Shaman Frame drum for ceremony and shamanic journeying

This native style frame drum is hand made with a spruce wood hoop and blacktail deer hide.

The cedar ring is fitted with an interlacement pattern of the 7-pointed Mystic Star, which is considered effective protection against evil influences and rival magicians. 

Numerous mystic sevens include the seven planetary spirits, seven deadly sins, seven churches of Asia, seven sacraments, seven days of creation, seven ages of man, seven pillars of wisdom, seven liberal arts, seven virtues, seven wonders of the world. 

The star design is repeated twice, with the outer pattern wrapped in decorative sailor’s knotwork of doeskin.

This drum is called “Little Brother” because it was taken from a deerskin that provided a second larger drum head.  It is very unusual for such a thin skin from a young deer to contain two drums.  To read more about my shamanic drums go to www.journeyoracle.com.  To purchase Little Brother go to my web store.   The larger drum that I call “Big Sister” is being finished and will also be available for purchase soon.

Too much wanting! How to cope with disappointment

I should be sailing away into the Desolation Sound tomorrow to celebrate the summer solstice on Pearl.  We have been planning this Solstice sail for weeks now--the house sitter arranged, the garden deep watered, the special solstice food prepared.  Today we hear that our oyster seed for 2016 is arriving on Sunday.  Just like the farmer cannot tell the lambs when to be born, the shellfish farmer cannot control when the oyster spat is ready.  This change in plans cannot be avoided and is no one's fault, but how to cope with the disappointment?

My first response is to clean something.  Really clean something, not just go over the surface.   Mop the floor, dust all the book jackets, clean the boot trays. When I am disappointed, my energy feels low and heavy, like disappointment is a weight that suddenly I am carrying with me everywhere.  When I clean in service to raising the vibration of my living space--it raises my vibration also.

Another response to disappointment is to go outside and work with my hands in something. Top dressing the container pots to prevent water loss and clearing the pond help me let go of the mental turmoil created by my continually telling myself the story of what was supposed to happen, Working in water and soil grounds my mental fantasy back into the practicality of what is happening.

Finally, I cope by not having a hard opinion of myself for feeling disappointment in the first place. It's OK to honestly feel the frustration and sadness of loss, but not so helpful to attach to it. Instead it's valuable to gain perspective.   I think I'll do a Journey Oracle reading to understand the teaching of this situation in its larger context. And this is the perfect question to take to the Oracle: "Why so much wanting?"

Am I psychic?

I am creating an on-line reading for the Journey Oracle cards that will be able to be purchased from my webstore, and I suppose this means others will wonder am I psychic?  What is it to be psychic? Webster's defines psychic as "of the soul, having to do with the mind, and knowing beyond natural or physical processes."  While I agree with the first two descriptions, I take issue with the last definition. The ability to read an oracle card depends on completely attending to natural sensations and physical information without listening to an inner voice of assumption or judgement.  Here is a quick Oracle reading of what I mean.

This Journey Oracle card is a picture of my situation, which is contained in this question,"Am I psychic?"  My first sensation is of a bird looking intensely, looking with intention.  Watching.  To be psychic is to be looking where nature is looking.  Looking with bird vision into far distances and the tiniest detail.

This second oracle card is a picture of my experience of my situation which is the question, "am I psychic?"  Open eyes, big ears, long nose; everything taking in sensation.  And yet what kind of creature is this?  What kind of creature is psychic?  Unusual, not easily definable, not ordinary.  

This third card represents change.  Not an easy image to identify.  Looks like a landscape that is also a person with startling blue, sad eyes, made of water, fire and stone.  I see a little figure going through an opening on the right.  Change is going ahead, going through.  Change is seeing that everything, every creature, every force is a person.  Everything is psychic; is participating in soul, in the Great Mind. 

This last card of the reading represents the resolution of the situation.  One eye is dark, one eye clear. Being psychic is looking out with intention from the spirit side.  And all it takes is one clear eye. 

Full Moon in Von Donop Inlet

Sometimes the Journey Oracle cards, shamanic drums and new painting have to take a break for a full moon sail into Von Donop Inlet on the northwest coast of Cortes Island.

We find good holding in 29 feet of water over a mud bottom and have a perfectly quiet night, no wind and only two other boats in the inlet with us.

Although sometimes its fun to plan exotic holidays, on a night like tonight I have no yearning to be riding in that far-away jet liner as it pierces the sunset sky.

May this June full moon be a blessed beginning to the summer for us all, with time to meet the life that teems in these waters and on the land, and with just the right size vehicle to be a part of the whole.