A Card for Your Day--> 6 of Cups

It's nice to see that you are back to love and emotion after that little scuffle with the 5 of Wands, readers. I had my share of skirmishes, too. I bickered with my grandson most of the evening. Would that I had remembered our card for the day!

Your card for this day is the 6 of Cups. I've used the Gothic Tarot by Joseph Vargo.

In this card is a lady ghost reading a book in a crypt. Maybe it's a photo album, maybe it's a journal, but she is remembering past times. Today's theme is nostalgia. Heartfelt memories and joyful reminders of the past may sneak up on you today. It's already happened to me. I woke up this morning to pictures from my past on Facebook. A friend decided to share some scenes from a shared experience in 1980. While the photos plucked my heartstrings, I was also reminded of the bittersweet memories of that time. It would be easy to dwell on that today. Remember, though, that the past is past. Don't let these sweet memories keep you from the work of today. Sometimes this card can be read as a karma card. Do some stressful situations seem to be happening over and over in your life? Do you find yourself involved with the same types of people? Examine these opportunities carefully because valuable soul lessons may be learned if you navigate them successfully this time.

We Interrupt This Program for a Message from Our Ancestors

A client asked me to do a reading about an ancestor of hers who she believes has been sending her messages all her life. It is a fascinating story involving dreams and synchronicities since childhood. The signs have really picked up lately, and she believes she is beginning to tie all them all together.

Ever had one of those dreams that sticks with you for life because you know it means something? This client has had several of those as well as some uncanny messages through divinatory sources since she was eleven years old. A recent dream pretty much tied them all together. A trip to her local genealogical library, a synchronous random passage in a book, and an Internet search verified her assumptions—that a family spiritual tradition died out in her family a generation ago. Her ancestor is urging her to research and regain her heritage. Can she trust this message?

This is just the kind of story we love, so we did a 10-card Celtic Cross spread to examine all the angles. I used the Radiant Rider-Waite deck. The Ace of Swords in the center is the truth card. She has wanted to get to the truth of these dreams and signs all her life. To know without a shadow of a doubt what these things mean. Crossing her is the Ace of Wands. This card speaks to the birth of a powerful inspiration. She, however, admits that she has resisted falling into impulse on this matter. She wants solid answers that what she believes is true, so this energy has indeed “crossed” her.

At the root is the Page of Swords. He is a clever thinker. He can put all the puzzle pieces together. He is all Air, all mind. He has keen insight as well. This represents my client. She has collected the pieces of the puzzle and can put them all together into a cohesive, convincing picture. She however lacks certain knowledge, so she doubts.

In the recent past is the Magician. These are the magical influences that have come into the client’s life. This issue is about a spiritual inheritance, so this card takes on a much deeper meaning here. She has been contacted through dreams, divination, random synchronicities, auspiciously timed gathering of facts, and more.

The 4 of Wands at the top gives us the general flavor of the reading. This celebratory card is often about rites of passage. These messages have been coming for a long time, but the client has just moved into a place where she can connect the dots. The next step is to accept where this is taking her—hence, the rite of passage.

The Page of Pentacles is in the near future. This card is the student/apprentice. Knowledge of the family tradition died with the ancestor. The client has resisted accepting her clues at face value because it is so easy to get lost in Fluffy Bunny Land in matters like these. Without concrete knowledge she doesn’t venture forward. But how can she get that knowledge? It has died with her ancestor. She must approach this with a more childlike, less severe attitude. If she wants the blessing, she will have to rely somewhat on faith. This looks like a good solid “yes” answer from the universe. In some books, I have seen this page connected to the solitary journey of the vision quest. I think that might apply here.

The client is represented by the High Priestess card. The HP trusts her dreams and intuition. She prompts us to look deep inside ourselves for our own answers. That’s a good message here.

The outward influence that is affecting the client is the taboo of veering away from standard spiritual practices, or a belief in surface matters rather than inner truth. She looks at things of this sort like a fanciful flight of whimsy that could steer her into some bad dodo. Her eyes got kind of big when I pulled that Devil card, though, so I pulled another for clarification (after I took the picture, and you know the trouble I have with pictures sometimes. I didn’t take another one.) The King of Swords is a person who relies over much on his intellect, but I think this card is also telling her to continue to read, research, and use her intellect. Just recognize that it can be an obstacle if held on to too tightly. At some point, intellect needs to merge with wisdom and faith.

