Celebration

13 May 2014 This is card number fifty - the last one in the pack. It may seem that I have chosen to keep this word for the last one, but in reality it 'chose' itself. Last year, a few weeks after starting this journey to share my experience of reflecting on each card, I decided I should check that I was using a complete pack. The reason for this goes back to when I first designed the cards. At the beginning, in 2012, they were purely to use during a mew series of workshops. During the workshops we drew a card, and used the words and colours as prompts for some flow-writing and creative activities. My idea at the time was that people could, if they wished, take 'their' card away with them. Most people did this, so of course I ended up with some incomplete packs. Many people asked me if the cards were on sale so they could purchase their own set, so the following year I began offering them as a means to access your inner wisdom. So - hence the need to check the pack I was using, and I eventually established that there was one card missing even when I combined all the loose cards I had, and that was 'Celebration'. So that was it, I felt that was meant to be the final card. I do feel a sense of celebration and achievement at having stuck with it and kept up the practice of writing regularly about a card, and, even more significantly, of sending it out to you. Sending even when it felt raw and vulnerable to be exposing my inner thoughts. Inner thoughts that were not polished and edited, simply shared with you as an offering to perhaps be a companion to you. As I have mentioned here before, it has proved to be just when I felt most vulnerable that the words I shared were the most significant for some of you reading them. I have started writing this on Monday in preparation for sending it to you on Wednesday or Thursday. And today, Monday 12 May, is another day that I am able to celebrate, as I do my best to remember to do every fresh day. 12 May 1994, twenty years ago today, was the day that I received a diagnosis of cancer. So, I can celebrate today twenty years of life that I may not have had; and the beginning of my journey home, of rediscovery of my self, and of my wisdom within. Maybe I could say the journey begins with birth and ends with death, and I would also say, for me, that the last twenty years have been precious due to my awareness of how easily I could not have had this time. ----------------------------------------------- Joining you again today, Thursday to complete this to send to you, I am smiling at the challenges I have felt this week. Despite my best intentions, at times I have felt tired and grumpy, anything but happy and able to celebrate. And that is human and normal. Maybe I am feeling a slight sense of anti-climax: having completed this challenge - what next? I have yet to decide if I will continue the practice of a weekly blog/newsletter. You may remember that I have booked a place on the "Conscious Writing Retreat" over the May Bank Holiday weekend with Julia McCutchen. That came up with perfect timing and will be an opportunity to review how far I have come and renew my vision and inspiration for "what next?". All I can say right now is - watch this space. Returning to my celebrations: the colour of this card is a rich crimson red, perhaps a 'Christmas' colour, and well-suited to rejoicing and marking a big event. It also prompts me to think about celebrating small everyday wonders: waking up to a fresh new day; eating a simple breakfast of muesli and yogurt; going out into my garden and enjoying the flowers. The month of May here in Cornwall is so special, everything in nature is fresh and new. Here is a photo of a rhododendron I have in a container outside my garden office. This year it has more flowers than ever and they begin dark orange in the bud then open up into glorious shades of yellow. For me, the exuberant burst of colour is a perfect illustration for 'Celebration'. As always, please feel free to comment below with your thoughts and comments.  If you would like to own a set of cards to explore their power for yourself please visit the dedicated page. Thank you so much dear friends for sharing my musings.along this journey. Until next time, with love, Mary *if you have any difficulty accessing the 'blogspot' service, you can also read here on the Daring to Blossom website, or find 'Dare to Blossom Life Coaching' on Facebook.