Our Paths in the Valley

Moved to Cloud Hands Blog

This blog, Our Paths in the Valley, has been discontinued. 

Michael P. Garofalo continues to maintain his Cloud Hands Blog. 

 

 

Out of the Blogging Loop

Both Karen and I have had numerous health problems and surgeries in the last few months.   All our efforts have been focused on helping each other recover and regain our health.  

California laws changed in June with regard to webmasters with Amazon associate accounts.  California demands that Amazon pay sales taxes.  Amazon has now stopped paying us for all our link referrals to them from our websites.  This has resulted in a decrease of our web based income by $150 per month.   What a disappointment for us! 

We may, like thousands of others, just bow out gracefully from any more blogging or webpage creative work. 

Summer Work Projects

We both work part-time for school districts in Tehama County.  Now that schools are closed for the summer, both Karen and I are unemployed. 

We started a number of summer work projects in our house and gardens this past week.  We worked outdoors for over 8 hours each day of various projects. 

Karen updated our webpage on Work

Tarot Research and Studies

I continue to study the Tarot each day for one hour. 

This past week, I created the first draft of webpages on two of the Minor Arcana suits:  Pentacles/Disks/Worlds/Diamond Tarot Suit and the Swords/Spades/Crystals Suit. 

I choose one card for meditation each day. 

Ace of Disks by Aleister Crowley and Lady Frieda Harris, the Thoth Tarot, 1940. 

 

Looking for Something?

I continue my daily investigation of the artwork of the Tarot. 

"Artistic vision registers and prophesies the expanding consciousness of man.  I am not speaking only of works of art, but the artistic vision wherever it imbues living acts.  Artistic imagination creates what has never before existed.  To live artistically is to embody in social forms the unique individual and the intuitions of union."
-  M. C. Richards

Seeing: Quotes, Poems, Sayings

I am studying the Hermit Tarot Card for the next two days. 

Tarot Studies and Research

I have been studying Tarot symbology and using Tarot cards since 1975. 

This summer, I plan to spend 1 hour each day in Tarot studies and research. 

I will keep my notes regarding this Tarot project online. 

 

"The Tarot operates primarily through the symbolic, nonrational aspects of consciousness, the same state from which dreams communicate.  The quality of accuaracy of the Tarot interpretation depends solely upon the querent's own ability, because it is only a reflection of the focus or level of consciousness of the inquirer.  The Tarot is an excellent teacher, for as the user advances in expanded awareness it reflects this expansion and responds uniquely to each individual, never teaching more than the person is capable of receiving." 
-  Angeles Arrien, The Tarot Handbook, p. 18

Sun Garden Project, Part 4

Karen and I have been working on a new sun garden project.  We began the project on May Day, 2011.  This project involves the creation of a large vegetable garden in a sunny area at the northwest end of our property.  As of today, May 28th, 2011, here is how it looks: 

 

I will index and track this developing story during the period from June to October, 2011, under the Our Paths in the Valley Blog Typepad Category Thread: Sun Garden Project. 

Work:  Quotes, Sayings, Poems, Lore, Resources.  From the Spirit of Gardening Series. 

Karen and I discuss Monthly Gardening Chores for each month. 

 

 

Make Our Hearts Fertile Fields for Your Bounty

In Honor of Frigga 

"Shining Lady of Asgard,
All-seeing, all-knowing,
at Your command worlds are born,
at Your nod and tender smile, life burst into being.
Valiant Goddess, ruthless foe, cunning Queen,
Illuminate your wyrd.
Strengthen our hamyngja.
Make us fruitful in all things, like the barley and flax
   that is your gift.
Nourish our souls, God-Mother,
Pour forth from Your cornucopia of abundance
and in return we will give You our devotion,
   our praise, our industry.
Holy Mother of all life, foremost amongst the Asynjur,
   bestow upon us Your wisdom.
Make our hearts fertile fields for Your bounty, and
   on Your spindle of shimmering starlight,
Weave for us a joyous fate."
-  Galina Krasskova, Exploring the Northern Tradition, 2005, p.44 

Religion and Gardens

One Old Druid's Final Journey

 

Summer Solstice Preparations

Currently, my own preparatory work for the Summmer Solstice Celebration includes:

Cleaning cattails our of the north end of the pond.

Weeding, mowing, and cleaning up around the teahouse by the pond. 

Weeding, cleaning, and painting in the Sacred Circle Garden. 

Cutting and stacking firewood for nighttime fires. 

Daily work with Tarot Magick. 

Preparing updates to the Months webpages on June and July. 

Reading two books by John Matthews and Anna Franklin that I have found useful in preparing for the Summer Solstice Celebration:

Celebrating the Seasons of Life: Beltane to Mabon by Ashleen O'Gaea 

Midsummer: Magical Celebrations of the Summer Solstice by Anna Franklin

Lammas: Celebrating the Fruits of the First Harvest by Anna Franklin

The Summer Solstice: Celebrating the Journey of the Sun from May Day to Harvest by John Matthews

 

New Garden 3

One half of the new vegeatable garden is complete and planted. 

After removing all the wild oats and other "weeds" we placed 3 inches of compost over the cleared ground.  Then we placed a thick layer of straw over the compost.  Then we planted tomatoes and peppers into new small holes with fresh specially mixed growing soil. We use wire cages around each tomato plant to support the growing plant. 

Vegetable Gardening

New Garden 2

Clearing the ground and laying out the concrete block edge of the new full sun vegeatable garden.

 

 

New Garden 1

We wanted a location for a vegetable garden with full sun throughout the day.   We choose a treeless location on the northwest edge of our yard.  The view to the west from this garden includes a last pasture used for raising horses and the Yolla-Bolly mountains about 40 miles to the west. 

Vegetable Gardening

 

Karen's Workstation

Here is Karen's home workstation: office desk, computer, business center, command center, recreation space, etc. 

She looks out the window in front of her desk and looks directly to the east.  She has bird feeders and numerous shrubs outside this office window. 

Currently, she is working on an update of the webpage on Work.  She will post the revised and updated Work webpage on-line on Sunday, May 15th. 

Gardening in Red Bluff, California

 

 

Earth-Voices

"And all the times I was picking up potatoes, I did have conversations with them.  Too, I did have thinks of all their growing days there in the ground, and all the things they did hear.  Earth-voices are glad voices, and earth-songs come up from the ground through the plants; and in their flowering, and in the days before these days are come, they do tell the earth-songs to the wind ... I have thinks these potatoes growing here did have knowings of star-songs." 
-  Opel Whiteley, 8 years of age, The Singing Creek where the Willows Grow - The Mystical Nature Diary of Opal Whiteley, Penguin, 1994. 

Earth - Quotes, Poems, Sayings