#author – Cara Carozza

Living Maya Time – Symbols of Q’anil

I traded my usual flute of sparkling champagne for a sponge filled with bubbly soap to welcome the Gregorian new year of 2026. Last trecena, Tz’ikin offered an expanded vision of the path to prosperity and I wanted to view that path with a clear lens. This opportunity to see with the clarity of the eagle inspired me to clean and clear every corner of my physical life. My house, my car and even my office. On the ceremonial day of the trecena, 8 Iq, I performed a purification ritual. I washed all of my window sills and door thresholds with a salt water wash infused with lavender and cypress oil and fresh eucalyptus leaves. As I opened each window, I invited the fresh and recalibrating energy of the new solar year to clear away any stale or dense energy that no longer served.

Today we welcome the energy of Q’anil. Q’an means yellow and combined with the suffix il it means yellowing or ripening. The glyph for the nawal of Q’anil represents a perforation upon the earth separating four seeds that represent the four colors of corn: red, black, white and yellow. It is the planting of the seed, but also the harvesting of the crop. It is the continuum from germination to maturity. It’s the path from the vision offered by Tz’ikin to the manifestation into physical form through our careful tending. In the brilliant lucidity of my purified reality, two seeds were offered. The first was an educational path that will enable my son to take over my business when I’m ready to retire and the second was a traditional publishing contract for my second book which I’m currently in the middle of writing.

These are the seeds that I’m planting today in my garden under the benevolent and sunny energies of Q’anil. My seeds are hearty and from a known lineage. This next cycle will be about refinement for me. Refinement and dissemination of all the wisdom I’ve gained over the past three decades of traversing the landscapes of money and energy. I’ve come to understand how they intersect and how to make both work for you in a balanced and aligned way. I was also shown the vision for the cover of my new book. It’s a Mayan T shaped window overlooking a garden of spring flowers. The title of the book will be, A Second Spring: Money, Menopause and Magic. I can’t wait to share it with you once it’s finally born.

In the meantime, I invite you to choose your own couple of seeds to germinate today. What ideas presented themselves in the space between Christmas and New Year’s? Maybe today is the day your wishes can begin to come true. Your intentions will be in alignment with a calendar that is as old and as wise as time itself.

Happy New You,

Cara xoxo

Living Maya Time – Symbols of Tz’ikin

Iq blew threw California with tremendous force. Many on the west coast celebrated the Christmas holidays by candlelight, but not necessarily by choice. The hurricane force winds disabled much of our local power grid and most businesses in Carmel-by-the-Sea had to shutter their doors for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and even the day after Christmas. My family celebrates the Winter Solstice so we had plenty of leftovers and a generator to ride out the storm.

Iq is a strong nawal. It’s best faced with courage. My son mustered all his courage and the inspiring energies of Iq to propose to his girlfriend on Jun Iq which fell on December 15^th. Her acceptance initiated thirteen days of happy news, lively celebrations and lots and lots of conversation. Iq hummed, hovered and buzzed through my holiday season just like it’s animal totem the hummingbird. Iq has cleared the skies for todays nawal Tz’ikin. I’m grateful for the lighter energy this nawal offers.

Tz’ikin is the nawal of vision and it’s animal totem is the bird. Today’s energy gifts us with a panoramic view that may illuminate possibilities that have evaded our awareness. The expanded sight of the bird will be available to us over the next thirteen days. Most of us are reflecting on the past Gregorian calendar year whether we celebrate it or not. This new year, my outer and inner calendars are aligning and it feels quite magical. Especially while I’m still glowing from all our holiday fun.

Tz’ikin is the intermediary between humans and the creator and as such, it is the nawal of prosperity. Prayers made today are likely to manifest tangible and observable results. I’m going to channel my high vibes into a fire ceremony today. I’ve got three specific prayers to make.

One for a friend who’s having surgery tomorrow. My prayer for her will be for wellness. I will hold the vision of her completely healed and experiencing relief after years of suffering. My next prayer will be for another friend who is seeking a consistent flow of clients who value her services and happily pay her fee. I will offer seeds to the fire to keep Tz’ikin well fed so it can deliver her prosperity. My final prayer will be for my amazing daughter Caroline. She’s one of just a handful of women at her software company and she’s been recommended for a promotion. Ahead of many of her co-workers that have been working at the company longer than she has. The prayer that I offer for my daughter will be for expanded career opportunities and a healthy compensation for her new responsibilities.

