concept of death.

Whether through prayers on All Souls Day or the lively customs of Día de los Muertos, the past is brought into the present. Families, along with the broader faith community, gather at altars and gravesides to celebrate life in the midst of death, finding joy in sorrow. In these celebrations, memory becomes a living hope for eternal life.

Modern celebrations

Today, Día de los Muertos is celebrated in many ways, including building altars, dressing up, and sharing food. Every year, families and communities celebrate Día de los Muertos for three days. We think of this as a Mexican holiday, and yes, some of the largest, most elaborate celebrations are in Mexico. Still, El Día de Muertos is celebrated all throughout Latin American. In my mother’s hometown of La Chorrera in Panama, the procession came down in front of her home, as she lived across from the cemetery. According to Google, the states of Oaxaca and Michoacán have special traditions for the holiday. In Nejapa de Madero, Oaxaca, preparations begin a month before the celebration, including choosing stalks for altars, preparing food, and buying mezcal.   In cemeteries and homes, families gather to honor and remember their loved ones who have passed. Celebrations vary by region and cultural influences. For example, in Guatemala, people make kites to reach their ancestors, while in Bolivia, processions involve the actual skulls of ancestors.

Skulls, or calaveras, sit at the center of Day of the Dead festivities. It would not be el Día de Muertos without brightly colored skulls. Everything, brightly colored and light, shows skeletons, skulls, and representations of death, like Monarch Butterfly, the carrier of souls. We see skulls made from sugar paste, wood, paper maché, or carved bone. Sugar skulls are given as gifts to family and friends to honor and celebrate the lives of the deceased. The decorations on the skulls reflect the likes and desires of the deceased. They are placed on altars and on the gravesites, and then left in the rain to melt into the Earth, mirroring the decomposition of the body after death.

The Aztecs and other Meso-American civilizations believed in death as a continuation of life, and that the dead would return to visit during a month-long ritual. They decorated their temples with skulls, kept them as trophies, and used them in rituals to symbolize death and rebirth. After Colonization, the Catholic Church often incorporated the local customs and celebrations into Catholic existing holidays. El Día de Muertos began to be celebrated on the Holy Days of All Saints Day and all Souls Day, incorporating and honoring babies and children who have died (El Dia de los Angelitos),

To welcome them, families build altars, or ofrendas, in their honor. These altars often include yellow marigolds, candles, photos of the deceased, cut tissue-paper designs, as well as food and beverages offerings, though these can vary from culture to culture.

Skulls, or calaveras, are often used as decorations. Though these can be made of papier-mâché, clay, wood, metal, cut-out tissue paper, they are often made of sugar decorated with colored icing, flowers, or metallic colored foils.

Interesting sidenote:

After Mexico gained independence from Spain in 1821, the newfound freedom of the press led to the publication of many broadsides featuring skulls, or calaveras. These illustrations were a form of popular resistance by artists and writers. Lithographer José Guadalupe Posada's illustrations of calaveras found a wide audience in the new country. His most famous calavera was la Catrina, a female dandy portrayed as a fleshless skull with a wide-brimmed hat.

What a Skull Represents in Spiritual Work

Wisdom

The skull is the “home” of the mind. It symbolizes higher knowledge, truth, and ageless wisdom. Skulls or heads hold two or three chakra centers, depending on your perspective: the Crown Chakra, the Third Eye Chakra and the Throat Chakra (I do see it this way because of the ears and mouth.)

Skulls represent and emphasize the power of the rational mind, willpower, and mental agility. It represents the ability to transcend the limitations of the established systems of knowledge, penetrate deeper truths, and find higher meaning.

Bravery & Fearlessness

Skulls are old symbols of courage and strength. Associated with not simply valor and glory in war or battle, but they are associated with death for a cause as well as OVERCOMING death, which we will talk about more in a bit. Defeat the odds, overcome obstacles, limitless personal power, and the ability to deal with danger bravely and boldly is often seen in the symbolism of skull with warriors, fighters, ex-military and military folk.  

Although it has been linked with fear, the skull represents the ability to conquer fears and rise above them.

Death

To pretend skulls symbolism is not about death would be to completely miss the mean of Skull. Everything in life moves in cycles. Endings inevitably occur as a part of that process. While they represent finite things, skulls also symbolize the start of the new cycle and the birth of new life as well as the end of one cycle and the beginning of another.

