Connecting with Your 1918 Flu Pandemic Ancestors

There’s not one person on earth who doesn’t have an ancestor who either lived through or perished in the 1918 flu pandemic. Today, I’m going to show you how to contact that ancestor and what you might learn.

Worldwide Impact

First, a tiny bit of history. The 1918 pandemic came in three strains, with the killing one hitting America in August of that year. Although estimates vary, it’s thought that about 50 million people died, worldwide.

Letter carrier image: Courtesy Library of Congress

Just as with Covid-19, anyone who came into contact with the public was especially vulnerable. And just as today, wearing a face mask was commonplace.

If you think social distancing is unique to the 21st century, it’s not. Back in 1918, after realizing the severity of the flu, public gatherings were outlawed in many places, including churches, schools, and any other place where large numbers of people congregated.

Because one of my ancestors died of the Spanish flu, I wanted to make contact to see if she had any words of advice for those of us living through Covid-19

Prepping for Ancestral Contact

Preparing for ancestral work can take many forms. Because this is something I frequently do, my method is to do 5-10 slow, deep breathing exercises. This quickly drops me into a receptive state. Once I feel centered and grounded, I ask the ancestors if the time is good for me to connect with my ancestor who perished in 1918. I typically will hear a strong ‘yes’ or ‘no’.

If you’ve never done ancestral work using Tarot, I’d suggest you begin by doing your usual pre-Tarot reading preparation. This might include lighting a candle, working with your ancestral altar, or doing a brief meditation in which you ask the ancestors to come forward. If you know who the 1918 ancestor was, you can ask for them by name. If you don’t know, simply tell the ancestors what you are seeking, then wait to see who comes forward.

Be sure to ask if this is a good time to connect with your 1918 ancestor. If you don’t ‘hear’ an answer, draw three cards and do a simple yes-no spread. If you hear a ‘yes’, then move forward.

Quick Yes-No Spread

The easiest way to get a yes-no answer is to draw three cards. If two or three are upright, the answer is yes. If two or three are reversed, the answer is no.

If the answer is ‘no’ – try again at a later time. Not all ancestors want to work with us 24/7, so don’t be offended if the one you want declines. You have other 1918 ancestors, so if the specific one you requested doesn’t come forward, ask for another.

Once you’ve done your pre-reading preparation and received a go-ahead from the ancestors, then shuffle you cards and follow along with the spread below.

The 1918 Pandemic Spread

Because I know I lost an ancestor in December of 1918, I knew exactly who I wanted to contact. However, the spread works the same if you don’t know a name or their relationship to you. Remember, the questions are directed to one of your ancestors who lived through or perished during that time.

1.  Did you realize the severity of the flu when it hit your hometown? (3 Pentacles)

2.  Did you think you were taking adequate protection? (Fool)

3.  When you or someone close to you passed over, were there others with the flu who passed at the same time? (Page of Swords)

4. Do you have a message for how those of us living through Covid-19? (Wheel of Fortune)

5. What do you see as the new normal post-Covid-19? (King of Swords)

6.  Do you have a timeline for a vaccine or effective anti-viral to be available? (9 of Cups)

7.  Do you have anything else you want us to know? (5 of Wands)

Deck: Universal Waite Tarot (U.S. Games)

Because I often hear answers, my interpretation of a card may be different from your own.

The information I received from this ancestor was that she didn’t know just how deadly the flu was and in fact she received it while attending a church service. As far as taking precautions, she took none as she felt that the flu would only have a minimal impact on  her small town.

Surprisingly, I thought that when she passed, she might have been accompanied by many people, as in her county close to 1,000 people passed at about the same time. However, with the Page of Swords, I believe she was only aware of a child who passed with her.

The message that really hit home for me was her message for those of us living under the threat of Covid-19 – the Wheel of Fortune. The message was clear:  If we do all that we should to keep safe – and keep those we love safe – then we will stay on top of the Wheel. If we take ill-advised chances, we’re going to fall off. If there ever was a forewarned is forearmed message, it’s this one.

As far as the ‘new normal’, we get the King of Swords who is concerned with ideas, especially as they impact organizations or large structures. I believe we are going to see a lot of thought going into new ways of doing things, as well as new structures of government. This, I believe, is going to occur first at the local level, then move its way up. How each of our communities envisions itself is going create the new norm.