Tz’ikin is the wisdom of a prosperous and healthy community. My prayer for our entire world this trecena will be for harmonious coexistence. Through the higher vision that Tz’ikin offers we can all imagine a brighter world into existence. One prayer at a time.

Many Blessings,

Cara

Living Maya Time – Symbols of Toj

I’ve had a lot of opportunities for gratitude over the past thirteen days, but I was not immune to the sting that the medicine of Ajmaq often brings. After eight long months and many hours on the phone with the Internal Revenue Service, Mercury Retrograde delivered my sister’s tax refund. The last thing I had been waiting for in order to finally close her estate. All that remained was to sort through her personal possessions. She left a surprisingly small amount of stuff. She’d done a massive purge and even managed to get her house into escrow in the weeks leading up to her suicide. She made the most difficult thing I’ve ever had to do as easy as it could possibly be for me. For this I will always be grateful.

I’ve kept what I think my niece and nephew will want the most when they are finally able to look at it. I found a few things that I know they will never want to see. I’ve set those aside to burn in ceremony this evening. Today we welcome the energy of Toj. Toj is the Nawal of reciprocity and the sacred fire. The fire ceremony is the Mayan’s most fundamental ritual and also my favorite. The fire is our portal to communion with the spiritual realms and our ancestors. It’s where we offer spiritual food to the energies that sustain us. Toj teaches that in order to have balance in our lives, we must make offerings in payment for what we have received.

I’ll be offering rose petals and rosemary from my own garden today. I’ve been trying to use what I have and what already knows the land. I will also offer cacao, tobacco, copal and agua florida from my favorite local sources in Central America. Supporting the indigenous wisdom keepers of the spiritual practices that feed my soul is part of the reciprocity of Toj. It’s another offering from me to create balance in my life.

The fire also offers an opportunity for purification. Fire cleanses and transmutes. Today I will burn the documents of old agreements. I will pray for the transmutation and renewal that only the flame can deliver and I will offer prayers of gratitude for the financial stability that my sister’s departure has created for me. I invite you to light a candle each day for the next thirteen days and take a moment to offer your presence and your gratitude for what you’ve received this year.

In Service,

Cara

Living Maya Time – Symbols of Aq’ab’al

We’ve been blessed with some early rains this year in California. Always something to celebrate. Both for the earth and the sky. The parched soil cherishes every drop and the rain clouds paint the horizon in a most spectacular way. Especially at dawn and dusk. This transition time is the energy of Aq’ab’al. It is the moment when the light changes. New concepts and ideas are revealed. Supported by the wisdom of N’oj the scribe and the unconditional love of Tz’i the dog, it’s time to start imagining our new creation for this calendar cycle.

This Spring I bought a journal just for dreams when I took a Rest and Digest workshop. I’ve always recorded the lucid dreams that come through with vivid clarity, but never kept a journal specifically for dreams. Remembering all my dreams has been more challenging than I expected. The images dissolve quickly in the first light of morning. Stillness is how I’ve learned to capture them. My mornings have become a quiet prayer to my soul. A totally new concept for me.

I am a morning person. I always awake before the dawn. When we had our four kids all living at home with us, my morning energy was channeled into making lunches and wrangling paperwork into backpacks while my husband made breakfast for everyone. I relied upon him to tell me what the weather was going to be like because I rarely looked outside until it was time to take the kids to school. It was exhausting and left me feeling disconnected from myself.

These days, I allow myself more time to rest and be still in the morning. When I do, I can remember my dreams much more easily. Rest, renewal and stillness are symbols I’ve come to understand as embodying the energy of Aq’ab’al. If we’re busy all the time and darting around from here to there, we might miss out on hearing what spirit is trying to speak. Or we might not even see the beautiful sunrise that is right outside our window. It will be gone in an instant, just like the images in our dreams.

Over the next thirteen days, I invite you to rest more and find time for stillness. If you do, new ideas and important messages may arrive. Mother nature may also gift you with a beautiful sunrise or sunset. This is wisdom of Aq’ab’al for me. Be still and all will be revealed in its’ own time.

