I wanted to share a collage I made, primarily from cutting up tarot cards with Mari in the Sky’s Gentle Tarot deck (yes, I felt mixed feelings cutting up a gorgeous tarot deck that can be found by looking up @mariinthesky on IG, or her flodesk of links here ! But I also felt comforted about the possibility of replacement cards <3).

At first, I wanted to give the collage I made (below) as a gift to Mariza because she generously sent me one (to the left/above) in the mail maybe two winters ago? It contains art from her Six of Thunder, Justice, and Four of Wands cards:

A forest of trees, teal sky, and greenery serves as background for nearly half of the collage, starting at the upper left. Almost as if riding on this forest is a figure on a humpback whale from the Six of Thunder (Swords) linen deck. Behind this figure, still amongst the trees, is a white heart with “Savann” in a typewriter font. A semicircle cutting of white and red-orange serves as a splash of bright color on the top right of the collage, with the white space almost looking like a bird facing the same direction as the humpback whale.

Starting from the bottom right of the college is a large black silhouette of a flying figure that reminds Savann of a pterodactyl. A smaller bird silhouette, also black, is behind the left ear. The pterodactyl(-like) silhouette faces the right, ears nearly level with the fins of the humpback whale. Above the pterodactyl(-like) silhouette’s nose is a heart cut from the Justice card, with a light stripe of purple, brown soil; a diagonal scatter of seeds from the upper left to lower right of the heart, with a green shoot emerging from the seed to the very bottom right of the heart; the corner of a white satchel containing seeds is on the upper right of the heart. On the right wing of the pterodactyl(-like) silhouette is another heart made of the Four of Cups card, which is almost directly below the Justice heart but slightly more to the left. With a structure similar to hyacinths, two lupines with petals flowering purple and deep green leaves rooted at the bottom and base of the heart, position themselves nearly parallel to the curved neck of the dark pterodactyl(-like) silhouette. In a mid-left corner of the Four of Cups card heart is one blue water-filled cup.

In front of a turquoise semicircle at the bottom left of the collage touching the forest of trees, as well as in front of a sandstone orange semicircle positioned slightly in front of the pterodactyl-silhouette's wing are the typewritten words, “I invite movement into my life. All is well in my heart space.”

Creating this specific collage I worked on felt needed, but as I kept going, it didn’t feel completely right to give to Mariza. I thought maybe it’d be just for me, to process and embrace. After maybe a few weeks of the collage spiritually marinating in my notebook, I understood it to be important to give to one of my aunts.

Image description and analysis are below after the sign-off

Letting the collage stand on its own, letting people have their own messages and interpretations, is something Mari in the Sky embraces with her tarot work.

I wanted to share additional feelings and thoughts about my processing, but I’m including it after signing off with my name.

Back of collage: A piece of brown-gray paper with a hand-written note in blue ink stating, “I witness, hold, and release grief. I lean into where I am supported.” Also (in case people are interested for numerology reasons) a label saying “KIVA SALAD” with the price $4.27, packed on Jan.24, 2024, with a net wt of 0.535lb and unit price of $7.99

I hope people are taking as much care as possible at this time, and feeling support from others. I’ve been burning incense a good amount more; if you’d like me to burn any with a specific prayer or wish, or make a crane in your thoughts (to have me later place somewhere intentional or send via mail!), please let me know.

One way to reach me is through the email [email protected], which I created recently and have begun sharing Very Intentionally For Important Messages! <3 <3

With much love

Savann

關凱蒂

Less Detailed Image Description (More Analysis-Heavy) of Collage:

Mariza Ryce Aparicio-Tovar’s sweet, fierce grizzly bear in the Flower of Stones (Pentacles) card is inspired after Chocolate Thunder, a grizzly that “knows when to eat, snack, and rest”. Chocolate Thunder knows balance and finds power from a great place of care that extends to herself and flows outwardly to others. She is dearly respected amongst the fourteen other grizzly bears living near her. While cutting the Flower of Stones card, I wanted Chocolate Thunder to continue holding her log, to remain supported by the gently rippling water around her; I kept a bit of the green borders of the Stones suite behind her in the bottom left corner near her feet while she looked onward to the right. I also kept one of the beautiful yellow flowers near her back right paw, as well as the word flow, **serving a general wish and manifestation.

Behind Chocolate Thunder and with the same green borders from the Stones suite are pieces from the Ten of Stones deck, which I understand to represent interconnectedness with the surrounding world. Another reminder that sustainably caring for oneself allows others to thrive too (a message Erica Joy helped me remember around the time of making this collage : ) I really wanted this card’s communicated messages of wholeness, completion, reciprocity–connection to center and the Earth, to shine through. Symbols included in the collage from this card include flowing plants and an expansive sun–white like a moon. Above the sun in this collage is Chocolate Thunder, looking onward to the right at a person on a humpback whale from the Six of Thunder (Swords) card, conveying a movement into clearer waters while simultaneously acknowledging pain. Above Chocolate Thunder and also from the Six of Thunder card is a rainbow and illuminating full moon, supportive, anchoring, and protective surrounding elements.

At the bottom right of the collage, the person from the Ten of Wands card walks away from the warm rays of moonlight reflected in the still water of The Moon. Within the Ten of Wands imagery, this person has one hand and both feet connected to and supported by the ground. They also carry fire on their back—a heavy load too large for a single person to carry for a sustained amount of time. I cut away some of this fire, lessening their load, yet found it significant that fire from the Five of Wands lay behind it (clashing internal or external conflict coming through). Alongside the fire are supportive wormwood wands, visible from both tarot cards. With the Ten of Wands person’s back foot also pushing against a sliver of The Tower card from a different tarot deck, this person moves in the direction of the upper right, towards the whale from the Six of Thunder card.

[ I wanted to feel the Ten of Wands person climbing upward out of stress and pain, into support. There are still wisps of the past, *Tower *****moments better toppled like oppressive systems–it felt necessary to acknowledge these things happening, the stress and pressure with interconnectedness and support present and possible to lean into–whether water or Earth, plants and animals, ancestors and other beloved people. ]

This person is also walking from a printed art photo silhouette of many people–a person silhouetted in deep blue stands out amongst silhouettes of other people, their feet leading into a path from water-reflected illuminated moon’s rays.

P.P.S. I’ve so deeply loved Maria Alejandra’s psychosomatic yoga offerings and highly recommend!!

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