A To Z Blogging Challenge: Tea Leaf Reading Dictionary “A”

Welcome to the A to Z Challenge for April 2016! My theme for this year is Tea Leaf Reading Symbol Dictionary – yes, I know this is a mouthful. I find tea a wonderfully fascinating beverage that is a part of many aspects of my life for me – healing, enjoyment, divination, meditation and ritual. I hope you enjoy taking this journey with me, as I bring to you a little bit of information I hope you can find useful.

Tea Leaf Reading Symbol Dictionary:

Letter A:

Abbey: An abbey is a favorable sign, declaring a freedom from anxiety and a peace of mind.  You are questions, or to get out of sticky situation, then this symbol will mean that help is on its way.

Acorn: Acorns are (as are the trees from which they derive from) a symbol of strength and perseverance. While your endeavor might grow slow and steady, rather than in a quick suggestion, it will be a lasting success from which you and people in the future can benefit from. Because Acorns are the seeds from which the tree will spring from, it also means that you are still in the beginning stages of your adventure, so be patient, and steady.

An example of a wide mouth cup with saucer that is perfect for a Tea Leaf Reading Available on Amazon

Aircraft: If it pointing toward you, then an unexpected news or an unexpected travel is on the horizon, If it points away from you, then there is likely to be no favorable movement in the situation, proceed with caution

Anchor: An anchor is an overall positive sign. You are in the right place at the right time at this very moment, exactly where you are supposed to be. Take a close look around you to find opportunities and hidden opportunities in your present situation

Angel: Angel are the messengers of love and joy. Always embrace the Angel symbol. If you see this symbol showing up in many locations besides this reading, you should be more open to guidance, the Universe is  trying to get your attention.

Apes: someone has a hidden agenda in your life. Watch out for those who are manipulative and deceitful.

Apples: apples are great sign to see in your tea leaf readings. They point to steady health, happiness and fortune. The apple contains within the pentacle, the symbol of magick, making it a powerful fruit that despite its general appearance holds a powerful punch. So do not be deceived by what might look like a simple occurrence, it might make the difference you have been looking for.

Apple tree:  apple trees indicate a chance for the better.

Arc: a very protective symbol. It signifies the love protection and care of someone who is really deeply connected with you. You are cared for.

Arrow: be aware of the arrows direction in your reading. Unpleasant news might be on their way – usually from the direction the arrow is pointing at

Axe: You have the power to overcome any difficulties that stand in your way if you are willing to put in the effort needed.

Throughout this series, I will be teaching you a little bit at a time about how to do a reading, what is important to remember when receiving a reading, and just general information about tea, and the related subjects. I hope you will stay with me throughout the entire journey.

I am blessed to have you as my readers.

Claudia

P.S. The above post contained affiliate links. See Disclosure page for details.

 

 

 

Time To Prep For The A to Z Blogging Challenge!

Are you participating in the A to Z Blogging Challenge? If you have no idea what I am talking about, check out this website for more information on the Blogging Challenge for the month of April, that has many bloggers preparing ahead of time, contemplating their subject matter, and looking forward to connecting with the many (hundreds ) of bloggers participating each year.

In this challenge, we are called to write something about a particular letter of the alphabet starting with of course A and working ourselves through to Z. Not everyone chooses a topic, in my first two years of participating I did not either, but I began to do so last year, and will again this year.

Mixing Spices Available On Amazon

Last year my  topic was Herbs and Spices, because of the release of my book “Mixing Spices”

This year, because I am working on a book about tea and mindfulness, I chose the topic “Tea Leaf Reading Dictionary”.

Every single day of the month of April, (minus Sundays, because we all take a break on Sundays for this challenge), I will be posting a few symbol meanings specifically for Tea Leaf Reading, including some tips and suggestions on how you work your own tea leaf reading sessions. I will also talk about symbolism in general and how this dictionary will relate to divining dreams as well, with a few tweaks and considerations.

 

Loose Tea Sampler available at Amazon

I am so excited about this entire project. And because I love you guys and you all have been such amazing partners throughout this blogging journey for me, I am giving away the entire series at the end of the month as a PDF – just to say thank you.  There are more freebies to come in the coming weeks, so if you like free stuff (and who does not), come back often.

Oh, and for those of you who are not interested in Tea Leaf Reading and Tea, I will continue to post my regular stuff, like marketing tips for creative people, some design updates,  book reviews, motivational stuff, giveaways and product reviews.

After all, as a brand ambassador, NetGalley reviewer and a designer, I cannot and am not willing to neglect my regular duties, because of a mere challenge.

I am so looking forward to the crazy business.