Now for an interesting aside—she has gotten this card before when doing her own readings about this ancestor. The card that represented her ancestor was crossed by this card, and at the time, she felt that possibly her ancestor’s husband was against her spiritual gifts and insisted that she suppress them. This is quite possibly the reason they didn’t get passed down to the next generation in a God-fearing Southern community.

The 2 of Cups is a meeting of like-minded souls at the beginning of a fulfilling relationship. This is certainly what the client hopes is the case between her and her ancestor.

The Wheel of Fortune is a wonderful outcome for this reading. The wheel is turning and it definitely looks like the Fates are trying to nudge her into a new, important direction. All in all, I think this reading points to a positive direction in terms of stepping out into new spiritual territory.

A Card for Your Day--> Five of Wands

Competition is a fact of life, gentle readers. Your card for the day brings it front and center. Witness the Five of Imps from the Halloween Tarot by Kipling West. (Don't witness the bad photo. My life is an endless stream of dead batteries lately, and I am forced to rely on my camera phone.)

Advice: You may face some stiff competition today and have to fight for what you want. The rivalry is apt to get heated, but stand your ground. Be firm but play fair. Use the current political discourse as an anti-role model. Assert yourself but don't be vicious or catty about it.

Your Card for the Day--> The Lovers

Gah, readers. What's going on? So far all your cards for the day have been Cups cards and now you've drawn the Lovers not once but twice. This card is from the Gothic Tarot by Leilah Wendell. She photographed headstones from cemeteries around the world to create this tarot.

Advice for the Day: Cups have to do with the heart, emotions, and the psyche, among other things. The Lovers card has to do with Big Love (not the HBO show, but soupy, sloppy, big throbbing heart love). The Lovers also means there is a choice before you, but with all these Cups cards you've been getting lately, my bet is on the more emotional interpretation. So, listen to your heart, make the big gestures, and be awesome to one another.

What to Expect When Booking a Party with Tarot by Yvonne

First of all, if you are hosting a Halloween costume party, I will be happy to come in costume. In fact, I would love to come in costume. If you let me know what your party theme is in advance, I will try to dress the part.

I will bring my cards and other props, which usually include crystal balls, table spreads, candles, and various witchy trappings. You will need to provide me with a relatively quiet space (private or semi-private is preferred as people usually ask personal questions), a table and two chairs. I’m not picky. I have used a TV tray and 2 folding chairs before. You’re setting the stage as you see fit. If you want to create a gypsy fortune-teller or graveyard atmosphere, feel free. Many times I’m at the kitchen table or outside on a picnic table around a bonfire.

Let your folks know how long I will be there, then let them come one at a time for readings. I will do a basic 10-card spread for each person. The readings will usually last about 15-30 minutes. If you have lots and lots of guests, I can give 3-card readings. If you take a look at this blog, you will get an idea what the readings can entail. They can get really serious or be all in good fun. It all depends on where your friends take them. I can tell you that 9 times out of 10, people ask serious questions. That’s why I want to provide an atmosphere of fun and mystery, but I don’t want to demean the process in any way.

I am available to spend up to three hours at each party. If you’ve only invited five people, then I will leave when they have all received readings. If you’ve invited 100 people, I will read for three hours unless we have made prior arrangements. After that, my coach turns into a pumpkin and I must fly away home. And truly, much longer and your friends are generally sloshed, and nothing good ever comes from reading for drunk people.

I usually bring water, but it would be nice if you peeked in once or twice between readings to see if there’s anything I need. Doing many readings at once is demanding. Having a snack or drink through the process helps a lot. Usually people stream in the whole time I’m there and I don’t get a chance to pop over to the refreshment table. The occasional check-in is very much appreciated.

I prefer payment in advance. If you haven’t paid in advance, I expect payment during setup. If I wait until three hours in, you’re usually very busy with guests and sometimes forget that I need payment. That’s understandable, so let’s do it beforehand. It is best if I come at the beginning of the party. See the drunken friends comment above.

I believe in the power of tarot. It is a valuable tool for self-discovery. However, I will never tell you that you have a curse that requires more paid readings. I will never offer to work spells to remove said curses. I won’t try to scare you or coerce you into getting more readings. I will never encourage you to grow dependent on tarot readings. In fact, when I feel clients are leaning too heavily on tarot advice instead of making their own decisions, I immediately begin to “wean” them. Tarot should never take the place of legal, medical, or financial professional advice, however it can work in tandem with all of these.

That’s about it. If you have further questions, please ask. I will do my very best to provide great entertainment at your party! Believe me, people love to get readings and they will remember your party for a long time to come.

OBLIGATORY DISCLAIMER: These services are provided for entertainment purposes only.