A skull reminds us that everything in life is transient and impermanent. The only thing that does not change is the knowledge that everything changes. Skulls urge us to see the beauty of every day, or as the Mexican iconography of Skull in El Dia de los Muertos reminds us, to laugh in the face of death. Skulls represent presence and gratitude, inspiring us to live a well-examined life with purpose and meaning.

Shamanic Uses of Skulls

Skulls have been used in shamanic work in many ways, (literally countless) but including some here that are interesting:

• Ritual implements: In Hindu Tantra and Tibetan Buddhist Tantra, a skull cup called a kapala is used as a ritual bowl. In Tibetan Buddhism, kapalas are often decorated with jewels and precious metals.

• Spiritual adornment: A shamanic practitioner in Bali made a necklace from five individually carved skulls made from water buffalo horn.

• Symbolism: Skulls can symbolize death, evil, fear, and mortality, but they can also represent protection, power, and gratitude toward life.

• Prehistoric Europe: Shamans in prehistoric Europe packed skulls with clay and burnt brains.

• Mesolithic shamanism: Mesolithic shamans used red deer skulls with antlers during rituals.

• Lakota culture: In Lakota culture, the buffalo skull is a symbol of self-sacrifice and is present in all sacred rituals.

• Tibetan Buddhism: In Tibetan Buddhism, skulls are reminders of impermanence that help remove attachment to self and one's body.

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 Whew! If you made it this far through my Skullie research, congratulations! You deserve a little sugar skull as a reward. So, as you know, I love the Tarot and often will create Tarot Layouts with symbols I find resonate or for issues I am facing, and so I took the Skull and asked it—how can you help Tarot readers?

And I held my own Crystal Skull asking the questions. Immediately, my eyes went to that midway gaze between focus and unfocus and I could see the blackness of the eye sockets, the nose, the mouth and the ears as places to tap into. Not our eyes, but what is left is the eyes of our eyes, the nose of our nose, the ears of our ears, and the voice of our voice…the spiritual, wise parts of us that exist before consciousness and will exist after the body dies. And so I present The Skull Layout

Tarot, Earth Medicine + astrology for the month of November: Podcast + Info

Happy November! Angie talks about the astrology of the month, pulls a Tarot card archetype for November (the 9 of friggin’ Swords), and the Earth Medicine allies—Plant Medicine of Yarrow; Stone Medicine: Turquoise, Aquamarine + Lepidolite as well as work with the medicine of our Animal Guide of Alligator +/or Crocodile

Remember these earth medicine guides can be tools for this month, and help you do your thang! A medicine bundle is for sale in the shop, as always.

You can find November's Medicine Bundle here: ⁠https://themoonandstone.com/medicine/nov-2023-earth-medicine⁠

Remember Angie does her Tarot thing through her collective Full Moon + New Moon readings for the Moon + Stone Membership group as well as a Guided Shamanic Journey with the animal medicine of the month. The private Facebook group is a place where the group gathers every Friday for a checkin and circle plus lots of other activities (meditations, craft night, death café, Q&As) to have camaraderie and fellowship. Check out more information here: ⁠⁠https://themoonandstone.com/monthly-memberships⁠⁠

In this episode, I do mention the Body Keeps Score by Bessel Van Der Kolk: ⁠https://www.amazon.com/Body-Keeps-Score-Healing-Trauma/dp/0143127748⁠

PS from Angie: Dearest listeners, Apologies for the lateness of this episode, we had some personal family emergency stuff come up and as a result, my stutter makes a wee appearance here. It is too hard to edit out and I am unfortunately too behind in my work to do that, so enjoy my "I-bursting-at-the-seams-with-lateness" stutter. Much love, Angelica

Blessed Full Moon in Aries!

Blessed Full Moon in Aries.

When we are dealing with Full Moons, we are looking at the Moon being in the sign opposite of the sun, unlike New Moons where the sun and moon are in the same sign. The tension created by the Sun and Moon in opposition can create breakthroughs in our consciousness and allows us to grow, evolve, and transform.

Aries and Libra sit opposite each other in the sky and on the zodiac wheel, so as the Sun sits in Libra, the full Moon lands in Aries. So, we have the Sun in Libra, and we have the Moon in Aries. What relational energy do these two sign have? Well, they are both cardinal signs, meaning they kick off season, they are both leaders and often great at motivation, drive and kicking off projects. It’s the finishing of projects that sometimes challenges Cardinal signs.

