Keep Trying or Walk Away?

There are many times in life when we have to make a clear decision. Should I keeping trying, or should I walk away?

We might ask this question in regard to a relationship, or to a business venture, or as we try to master a new skill.

There are two pieces of common wisdom about this conundrum which contradict each other. One is something I heard very often as I was growing up. I bet you did, too.

If at first you don’t succeed, try, try, try again.

The other is a quote often misattributed to Albert Einstein.

Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

It’s easy to see the wisdom in both.

What are the factors we need to consider when making this sort of decision?

If what we are working toward is something that is likely to get better with practice, trying again is usually the right thing to do.

If what we are working toward is something that requires teamwork, and other team members aren’t on board, it is probably time to walk away.

If what we are doing is based on a firm ethical stance, we probably need to stay the course.

If what we are doing is based on what someone else thinks we should do, we may not have the commitment needed to succeed.

Over my years as a tarot reader I have seen countless stories of people who have finally found success after trying and failing many times. I have also seen people waste a lot of time and energy on something that had very little potential even from the beginning.

In the end, it seems smart to rely less on common wisdom and more on the logical assessment of each individual situation.

It is also true that we need to look closely at our own motivations. If we know the truth about why we are doing something we will have an easier time deciding if we should indeed continue to try to do that thing.

This is an area of life where divination can be extraordinarily helpful, not to predict what we will do, but to help us weigh  and understand our decision more carefully.

The StaarCorner

Our most recent episode of StaarCast is super-special because it is an interview with Benebell Wen, one of our two headlining presenters.

Benebell will be presenting both Saturday and Sunday. In our interview she shares her topic for her Sunday presentation.

You can watch the interview on YouTube, or listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Join Me for a Free Library Presentation on Zoom!

Tomorrow, Thursday, October 29 at 6 pm, I am happy to be presenting my program about the art, history and culture of tarot on Zoom, courtesy of the Land O’ Lakes Library.

This is open to anyone who registers. Simply visit the Pasco Library Events Calendar, or their Facebook page.

Keep Trying or Walk Away Tarot Spread

Here is an enlightening tarot spread you can try when you are stuck in this dilemma. Arrange the cards in any pattern that feels right.

Card One: This is what happens if you keep trying without making any changes.

Card Two: This is a change you can try to make your attempts more successful.

Card Three: This is your outcome if you keep trying with the change suggested in Card Two.

Card Four: This is what happens if you walk away.

Card Five: This is your best reason for walking away.

Card Six: This is something you need to consider as you make this decision.

The Week in Review

This week I wrote a blogpost that was inspired by something that came up in a class on the suit of Cups which I taught on YouTube.

Make sure you catch my social media broadcasts, either live or in archive, on my Facebook business page, on the StaarCon page, and on my YouTube channel.

From Around the Web

Some of my blogposts have caught the attention of Italian tarotists Martino Coppola. With my permission, he has been translating his favorites into Italian and publishing them on his website!

My friend Jenna Matlin, who will be presenting at StaarCon, shared an article on Medium about distance readings.

Here are some tarot spreads for Halloween.

Cards for Your Consideration

Our topic this week might cause us to consider cards that speak of three different things. There are cards that speak of the need to make a decision. There are cards that speak of walking away. And, there are cards that speak of tenacity. When we see all three in a reading, we might have a sense that we are facing this question about whether to keep trying or to walk away.

My favorite cards to speak of the need to make a decision are the Two of Swords, the Seven of Cups, and the Lovers.

My favorite cards that can speak of continuing pursuit of the goal are the Nine of Wands, The Knight of Swords, and the Seven of Pentacles.

My favorite cards that can speak of walking away are the Eight of Cups, the Five of Cups, and the Six of Swords.

There are some cards that can express motion, like the Chariot, but won’t, without the context of a specific question, position, or surrounding cards, let us know whether the motion is toward the goal or away from it.

Events and Tours

Thanks to everyone for their birthday wishes!

Tarot Topics Newsletter
Volume 3 Issue 44
October 28, 2020

Little Bites

You may have heard the Chinese proverb that “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step’”.

This week at the tarot table I have talked with so many people who are feeling overwhelmed, for a variety of reasons.

Though their situations were different, the ultimate question was the same.

“How do I handle this?”

While the cards had specific and individual advice for each person, they all each received a similar message as well. That message is a bit of wisdom that is good for all of us to remember.

When facing a daunting task, don’t tackle it all at once. Don’t get ahead of yourself in figuring out how you are going to manage the things that will come in the future. Look at what is on your plate today, right now, and take it in manageable little bites.

Some people call it taking ‘baby steps.’ I don’t love that analogy. Babies take small, wobbly, faltering steps because they don’t know how to walk. Addressing something that feels overwhelming in little bites takes wisdom and mastery.

