The Courage to Bloom
It is spring in the northern hemisphere. Here in Florida, the changes are subtle, but they exist. People who say that Florida does not have seasons have not spent enough time in Florida.
My favorite images of spring, however, come from my many years in the northeast. In early spring, when there is still snow on the ground, colorful flowers push their heads up through the snow to get to the sun. This feels like such an important metaphor for all of us.
Do you want your face to feel the sun? Do you want people to see your beauty? Do you want to act in hope for the future? Then you must have the courage to bloom, even under a blanket of snow.
This reminds me of an inspirational poster many of us had on our bedroom walls as teens in the 1970s. The quote is from Anais Nin.
And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.
My inner teenager still loves this quote. My outer adult values the reminder that every time we choose not to blossom, we are making a clear choice to be less.
What does blooming look like for you, at this time in your life?
What are the risks you must face in order to bloom?
These are great questions for contemplation, discussion, and divination.
I often see the seasons as invitations, or even imperatives, to do what the earth is doing. In spring, as the earth is renewed and replenished and blooming, we must look to our own renewal, and we must bloom.
The StaarCorner
We are so excited to announce that Maria Alvíz Hernando will be traveling from Spain to present an intensive at StaarCon 2024!
In her three-part intensive, Maria will teach you her Nine-Card Tarot Tableau. Wherever you are in your tarot journey, Maria will give you an important tool. This tarot reading technique can help you use the cards to find any information you might need, and to answer any question you might have.
Mark your calendar now to join us January 19-21, either in person or online. Tickets will be available soon!
Questions to Ask the Cards
The messages and spiritual lessons inherent in tarot beseech us to strive, and to reach for the stars. If we work with tarot, we know that our blooming is inevitable, no matter how we might try to hide and avoid the responsibility of that success.
What are the right questions to ask the cards as we work to release fear, and normalize the idea of being and doing our best, rather than hiding our light?
We opened this newsletter with two questions.
What does blooming look like for you, at this time in your life?
What are the risks you must face in order to bloom?
This becomes a great two-card spread to help you explore what it will take to allow yourself to bloom.
There are many other questions you can ask. I think questions specifically about fear are helpful.
What am I really afraid of? Is a fabulous question to ask the cards under numerous circumstances.
I believe that we often identify that we feel fear, but do not often enough discover why we are afraid. Knowing that can make all the difference.
The Week in Review
If you are a member of my YouTube channel, please join us tomorrow, Thursday, March 30, at 7 pm ET for a members-only livestream. Our topic this month is Tarot and Intuition. We will discuss what intuition is, how to develop and trust your intuition, and how to read tarot more intuitively. I will perform some examples of intuitive tarot reading and explain my process.
From Around the Web
The Tarot Blog Hop celebrated the first day of Spring by contemplating ‘Dawn’. Visit the Master List, read the topic challenge and see how five tarotists each explored the concept.
I found an old blogpost on a florist website that discusses some fortune-telling traditions associated with flowers. This includes instructions for divining with a pansy blossom!
The vernal equinox was last week, but it is not too late to perform a tarot spread for the season. I love this new spread from Almanac Supply Co.
Creation and Divination
There are so many ways to get creative with flowers and divination.
Plants and flowers provided many of us with our first divination experiences. Perhaps we were plucking petals off a daisy one at a time to determine whether he does, indeed, love me. Maybe we were blowing on a dandelion to make our wishes come true. I remember bouncing seeds on my hands to determine how many children I would have and twisting an apple stem to predict the first letter of my husband’s name.
Now, I look for flowers to speak to me. If flowers are anywhere in my field of vision, I allow my intuition to come out and find messages from the flowers. It may be their color, their shape, or their placement that helps determines the message.
Most tarot decks have flowers and foliage entwined in the images. It can be a good practice to go through your favorite working deck, find the flowers in the images, and see how the flowers might inform or enhance your interpretation of the cards.
We can include flowers in our divination rituals. Floral incenses, flower essences, and fresh flowers can all enhance the divination experience. Each flower has a magical energy and purpose, so include the flowers that have potential to fulfill your goals.
There are many divination tools that are based on flowers. Because flowers inherently have symbolic meaning, they are easy to incorporate into oracles.
While actual physical flowers many have limitations in terms of divinatory uses, flower images can convey the energy of the flower without its physical fragility.
If you were to create a flower oracle, what flowers would you include, and what would they mean?
Upcoming Events
Card and Craft Academy
Classes presented by Christiana are available right now at Card and Craft Academy!
Christiana’s Candle Magick
Christiana’s Eleven-Card Celtic Cross
Finding Meaning in the Minor Arcana
The Major Arcana, Magical and Mundane
Practical Tarot Techniques
Psychic Tarot
Personal Tarot: Reading for Yourself
Sharing Wisdom: Reading for Others
The Meaning and Magic of Tarot Reversals
Journey Through the Major Arcana
Your Journey Through the Minor Arcana: Numbers, Elements and Truth
Tarot Beyond the Veil
Your Journey Through the Tarot Court
Tarot Stories, Trends, and Blends
Tarot Readings for Personalities and Relationships
Clarity in Every Tarot Card
Tarot Flow Workshop
Making Magick with Tarot
Fearless Wisdom Tarot Workshop
Tarot Keywords and Interpretations Workshop
Tarot Spreads Tools and Techniques Workshop
Tarot for Magic and Mediumship
Tarot Communication for Clarity and Depth
Weaving the Tarot Reading Story
The Elemental Major Arcana
Minor Arcana Numbers, Elements, and Truth
Personal Healing with Tarot
Create and Interpret Custom Tarot Spreads
What the Court Cards Want You to Know
How Spirit Speaks Through Tarot
Catch up on your missed Zoom webinars and more!
About Christiana Gaudet
Card and Craft, Inc.
Southeastern Tarot Artists and Readers, LLC.
Christiana Gaudet
3559 SW Corporate Parkway
Palm City, Florida 34990-8152
Email cgaudet@cardandcraft.com
On the web www.christianagaudet.com
Online classes www.cardandcraftacademy.com
StaarCon information www.staarcon.com
YouTube @YourTarotFairyGodmother
Instagram @christianatarot @staarcon
Private telephone, Skype, FaceTime, Zoom and in person readings and instruction are available by appointment.
Tarot parties at your home or office are available throughout Florida.
Zoom parties and group instruction available almost everywhere!
Call toll free 866-99TAROT (866-998-2768)
Palm City 772-301-0232 x102
or call or text 561-655-1160
for more information or to schedule your event.
Schedule online at cardandcraft.10to8.com.
Agent inquiries are welcome.
Tarot Topics Newsletter
Volume 6 Issue 13
March 29, 2023