Summertime
Hi! How are you?
It’s been a while! 🥰 The past two weeks were a flurry of travel, camping, hiking, visiting, and driving. My trip out West to Zion and the Grand Canyon National Parks was transformative. I will share more pictures and reflections once I have a chance to process and organize my thoughts.
Right now, I am settling into my new home for the next three weeks. My hubby and I drove the fourteen-hour trip to my old neighbor’s sweet, tiny apartment in New Hampshire. After unpacking my travel pouch for my morning practice, I felt grounded. I’m grateful there was plenty of room for my journals, art supplies, and a tarot deck. I am currently working on my brand, Blythe Mountain Spirit, and Substack newsletter through the guidance of
and the group of women joining me for Essence.I am drawing upon the wild magic of the outdoors to inspire and guide me through the process. Despite leaving my Mountain Hideaway, I bring the essence with me.
Drifting into Summer
This morning, I drew this tiny oracle card, which inspired my visual journaling and letter today.
What if we could drift through the Summer?
I love the image of the green canoe, without oars, drifting down the river. It reminds me of the childlike quality of Summer. Hot, sticky days without school or an agenda. Nothing to do but seek fun, comfort, and relief from the heat.
When my boys were little, I drove them to the local lakes in New Hampshire to spend the day in the water. Picnicking, chatting, and playing with friends was the favorite pastime during the hot summer days. I remember their happy, yet exhausted faces as the car ride lulled them to sleep on the drive home. I carry those precious memories with me as I reflect on the ten years spent living here before moving to the mountains of Tennessee.
Can you bring childlike wonder, play, and relaxation into your days?
What could that look like?
During a live call with
, she shared the image of the Empress from the tarot as inspiration for the Solstice. In this image from KittenChop’s Playful Heart Tarot, the brightly clothed Empress sits in a garden surrounded by blooming flowers and kittens. The huge smile on her face and her relaxed posture are opportunities to pause and unwind. During the call, I reflected on how I could incorporate more pauses into my day this Summer.What might a pause look like to you?
Summer Solstice
The Summer Solstice marks the longest day of the year and the turning point of the wheel. It is when the sun stands still at its highest point in the sky. It’s a celebration of light, abundance, and the full bloom of life.
The Solstice invites you to pause and honor how far you have come this year. To bask in the light of your growth, and to reflect on what you wish to carry forward. It’s a sacred moment to realign with your inner fire and listen deeply before the slow return to darker days begins.
There are many ways to mark and celebrate the Summer Solstice. I listed a couple of resources to guide you. I encourage you to find some time and space for yourself to connect to the wisdom of the Solstice as it kicks off the Summer season.
Resources
10 Ways to Celebrate the Summer Solstice
Time of Balance and Reflection: Last year’s post and a reflection on the Justice tarot card with journal questions to ponder.
Can you spot the canyon?
I created this visual journal page in Mexico back in March. During my trip out West, I had the honor to visit the Dixie’s Lower Canyon Antelope Tours, hosted by the Navajo people living on the land.
Welcoming Cancer Season
The Summer Solstice ushers in Cancer Season. This season invites you to return to the heart and home of yourself. It’s a season of softness and sensitivity, where you are reminded that strength can look like care, vulnerability, and protecting what you love. Cancer teaches you to trust the tides of emotion, to tend to your sacred spaces, and to move through life with a gentle, courageous heart. 🥰
I’ll be back next week with more about this soft, yet inspiring season.
Talk to you soon!
❤️ Blythe
Also thank you for mentioning my page. I appreciate it.
Hi Blythe!
Welcome back, my friend. Yes, it has been awhile since we readers have seen you here.
I read where you've been having a wonderful couple of weeks travelling and enjoying both your birthday as well as your anniversary with your hubby Rob.
Happy belated birthday btw. It just so happens that, like you, my wife is also a Cancer baby but celebrates her birthday later in July.
And, as for your anniversary, well I was a tad confused at first when I read in your June 18th posting of Whispers from the Wood that you were celebrating "thirteenth wedding anniversary yesterday with my hubby, Rob".
Now, first just to be clear to everyone reading your words, I'm not the "Rob" that you were referring to and secondly, after reading your June 19th posting of Whispers from the Wood posting, I realized that you really were celebrating your thirty years anniversary, not your thirteenth - especially given on how old your two boys currently are! 😉
How time flies by when you're having fun, eh?
Anyway it's great to have you back and read all about what you're up to these days. Like where you currently are, we also are due for some pretty hot weather this weekend. So I guess summer has really arrived.
Take care and, yes, we'll chat here again soon.