It is easy to feel overwhelmed when we look at the whole of a thing, whether that thing is starting a business, catching up on piled up work, going through a divorce, or healing from a loss. Yet, when we focus simply on one task at a time, our mission becomes bearable and doable.

It can take some finesse to figure out what the little bites are, and what in what order they must be done. That’s where divination, counseling, or a trusted expert can help.

It’s important to remember this, too. The bigger the task, the better the reward will be when we get through it. When we are suffering, it is hard to consider that there will come a time when we will feel joy once more. When we are overwhelmed, it is hard to know that there will come a time when we will be able to relax. Yet, when we chew through our difficultly in little bites, eventually we will get to the other side of it.

The StaarCorner

I was so excited to interview Gita Rash for this week’s episode of StaarCast. I am working on a review of her new deck, The Mahabharata Oracle. During the interview I was surprised to learn that, years ago, I had an interaction with Gita that helped inspire her to design her deck!

Since StaarCon has a mission to honor our artists, this is a very special episode of StaarCast.

You can watch the video on YouTube or listen to the podcast wherever you get your podcasts.

Visit the StaarCon website to stay up to date on all things StaarCon!

Tarot Beyond the Veil

On Tuesday, October 27, from 7 pm to 9 pm EDT, I am teaching a very special class on Zoom.

Tarot Beyond the Veil is a class about using tarot to connect with spirit.

In this class we will learn ways to use tarot for mediumship.

In a tarot reading, we can be in direct communication with our angels, guides, and loved ones in spirit. In this class, you will learn a variety of techniques to conduct these deeply spiritual readings for yourself and others.

Class fee is $37.50. Register now on Zoom.

Learning Tarot in Little Bites

One task that can seem daunting is learning the seventy-eight cards of tarot, and then learning the intricate art of seeing how those cards work together in a reading. There is so much to know and remember, even beyond what we must intuit.

Like most daunting tasks, the best way to learn tarot is in little bites. Here are three ways to do that.

Card of the Day (COTD)

Every day, preferably at the same time, draw a card at random. Look up its meaning in numerous sources, look at the image, thing about what the card might mean to you in this current moment, and other ways this card may have spoken to you at other times in your life. Journal about the card. Later on, look back and see how this card was reflected in your day or week in ways you might not have expected.

Tarot in Sections

Learn tarot one section at a time. You can start with the Majors only. Learn these twenty-two cards and do readings with only these cards. Then you can learn the Minors either by suit or by number. When you feel comfortable with a new section, add them in to your readings. Eventually you will be reading with the full deck.

One Card a Week

Put your tarot deck in order. Each week, starting with the Fool and moving forward in order from there, study one card. See how the energy of that card shows up over the course of the week. During the week, read everything you can about that card, and work to form your own understanding of it. After seventy-eight weeks, you will have a very clear understanding of the tarot cards.

The Week in Review

This week I shared a blogpost about why self-reading is important for tarot students.

I do live broadcasts on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays on my Facebook business page, and Tuesdays and Wednesdays on the StaarCon Facebook page.

I also do regular free classes and meetups on my YouTube channel.

From Around the Web

The Llewellyn blog has had some great entries lately. Check out this Third Eye Tarot Exercise from Barbara Moore.

Here is a Simple Tarot Spread for Tackling To Dos from Empath Editor.

From Healers Wanted, here is an article about tarot and anxiety.

Cards for Your Consideration

When confronting overwhelming tasks, the Sevens of tarot offer a great deal of wisdom and insight.

In tarot, I see the number Seven as related to the journey of the individual, and the journey within. These cards each describe something we can do for ourselves that no one else can do for us.

The Seven of Cups reminds us to use our imagination to consider what is available to us and warns us against fearful imaginings.

The Seven of Wands reminds us that we are able to multi-task, and strong enough to stand against multiple attacks and superior odds.

The Seven of Pentacles instructs us to tend our garden tirelessly, knowing that it will one day bear fruit.

The Seven of Swords asks us to be on the alert against treachery, but also remind us to think craftily to solve our problems.

The Chariot affirms that we are the masters of our destiny, and able to bring together what we need to move forward.

Events and Tours

Happy birthday Christiana!
Best wishes from all of us at Card and Craft.

Tarot Topics Newsletter
Volume 3 Issue 43
October 21, 2020

Listening for Truth

How often have you heard someone say that you should always trust your intuition? It is a common adage. The problem is, no one seems to be able to tell you how to hear your intuition!

It is so easy to confuse the voices of fear or hope for the voice of intuition.

Whether you are working to become a more intuitive diviner, or simply trying to tune in to your guidance, it is important to learn how to hear the voice of truth within yourself.

There are many books, classes and meditations you can use to help yourself do it. For all of us, it is an ongoing practice. That is, something that we always have to work to develop.

There are a few things that have helped me in the search for that inner guidance. I will share them with you here.