The Sun in Libra allows us to work with its vibrations in our energetic bodies. Aries is home to the first house of the self and ruled by Mars, while Libra is home to the seventh house of relationships and ruled by Venus. Mars and Venus. Self and Other. These are our tensions on this Super Moon in Aries. With the closeness to the South Node, this full moon may feel a bit like an Eclipse.

To work with some of this energy, I created a Tarot Layout that might be useful for those of you who use Tarot as a way in and to connect with Spirit.

Love this kind of content and want to learn more and go deeper with the Lunar Cycles? Check out the Moon + Stone Membership Group. Or if you are really interested in the Cycles, why not check out my class called Cycles, available right here, and it is on sale!

Blessed New Moon in Virgo

I love me a Virgo New Moon. Because I love me some labels on bins, neat and orderly cabinets, the organization and order of mouse medicine (paying attention to details). I love streamlining things, and the beauty of efficiency, and Virgo New Moons are great times to get your shit together and implement some efficiency or organization habits.

This is particularly true when it comes to caring for the self. Virgo is a healer & caregiver. This moon is awesome for learning radical self-acceptance, practicing exquisite self-care, implementing some effective care habits, and learning to mother yourself with deep compassion and love.

The New Moon on September 14th is at 9:39 PM EST, and Mercury stations direct on September 15th at 4:21 pm ET. So, the Sun, Moon and Mercury are all happening in Virgo, making this a lovely time to do Virgo work.

Reflect on the last month or so and think about our "mistakes" or the setbacks that arose...what did they teach you? Where is the wisdom in mistake? Where is the beauty in the recovery? And maybe most importantly, what was your first reaction to the mistake or block or error?

And that is the rub this New Moon--the mistakes, the disorganization, the setbacks and how you responded, is the medicine. We are on a fact-finding mission to understand ourselves.

So, reflect over the last lunation, from August's New Moon in Leo to now. Where were your setbacks, then follow it through...why did that arise? How were you or weren't you present in the moment? How did you talk to yourself? How did you soothe yourself? How did self-criticism help or harm? We can look at how we were triggered, then where is the wound? Where did it come from? How can we feel safe? How can we be kind to our wounded self? Where are our joys, our needs and our wants?

The personal Tarot layout for this New Moon is all about self-care and how we can integrate it in with our goals, then develop habits that heal and move us to more radical self-acceptance. I shared my personal reading, and used Laura Tempest Zarkoff 's deck Anatomy of a Witch for extra insight. Blessed New Moon in Virgo!

Super Blue Moon in Pisces

A watery, mystical, dreamy Pisces full moon at the start of earth and detail-oriented Virgo season awakens your subconscious dream life and brings it in for a reality check. I love that these two mutable signs can help you shift focus from societal prescriptions and comfort to what you really want. Hey, this is a time for dreaming, and maybe even taking it a step further by allowing the Virgo Sun to say, Here are the actionable steps I would take to make that dream a reality.

Don't forget to ground and tap into Earth energy during this dreamy time. It is easy to get that 100 yard stare imagining a different life and seeing a whole other existence that honors who you authentically are. But then again, maybe it just means you are spacey. Whichever, take a moment to cleanse, ground, protect and honor your inner dreams. Write that shizzle down. What changes are you needing? Go back to March 2023's intention...what goal did you set and how has that shifted?

I have a personal Blue Moon Tarot Layout for y’all, so check that out if you are a tarot reader, and here is the collective reading.

Blue Moons are auspicious times, bringing magick & light to our dreams & long term goals. This Blue Moon is wonderful for focusing on setting long-term goals, exploring the deepest of our dreams (the one we daydream about, but never speak aloud), intentions, & releasing what blocks the way to your goals. This Piscean Blue Moon is more mystical & spiritual than other Blue Moons, This tarot layout helps you go deep with your dreams. With this layout we can discern what dreams we are ready to pursue, how to get there and become aware of all those energies that distract us from our goals & bring clarity to our wounded inner voice that lies to us about our worth & limits our infinite potential. Blessed Blue Moon!

Blessed Virgo Season + Mercury Retrograde

Welcome to Virgo Season, witches!

