Angels & Ancestors Oracle cards

[FairyCrystal]

Can you believe this: I MISSED the live blessing
I completely forgotten the time, and suddenly it was 9 o'clock. Dangit!

Did you make it, Pandora?

[Pandora.]

Yes, yes I did see it. It was very good.

I didn't know what to expect. How long would it go for? What was involved? Etc, etc.

There were over 400 people who joined, which was pretty impressive in itself.

Firstly, Kyle explained the cards, different ways of reading them, (such as only reading the Guardian cards for example) and a bit about the sort of vision he had that made him decide on the Warrior symbols, which was quite interesting. He also talked about the card stock, which is quite thick. He opted not to have any gold type of covering on the sides (can't remember what you call it) because the manufacture of it causes a dust that is really bad for the environment.

After talking for a while (I can't remember how long, as I wasn't watching the time at this point), he turned the "chat" off to start the actual blessing.

He smudged the cards, did some prayers etc, and then that was it.

It was definitely worth setting the alarm for!

[FairyCrystal]

Wow, that sounds great!
Glad you made it :) Thanks for sharing this bit.
I don't know how I could forget, and why I didn't set an alarm in my phone, I normally always do for this type of thing.
Good to know about the gilding of decks not being good for environment! To be honest, I don't think gilding would've suited this deck.

Did he say anything why the stock is so thick btw?

Thanks for sharing this info, and glad you made it AND that it was worth getting out of bed for, hihi.

[Pandora.]

Yes, he did say something about the card stock being so thick. Apparently there were complaints about a previous deck being too flimsy or something. So they decided to beef it up.

He also showed a favourite deck of his that he has been using for 15 years. It looked quite worn. He indicated that was a GOOD thing and that people shouldn't be concerned when their decks get worn and used (there was a word he used for it, but I can't remember what it was). He basically said that the more worn the deck was, the more your energy was infused into the deck , or something along those lines.

I'm actually considering buying his book now!

[FairyCrystal]

Originally Posted by Pandora.

Yes, he did say something about the card stock being so thick. Apparently there were complaints about a previous deck being too flimsy or something. So they decided to beef it up.

He also showed a favourite deck of his that he has been using for 15 years. It looked quite worn. He indicated that was a GOOD thing and that people shouldn't be concerned when their decks get worn and used (there was a word he used for it, but I can't remember what it was). He basically said that the more worn the deck was, the more your energy was infused into the deck , or something along those lines.

I'm actually considering buying his book now!

I totally get what he means about the worn deck. A pristine looking deck isn't really yours, you haven't really taken energetic ownership of it.
Still, I am quite fussy about my decks, haha. I know of one reader on YT whose cards look seriously maimed, most of the middle from the sides missing etc.
I don't mind it when you can tell a deck has been thoroughly used -like my Green Witch deck and Gilded Reverie Lenormand which doesn't deserve the name "gilded" no more, lol- but I don't like it when they're almost falling apart, hihi.

You considering the Light Warrior book? I've been looking into that too. Not certain yet about getting it or not.
The thing that I don't like is the "Warrior" thing.
But the man is pretty impressive, isn't he?
Really a shame I missed it

[Pandora.]

Hmmm. I'm not too sure now actually. I'm having problems really connecting with the deck (which could be that I'm still not used to it) but I think it may have something to do with the way he's written up the meanings in the book - they just don't gel all that well with me personally.

I received an email "Angel Message Monday" which is apparently "Elder". I was looking forward to reading his take from his heart, only to find it had been copied word for word from the book that comes with the deck! Very disappointing! No doubt an assistant gets the job of copying the text under a random card each week. What's the point in that? Unless the emails go out to people who subscribe to his page but don't necessarily have the deck - as a marketing ploy to get people to buy it.

Not happy.

To be honest, at the moment it's feeling a bit Doreen Virtue'ish. Hope I'm wrong though.

[FairyCrystal]

Originally Posted by Pandora.

Hmmm. I'm not too sure now actually. I'm having problems really connecting with the deck (which could be that I'm still not used to it) but I think it may have something to do with the way he's written up the meanings in the book - they just don't gel all that well with me personally.

I received an email "Angel Message Monday" which is apparently "Elder". I was looking forward to reading his take from his heart, only to find it had been copied word for word from the book that comes with the deck! Very disappointing! No doubt an assistant gets the job of copying the text under a random card each week. What's the point in that? Unless the emails go out to people who subscribe to his page but don't necessarily have the deck - as a marketing ploy to get people to buy it.

Not happy.

To be honest, at the moment it's feeling a bit Doreen Virtue'ish. Hope I'm wrong though.

Yeah, it's a shame the text in the mail is the same as in the book, the first part, not the extended message.
But I already got his mails each Monday before the deck was out, so I guess indeed not all subscribers have it.
Hearing his own words... the text in the book are his own words
I would've loved to hear some of Lily Moses' reasons for making the images the way she did. She's doing that a bit on her Instagram, but there was this one thing I really wanted to know (why does Stargazer have 2 different colour eyes?) and she said there was a reason but she didn't say what.
I was disappointed as that feature is what stands out most to me and I would've loved to know her reasons for doing so.

I love the Elder card as I've spent half a year in an Aboriginal community. And I like the explanation of being able to do your own thing, not having to follow in the footsteps of your family. To me that goes way deeper than just things in this life as in family patterns & family Karma.

I find it really deep, much more so than any D. Virtue deck. But maybe it's not the right deck for you. If you end up not liking it permanently, then maybe just sell it?

[Pandora.]