The first is to remember that the voice of anxiety screams, while the voice of intuition whispers. You have to listen for the little voice.

The next is to remember the importance of the breath. Just as with meditation and yoga, conscious breathing is critical to intuitive development. When you want to listen to your internal truth, focus on your breath, and then see what comes to you.

Another important thing is to work with the chakras. Pay attention to where in your physical body you feel truth. Many people talk about a ‘gut feeling’. This means they feel truth in their solar plexus chakra, or in the sacral chakra. I tend to feel truth in my throat chakra. Many people feel it in their heart center. Play around with discovering where in your body that resonance happens.

Something else to consider is the practice of internally asking the questions. Ask your question, breath, and listen for the answer.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, is the practice of compassionate detachment. When you want pure truth from the universe, you can’t be attached to what that truth is. You have to exist in that moment in a state of trust, detached from your own desires, assumptions, and fears.

Try these techniques to help you listen for your truth.

The StaarCorner

This week on StaarCast I interviewed Nancy Hendrickson, author of the forthcoming “Ancestral Tarot”.

I think you will find this conversation enlightening, as you learn that, to Nancy, the world is an oracle and our ancestors are always around us, waiting to help us heal.

Nancy uses tarot and divination as a way to connect with the ancestors, and with universal wisdom.

Nancy has combined her life-long career in genealogy with her life-long study of tarot into the fascinating study and practice of ancestral tarot.

You can view this episode of StaarCast on YouTube or listen to it wherever you get your podcasts.

Visit the StaarCon website to learn more about StaarCon and to register to attend.

Join us for Class Tonight on Zoom

Tonight, Wednesday, October 14, from 7 to 9 pm, join me for a live webinar on Zoom,

Your Journey Through the Minor Arcana: Numbers, Elements and Truth.

In this class tarot enthusiasts of all levels of experience will learn simple-yet-profound techniques to remember, understand and interpret the Minor Arcana cards of the tarot.

This class is appropriate for all tarot enthusiasts. New readers will learn basic skills, while experienced readers will discover new ways to understand and interpret the forty numbered cards of the Minor Arcana.

Class fee is $37.50. Register now on Zoom.

Intuitive Tarot

There are many methods and traditions of tarot reading. “Intuitive Tarot” can simply mean working with tarot cards without learning their traditional meanings, or the artist’s intent for the card meanings. This is a legitimate method of divination, although it can be limiting to not have the historical and traditional knowledge behind each card to help inform your reading.

That said, even the most studied reader can and should use intuition in a tarot reading.

I believe that tarot is uniquely suited to stimulate the intuition, causing a connection with spirit in divination.

Here are a few ways to incorporate intuition into your tarot reading, no matter how studied you may or may not be.

When you lay out the cards, spend a moment breathing with them. See what comes into your mind unbidden.

When you look at a card, what do you see in the image? How do you react to it? How do you see the card relating to your question, or to what is going on?

When you look at two or more cards together, how do you see them interacting?

Take a moment to see and feel what comes to you as you take in the cards. Be aware of your physical responses, the memories that may be evoked, and thoughts that come into your mind.

Then, process all of those responses in the context of the question, or the matter at hand.

When you look at each card, see if you eye is drawn to any small detail in the image. What might that detail communicate to you in this moment?

There is a mental space where liminal experience and conscious mind meet, where you can allow your intuitive mind and your logical mind to communicate, and to find answers. That is the space where intuitive tarot reading happens.

The Week in Review

This week I shared a blogpost about my concerns regarding spiritual bypassing, and how we can most effectively guard against it at the tarot table.

Remember to check out my Live Tarot Webinars Playlist on YouTube. There you will find the links for upcoming tarot meetups and classes for the month, as well as the ability to watch classes and meetups in archive. Make sure you are subscribed to my YouTube channel!

Like and follow my Facebook business page to catch my weekly live broadcasts there, and do the same for the StaarCon page to catch the lives I do there!

From Around the Web

I was surprised to see that the University of Minnesota has shared these amazing exercises for developing intuition in an effort to help their students take charge of their health and well-being.

Here is another trusted source, Psychology Today, with an article on developing intuition.

Emerald Lotus Divination offers a lot of great tarot spreads. Here is one for developing your intuition.

Cards for Your Consideration

One card that speaks very clearly of intuition is Major Arcana 2, the High Priestess. Very often, when this card appears, it is a sign that you need to seek your own truth, and that you must do that by making the journey into your own subconscious.

This card even holds a reference to communication with those who have passed on; finding your truth from the counsel of your ancestors.

The High Priestess can recommend meditation, and urge you to find that space of inner balance and silence which allows you to hear the inner voice of truth.