Happy Listening,

Cara

Living Maya Time – Symbols of Tz’i

I’ve recently become a dog lover. Or at least a lover of one particular dog. For the next thirteen days, the Nawal of the dog will be our guide and companion. Our faith may be tested, but Tz’i is here to support us with unconditional love. An energy that I have become very familiar with since my little grand puppy Beso moved onto the homestead.

I could use some faith and some unconditional love today. I’ve been embodying the archetype of the scribe. I was at my computer writing nearly every morning of the N’oj trecena. I am already half way into chapter three of my new book. It’s been flowing. So much so that I got behind on some of my personal business.

I’ve been hearing from a number of my clients that their health insurance premiums were increasing dramatically for the next calendar year. My enrollment forms arrived early this month, but they remained unopened until this morning. My heart sank and then began to beat rapidly when I saw my new premium. It’s increased by $3,200. I logged onto my account, certain that there must be an error. There was not. The premium subsidies that had been in effect since COVID have expired and the current administration has not extended them. In fact, I think that the government is shut down because they are still arguing about the budget.

I don’t pay much attention to political news. I am required to take three days of continuing education each year and that keeps me informed about what’s actually going on. Follow the spending and you will see who is in charge and what their agenda is. It’s not very difficult to understand the laws of man.

Tz’i is here to help us understand natural law. It is the Nawal of justice and also our five senses. Tz’i also represents sovereignty. I’m being asked to be sovereign. To have faith in my own ability to stay well and heal myself. Without the assistance of the healthcare system. My new premium is unaffordable. I’ll be cancelling it later this afternoon. We only have it because California penalizes taxpayers without health insurance. The energy of Tz’i will not abandon me and if I get scared, Beso is here to offer me his unconditional love.

May you also walk and feel supported by the energy of the dog. It’s here for all of us over the next thirteen days. Whether we are dog parents or not.

With Unconditional Love,

Cara

Living Maya Time – Symbols of N’oj

Every choice is sacred. This is what I heard as I reflected on the second anniversary of my sisters passing on the Cholq’ij calendar. She passed on 9 E’. A day when our new life path may be clearly revealed. For the Maya, the number nine represents the number of lunar cycles that a human baby gestates. The Nawal E’ is the road or the journey. To live in harmony with the energies, one is said to be walking the white road.

My sisters’ choice to commit suicide changed the course of my life path forever. For two cycles I have been wearing a heavy coat of grief, unable to connect to her energies. Shame and survivor guilt have obscured her presence. The calendar offered another perspective. What if I could accept her choice as sacred? Perhaps then, I could receive her gifts and connect with her spirit more deeply.

The trecena of K’at offered me the ideal opportunity to liberate myself from the choking entanglement of my grief. I’ve had my sisters’ ashes on my deck since the dry season began. She’s been surrounded by flowers. Flowers whose vines had intertwined. This became my ceremony, untangling the knots that had formed. When I was done, the plants mirrored my own feelings. They looked healthier and there was room for new growth.

Today’s energy invites us to receive the wisdom that N’oj offers. We can only receive this knowledge when there’s space in our minds and in our hearts. Each Nawal offers us a symbol or glyph. The glyph for N’oj depicts a brain and circles which represent the potential for human spiritual evolution. My daughter and her father both carry the Nawal of N’oj and they are both engineers. The archetype of the engineer is the first symbol that I ascribed to the Nawal N’oj.

Part of the magic of this calendar is its’ insistence upon looking within ourselves to find the wisdom of spirit. Through storytelling and imagery, we can create our own library of symbols. Using our own unique language, we can connect more intimately with ourselves, our ancestors and our guides.

On 7 N’oj, I was invited to participate in the inaugural session of a Cholq’ij study group. The group has been created by Diana Paez who carries the Nawal of 4 N’oj. She has an excellent website, www.walkingthewhiteroad.com, which is filled with information about the calendar if you want to dive deeper into its’ wisdom. Diana is an excellent scribe and I have added that symbol to the engineer archetype that I already identified N’oj with.

As you move through the next thirteen days, take note of the symbols that you are offered. Journal the dreams that stay with you upon waking. Record the images that appear during your meditations. Use this information to distill your own knowledge. You are your own guru and you don’t need anyone else to connect to your higher wisdom.

You’ve got this!