RATES

Private consultation--$45 (Paypal payment must be cleared before phone or Web appointment)

Party--$150 for up to three hours

Other events--Priced on an individual basis

A Card for Your Day--> 9 of Cups

The 9 of Cups is the 9 of Ghosts in the wickedly awesome Halloween Tarot by Kipling West. This, dear reader, is your card for the day.

Make a wish! The 9 of Ghosts is a most auspicious card. The Universe is smiling upon you and wants to give you your heart’s desire. Formulate that wish and let it pass over your lips. Taste it. Want it. That’s the first step. Now let the Universe have it, then try and act surprised when it comes true.

Wuv, Twu Wuv

Mawage, that bwessed awangment, that dweam wifin a dweam... And wuv, tru wuv, will fowow you foweva. --The Impressive Clergyman from The Princess Bride

Two subjects monopolize my time as a professional tarot card reader—love and money. I have to say, though, that love wins. When I worked on a 900-number tarot phone line, the most frequent question I received was “Will we be together?” Sometimes that was followed with “Will he leave his wife for me?” It seems love is the topic over which we have the least control. This is made worse by the fact that we have no control over who they love. Yet the heart wants what it wants. No wonder love is the big question when it comes to readings.

I want to say a few things about love readings. First of all, I won’t answer a “Is he/she cheating?” question. Even though I have total faith in the cards, user error is always a possibility so I’m not going there. I also squirm a little when reading for the other half of the relationship who isn’t present. That’s a bit of a gray area for me…but I do it because the relationship is very much the business of the person getting the reading. I try to tread softly. Also, be advised that the “Is he/she my soul mate?” question is a tricky one. If they murdered you in a jealous rage in another life and here you are again, then you’re going to have a lot to iron out in this life. Although there may be a soul connection there, it might not be all roses and puppy dogs. I’m just sayin’.

I like to do very straightforward readings when it comes to love. I shuffle and lay the cards in three stacks. First is the client in the relationship. Next is the other person in the relationship. The third stack is for the relationship itself. The first two stacks are self-explanatory. The third stack treats the relationship as an entity. This is a very important aspect of the reading. Sometimes the wrong people hook up and disaster ensues. Sometimes all is well. This stack gives a sense of the reality of the relationship.

Drawing one card from each stack gives me a real quick snapshot of where everyone is at. If that isn’t enough information, or if the answer needs clarification, I will draw more cards where needed. These readings aren’t hard, per se. What is hard is the jumble of feelings and unmet desire that sometimes emanate from the client. Sometimes the cards work to help them face their feelings in a difficult relationship.

Here is a recent love reading I did for a client using the lovely Lover’s Path Tarot by Kris Waldherr.

The first stack represents the querent. What a snapshot! She is a very sensitive and intuitive woman who is extremely loving and compassionate. She is the embodiment of the Queen of Cups. She is also divorced (Queen of Staves, the Woman Alone) and has a young son (Prince of Staves). Of course, her free loving nature is curtailed by responsibility toward her son. She is going to be very cautious about who she brings into her life. In this deck, the Prince of Staves is a person with passion, creativity, and integrity who creates change in the world. She can create the relationship she needs by being true to herself.

The second stack represents the new fellow she’s just met. I had to go to my pendulum to figure this one out. One the one hand, he could be a busy but very passionate man who has trust issues. On the other hand, he could be a scoundrel who juggles women and does anything he can to score. By asking a series of yes-no questions, it looks like my client would do well to ask him if he is seeing someone else. It’s a new relationship. There is so far not a lot to lose. I didn’t get the impression that he is a player looking to put more notches on his bedpost. This, of course, led me to do a side reading about this guy and his intentions. I drew the 6 of Wands, the Knight of Pentacles, and the 2 of Cups. He feels like he is very lucky to have met my client, is a dependable guy, and is feeling a deep connection with her. So, not a horndog.

Looking at the third stack, the relationship can grow if both parties trust their inner guidance. It is so easy to be swept away with emotion and passion in relationships, but the Wisdom card cautions them to go with their gut when dealing with one another. Ask for honesty. Expect it. They should be careful not to create illusions about themselves to seem more desirable (7 of Cups) but approach each other with real honesty about needs and desires. If they can manage this, this could be a significant relationship for both of them (Lovers card).

