I had been confused for several months with regard to a series of emotional lows. Was it hormones? Was I homesick? Was I just sick and tired of apartment life and boat work? There were a few days last spring when I didn’t even get out of bed. I tried my best to not let the ebb and flow of my emotions keep me down.  Skype calls with my parents and other family members did wonders to boost my spirits, a regular dose of morning yoga was just the medicine I needed for my mood swings, and a day at the beach took my mind off of the boat yard and our myriad of projects.

“The crisis has passed, your work has produced good results and something good is on the way. Your talents and sensitivity lie hidden just beneath the surface - allow your metaphysical interests to develop.”*

During that time, my dreams were full of interesting symbolism around birth and celebrations.

In one dream, on my way to a family celebration, I stopped by a quarry where a toddler was playing precariously close to the rocky ledge. Suddenly, she fell into the cold murky water. I tried and tried to reach her and when I did, she was no longer breathing. I tried to resuscitate her to no avail. She was gone. Still, in the dream, I attended the celebration where I was greeted by my mother and aunts, sisters and female cousins and to my surprise no one blamed me for the death of the baby.

When I awoke the next morning thinking about the dream, it occurred to me that the baby was actually me!

“Open your heart – deep fulfillment is realized through love - give and receive it. Love is a relationship – share your ideas, your touch, your projects and your growth.”

The raw and sometimes rough emotions that overtook me during that time, I now realize, were actually giving birth to a new chapter in my life as I journey through my 50’s. This chapter, although, still being developed, is re-awakening my body, mind and spirit on a path toward recognizing more fully the abundance of the gifts of the universe – especially the gifts of appreciating the time I am gifted with to experience and cherish the love of family and friends, old and new.   

“Follow your heart and you will know joy, your hopes will be complete and there will be a happy conclusion.

I found my new chapter in tarot’s Three of Cups. This card is not only about celebrations, love, joy, exuberance, and happy times with loved ones, friends, and sometimes, especially woman friends, but it is also about new growth, birth, and giving and receiving in the circle of life. It is about “the beginning of a new lifestyle and the commencement of a love which is mutual.”

We are living aboard again. The best part of this life is meeting new friends, catching up with old friends, creating new bonds with sister sailors, happy hours by the sea, and music jam sessions on the docks. The best part of seeing my family on my annual visit to the states is just “being” in their lives and making the most of our limited time together. My lesson in this new chapter, I believe, is to learn how to be at peace with my chosen life path, while celebrating its lessons of give and take.

The traditional tarot card images in the Three of Cups (of three women intertwined, dancing joyfully) remind me of the feelings of sisterhood, jubilation and exuberance in my college sorority when we would sing a song called “The Loving Cup”…

We'll pass the loving cup around

We won't pass a sister by

We all drink from the same old cup,

In dear old AOII.

Oh you and I shall never grow old

While this fair cup is nigh.

Here's health, here's wealth,

Here's life, here's love......

In Alpha Omicron Pi   

Here’s to the abundance of friendship found in the celebrations of life. Here’s to the new paths on our journey in life and the abundance found in new growth along the way. Here’s to the Three of Cups! Cheers!

 

*All quotes from the Three of Cups, Crystal Clear Reflections Tarot Divinations at http://crystal-reflections.com/tarot3/

Linda and her life partner, Chris, have been traveling and living in the Caribbean for three years, on their sailboat, Troubadour. Read about their journey at http://sailingtroubadour.blogspot.com/