Living Maya Time – The Trecena of E’

Kawoq ushered in a chorus of women that I have planted seeds of relationship with over the past few years. They all showed up eager to be watered. It should not have been such a surprise. The energy of the midwife and the rainstorm had been my conductor. She eased me into my labor with a quiet meditation retreat with my friend Cathryn. A once-a-year date to spend the weekend together doing something creatively empowering. It left plenty of time for leisurely meals and lots of conversation. Nice and easy.

The contractions got my attention when I got a call from my new sister, Maat. “I got my dispensary license! Remember you told me when we were in the Dominican Republic that you would take care of the taxes, right?” I did, but had forgotten. She would be my first cannabis client. Family and in an aligned business. I really couldn’t say no, especially after what my family had been through. Kawoq encouraged me to breathe. You got this she said. You’ve studied the law. You’re the best person for this work. She is so wise.

Transition came with a request from a client I had not worked for in a while. A delicate project, closing a family business and preparing the final tax returns. But also, something else. “I’ve seen the ceremonies you make for yourself online and I want you to create one for me and my husband for our anniversary.” Ashley is an artist. She ran for the City Council of Carmel – by – the -Sea and I was her campaign treasurer. We connected immediately. I got paid to learn a ton and collect money while drinking wine and eating cheese at all of her fund-raising events. It didn’t even feel like work.

I was surprised, but completely intrigued by her request. Almost immediately, I got a case of imposter syndrome. Am I qualified to create a Mayan’ish fire ceremony for someone else? I decided to just start and see what took form. Checking their anniversary date, I saw that it was today, 1 E’. Time to push.

E’ is the Nawal of the road, the journey and the new path. It nurtures and expands the new life birthed during the Kawoq trecena. Ideal energy for a ceremony to initiate a new financial direction. This was all I needed to fuel my creativity. Everything I needed was there. I didn’t need to buy anything. I just needed to allow the process to happen. And I had SOOO MUCH fun doing it! Equally fun was delivering it to her. She had gifted me one of her sculptures after the campaign. Now I was able to reciprocate.

A new path is emerging. One where my spiritual practices intersect with my business services. Fertile ground for more of my authentic self to emerge. I am feeling an exhilarating excitement building. The energies of this Trecena will also be supporting my journey to San Diego. My husband and I are visiting our daughter and one of our sons. I’m so excited to squeeze them both. Travel is auspicious for the next couple of weeks. Inward journeys are also supported. I’m starting one of those too. A 21 day cacao immersion. Can’t wait to meet Madame Cacao more intimately.

Bon voyage on your journey, I hope it surprises and delights you.

Cara xoxo

Living Maya Time – The Trecena of Ajmaq

In a divine wink from the Universe, I am a little late in getting this blog published. I am feeling my humanness. I had a particularly frustrating day yesterday. I had no capacity to write. This Trecena celebrates and offers us the opportunity to reflect upon what it means to be human. It invites us to find forgiveness for ourselves and for others when we embody those less than desirable qualities that all humans possess. The Trecena of Aq’ab’al brought the new concept of JOY in for me. I discovered my inner girl while sliding down waterfalls, zip lining, dancing and just FROLICKING. Returning home to confront my business was sobering, but not unmanageable. Not until yesterday. Yesterday found me impatient, exhausted and frustrated. What happened to my joyful girl? SHE WAS HAVING A TEMPER TANTRUM!

Today as I contemplated the theme of the next thirteen days, I had to giggle. To be human is not to be perfect or to feel good all of the time. The Mayan word Maq represents the veil that obscures our perception of Ajaw (God). This veil is what makes us human. According to the Mayan creation story described in the Popul Vuh, when the Gods fashioned the first humans, they created them without the ability to see the consequences of their actions. In doing so, humans must make mistakes to learn and expand their consciousness. Through reconciliation and forgiveness, we can achieve enlightenment. When we recognize that each of us is on our own journey, we can have compassion for the actions of others. We learn to respect the process of life as a human being on planet earth.

Since I lost my twin sister, I have struggled to forgive myself for not reaching out more and checking in on her during her last days. I knew she was struggling with her mental health. I had struggled with my own mental health the previous year. I had learned that I had to find the answers within to find my joy again. I expected her to do the same. Her suicide was a complete shock to me. She was taking steps to make changes and then SHE WAS JUST GONE. In the space of three months, she completely lost her center and felt unable to go on. I will always wonder if there was any action or words from me that would have kept her here with us. But, on this timeline she is gone and it serves no one for me to withhold forgiveness from myself. To be honest, her despair overwhelmed me. I was protecting my one inner peace which was quite fragile and I was serving the clients in my business. My tank was empty.

