Fall Tarot Special: Release and Renew

Hello beloveds!

How’s the fall-to-summer transition treating you?

I’m loving it. For many reasons. The potential for wildfires is quickly waning, the stars are coming out before I go to bed, I get to sleep under the flannel quilt a good friend made for our wedding, and the flurry of wildcrafting and medicine-making is wrapping up for the season… which means that I actually have enough spaciousness to sit on my patio this Monday afternoon and write.

Seth and I just returned from a three-day rite-of-passage event with a local class of seventh graders and several adult mentors.

Our main intention was to offer processes to support them in letting go of what they have outgrown they could step into the next phase of their lives with a sense of agency, empowerment, and intention.

On our last evening together, we built a big fire and shared something we were ready to let go of, then offered our words up to the flames. The timing was in synch with their entry into adolescence, the fall equinox, and the Queen of Love and Beauty’s entry into Scorpio—the sign of death and rebirth.

I’m obsessed with death and rebirth. With the never ending cycle of decay and fresh sprouts, shedding and creating, releasing and gathering, so this was my jam. Before the kids spoke around the circle, the adults shared. “I am letting go of the belief that I am responsible for other people’s feelings,” I said when it was my turn.

Having done many, many, burn-the-paper-naming-the-thing-I-want-to-let-go-of rituals, I can report that no flame has been potent enough to take away anything from my life all by itself. For years I wondered what letting go even meant if deciding to do so couldn’t do the trick.

Much to my disappointment, I’ve learned that the only way I can let go of anything is through consistent practice. The point of any fiery declaration, I’ve realized, is not to disappear the thing in an instant, but to initiate a process of intentional change.

So now, when someone close to me is having big feelings about something that has nothing to do with me, I am extra primed to notice how uncomfortable I feel and how much I want to make them feel better so I can feel better. And I’m noticing that the simple act of naming my internal reaction creates enough space for me to come back to my center.

From that center space, I’m able to turn toward myself with the most loving grandmotherly vibes and say, “Hey, sweets. It makes sense that you’re uncomfortable with their grumpiness, and it’s not yours to fix. You can let them have their emotions without taking them on.”

When I notice my physical sensations and speak to myself with loving directness like this, the real fiery magic happens. My discomfort is suddenly replaced with compassion, and I’m able to meet my beloved with my most loving grandmotherly vibes and say, “Oh, Babe. It makes sense that you’re grumpy. I’m here if you want support… otherwise I’ll be on the patio.”

Each time I release my inclination to take responsibility for other people’s emotions like this, I am practicing letting go. And with each act of letting go, I grow more fully into the woman I long to become.

I grow into the woman who speaks her truth with courage. The one who allows other people to have their pain, their anger, and their shame without trying to tame or fix it. And each time I let others have their emotions, I become a woman capable of accepting her own.

***

What about you? What do you long to release so you can grow more fully into the person you long to become?

What does letting go look like for you?

If you’d like to dive more deeply into your own process of shedding and regeneration, I’d love to do a Release and Renew tarot reading with you. This spread invites you to honor how you’ve grown over the past year, move into the next stage of your journey, and release anything holding you back. For the month of October, you can book a live or recorded reading for 20% off on my scheduling page.

Big love and best wishes for composting all that no longer serves you so new sprouts may grow!

xoxo Bex

P.S. You may also be interested in my upcoming astrology series: Your Soul’s Calling. Check it out!