See how sticky love readings can get? They’ve just met. It is reasonable to believe he may be seeing someone else—most people are. A desirable, reasonably successful man probably is seeing other people. If he's keeping it a secret, it may be because he is programmed to believe women will not accept the behavior. Change the paradigm. Bring it out into the open and work it through. It will be a refreshing change of pace, I'm sure--if he is indeed an honorable man. It may seem like I’ve just broken my own rule on the cheating question, but they aren’t fully invested in the relationship yet. Clearing this up is as easy as asking. They aren’t in that phase of the relationship where they should demand exclusivity, but by requiring brutal honesty of one another, they can lay the foundation for a real relationship.

Update: Follow-up with this client revealed that he is indeed in a long-distance open relationship. The client is feeling it out to see if this is agreeable.

A Card for Your Day--Page of Cups

You would not believe the trouble and agony I went through to get this picture posted this morning. It all began with some dead rechargeable batteries and involved a camera, a phone camera, two computers, two memory cards, and a lot of swearing. And the picture is not  good besides.

All that has nothing to do with today's card, the Page of Cups from the Faerie Tarot by Nathalie Hertz. In fact, it is the polar opposite of the feelings this Page inspires. I know I promised you spooky tarot, and I really hoped I would draw one of the creepier cards from this deck--but alas, the Universe ain't having it. So I scooched my Dracula mug into the picture to give you a scare.

But I digress...

Your advice for the day: Be available. Open to intuition. You may get some good news or an invitation. Put down your jaded sarcasm for a day and be innocent. It'll be fun. Maybe a blurry picture is good here. Remember how Doris Day used to be all fuzzy when the television camera panned in for a close up? It made her seem dreamy and bursting with love. Be that.

Mo' Money, Mo' Money

Especially these days, questions about money rank high in the tarot card readings I do for people, second only to the subject of love. Will I get that job? Will this business be successful? Can you sort out my inheritance? There are as many questions about money as there are people who ask them. I will tell you up front: Tarot can answer these questions. Be warned--you will most likely get an examination of your attitude toward money and prosperity as well. This is one of the things I love about the tarot. You may think you are asking the most mundane or unspiritual question ever, but the cards will often bring it back around to your soul’s work.

So here is a reading I did for a woman who has been unemployed for some time due to a layoff . I used the very beautiful and inspiring Robin Wood Tarot.

Despite her best efforts, she hasn’t been able to find a job. Today’s job market is an employer’s dream. So many people apply for each job that the employer can be extremely picky. She so far hasn’t been picked. Instead she is looking to her strengths. Can she build her own business? How can she make money doing something she loves to do? She has two avenues she would like to pursue. One is a consulting job. The other is selling high-end crafts. For her reading, I shuffled the cards and laid out a pile for the consulting job, a pile for the craft job, and a pile for something else. It’s possible that there is another job possibility on the horizon, so this pile serves as a “wild” card.

Let’s start with the Something Else pile, the third one. This exactly mirrors the job situation in the current economy. Not enough of them. Looks like we need to concentrate on the first two ideas.

Pile #1 is the consulting job. The first card, the Tower, is always an attention getter. This card means either the idea has a false foundation or she is going to get the rug pulled out from under her. Justice and the Emperor point to potential legal problems and fines. Is there some legal issue surrounding this option? Yes, she answers. Until those can get resolved, this option is not the preferred one.

Pile #2 is the handmade crafts option. Looking at all three options, this one immediately seems the best. The 3 of Cups signifies celebration and good times. The Magician points to the creativity involved with this option, also to the idea that she can create the job exactly as she wants. The 4 of Wands indicates harvest and harmony. Not only is this option the best of the three, but it is a strong direction for her to take. Looking at her three options, this one is definitely the one she should pursue.

She likes the first option and isn’t ready to give up the idea, so we did a second reading on the consulting job. If she works out the legal issues, will this career path be lucrative?

It is very obvious that this particular line of work has been a dream of hers (7 of Cups). It is something she has fantasized about doing for awhile, and is true to her idea of who she is (Ace of Swords). The word of warning with this particular cups card is that she will need to get a clearer focus to make her dream a reality. There are too many ideas. Pick one. She’s got to refine her focus and create some concrete goals. The Knight of Pentacles is good here. He represents laying a careful foundation. This knight is cautious but dependable. AND he points the way to riches, as seen in the 10 of Pentacles. This card is often called the Wall Street card, and bodes well for money matters. It is also a card about ancestry, and the client tells me that the business she is considering has family ties—an ancestor ran a similar business.

To wrap up, I advised the client to explore both options. The crafts option appeared to be more fun and creative—and the least hassle. The consulting option, once the legal issues were cleared up, could be a good fit as well.  It, however, would require a slow and steady buildup before money could be made.