At the end, an extended version of the PDF, which contains the  challenge content  will be made available on Amazon Kindle and Kindle Unlimited.

Blessings!

P.S. Don’t forget to stock up on Tea!

Masks

Masks by Claudia H. Blanton

Hide

your colorful masks
empty of real expression
hide the pain inside

 

We all pretend. Sometimes in social media, this pretend leaves me with a feeling of disconnect. I don’t mean that we purposely pretend to be someone else we are not. I do not believe that. But because social media and blogging (as well as art and writing) can leave the creator vulnerable, we hide behind our masks of our own creation.

How much should we share? How will what we share affect those we love, and how does the parts that we do choose to show influence what others think of us?

Many bloggers choose to share quite a bit about their lives. Cautiously, they write about their depression, struggles, obstacles and dreams. This raw openness takes courage. Artists and writers do the same, through their creation and stories – even if it is not as recognizable at first glance as it is in the platform of a blog about someone’s life. The message and vulnerability is the same.

It is that what attracts me to those creatives, and the fact that the opposite is often the truth in social media channels and that pushes me away. Where is the real person behind the twitter feed, the emotion behind that snarky comment, or seemingly open attitude? We get snippets, not stories, little glimpses of masks, rather than the true person behind.

It is not to say that we should share more, indeed I think that sharing more on those open platforms can be too dangerous to consider it. Yet, I miss that more and more today. And within that lies my love/hate relationship with social media.

Question: What parts of yourself do you share openly on social media, and which ones do you choose to hide? Is that a concious decision you make, or is it an instinctive holding back?

“Masks” is available on RedBubble as a canvas print, poster or a framed art piece.

 

This blog post is a part of the following blog hops:

Elizabeth And Co Link Party

Together On Tuesdays

What Are You Doing? Blog Hop

Amaze Me Blog Hop

Share With Me

Traditions, Skills And Gratitude

While as a child, having a parent who is very detailed oriented and almost OCD about their space, is not a fun person to grow up around, I did learn quite a few useful skills from my adoptive father’s very exact personality. From how to cut an onion in precise and extra small pieces to careful and detailed gift wrapping, I am grateful for this knowledge and am often asked to teach those little skills to others.

Getting ready for the Holiday season, which in our family happens to be also the season where everyone seems to be having a birthday, I go through tons of wrapping paper and ribbons.

If you are like my friends and family, you probably think a lot less about the wrapping of those presents then the content of them – but I thought you might appreciate a little tutorial I found on youtube that shows a quick and easy way to make your presents more beautiful.

Speaking of gift giving, have you began to plan your shopping for the upcoming holidays yet? No? Me neither, but at least I have a plan in place for everyone on my list. Do you plan your holiday shopping in detail, like I do or are you waiting for whatever is on sale on days like Black Friday (which I do not participate in). I am not I would be able to get everyone a thoughtful gift without this planning ahead – which, by the way, I always do, throughout the year, and make a rule that it has to be done before Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving Floral Magnet – Personalize It!

Another tradition, albeit one that was a lot more fun to learn, was making Christmas cookies. I am grateful that both of my Grandmothers were avid backers and usually provided us with at least a dozen varieties each. This year I have to add some vegan varieties to the mix, so my daughter can eat them as well. I, on the other hand, will for that occasion not restrict myself and stick with tradition.

 

Do you have any favorite holiday skills and traditions that you enjoy? What skills did they teach you, even if at the time you might not have appreciated the learning process as much as you do that skill now?

I am looking forward to hearing from you.

And check out the custom designer Christmas wrapping collection, I created for you. It includes the most beautiful wrapping papers for this holiday season, I could find on Zazzle.

Christmas Wrapping Paper
by Claudia H. Blanton

 

This blog post is a part of the following blog hops:

Celebrate The Small Things

No Rules Weekend Blog Party

Share With Me

Enveloped – A Haiku

Art of Affection by Chia Design http://goo.gl/bd2YZj

refuge from the cruel
worldly pain can not reach me
safe in your arms at last

Copyright Claudia H. Blanton 2015

This post was inspired by today’s daily prompt post “Enveloped”. The above image “Art of Affection” is by ChiaDesign and is available as an art print here. Please support independent artists! Thank you!

Oh Cool – An Award!

Thank you to Axel Rider for nominating me for the “Very Inspiring Blogger” Award!