We kick it off with a Mercury stationing Retrograde today, so hang onto your husbands, girls!* And by husbands, I mean, your communications. Keep them in your pants/in your drafts folders. Though this is an excellent time to plan things, because Virgo loves a good five-year plan and is an excellent wind at your back for the details that a bigger picture Earth sign isn't always great at (ahem, I am looking at you, Capricorn!)

Virgo is known for being fussy, but it isn't as much fussy as efficient, analytical, detailed, and a powerhouse of getting shit done. Some of you Air and Water signs might see it as fussy or sticklery, but that is just because you don't mind if the tablecloth is crooked and that is your prerogative. (But you are wrong.) Because it is a mutable earth sign, Virgo can manifest that mutability as anxiety, but it is really attention to all the things at the same time. Everything everywhere all at once. Virgo can make a minor typo feel huge. It is just because it is all important to Virgo brains, because the details make up the big picture, not the other way around. (Again, I am looking at you, Capricorn.) Virgo channels that native wisdom of streamlining, efficiency and order.

Virgo is ruled by Mercury, so you might find this particular Mercury Rx isn't as intense, but I still suggest the planning is more important than the doing in these three weeks.

Virgo heals. Virgos are natural healers, in the sense, that order, stability, and cleanliness heal our chaotic minds. Virgo is the sign of the healer, giver, space holder. So, this is a great season to be engaging in new routines with healing and service work. And by service work, I mean, being of service to fellow humans and/or animal friends. How and where can you be most helpful to your community?

Now, let’s talk a little about Mercury Retrograde. So, are you like,”Angie, are you effing kidding me right now, bro? I thought we were already in Mercury Retrograde?!?! I mean, shit ain’t right already.” We go into a pre-retrograde period a few weeks before it starts, and then go into a shadow retrograde period after it ends. So, you might have been stalking you for a few weeks in its pre-shadow time frame. So, you are already swimming in the soup, people!

welcome to the jungle!

Mercury Retrograde has a reputation, because it happens three times a year for three weeks a piece, then counting the pre-retrograde period and the shadow retrograde, that is like a good 2 months 3xs a year, so calculating in my really math-deficient brain that seems like a good 6 months of Mercury doing its thing. It reminds me of my friend Billy during a Daylight Savings time change. He posted something on FB that said, “OMG, stop complaining about the time change. It happens twice a year. JUST GO TO SLEEP!” Or that one cartoon I cannot find now where the Moon is leaning in some lady’s window when she is in bed and says, “Stop blaming me for everything!”

It is because Mercury rules communication, and we often notice electronics being a little temperamental, my dryer is broken, por ejemplo, (I feel like Laura Ingalls Wilder hanging my clothes outside with actual clothes pins. I even wear a bonnet to do it and call my kids Half-Pint.)

Communications is a little wonky, like sending a text before you edited it 15 times or mispelling something on your resume for an editing job...just double check things. Mercury Retrograde is in Virgo, and Virgo is a stickler, so expect those issues of Mercury Rx to be in the little details that drive you crazy. Listen, Mercury Rx is just as important as Mercury Direct...we get to use every part of the Moon + Planetary movements. We can use this time for planning, dreaming, laying out what our steps might be. Take three weeks for that planning time, but hold off on moving forward. I have some tips for you during this time:

And if you use Tarot, here is a cool layout:

If you are up for using crystals, I use a combination of Throat Chakra stones and grounding stones. Throat chakra or communication stones like Aquamarine, Blue Lace Agate, Hemimorphite, Amazonite, and my favorite for Mercury Retrograde is Fluorite, often called the stone of the student. It really helps with clarity and understanding. Grounding stones I use are Hematite, Smoky Quartz, Black Tourmaline and...wait for it, Garnet are great. My friend Chris (Tall Chris Crystals) gave me some Black Garnet, and that is going to be my new GOTO for Merc. Rx. The grid here is Fluorite, Smoky Quartz and Hematite, but you do you, boo.

(*I am quoting Practical Magic, not suddenly shifting personalities here.)

hello from the Abyss

I had the most incredible dream last night: Kali first came, with her tongue and severed head necklace, then Kuan Yin with this pearlescent aura, almost like the chatoyance of a crystal with layers of light and colors of gold and pink (quite the contrast from Kali) and then la Virgen de Guadalupe with her grief and eternal love, she showed me the protectiveness of her aura, all spiky and sharp. They came in one by one, appearing to me, holding me, healing me, nurturing me, caring for me, the Mothers, as though I were convalescing, recovering from something or maybe even dying. They all held me as I lay on the floor crying.