I will be taking as much time as I can for introspection in the coming days. Our birthday is later this month and it will be my first year celebrating without her. I want to arrive at the day in a place of wholeness that honors myself as a human, as a twin and now as a woman who is still a twin, but is now walking alone.

May you find forgiveness and compassion for yourself and others this Trecena.

Cara

Election Day Total Lunar Eclipse (Blood Moon) on November 8, 2022.

Hey Everyone

Are you planning to vote next week, or have you already mailed in your ballot? I just realized that on November 8, 2022, on the day of the election that will decide whether the Democrats or Republicans will control Congress for the rest of President Joe Biden’s four-year term in the White House, we will also have a Total Lunar Eclipse. This is the very first time in the history of the US that we will have a total lunar eclipse on election day.

Full moons are about CLOSURE and COMPLETIONS, and Eclipses signify important periods of CHANGE and TRANSFORMATION.

For some reason, the Ascended Master St Germain and his powerful Violet Flame keeps coming into my awareness when I think about this Eclipse. Some esoteric groups credit him with inspiring our founding fathers to draft the United States Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, as well as providing the design of the Great Seal of the United States. He is associated with the color Violet, which is a combination of blue and red (aha! there’s the connection). Healers and alchemists have used his powerful Violet Flame to bring about energetic balance and spiritual transformation where it is needed most.

I’m wondering which areas of our lives need this most right now….Well, this eclipse is on the financial axis of Taurus/Scorpio and Mercury will be in Scorpio too, opposing Uranus. These energies indicate shocks, surprises, instability and sudden shake ups and with Jupiter being where it is (on the world axis), anything that is revealed will be BIG NEWS.

To top that all off, we will also have a Square between Saturn & Uranus = seismic activity: earthquakes, volcanoes (literally and figuratively) and Pluto (symbol of transformation) is moving through the last few degrees of Capricorn. This represents a breakdown of top-down structures such as governments. Organizations with low vibrations such as greed, dishonesty etc will fall hard.

Wow, that’s alot right? We will have to wait and see what happens, but I plan to invite all things Violet and Light into my world during this time.

As I close my eyes and begin to dream-in heaven on earth, I will be sending you so much VIOLET love,

Cara – Seeker of Magic, Spreader of Light

Equinox Gateway 2022

The Equinox gateway is open, my friends! It started on 22 of September 2022. All those 2s give me chills!…in a good way.

This Equinox date marks the start of fall in the Northern Hemisphere and spring in the Southern Hemisphere.

The Equinox is a spiritually potent time, as the veil between realms is thinner than usual. Maybe that’s why you have been feeling an overwhelming urge to travel to the home you grew up in and connect with old memories? Or perhaps you need to spend some time with family, talking about loved ones who have passed, creating a family tree or scrapbook. Strengthening family roots will make you feel grounded and aligned to life beyond what we can see. It’s a great time to ask your ancestors to support you and to petition on behalf of other family members too.

During an equinox, the Sun crosses what we call the “celestial equator” — an imaginary extension of Earth’s equator line into space. The equinox occurs precisely when the Sun’s center passes through this line.

Just a word of caution: the information, downloads, flashbacks, DNA upgrades, dreams, new codes and experiences at this time can be very overwhelming. You need to find ways to TRANSMUTE, ANCHOR, GROUND & CHANNEL it all. Use the four elements of nature (earth, water, air & fire) to assist you as far as possible.

I plan to harvest some lovely cannabis (earth), spend time soaking in the bathtub with my man (water), hike in the fresh mountain (air) and also write a few release letters which I plan to burn in a ritual (fire). I also plan to cook something warm and delicious and I will definitely be using an onion or two. I don’t know if you know this superstition about the Autumn equinox but legend has it that the onion’s skin has a lot to tell about the kind of Winter that you’re going to have. Thin skin= fairly easy one. Thick skin = …well, let’s just say ….get the Kleenex ready. Ha ha ha!

Let me know how it shapes up for you.

Sending you Libra season love and wishes of balance,

Cara

P.S. Please remember that Mercury is still retrograde until October 3rd. Watch your words! There is a big cautionary about gossip/hearsay/miscommunication/arguments/judgement.