Upcoming Events and Tours

Tarot Topics Newsletter
Volume 3 Issue 42
October 14, 2020

Invoking Inspiration

When ancient storytellers would get ready to spin a tale, they would begin with an invocation, asking their muses for inspiration. Inspiration can feel like an otherworldly thing, and perhaps it is. We often think of works of art and literature as being divinely inspired. I don’t believe that divine inspiration is only the domain of the extremely talented, however. I think that we are all able to ask our ancestors, our Higher Power, or our guides and guardians to inspire us. We all have access to the muses of inspiration.

Inspiration can be helpful in many different ways and circumstances. Inspiration may help us create a great work of art, but it may also simply help us get through the day. Inspiration may give us a practical solution to a problem or move us forward on a career path. Inspiration may help us achieve a difficult goal.

Sometimes we need to be inspired, and sometimes we provide inspiration for others. Even if we think of inspiration as something spiritual, it may also be something that we ourselves provide for others. We know that Higher Power can work through us to help others in all sorts of ways.

It’s also true that things borne of inspiration may serve to inspire others, making inspiration something that keeps on going and keeps on giving.

The next time you need to feel inspired in a general way that gives you enthusiasm for life, or in a specific way that solves a problem or allows you to create a masterpiece, simply ask for it. As the storytellers of old did, ask inspiration to move through you, and to guide you.

Along with that prayer, ask that you might be an inspiration to others. In difficult times, we all need to feel touched by something great than ourselves, and we all need to feel capable of doing great things.

Sometimes a great feat is simply getting through the day or surviving a difficult challenge. Sometimes it is doing something to help another person, and sometimes it is about creating a thing of beauty. Whatever we need or want to do, it is important to know that we are all capable of being inspired, and we are all capable of inspiring others.

The StaarCorner

The most recent episode of StaarCast features an interview with V. We are so excited to have “Your Tarot BFF” as a presenter at StaarCon.

My conversation with V. was fun and enlightening. If you are interested it what it takes to become a full-time tarot professional, or why someone might leave a respected career in order to take on full-time tarot, V. has the answers.

V. also shares with us the exciting topic for her StaarCon presentation!

You can watch the video on YouTube, or listen to it wherever you get your podcasts.

Tarot Classes on Zoom in October

I hope you will join me on Zoom this month for an exciting tarot class or two.

On Wednesday, October 14, from 7 to 9 pm EDT I am teaching “Your Journey Through the Minor Arcana: Numbers, Elements and Truth”. This class will help tarot beginners get a handle on the forty numbered cards of the Minor Arcana. Experienced readers will find new insights and perspectives to help them on their tarot journey. You can register for this class now.

As we get closer to Halloween, on Tuesday, October 27 from 7 to 9 pm EDT, I have a special seasonal class for you. “Tarot Beyond the Veil” will teach practical techniques for using tarot to communicate with loved ones in spirit, angels, guides and guardians. Register now to reserve your seat for this insightful class.

Class fee for each class is $37.50.

Inspiration Tarot Spread

Here is a tarot spread to help you find your inspiration. Arrange the cards in any pattern that feels right.

Card One: In what area of my life do I most need inspiration?

Card Two: What is the best way for me to invoke that inspiration?

Card Three: What will be the result of being more inspired?

Card Four: In what way might I inspire others?

The Week in Review

This week I taught a class on YouTube about the suit of Cups. In turn, that class inspired a blog post.

You can catch me live on YouTube five times a month, and on Facebook four times a week.

From Around the Web

Check out this tarot spread for Seeking Inspiration from Emerald Lotus Divination.

I was thrilled to find this article from Theresa Reed on The Girl Who Knows. Check out Theresa’s ideas on how to create your own oracle.

Jean Minuchin of World and Eye is teaching a mask-making and performance workshop on Zoom this month. Check it out for some great creative inspiration.

Cards for Your Consideration

While every tarot card can inspire something, there are two cards in the deck that I most often think of as being about inspiration. Those two cards have a great deal in common with one another. They are the Ace of Swords and the Ace of Wands. As Aces, they can both be about new beginnings. As the two masculine elements, they can both be about action.

How can they each reference inspiration? The Ace of Wands is the beginning, seed, and essence of Fire. Fire is the element of creativity, passion, and spirituality. It is in that seed and essence of Fire that we find inspiration. It might be inspiration to create something, inspiration that helps us understand something on a higher level, or inspiration that motivates us to action.

The Ace of Swords is the beginning, seed, and essence of Air. Air is the element of the powers of mind. That is, thoughts, ideas, communication, and integrity. The Ace of Swords can be a brilliant new idea, or a new way of thinking. The Ace of Swords can be the swift and brilliant solution to a troublesome problem.  Every inspiration originates as a thought, or an idea, which is the domain of Air, and of Swords.

The next time you see either of these cards in a reading, think about how inspiration may be playing a significant role in your life.

Events and Tours

Tarot Topics Newsletter
Volume 3 Issue 41
October 7, 2020