I watched this as an omniscient viewer—above and away from the pain of this scene.

I still don’t quite know if this was the past or the present or the future, and also maybe it doesn’t matter so much. Maybe I just needed to be reminded that I am held by the Mothers, by the goddesses of Time, Compassion, and Love.

Lately, I have been in a deep hole of Not-Enough. Time looks down and says, “You will never get ahead of me, honey.” And then Energy says, “Angie, I sent you some fatigue, so you slow the fuck down already.” And then Chaos brings her deviant whirlwind of memories and triggers, she throws down random shit she found in her basement. There are kid-illnesses, construction projects with their loud beeping and noises. There are also sounds of machine gun fire from the local Army base. "OH, also, that new medication that is supposed to alleviate your joint pain has a side effect, excruciating migraines, you will love that," she laughs. "I also found a bunch of rabbit holes that will distract you for a while from what you are doing, because I know how much you love being sidetracked. Have fun!”

I decorated my abyss with a galaxy lamp too, so I am just making this place home for a while. Sometimes when you stare at the abyss and it stares back, just imagine me in there reading about the Eleusinian Mysteries and how you make bath bombs from scratch.

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I am neck deep in the middle of a session of the Complete Tarot.

I always have the most amazing students, who are insightful, wise, and interesting. And when I am pulling classes together, I love to innovate, change things up, weave more in. But dang is it a shit-ton of work. Have I mentioned (this hour) how much I love the Tarot—the art, the symbolism, the depth of meaning, the research?

I mean, it fires me up. For this session, I have brought in all the symbology and iconography as a step of the teaching. Is it too much information? Maybe. Possibly. But thus quoteth the Buddhist prophets of Brooklyn, the Beastie Boys—I can’t, I won’t, I don’t stop.

I also recorded a bonus video telling the stories of the Greek myths that appear in the Tarot, and I just wanted to keep going and going, but that’s how I ended up in the abyss of Not Enough time, energy, and stability. I reminds me of this Tarot Meme that makes me laugh.

So, that's what is up with me. I'm in a hole and it involves pain, exhaustion, and lots of research. It's not as bad as it sounds. What is up with you?

Much love. Angelica

PS I have some classes come up, so check out my Events page for all the stuff I have planned until the end of the year.

Blessed May!

Happy May! Here is the Tarot, Earth and Sky Reading for May with some significant lunations:

The Card of the Month is the Three of Wands and we are working with the Medicine of Arnica, Smoky Quartz, Carnelian and Green Aventurine with the specific beautiful energy of the beloved Condor. You can purchase a medicine bundle of May’s medicine in my shop.

May 1st is also Beltane, or May Day, the energy of fertility, sex, creativity and joy comes through loud and clear and we honor our own fertility and flirty natures. I recorded a podcast with all the history and lore of Beltane as well as a reading.

Blessed Vernal Equinox

Blessed Vernal Equinox, friends! This episode of Centered is a reading, history and insights around Vernal Equinox or what modern pagans and Wiccans call Ostara.

Disclaimer for this episode is that I nerd out on some religious and cultural history of this time of the year. I include talk about Christianity, Judaism and the bible. I tend to give you biblical verses for context not preachiness. One thing to know is that I have a degree in Religion. We tend to say that Theologians, of which I am not, focus on what God thinks about humans, and Religion scholars focus on what humans think about God, so I am coming from the latter of these. And in this quest to put things into context, I often will go to the source within that religion. I do my best. I was raised Catholic and am now a pagan. I’m an earth-worshipping, tree hugging, faithful and faith filled believer in the Goddess and God, and often will just say God to mean it all. I want you to know that, because I don’t want to mislead anyone. I tend to see our alikeness in religious beliefs rather than our otherness. I could literally talk Religion all day. And maybe I will some episode.

So, there is no one traditional religion or culture where you would find all eight pagan/Wiccan sabbats as a holiday system. Wicca, also known as Witchcraft or the Craft, seeks to reestablish the link to the earth and the cycle of seasons by following what Wiccans call the "Wheel of the Year." Celebrations, known as Sabbats, serve as the spokes of the Wheel, reminding practitioners of humanity's intimate connection to nature. The Lesser Sabbats, tied to the solstices and equinoxes, and the Greater Sabbats, purportedly tied to harvest and livestock cycles, occur approximately every six weeks. Through observance of the Sabbats and Esbats, rituals taking place every new and full moon, witches keep in touch with the progression of the year and nature's rhythms.That came about in the 1950s with the creation of Wicca by Gerald Gardner.

