breaking barriers

When you work with an Angel or Oracle card deck every single day, all the cards and the messages they hold become familiar. And, yet, there will always be those one or two cards that make your heart skip a happy beat when they come up. And, for me, this is one of those cards.

Where some may look at this card and cringe at the darkness, at the thorns, for me, this card exudes the feeling of great hope. It brings me such joy and reassurance and, I believe, is truly one of the most beautiful cards in this deck.

Let's dive into this card and see what message the angels wish to share with us through this card.

The first thing that catches my eye is the light breaking through the darkness. And the phrase the comes to mind is "without darkness, there cannot be light". Without the challenges, without the obstacles, without the hardships in life, you cannot grow and expand to become a better person, a better human.

It's not the easy days that shape and mold you, it's the difficult and challenging days. It's not residing in your comfort zone that makes you grow, it's stepping outside and embracing the unknown.

The light on the card is a beautiful yellow colour. Not only is yellow a happy and uplifting coloured, a colour that is warm and glowing, it reminds us to stay optimistic, positive and to have belief in our abilities. And in highlighting the small little buds, it is doing just this.

At times when life seems difficult, whenever every corner you turn seems to hold another challenge, stay postive, stay optimistic and have belief in yourself and your abilities. Let the light shine down on you and dissipate the darkness that surrounds you.

In the picture is a plant that is predominantly created from thorns. It appears mis-shapen, twisting and turning in all directions. And, easily, it could damage and destroy the fragile bud that seems to be growing out from it. If it were not for the light, where would your focus be? Would it be directed towards the little green bud or towards the thorny branches that seem to play such a hugh role in this card?

More likely than not, your eye would be drawn towards the thorny branches and, indeed, you may not even notice the little bud growing and surviving in such a seemingly hostile environment. Without the light, without positivity, optimism and self-belief, you may only see the thorns, the challenges that are winding and constricting around you. Without life-giving light, the little bud that seems to be surviving and growing against the odds may wither and die, succumbed by it's hostile and dark environment. And, yet, with light, we see the bud grow and survive, dare I say it, thrive? Out of the darkness, from the light, comes hope.

Leaves remind us of hope, renewal and revival. Green is the colour of healing. And light is all about illumination, inspiration and revelation - when you shine a light on something you bring its presence to the fore.

The message the angels wish us to receive through this card is one of hope, of renewal, and of inspiration.

When times are hard, when you seem to be faced with challenge after challenge, when you struggle to move away from the thorns that are digging into your skin or tearing at your clothes, look for the light. Seek out the light and let it shine upon you. In so doing it will bring healing and renewal to the circumstances you find yourself in. When you embrace optimism, positivity and self-belief, you'll look on the thorny challenges in your life in a different light. You'll heal and begin to grow and renew, breaking free from the barriers that once seemed to hold you back.

Let the light shine brightly, lovely soul, so new life, new vitality, new self-belief can fluorish and grow, even in the most unexpected of places.

Reference: This beautiful card is from Gateway Oracle Deck by Denise Linn, artwork by Jesse Reisch