I'll have to politely disagree regarding the text. The extended message was the part that was in the email I received (not that it makes any difference whatsoever). My gripe is that he's simply copied word for word what was in the book. Obviously it is in his own words as he originally wrote it. But it would be far better to get more insight by him giving further and better "off the cuff" interpretations of the cards, rather than simply copying word for word. It would help people who are relatively new to Oracle decks (like myself) learn to use the deck and thus use it more.

Your interpretations are a prime example. You don't copy the book, you use your intuition and insight to make the cards more understandable and insightful. The way you dived into Drum for me was amazing. To me, that's a big difference. Can you imagine doing a reading and learning the exact text and only using that? That's what it felt like receiving the email. Or can he even interpret it in any other words? (which I'm quite sure he can, but that's what it feels like).

I think the emails are very lazy and obviously mass marketed. I suspect he doesn't even pull the cards each week, just gets staff to copy a card from the deck.

It has tainted my view of him. However, I would never sell a deck. I have other decks I don't feel connected with or enjoy reading, but love the artwork and keep them for that reason. And who knows, I could feel entirely different after a week, month or year.

His favourite deck (the one he has used for 15 years that is well worn) is a Doreen Virtue deck, though I can't remember which one he said it was. Maybe he's done a lot of work with her in some fashion and some of her methods have rubbed off on him. Who knows.

Yes, I totally agree about wanting to know why Lily Moses painted some of the images such as Stargazer. That is another peeve of mine with decks. There's one deck I'm working on at the moment called Celtic Tarot, which I'm enjoying. But there are some quite bizarre bits and pieces put in some of the cards, and I can't for the life of me work out why. What were they thinking and what is the relevance? It doesn't matter how long I look at them, I still can't work it out.

The other thing that annoys me (with this particular deck) is some of the images are so small and dark, I really struggle to see them properly. I have to get up and take them outside in bright light and try to see the obscure parts.

[FairyCrystal]

I watched most of the blessing ceremony in replay. Now I know why I forgot about it, I'm not impressed, haha. Basically it's 1 or 2 sentences and that's the blessing?
Before that he used his sweet time -15 minutes?- to create sacred space, which is not part of the blessing but a normal thing for a witch to do before a ritual, and doesn't cost you 15 minutes of waffling.
The smudging wasn't really part of it either, as not everyone will have smudgesticks or incense... So the only actual blessing was this 1-2 sentences he spoke after which he said his goodbye and thanks and it was all done??

The info on the different cards I already knew as well as I'd watched his vid from when you could begin pre-ordering. He explained it then in great detail. Plus I've worked with the deck for a month already, so nothing new really.
I skipped through it a lot, hihi, including when he was calling on the guardians, I mean, ***, you don't need 7 mins per guardian to do that!
Of course if you're not familiar with that -or if you want to fill a webinar hihi- you drag it out. But I've practiced witchcraft for a number of years, so nothing new there either.

Like I said, I now understand why my HS made me forget, there was no added value for me there, hihi. All I got out of it is that now my house is stinking of Palo Santo (I don't particularly like that, although it beats sage)

I do love the cards. That hasn't changed :)

[FairyCrystal]

yes, it usually is a team who does the emailing, quite normal, when you grow bigger you haven't the time anymore for that. There's nothing you can do about it, comes with the territory. If you let a team or VA do that stuff you have more time to do what you like and were born to do and reach more people. If you have to do everything yourself you have barely time left to do the thing you really have to offer.
As soon as I can, I want to get a VA in as well. It isn't any other way, it will free me up to offer more of what I'm here to do, and to reach more people.

As for the cards, I think they resonate so well with me as I'm a pagan, have done witchcraft a number of years, and studied all that comes with that extensively. For myself, but also because I had a web-shop for pagans & witches. And I wanted to know what I was selling, the meaning and so on.
But I was into having that shop as I was busy with it myself, so it was more an extension of me.
After a number of years it felt too restricting, it missed things and I shifted to do other things. But the affinity and love for paganism & shamanism remained, and of course the wisdom I've gained from it.
That's also how I know about the drum for instance. I made my own, have used it for sound healing on other people during workshops and privately too, and I myself have had sound healings too. So I know how deep a drum goes, what it can do.

I think when it comes to that it is up to the owner of a deck to explore for themselves. Some might not give a toss to hear such things.
In a way it's just letting it in. Like the Trader, I love that card SO much! That's because I have lived abroad in Indonesia, have a love of cultures. I know what it's like to shop around on a bazar / market like where he's standing, I used to frequent similar places in Jakarta and other places in Indonesia.
A few years ago a similar experience in Marrakech, Morocco. It SO resonates with me to see that card :)
I can almost taste the fresh peppermint tea again, or a small glass of really strong coffee. My mouth is watering as I type now, hihi. The memories of haggling, the joyful vibe and the pleasure both parties have in that, which is the energy exchange the card speaks of I guess.

Other cards is new exploring to me as well, like the She-Wolf. But reading it, I can feel the message and energies in my body, and it resonates with my 100%! I've drawn that card so many times to represent my soul energy/ essence. And reading it, all I can say is "Yes!"
But I wasn't familiar with the concept until I got this deck.

Maybe it's partially to do with doing so many readings these days. When I got the Goddess & Sirens and the Gods & Titans decks in I had a bit of a problem with the cards at times. The booklet gives the legends, the myth. But that doesn't always give a concrete interpretation.
So I read each description as I drew a card and let the energies trickle through me, really taking it in, absorbing it. And then I FELT the message, and I wrote it down in the book.
I don't think I could do that before i did so many readings, not sure, mabye I simply didn't think of it.
What I've also learnt is that much is a matter of trusting you instinct, not doubting your intuition. At first I was quite nervous and a bit scared to do readings for others. Now I don't even think about it no more.

Anywho, going to retire for the evening :)
Done an awful lot of typing today, worked on finishing my 2nd book. My fingers have had it, hihi