Acknowledgments

Preface

Working on the Animals Divine Tarot has been one of the greatest experiences of my life. It was a project infused with passion; researching the myths, sketching the animals, and composing the prose took me several years to compile. The more I conducted research and became familiar with the myths and ani­mals that comprise the deck, the more I yearned to go deeper and search more intensely. I could not include all the animals that I wanted to; it was difficult to choose just one animal from so many. I feel that the animals I could not include are no less valuable to our consciousness than those that I showcased in the deck. I chose the animals carefully and thoughtfully and tried to match them with the meanings relevant to each card.

The idea for the Animals Divine Tarot was borne out of my deep respect for animals. They have always been a source of artistic inspiration for me. Much of my childhood was spent sketching trees, animals, and other elements of my surroundings. My fascina­tion for nature certainly affected my life and helped to feed my creative soul. By making animals the focus of a tarot deck, I have come back home to the place where sketching my natural sur­roundings was the most joyful pastime of my childhood.

While preparing for this project, I made many visits to wildlife sanctuaries, zoos, parks, and an animal farm. Traveling to these ani­mal habitats set the muses in motion. 1 marveled at the diversity of these creatures. Some were chatty, communicative, and engaged in all manner of interactive play. Others were more quiet and solitary, content to bask in the warm rays of the sun or to retreat to the shel­ters of their makeshift caves. They were all living in the moment.

I sat, sketched, and observed their various nuances. Observing nature helped me to see a world that I yearned to participate in. The more I sketched, the more intimate I began to feel toward these beautiful creatures. Each has its own unique appearance and personality. They exhibited many human qualities, some exercis­ing territorial authority while others tried to impress a mate by spreading their spectacular plumage.

The prairie dogs stole the show. These animated creatures held everyone spellbound, children and adults alike, with their funny antics and obvious love for life. They played hide and seek, chased each other, rolled around on the ground, and licked each other's fur. They seemed to be in perfect harmony with the world.

Animals are important contributors to our well-being: they can provide solace during times of sadness and great joy during moments of play. I believe the more we take the time to appreci­ate animals, the better we will be able to understand their lan­guage. People often develop their own dynamic with their animal companions. Some people become so connected to the animals that they learn how to effectively communicate with them.

It is my goal to help inspire you to look at animals in a different light by gazing upon the art in Animals Divine and seeing the vari­ety of ways animals can be portrayed, rendered, and celebrated. And in doing so, perhaps this will enable you to see yourself in new and refreshing ways. Animals have something to tell us and the more we open ourselves up to their divine essence, the more we can learn to live more fully and passionately in the moment.

Acknowledgments

J would like to thank those who have helped to inspire and encourage me during this project: my husband, Kort Kramer; my children, Connor and Kyra; my parents, David and Annelies Behnke; and my soul sisters, Kris Waldherr and Pamela Keane.

I would also like to thank my professors at Union Institute and University, including Eleanor Ott, Ph.D., for pushing me to explore new realms of personal achievement. Thanks also goes to the staff at Llewellyn, including my amazing editor, Rebecca Zins, and Barbara Moore, Nancy Mostad, and Lynne Menturweck, whose belief in my work for all of these years is much appreciated.

Introduction

Дата добавления: 2015-11-16