Ostara celebrates the vernal equinox. Ostara is one of the holy days that Gardner solidified for pagans. Ostara, named after the Eostre, the Germanic Goddess of the Spring (others say she is Celtic) is celebrated on the Vernal or Spring Equinox. Like many other spring celebrations in other cultures, Ostara symbolizes fertility, rebirth, and renewal. This time of year marked the beginning of the agricultural cycle, and farmers would start planting seeds…listen to continue.

Centered Episode 49: Tarot Q+A

In this episode, I am talking about Tarot + the spiritual work of the healer. I have questions that I keep finding that I forgot to answer earlier, or just held onto for a bit, so apologies if that was you. I like to create Q&As that are related. I also have some events and things coming up that you might be interested in, so I have that after my questions, if you hang out that long. Enjoy this episode of Centered.

The questions:

• Can you talk about how to create your own tarot layouts? How did you start doing that? And how do you recommend doing it?

•  What is a significator and why don’t you talk about them?

• Beka Caudill asked Is there a certain day you suggest doing your tarot pull for the year? Any specific questions to ask?

• Julie Milletti asked Are there times when you don’t do anything spiritual — tarot, meditation, earth medicine practices, etc.?✨

Full Moon in Virgo

Blessed Full Moon in Virgo!

It is a great time to look at our work--our soul work, or our jobby job. We have to find that spiritual fulfillment there, and if not, this full moon can help us balancing what our vision of work is supposed to be.

Also, Saturn is moving into Pisces, y'all. I mean, like Saturn is all about structures, and Pisces is very watery and mutable, so what does that look like? No idea. But weird, I imagine. Flowy. We have some years to get used to it. But I imagine we about to get in our feels, yo. And especially around our structures. This could technically be the Age of Aquarius, or the Age of Water.

Since 2017, Saturn has been in its own planets (Capricorn and Aquarius), now it is going to butt heads with our resident empath Pisces, the co-dependent nurturer and indulger. It's going to be a trip, but instead of getting in yo head about it, just enjoy organizing your pantry and color-coordinating your filing system with Virgo's Full Moon, and while you are at it, honor the people you are of service to. They love you! #themoonandstone #fullmooninvirgo

Tarot + Earth Medicine Reading for March

Blessed March, friends! They say March roars in like a lion but leaves as a lamb. But this March is roaring in with so much astrological shifting, we may want to roar, cry, mew, dance the Macarena, and hide under a blanket with a computer to take over the world.

This is the month we have all been waiting for, or at least, that is what we were told in the beginning of the year by astrologers. All these retrogrades, they said, just wait until March when everything shifts. I was in my live membership group circle and someone mentioned the crazy astrology in March, and I had totally forgotten. I was so caught up in what I thought would be a mild February. It was anything but for me. I was definitely getting ready for March.

So, if you have felt like me and are saying to yourself, “What gives? I thought this would be the calm time of the year.” You have laid the foundation, friend, to shift, change, adapt and let yourself get taken by the inevitable transformations of March’s astrology and energy.

Of course, I discuss this all in the Tarot + Earth Medicine Reading for March in my latest podcast. Click to listen here or at my Anchor site. Or you know Spotify, ApplePodcasts, etc…whereever you get pods, you can get mine.

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If you like these readings for the month and want to dive deeper with me, I have my Moon + Stone Healing Memberships. I do readings for the group on the Full Moon and the New Moon and provide a monthly shamanic journey to all members. We circle up for Coffee on Fridays and talk, pull cards, explore topics. There are a few price points for everyone and for one tier, I do a personal reading.

I just wanted to share that, since so many of you ask for how to work with me, or learn from me, I also have a place where you can schedule distant sessions with me.

Schedule with Angie

And one more thing, I am starting a monthly Live Q&A, which will be very similar to my office hours at Hibiscus Moon Crystal Academy. You can sign up here. The last Wednesday of the Month. More about that coming!

