November Symbolism

November carries over some themes that have been rooting into us for a long while. We see the Raven, White, Roots making their way back around and Shade also makes an appearance. Not only does this symbolism feel so deeply scorpio/sagittarius and is really giving this gorgeous November tone to it, but the themes arising support a lot of the work for this time of year as well. In the death season and following on the tails of eclipse season we have so much telling us to turn inwards, to alchemize, to face what needs to be seen (and perhaps comforted), to embrace that which clenches at our hearts and stomach. A common thread in all of this, to me, is fertilizer. How everything that is seen here needs energy to grow or shift or change. That we have companions and support in finding that, that things all have a life cycle of their own and we can’t rush or slow down any of what is meant to be. It’s a month of surrendering to what is and what must be without losing faith in where it will take us.

I think at the core, this month is showing us that ease is just as powerful as force. In fact, ease has it’s own kind of power on its side. Whatever you have been resisting, let your guard down to its knocking and hear what it has to say. Sit genuinely with what comes up, and consciously assess the tools you have available to move forward with the truth it has revealed. Be in a listening place this November.

The Blacksmith

This is telling us of the beauty and availability of renewal. Here we look at the basic truth that all things are energy and that all energy can be transformed. Of course, there is a process to undergo but it is one that we can all access. The blacksmith asks you to look at what can be melted down into it’s raw material - maybe cancelling subscriptions, changing a routine, consciously disengaging from a habit that doesn’t support you anymore. It takes time, it takes patience, and often it takes many steps to get from scrapped energy into something new and polish. Have patience alongside your desire that fuels this transformation.

Lily

Lily is to me, always a reminder of peace. It’s graceful, it’s fragrant, and it’s also often a flower that accompanies deaths of sorts. Something I’ve been contemplating a lot lately is the peace that acknowledgement of death can bring. Death to choices, a version of ourselves, a chapter of our lives - when we can find that sweet spot of feeling peace at the truth of having to embrace death that is where the lily blooms. It’s here to let you know that there is something you are making peace with leaving behind and that sometimes the anxiety we feel in any kind of loss is not that of the losing but of the holding on.

Raven

The brave, simple, powerful shadow eater. This feels like a constant companion in this season. Helping us embrace all that was hidden or we couldn’t look directly at. A companion here to constantly show us the shiny bits. Now, the raven serves as a reminder that all the pain that can come with exposing ourselves can also become the pleasure in being truly seen.

Shade Rx

We don’t always need to be in a time of actively, consciously looking at what the fuck is going on inside of us. We don’t need constant assessment of ourselves nor do we always need to be looking for what needs to be fixed. Instead, perhaps, we can find a soft spot to lay down and rest. The growth will happen, the things will eclipse, the light will shift, whatever we need to see will find us. Resting isn’t absolution - recognizing your true capacity to evolve or change also involves resting and integrating. You don’t need to show everyone the work your doing or the entirety of what is happening in your inner world in order for it to be real, legitimate. Let yourself be in the shade without feeling like it is an essential part of the “productivity”

Roots

The deep work, the unseen work, the stabilizing work. The roots is more essential than the flower although not as often celebrated. I think really, like everything, the message here is don’t discount the things that feel small or unseen or ask you to delve into yourself. And that perhaps things we think we can grow around are actually things that are inhibiting us. It takes a lot of time for the roots to grow out of the pot - which is to say that if you are feeling exhausted or overwhelmed with the effort of your inner work that maybe there is a change that needs to be made. It could be environment, it could be limiting beliefs, it could be relationships or jobs that aren’t expansive or currently able to hold all of what you have to offer within yourself. There is no shame in recognizing something that once perfectly fit has become something that just isn’t the space you need.

Rose

Rose, thorns, nothing new here. But I do wonder at if we want the rose and we know there are thorns, what can we do to protect ourselves? If we know we need to have a tough conversation, how to we centre ourselves and get clear on what we want to say so we can feel connected in communication. If we know that some of our habits or lifestyle choices are impacting health, how do we recognize what we’re trying to access by engaging with them and going directly to the source? The rose doesn’t want you to forgo the layers of it’s beauty and it also cannot de-thorn itself. Here we look at what protective mechanisms are genuinely supportive and useful, which ones are harmful or ineffective and which ones are avoidant.

Embodiment

Truly I feel so motherfucking called out by this card right now, but embodiment… Whatever is going on in your head is not necessarily going on in your life. Whatever you are overwhelmed by or scared of or avoiding because the story around it is too big - that is living in your body. And more likely than not your body is telling you more of the truth than your mind is. Something I have to keep coming back to is that emotions are actually very short lived. They can be intense as fuck, and when they stick around they can become a mood or even a personality, but in reality they want to come and go. Embodiment helps us feel them out. Embodiment also helps us recognize when what we believe in and value is (or isn’t) being accessed by us in our actions. While our feelings can give us information they don’t necessarily tell us who we are, they can’t declare things for us. There may be feelings you have that don’t align with your values or beliefs; how can you create space to listen to what they are telling you instead of ignoring it or acting like you can’t live in alignment? It isn’t comfortable but there is SPACE here this month to just notice - you don’t have to make choices or figure it out. Simply witnessing can be a great form of embodiment.

White

Let it go. Cleanse it. Bring the white light in and breathe the dust out. White always feels like a protective angel to me, a reminder in the darker moments that there is light and there is a reason and something to point yourself towards. Sometimes it can feel offensive or too bright, it can feel to clean or pure or something untouchable but really its not here to hold ourselves up against it. It’s here to cleanse and support and let things go and start fresh. It’s the sweet spot in the composting process, it’s when all that has fallen away is finally fertilizer. This will be here for a while, it will continue to support and serve as a reminder that it won’t feel like we’re buried in soil forever.