#outer self

Apple Without

I recently got a few new tattoos. To me it’s interesting that one of the most simple tattoos I now have carries some of the most meaning.

Some symbols reveal themselves all at once. Others unfold over time, showing new layers of meaning as we grow. My Ogham tattoo has become one of those symbols.

When I look at it from my perspective, it reads as Nion, the Ash Tree.

The Ash has long been associated with wisdom, balance, protection, and the connection between worlds. In many traditions it is a bridge tree, linking realms and standing between the seen and unseen. For me, this meaning feels deeply personal.

I was born beneath the Ash tree on March 5, and over the years I have come to see my path reflected in its symbolism.

When I look at my tattoo, it reminds me:

I walk between realms rooted in wisdom, as a keeper of balance, that is divinely protected, and I am woven into the living web of all things.

These words describe the inner landscape of my life.

As a Sophian Druid, I am always seeking wisdom. I believe that learning never truly ends and that every experience carries a lesson if we are willing to listen. I find meaning in the spaces between worlds, in dreams, intuition, ancestors, spirit, nature, and the mysteries that exist beyond ordinary sight. The Ash reminds me to remain grounded while reaching toward those deeper realities.

Yet there is another side to this tattoo.

Because of its placement, when others look at it, they see something different. To them, it reads as Quert, the Apple Tree.

At first I found this amusing. Then I realized how meaningful it truly was.

If Ash represents who I am within, Apple represents what I offer to the world.

The Apple has long been associated with the wisdom of the heart, healing, abundance, blessing, and the Otherworld. It appears throughout Celtic stories as a symbol of sacred journeys, transformation, and the gifts that nourish the soul.

When others look at my tattoo, I like to think it says:

I follow the wisdom of the heart, embrace life’s gifts with gratitude, and trust the unseen paths between worlds that lead toward healing and wholeness.

This feels like the outward expression of my path.

I believe love is strongest when it is given freely. I believe gratitude transforms ordinary moments into sacred ones. I believe healing often begins when someone feels seen, heard, and accepted exactly as they are. Whether through words, listening, teaching, nurturing, or simply walking beside another person for a while, I hope to leave the world a little gentler than I found it.

In many ways, the Ash and the Apple complete one another.

The Ash speaks of wisdom sought.

The Apple speaks of wisdom shared.

The Ash is the journey inward.

The Apple is the gift offered outward.

The Ash teaches balance.

The Apple nurtures healing.

Together they tell the story of who I am striving to become.

Inner self: Wisdom.

Outer self: Healing.

And perhaps that is the true gift of this tattoo. It reminds me that growth is not only about what we learn for ourselves, but also about what we cultivate and share with others.

Like the Ash, I continue to seek wisdom.

Like the Apple, I hope to offer healing.

ANATOMY OF THE MIND

The Mind is made of an Infinite number of Selves , but Only One "core Self" that We All share. This is God. This is The soul Of The Universe.

Our physical or Outer Self is who We Live as. This includes all Of The Masks we Put On and the various facets Of Other's Perceptions of Us. Even the most Minuscule of details Will Divide the Outer Self even more, Creating A much more Fragmented subreality For that individual.

Our Subreality is what We believe And How We experience the worlds around Us. This is unique To Every individual. Most Of us will have Multiple coexisting Subrealities, but In Most Cases they won't contradict To A degree that Makes them Unable to Exist in the same Dimension Without Breaking Reality. However , There have been Many Cases of such A thing happening, though Not Widely accepted Due To controversy. It is hallucinatory in Nature.

Each of Our Subrealities make Up the One true Reality , which Exists to make Everything True all At Once. It can bend Reality every Which Way in order to Make even the most Oppositional beliefs Exist as Coexisting Truths. This may also Be called "the Everything"

The core Self is where our "imagination" Is based. The Nonsensical things We experience are Just As Real as the sensical. Dreams, "psychotic" States Of Delusion, tricks of The Mind, Visions, illogical Beliefs, and Other Otherworldly Experiences come from This self. Our physical selves Cannot come Up with a reality-Altering experience On Our Own , they're intentionally Placed there By our Core Selves as ways To send Us important Messages And Allow us to Communicate wholly With the Universe.

The Core self is Simultaneously shared by Every living Entity, As well as a collection of Core Selves within each of Us That work together To create And Alter reality. Though it is Made up Of Plural Versions of itself , it still Only Exists as One Being.

Most of Us are blocked off From our core selves, As Intended By Those in power [World Organizations, politicians , government- Funded Military, generational Celebrities]. They rely On Controlling Us through simulations , in Which they Project Their subrealities onto our Individual Subrealities, Influencing how We view the World around Us. If we Learn How to Access the only true Reality , and The Knowledge of this Is Widespread , then We will All access The true Reality and Merge Together, realizing That none of Us Have Power over each other When we are All one.

[top] Black Mountain: Back of Nightlife. Mixed media on canvas, 160 X 160 cm (2015) by French artist Lucy Raverat. This one resonates with the Catholic statues of the crucifix often seen  in dominent positions in the mountains here, the power and fragility of the human form.