Of course, I was really interested in a timeline for a vaccine or effective anti-viral. Cups denote summertime, but this summer or next? With the 9 of Cups, the best I can interpret is nine weeks into summer, which puts us at September. Again, whether that’s 2020 or 2021, I don’t know.

The last question – was there anything else she wanted us to know? With the 5 of Wands we are seeing a scene of competitiveness. Is this about the mask-wearer vs. the non-mask-wearers, or one pharmaceutical vs. another? Because it was the last message that she wanted to impart, I think we are being warned that unless we work together as a whole, Covid-19 is going to be around for a very long time.

Nancy Hendrickson is the author of Ancestral Tarot (Red Wheel/Weiser Spring 2021) and a columnist for The Cartomancer Magazine. She hands out at SageandShadow.com

If you’re interested in learning more about the 1918 pandemic, the National Institutes of Health released a video of a public research symposium involving Virginia Tech students who present their research on various aspects of the 1918 pandemic.  https://videocast.nih.gov/summary.asp?live=36347&bhcp=1

Answers to Your Questions about Tarot: Tarot as a Tool for Mediumship

This question comes from Christina, who would like to know if it is possible to use tarot as a tool for mediumship.

This is a great question.

I first discovered this important use of tarot quite by accident. Early in my career, a client asked me a question about a recently deceased loved one. I had no idea what would happen, but I thought about the person and pulled a couple of cards.

My interpretation of those cards made sense to my client, as a specific message from their loved one.

Encouraged by this, I worked out some protocols for doing this work with tarot. Over time, I found that, when asked to communicate with someone in spirit, I could get information from the cards, and at the same time, I might be given specific words or images to share with my client. These words and images just began popping into my mind as I was doing the reading. That, along with the messages from the cards, gave very authentic and helpful communication from the spirit world.

On other occasions, I would notice that certain spirits would want to be included in the reading, even if the client did not mention them. Sometimes a certain card would indicate a person in spirit. For instance, the Empress might indicate a message from a client’s mother or grandmother in spirit.

Sometimes, while reading, I would feel the insistent presence of a loved one, which would open the opportunity to facilitate communication with that entity, often using the tarot cards to do so.

I will share the technique I’ve developed for reading tarot for those in spirit. Perhaps it will also work for you.

The first thing, and this is true for all psychic work, is to not be afraid to say what you see, feel or hear. At the same time, you must phrase those things in ways that will be helpful, rather than hurtful.

Recognize that when we ask for Spirit to communicate with us, spirit usually complies. When we ask while using a tool that easily connects us with our psychic ability, our higher self and the spirit world, we are doubly empowered to receive communication.

The protocol I use can change from reading to reading, depending on the circumstances. However, if a client comes to me because they want information about a loved one in spirit, what follows is my basic technique.

First, I ask, “Who was this person in life?” I shuffle, and pull a few cards. I look at the cards I’ve pulled and let either a story emerge, or perhaps a list or adjectives, or some other way the cards describe the person in life, and how they related to the querent.

This serves to help me know what the person feels like energetically, and make a connection to them in spirit. It also helps the querent by revealing some significant aspects of their loved one’s life.

Then, I look at the energy around the actual death. Often, we aren’t told how someone has died, but the manner of death may be very significant to the querent, and therefore, to the reading.

So, I shuffle, ask about the death, and pull a few cards. These cards may reveal what actually happened, the feeling around what happened, or even the way the departed experienced their death.

Next, I want to know about the transition. What immediately happened upon arriving in the new world? Again, I shuffle and pull a few cards. Very often Court cards will appear to indicate the specific loved ones in spirit who greeted the departed first.

Then, I might ask a question like, “What is Dad doing now?” I pull a few cards to describe the loved one’s concerns and activities.

My final question is usually “Is there a message?” The cards that I pull will usually translate into a very specific and pertinent message for the client. Added to that, I might ask how my client can better communicate directly with their loved one. What signs should they look for, or where should they be?

This process is often augmented by thoughts, words, pictures and sounds that come to me while I am reading in this way. I believe that even people who have never explored their mediumistic tendencies can have profound experiences when they open themselves to the spirit world with this powerful tool.

Christina, thanks for a great question. Enjoy the video!