That was very sweet of you! Now, as with most awards, there are some rules attached. Here they are:

• Thank the one who nominated by linking their blog and display the award emblem.
• Nominate some other blogs (10ish or so) and link them.
• Mention three things that inspired you the most in the last week or so…

Okay, I can do that! There are so many beautiful blogs out there at the moment, so finding 1o people to share this award with will be fun! Here is my list:

Waywordness

Transition of Thoughts

Sarah’s Humble Blog

Lisa Rosier

The Magickal Pen

My Journey To The Boston Marathon…

Perspective on Life, The Universe And Everything 

Becoming Angela

Roxi St. Claire

Through The Peacock’s Eyes

I highly recommend that you check out these blogs! Very interesting and diverse bunch, but everyone of them is incredibly creative. I am happy to share them with you!

Wishing you the most wonderful day!

Claudia

 

 

A Literary Minded Witch – A Daily Prompt Post

Today’s daily prompt made me cackle, I mean laugh out loud, scaring the poor dogs who are still trying to get used to my hyper minded new morning routine self.

A literary-minded witch gives you a choice: with a flick of the wand, you can become either an obscure novelist whose work will be admired and studied by a select few for decades, or a popular paperback author whose books give pleasure to millions. Which do you choose?

From one literary-minded Witch to another: where in the world can I find a spell that would actually do this? Oh, that’s right, it is called taking action, doing it myself, working hard, practicing my Craft (both the actual Craft and the craft of writing). There are no short cuts, but there is determination.

But that rambling does not answer the question, so here is the answer:

I don’t want to be studied, examined or used as a lesson in some college writing course, which the students will forget about, as soon as the final exam hits. My books should not sit on the shelves collecting dust, or on the list of what one should read – but actually never does.

No, I choose to be the paperback author, because I get to touch more people that way. I get to entertain, allow you to dream, forget about your problems, maybe inspire you to write your own books. I want to be the one who wrote the book, that was made into a movie, or the author you can hardly wait to read another novel from. THAT is not just an answer that comes from out of nowhere. It is an actual goal of mine, one I was working on this morning, before I read this prompt and scared the pets.

It is was I will do, because I know my Why, my reason why I want it to happen. I want to entertain you (okay, maybe you can also learn something from me, that would be a bonus – like I learned from so many others over the last few months, reading their books). Of course there are many other reasons, but I am not going to write about that right now.

So, now I am going back into my Witchy room (yes, I actually have one of them), sit at the desk next to my Altar, which has a Wand on it, and work on what actions I need to take to make this happen.

To whomever came up with this question: A sincere Thank You from the bottom of my Witchy-Heart.

Here are some answers other people gave to this prompt:

http://moreactionresearch.wordpress.com/2014/08/12/thats-easy/

http://tombalistreri.wordpress.com/2014/08/12/lasting-impression/

http://sugarcoatingsince91.wordpress.com/2014/08/12/obscure/

http://lindaswritingblog.wordpress.com/2014/08/12/easy-choice/

Blogging, Tips And Principles

Are you an Author with a social media strategy? In order to get heard, read, seen, noticed and paid attention to, you HAVE to create your own social media presence.

Did you know that publishing houses (and some agents) are more likely to work with someone who already established a presence on the internet? The best time to find out more on how to get noticed is not after you finished or published a book, rather before or during the writing process.

I have been experimenting a little with some of the blogging and social media tips that I have come across of as of late.The following questions (and more) arose from that content:

• Does social media feed scheduling work?
• Is there a system to get more followers, comments and acknowledgment?
• Does sticking to certain principles limit ones potential market and therefore success?

Some tips from so-called social media experts are nothing but vehicles to sell their products. Don’t bother. There are many companies build around making a buck off your unknowing, or unwillingness to do yourself. The key is to find out what works for you, and your specific audience.

From time to time, I will use this platform to write about the fails and wins of those tips that have come my way. It will serve not only as a reminder to myself to be active in a time where knowing how to navigate the jungle of social media is essential, but maybe I can help you find something that works for you. Remember, not everything works with every audience, and for every person, so I might find something the best thing since coffee, while it does not do anything for you. But maybe it will.

Really quick about principles:

Success achieved by denying an essential part of yourself is not success. Embrace all the facets of yourself. Stay authentic no matter what!

If, in the midst of your social media experience, you feel the need to share about something your passionate about, whatever the subject may be (feminism, animal rescue, the economy, your faith, gun rights, whatever gets you going), then do so – to an extend. While it is easy for your passion about these subject to overtake your posting, it is also easy to not post about them at all, and with that deny a part of who you are. Your passion, whatever it is , it makes you unique, and believe it or not, there are people just waiting to agree with you, looking for someone who has the guts to say something, that might be a little different. Just be polite about it. Learn from those who have fallen on their noses for posting outrages things without the care of others feelings. So keep it small, keep it polite, but post away!