8 June 2021
Marshmallows Context
Marshmallows the spongy sweet treat and which get eaten in all sorts of creative ways. My husband gets his first AstraZeneca shot.
I used to be a coffee drinker until one day; I went to have an allergy test for inexplicable stomach pain. It turns out one of my highest allergies is coffee. Note, when travelling through South America, the cramps didn’t appear. My guess, it’s a difference in the processing of the beans.
Bacon was also high on the list of allergies, which might explain why a vegetarian diet suited me better. It’s not the reason for the change in dietary preferences; finding out made it easier to switch.
Nonetheless, when the office contributed to raising funds for Australia’s Biggest Morning Tea (Cancer Research Fundraising, Day 145), there was a packet of marshmallows leftover. The marshmallows were placed in a jar and left in the floor’s kitchen. It was hot chocolate time, and how good is a cup of hot chocolate with some marshmallows on the top?! Yum!
When I returned to work, after working a couple of days at home, the marshmallows had almost disappeared. After making some inquiries, coffees, not hot chocolates, used the marshmallows. There is a different technique to using marshmallows with coffee; you need to put the marshmallows in the bottom of the cup and let the coffee from the pod machine run over it. The gooey goodness of the marshmallow is apparently what makes it so good.
Not being a coffee drinker myself, I cannot advise whether this does nor doesn’t taste good. Nor can I say if the marshmallows replace sugar. All I know is the method and how the floor of coffee drinkers consumes the modified version – at least over the cooler months (presumably).
Husband Jab Day
Well, my husband went off to have his first AstraZeneca vaccination today. It seems to have gone well. His only complaints were an ache in his right arm like someone had punched or “jabbed” him there. It felt like a “corky”, and instead of in the thigh, it was in his arm. And a slight low-grade headache.
That’s not bad. My husband has only just turned 50, so he has only just scraped into getting the jab. At this stage, he’s well enough to go to work tomorrow. Aside from these two effects, all went well with him commenting he didn’t even feel the needle and would not have known he had it except for the speck of blood on the cotton ball.
Between us, we have decided to split the vaccinations to avoid both of us suffering from potential side effects at the same time. I also get to avoid a needle for a little longer. 😏
Marshmallows not Tree Felling
Apart from the latest coffee craze and my husband going for his COVID vaccination, the trees behind our house, some five Australian and six American floors tall, were cut down (on Day 113, I mentioned it might happen). My heart ached to see them go, and I’m not sure anyone else’s did – apart from the birds who had been living in the tree now sitting on top of our fence watching the tree’s dismantling. I wish the craze would be with marshmallows and not tree-cutting.
There’s a part of me that cried, yet I knew the one with white-ants or termites had to go – it would be only a matter of time before it caused damage either to my neighbours’ houses or ours. Sadly, you can’t even get an emoji that looks like a gum tree – so here’s a palm tree instead. 🌴
Side note: Australian buildings typically have a “ground” floor which Americans refer to as the first floor. For example, if an American TV show says someone fell from the second floor, in Australia, that’s our first floor. Note, some architects and companies have built buildings with the American numbering in lifts (oops, lifts are also known as elevators), which can sometimes get mildly confusing.
Today's Cards
The Cards - Analysis
Carryover Cards
Only one card carried over from yesterday, and Guidance stays in the Outcome position.
Analysis
Today’s cards seem disjointed. The Cross seems to focus on the felled trees, and the Base appears to focus on my husband’s vaccination and how it makes me feel.
Cross
Aloneness has Sorrow as an influence, and Past Lives inhabits the Goal. The Distant Past of Existence births Creativity, Aloneness and paves the way for Abundance.
I feel alone in my Sorrow (sadness) for the felled trees. This sentiment is, of course, not mine alone, even though it feels that way. I often felt at one in my Existence with the trees. Especially in the Distant Past, during my meditations on the back deck beneath their shade.
On the bright side, removing the trees with termites (one was severely so) has been spared from causing potential damage to people and property. The removal of the trees has also opened up the sky. There’s now an Abundance of light, which is also pretty. Thankfully, some trees remained.
Base
It appears that the cards have spotted the ruse of avoiding the “jab” because Postponement is in the Feelings spot.
Others’ Views see me as undergoing Healing or assisting with my husband’s Healing.
Hopes & Fears has Control. I fear I have no control over whether to be vaccinated or not and hope there is enough flexibility for me to come to it in my own time. Sensing the right time to act is important to me, especially when it comes to my body and what happens to it, so I hate being pushed.
My body, my choice. It’s like being swept along with a crowd, and you just want a moment to think. I usually come around; it just takes me a little longer. Taking a bit of time or even questioning the process seems like it earns you a frown from some. Not everybody is the same; some patience and tolerance would be nice.
Finally, the Outcome position has Guidance. Guidance is about listening to your inner voice and finding out which direction you need to take.
References
- Osho, Osho Zen Tarot – The Transcendental Game of Zen, St Martin’s Press, ISBN 0-312-11733-7
- AstraZeneca, 2020, COVID-19 vaccine AZD1222 is better tolerated in older adults than younger adults with similar immune responses across all age groups, AstraZeneca Media Centre. Published Online
