Making do with what’s around you is the name of the game while on the road, especially when you have a small car like a Honda Fit to bring everything you need for a year. I’m willing to bet Honda wasn’t expecting our definition of what can ‘Fit’ when they designed that car. To be clear, there’s not a ton of extra space. So, when we packed, it was essentials only. Plus one luxury item each. That story, and what we ended up bringing with us, is for another day.
Because we packed light, I don’t have any oracle decks on hand, or long-held sacred stones or crystals. I don’t even have a candle here in our cozy rental space (which actually seems weird – must procure one soon).
Inspired by one of the women in my mentorship group, I was feeling the urge to create a mesa and see what Spirit had to offer me. (A mesa is much like an altar or a sacred space whereby you can place objects in an array to receive energy and symbolism from Spirit). I was jonesin’ to receive some help around our efforts to settle into this new space, and new routines. Things have felt ungrounded and chaotic. I’ve been feeling like things want to shift for the better, but I’ve been kind of stuck in the muck, so to speak.
Because I don’t have my normal ‘sacred stuff’, I figured it could be nice to make a mesa with natural objects from outside, like stones, leafs, moss, and such. But everything is covered in heaps of snow, and I’m all warm and tucked in, so I figured I’d gather what we have here in our small space and see what the Spirits want to show me, making do with what we have.
As I walk through our space, Spirit guides me toward what I could use in my make-shift mesa. I end up collecting a hankie as the base, a regular deck of playing cards, a pencil, my son’s toy paint-gun thingie, five dice (we play Yahtzee with them), and my silver necklace.
The mesa that comes together is actually quite telling, on a number of observations and reflections.
From above, the overall look of it makes me think of chaos, or too many things squished together. It’s hard to see one thing from the next. That’s kind of how I feel right now with new spaces, new routines, Brian and Ira and I are ALL together a lot of the time, and my work to-do list is creeping up again.
Upon closer inspection of each object, I can see more specific wisdom and symbolism appear.
The playing cards are laid out with the intention that each card represents the four directions on a compass (and four earthly elements). The nine of hearts being in the north, the Jack in the east, the five in the south and the three in the west. To me, the higher the number on the card, the more I’m ‘in’ that direction/element, based on my own interpretation of what some people call ‘The Medicine Wheel’ or ‘The Four Directions’.
I’m knee-deep (nine) in the North which is the tail end of the last healing cycle. This probably has something to do with leaving home, leaving known/comfortable patterns and rituals, letting go to step toward the new. It makes sense that I’m still cruising through the last parts of that phase.
I’m definitely hanging out most strongly in the East, which to me means I’m in a transformation / chaos / healing / burning phase. This really makes sense given all the literal and energetic transformation we’ve been through as a family in the last three to four weeks. In my mind’s eye, I can see little fires everywhere. Lots of things are burning, but not just one big thing. Which is probably why I feel so scattered.
The South has me at five, which to me means I’m in the beginning process of shedding the things that are burning in the east, releasing some of the ash, but not all of it. I feel like I’m much more in the place of ‘trying to settle into this new place, new lifestyle, and new ways of being’ as is shown in the East. The Wolf in the South, in my mind’s eye, is staring in the direction of the East, looking hungry, wanting to tear off layers that we burn clear, but it’s not fully there yet. She’s drooling in anticipation.
In the West, we have a three, which represents how little I feel connected with my path home to myself. I’ve been feeling off-center, out of balance, overwhelmed, and not quite that aligned. In my mind’s eye, I see the salmon, swishing-swashing, back and forth, swimming fast, but not really going anywhere, and unable to see through the mucky water, not sure which way is home. A voice within suggests that the water will clear, and not to waste too much energy swimming in this way, at this time. Patience. I’m pretty sure one lesson that will endure the test of time throughout my lifetime is the lesson of Patience.
My son’s toy propped up in the East represents PLAY as a way to burn up what’s not working to allow the clarity to come. I’m always a fan of tangible action steps. Play, it is.
The pencil in the West represents writing. If I’m to find my way home to myself through this adventurous and tumultuous time, I need to put paper to pen, put keyboard to fingers, and pause long enough to let things come through. Kind of like I am right now. Small wins!
The five blue dice are a little unclear at first glance. In asking Spirit what they represent, I receive, ‘Five pillars. Ask the birdees in The Nest.’ I’ve put out the call for assistance and am awaiting responses from the women in my mentorship group. I’m sure they will have simple, yet potent offerings for me.
The necklace in the center represents me: my shiny, radiant, silvery soul. And the grain on the pendant tells me I’m growing right now – more than before. Sure feels like it.
Final message from Spirit before cleaning up this ‘make do mesa’: ‘Bring grace to all of this. You’re IN IT, which feels messy, so let it be messy, and follow your intuitively-inspired invitations to help you settle, ground, and expand with new growth. Big, wonderful things are coming because of this shift. All of this is to be. So be it.‘
