Come Sit Under the Willow: Thumbling

This week, I’m trying something a little different.

As my hands work on a hand-sewn piece called Goddess Dreaming (with occasional assistance from Solara the calico cat), I read the Grimm fairy tale Thumbling.

Bring your knitting, sewing, drawing—or even a basket of laundry—if you'd like, and come sit with me for a while.

Or bring nothing at all. You’re welcome simply to rest and listen.

It’s an experiment in story, handwork, and companionship—the old pleasure of keeping our hands busy while someone tells a tale.

And if there’s a fairy tale you’d like to hear in a future episode, I’d love to know.

In this episode: Thumbling, collected by the Brothers Grimm; hand sewing; a calico cat; and a little time to make, listen, and rest.

This week, a new visitor comes thundering through the dream world: the Radiant Boar of Divine Sparkles.

I begin by pulling a card from my Dreamer Path Oracle deck—Heart of the Earth, whose roots turn out to have a curious connection to this week's story. I also share a glimpse of an embroidery piece I'm working on and tell you about a new experiment: recording myself stitching and pairing the calming visual with me reading a fairy tale.

Then we wander into the woods with Granny, where something large, bristly, sparkling, and entirely unexpected is waiting.

Along the way, I reflect on what the Radiant Boar has been showing me about the things we carry inside ourselves. What if some of those little balls of anxiety, grief, sadness, and guilt don't need to be fixed or gotten rid of? What if, from another perspective, they're tasty treats?

And then I'll read you the story, The Radiant Boar of Divine Sparkles.

If you have a favorite fairy tale you'd enjoy hearing me read while I stitch, I'd love to know.

Thank you for listening. I wish you healing rest, sweet dreams, and deep peace.

This week, I introduce you to an unexpected dream ally: an alligator named Crocodile.

Together, we wander into the swamp—a place of murky water, ancient wisdom, and surprising humor. Along the way, Crocodile shares his unusual perspective on overthinking, stillness, and why our deepest wisdom may live somewhere other than in our busy minds.

I also pull a card from the Dreamer Path Oracle ("Song of Stars"), share the new hand-stitched pouch I've been making for the deck, and reflect on how dreams continue to shape my own spiritual journey.

Come settle beside the swamp and listen...

You may even hear Crocodile's rusty laugh.

With love and lump-listening,

Susan

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This week, we return to the dream house and open the door to a room I've only recently discovered: the Monster Closet.

Before our visit, I draw a card from the Dreamer Path Oracle deck—Gift of Water—whose message of compassion and renewal turns out to be a perfect companion for the journey ahead. I also share a glimpse of a handmade pouch I'm creating for the oracle cards (if you're listening, there's a photo in the post) and a little about reconnecting with a dear friend after fifty years.

Then it's time to knock on a door marked "Beware!"

Inside are monsters who roar, chase each other, eat mac and cheese with their hands, and, perhaps surprisingly, enjoy a good story before nap time.

Maybe our inner monsters aren't always looking for a fight.

Maybe they're just looking for a place to be wild.

In this episode:

A Dreamer Path Oracle card: Gift of Water

Reflections on reconnecting with an old friend after fifty years

A visit to the Monster Closet in my dream house

Monsters, mac and cheese, tea, naps, and Where the Wild Things Are

An invitation to see our wilder parts with a little more curiosity—and perhaps even affection.

IThe Muddle Room (Where We Put Our Buts in Chairs)

What if your dream house had a room designed just for those in-between times when you don't know what comes next?

In this episode, I draw the Wisdom of Water card from the Dreamer Path Oracle deck and share the beginning of a new fairy tale inspired by the redesign of my website as an imaginal home. Together we'll visit the Muddle Room—a place where travelers from the Land of Trying Too Hard can set down their heavy boxes, put their "buts" in chairs, sip but-erfly tea, and simply rest for a while.

Along the way, you'll also meet a mysterious Monster Closet... and two curious feline visitors, Solara and Leilani, who make an unexpected cameo.

May this episode remind you that it's okay not to have all the answers. Sometimes the most healing thing we can do is allow ourselves a little time to muddle.

But I Went Back for Her: The Whale in the Swimming Pool

This week, I draw the Dream of Stars card from the Dreamer Path Oracle deck and share a reflection inspired by a dream that returned to me after many years.

It's the story of a whale trapped in a swimming pool high above the earth, and what happened when I finally went back for her.

Sometimes the images that visit us in dreams stay quietly with us, waiting until we're ready to understand them. This is a story about reclaiming an old dream, trusting our own inner knowing, and finding the protected cove we need before we're ready for the open sea.

May it offer you a moment of stillness, wonder, and a gentle invitation to listen to your own dreams.

Tell Yourself a Story

When I couldn't settle into meditation this week, an unexpected invitation arose: Tell yourself a story. Find the story you need to hear.

In this episode, I draw a card from my Dreamer Path Oracle deck, share a few recent creative projects, and then read the fairy tale that began unfolding in my journal over four mornings of meditation—a story of a little girl, a red fox, an old woman, soup, strawberry jam, and the slow journey home.

May it invite you to rest, to wonder, and perhaps to discover the story your own heart has been waiting to hear.

Episode: Walking Ahead of Myself

This week, I reflect on a simple discovery from one of my early-morning walks: sometimes my awareness seems to live a few steps ahead of my body. What happens when I consciously come back home?

In this episode:

An oracle card: Gift of Sound

Reflections on embodiment, tiredness, and coming home to ourselves

A reading of the fairy tale Little Louse and Little Flea

Gentle questions for meditation or journaling

Reflection Questions

What in your life quickly sends you into overwhelm or worst-case thinking?

What tends to leave you feeling "unhinged" or uprooted?

When that happens, what helps you come home to yourself?

What helps you shift your perspective?

What brings you genuine laughter or delight?

What is one small thing you could do today to invite more joy into your life?

Welcome to this week's podcast/video. Today, I share a card from the Dreamer Path Oracle deck, read a story I wrote when I was eight or nine years old, and guide a gentle meditation which invites you to connect with a younger self.

This week, I pull the Dreamer Path Oracle card Song of Water, a reminder of our deep interconnectedness and the songs that live within us.

I then share a treasure I've kept tucked away for more than sixty years: a story I wrote when I was eight or nine years old called How It Was Orange, about an orange button that was once a sapphire.

Finally, I guide a gentle meditation to reconnect with your younger self—the child who dreamed, imagined, collected treasures, and saw magic in ordinary things.

What treasures have you kept safely hidden away?

May this episode invite you to listen with curiosity and compassion, and perhaps to welcome home a part of yourself that has been waiting to be seen.

With love and a little magical stardust,

Susan

In this week's episode, I pull a card from the DREAMER Path Oracle deck and receive the beautiful message of Gift of Air—a reminder of renewal, levity, compassion, and the healing power of breath.

Rather than a guided meditation this week, I share a meditative reading of my fairy tale, John of the Crossroads, a story I wrote and performed more than a decade ago. As I reflected on crossroads, recovery, and life's transitions in this week's post, I rediscovered this story and realized it still has something to teach me.

John tends a sacred crossroads—a place of sanctuary and transformation—where travelers can rest until they know which direction they wish to go. Along the way, we meet a tree-girl in hiding, an angry dwarf, a bowl of soup, and the quiet wisdom of waiting.

May this story offer you a moment of rest, reflection, and perhaps a reminder that not every crossroads needs to be rushed through.

With love,

Susan