Holding Space

I love the phrase “Holding Space”. I love the way it makes you think about space as something tangible and weighty. I definitely think of space this way—substantive, tangible, having its own energy. I walk into places and feel my energy rise and feel joyful and other places that drag me down and creep me out. The lovely side effects of being a highly sensitive person, neurodivergent, psychic, weird. Whatever you want to call it. I also feel that from people. Authenticity. The energy signature of each person is a bit different. It is how I feel my father with me even though he died five years ago. I feel his energy.

When I studied with my mentor, Pixie Lighthorse, we covered holding space—creating a safe environment for our clients and for ourselves. Of course, all my teachers cover sacred space and how to create an energetic neutral environment, but this was different. We talked about how to HOLD space. How to create a vessel for safety and trust. How to honor our clients. How to respect ourselves. We talked about psychological terms like transference and counter-transference. I can hear you say, “But those are psychological terms, Angie, and you aint a psychologist.”

True dat.

But the psychological model can be very useful for all of us who hold space for other people. Without a governing body, energy workers, Reiki practitioners, tarot readers, yogis, spiritual coaches, all of us really can get lost on our path. We burn out from working on people. Boundaries get crossed without us even knowing their should be a boundary there. Most of us need some guidance or guideposts on the way. A kind of moral compass and guide book for this landscape of energy.

When I got my first certification, I hung a shingle. I saw friends and colleagues, expanding my business online and in-person. I loved it. I held Moon Circles with no qualification other than I had been to Moon Circles. And as I got deeper into the work, the clients came to me with complex issues that needed a multi-pronged approach, and I had no idea what to do.

This is me saying—I made a lot of mistakes in my practice and my circles.

I let myself get triangulated. I became friends with clients and then had them calling with at all hours with Tarot emergencies. I tried to do everything for clients. I had my work and classes stolen from me by students. I let people not show up to appointments or come in late and got more and more resentful without talking to them. Truthfully, I was just a person in over her head in a community that were searching for more than I was trained to give.

Studying with Pixie changed my perspective. I am a professional and holding space is the most important part of my job. For my sanity and for the wellness of other people. I love research. I call myself a research monkey (though, honestly, the more I think about that, the more it sounds like I let people experiment on me). When I began my healing journey, I found called to work on others. When I began my healing trauma, I went down some really important rabbit holes for being trauma-informed in my practice. I felt I had unknowingly allowed my own privilege and bias not inform my practice. I have always taught ethics and boundaries in my circles, but through the years, it deepened and expanded with the core of my beliefs residing in love, kindness, and compassion. From there I rebuilt my approach to not only be loving, kind and compassionate to my clients, but also loving, kind and compassionate to me.

As I have said before, my philosophy can be summed up as “Do no harm, but take no shit.”

Ethics + learning how to hold space were the cornerstones of my successful energy healing practice. They’re the North Star that guides you to successfully have a thriving practice and honor your precious clients and protect your energy.

I am very honored to bring you the full scope of holding space, ethics + trauma-informed crystal therapy. My goal with this class is to EMPOWER you to have a practice that fulfills you, brings out the best in you, and serves your client’s highest needs.

I originally taught this class at Hibiscus Moon Crystal Academy, and am offering it here. Read more about it here:

New Moon in Pisces

Imbolc Reading

Enjoy this Collective Imbolc Reading for February 1. And you can try it yourself with this layout from my book the Complete Tarot Layouts:

Episode 43: Angie rambling and Q&As

Another rambly episode of the podcast for you, squirrel friends. (RuPaul, I adore you.) I promise more regular postings and musings as I wind down my other life and fire up a new way of being.

Date in Peace Podcast with Lauren Smith: Building Peaceful Relationships with Crystals & Tarot

I was so honored to talk to Lauren Smith on her podcast Date in Peace, which is all about dating. Lauren Smith is an author of the book the Mindful Dating Journal and creator of an app called the MettaDate Journal App. The Mindful Dating Journal is your guide to using mindfulness to find a deep connection. Explore your past and track your present to set the foundation for a fulfilling relationship and the app, MettaDate Journal App is a simple mindfulness tool for modern daters. Lauren and I met many many years ago when she was the youngest member of a meditation circle I belonged to where I learned to channel and talk to Angels. I remember Lauren’s vibrance and connect to the Elemental realm as such a beautiful addition to our circle of older women exploring the metaphysical together. I really loved talking about Tarot and Crystals and Dating. You can follow Lauren here on IG: https://www.instagram.com/mettadate/ and at her website: Lauren Smith Studio