2 Years of Pockets of Joy

Reflections on 2 Years and What's Next

Substack is so good at reminding me of ways to grow my audience, even if I don’t listen to everything they say. As I was working on other draft posts, I saw a suggestion in my dashboard for “Write an anniversary post,” which reminded me that I started this newsletter 2 years ago on April 4th. She’s an Aries Sun, Taurus Moon, and Gemini Rising, in case you were wondering. :)

For inspiration, I went back to my first anniversary post. I reflected on how I struggled with perfectionism and imposter syndrome while wanting to post more regularly. Shortly after that, I introduced 13 Things Thursday, which has been a game changer for consistency and switching things up. The more I put myself out there, the easier it gets. I feel way more comfortable sharing than I did a year ago.

There’s something about Aries season that really lights a fire under your ass to do the dang thing, so I guess it’s very on brand that this newsletter started right in the middle of it. This year, Aries season combined with eclipse season (and my nodal return) has me feeling a bit unmoored. I’ve intuitively felt something bubbling under the surface, even if I’m not entirely clear on exactly how it will look.

Bringing it back to the nodal return: the current eclipse series is on the Aries/Libra axis, meaning anyone with their North Node in Aries/South Node in Libra (like me) is experiencing their nodal return. Your north node in astrology is all about destiny, what your soul is meant to do in this lifetime, what you’re learning to balance. The Aries/Libra axis is about finding the balance between self/other. Learning to stand up for yourself, set boundaries, and show up unapologetically. Balancing the gift of peacemaking and holding different perspectives with the people-pleasing tendencies that have you meeting everyone else’s needs but your own.

For me, my South Node in Libra is in my 2nd House (ruled by Taurus), which is all about your own resources, values, and self-worth. My North Node in Aries is in the 8th House (ruled by Scorpio), which deals with shared resources, intimacy, transformation, and unearthing the things that are uncomfortable to talk about.

These themes have shown up for me in a lot of ways, (maybe more on that in a future edition), but I noticed that it also ties into my future vision for this newsletter…

Pockets of Joy is going paid!

I’ve been toying with this idea since the newsletter’s inception, but I wanted to establish a more regular cadence and determine paid subscriber benefits. Since this is something I do in my free time, finding a balance between preserving my energy and providing value has been my biggest sticking point. That said, waiting until I had the perfect posting schedule or the most valuable paid subscriber benefits wasn’t serving me. Sometimes you just have to try it out and see what works. I have a plan for this initial phase, but of course it will continue to evolve.

So here’s how it will work for now:

• Free subscribers will continue to receive my 13 Things Thursday posts and other long-form essays

• Paid subscribers will receive a little something extra with every newsletter, which may include but are not limited to the following:

  • Collective oracle/tarot reading with commentary and/or journal prompts (This is where I’ll start, and will likely be the most common)

  • Exclusive paid subscriber discussion threads with individual card pulls/mini readings, ask me anything, etc.

  • Essays about more personal topics where I’d prefer a smaller audience

  • Voiceovers of long-form essays, or bonus commentary

  • Note: I may decide to make any of these features available for free subscribers occasionally, either to give a sneak peek of what’s available behind the paywall, or if it’s simply too good not to share with everyone :)

I’ll include a freebie tarot/oracle reading at the end of this post so you can see an example of what you’d be getting with a paid subscription.

If you’ve been a subscriber for a while and love what I share, I hope you’ll consider a paid subscription. This newsletter has been an amazing creative outlet for me, and I want to put more time into it to connect with you all and share things that you’ll hopefully find fun and interesting. Whether you choose to support financially or not, thank you for celebrating 2 years with me! I’m excited to continue the journey and see what’s next. :)

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Bonus Oracle/Tarot Reading

For this card pull, I used the Hanson-Roberts Tarot and the Align: Heart Affirmations Oracle (currently out of stock, but the creator is looking to make a 2nd edition) to string a message together for the readers of this newsletter.

The Fool from Hanson-Roberts Tarot with a message from the Heart Align Affirmations Oracle

The Fool is the first card of the deck and also the major arcana, which represents big life lessons and spiritual themes. They are also the protagonist of the tarot, which is often called “The Fool’s Journey.” So there’s a lot of fresh start energy here, with plenty of optimism and a little bit of naivete. The Fool packs lightly, knowing that their steps are divinely guided and trusting that their needs will be met. The details are less important; there’s no clear plan for the way ahead. The beauty is in the journey, and the Fool is happy to take a leap of faith and enjoy the view.

I loved the pairing of this affirmation: “I don’t need to be useful to be worthy and deserving of love.” So many of us have been conditioned to believe that our value lies in what we do for others, what we achieve, whether we meet our expected timelines of exactly where we feel like we “should” be by a certain time. We spend so much time trying to meet those expectations and strive for more that we forget to simply live, to be present. Your worth is inherent; there is no one on this earth like you, and your very existence is a miracle. While service to the world and to others is beautifully fulfilling, don’t forget to fill your own cup, too. To learn from the Fool, remember that not every moment needs to be productive. Stop and smell the flowers. Touch some grass. Meander without an objective. Do things just because they make you smile. Revel in the fact that your soul landed on this planet for this moment in time. We don’t know what’s ahead, but if we knew the whole plan, our heads would probably explode. We’ll know what we need to know when the time is right.

If you want something more personalized, you can book a donation-based tarot reading with me here. The dates/times listed are not a meeting time; your reading will be delivered to your email within 7 days.