When Is Becomes If

One of my favorite poems is “one winter afternoon” by ee cummings. It begins:

“one winter afternoon (at the magical hour when is becomes if)”.

I’ve always thought of that magical afternoon hour as dusk, when the light dims and it becomes harder to see what is solid and what is shadow.

As we come to the close of a strange year, and cautiously inch toward a (hopefully better) new year, I can see midnight on New Year’s Eve as that magical hour.

Just as 2020 was like no year we had known before, this New Year’s Eve feels different for many of us as well.

New Year’s Eve is one of my favorite holidays. To me it is a spiritual and magical event where everyone in the world opens themselves to the possibility of better things ahead. New Year’s Eve is a global exercise in manifestation.

This year we need that manifestation magic more than ever. We need to make room for the wonderous ‘ifs’ that offer possibility. When we can imagine something better than what now is, we open ourselves to real improvement, and a new way forward.

As we enter a new year, let’s consider the possibility of wonderful things for ourselves, our loved ones, and for the planet. Let’s worry less in this moment about what is, and open ourselves to the magic of asking ‘What if’.

The StaarCorner

One of the highlights of my lengthy professional career in tarot was my conversation with Mary K. Greer for this week’s episode of StaarCast. I have often told my tarot students that without Mary’s groundbreaking work, tarot would not be what it is today.

When we first began planning StaarCon, my greatest wish was that Mary would be able to present for our first event. I am delighted that Mary will indeed be presenting this January.

You can watch my interview with Mary on the StaarCast YouTube channel, or download it wherever you get your podcasts.

StaarCon is less than a month away. Get your tickets now!

Have a Reading for the New Year!

The beginning of January is a wonderful time to check in and see what information and insight a tarot reading can offer. I am available during New Year weekend, and throughout January. I can work with you to help you make and keep your resolutions, get a glimpse forward, and manifest the best year possible.

You can call or text 561-655-1160, or schedule directly from my website.

Tarot for the New Year

What is the best way to do a tarot reading for a new year? There are so many techniques, the best thing to do is to try the ones that appeal to you, and see how they feel. Over time you might develop a special new year tarot reading ritual that is perfect for you!

You can try a new year spread, or make one up for yourself.

I like to do a twelve-card spread that is simply one card for each month.

You can also make a list of questions you have for the upcoming year, and pull cards to answer each question.

You can figure out your personal card for the year by adding the digits of your month and day of birth to the digits of the year. Keep adding the digits together until you get a number that is twenty-one or lower. Find the Major Arcana card that corresponds to that number. This is your year card. Consider how the energy of this card might inform your year. Compare your year card to the card of the year overall, which is, this year, the Hierophant. How does the Hierophant work with your personal year card? What can you learn from this?

The Week in Review

In the last week of each year, I usually make some predictions for the upcoming year. This week I discussed how New Year predictions work, and how they don’t. I made some predictions, too.

Read my blogpost, “Should We Even Try to Predict a New Year? Of Course We Should!”

Join me on my Facebook business page, my YouTube channel and the StaarCon Facebook page for regular livestream events.

From Around the Web

Here are some astrology predictions for 2021 from Vogue.

The Guardian spoke with some tarot readers and psychics to get their take on 2021.

Little Red Tarot offers five tarot spreads for new year readings.

Cards for Your Consideration

I love to think about Major Arcana 20, Judgment, as we approach a new year.

In a reading, Judgment can speak of awakenings, spirit communication, a wake-up call, or a final review of a job well done.

One of my favorite ways to look at Judgment is as a card that calls for closure to the past. In this card we can see the kind of healing we get when we process the past and are able to look to the future with hope.

Upcoming Events and Tours

Connecticut and Tampa Tours Resume Fall 2021

Tarot Topics Newsletter
Volume 3 Issue 53
December 30, 2020

Cycles and Seasons

An important function of holidays, no matter which you celebrate, is that they mark the passage of time. That we have traditions we follow each year grounds us in things that are constant, while helping us appreciate the things that change over time.

This year is a year like no other. Yet, the things we hold dear never change.

We draw strength from the stories of years past, and we draw hope from our vision of the future.

Life always moves in cycles and seasons. Each cycle, and each season, brings memories, traditions, and opportunities for hope and change.

May all the blessings of the holiday season be yours!

The StaarCorner

I was so excited to speak with Jaymi Elford on the most recent episode of StaarCast. We are all looking forward to her presentation at StaarCon.

You can watch the video on the StaarCast YouTube channel or download it wherever you get your podcasts.

We are excited to bring you the very most robust online tarot and metaphysical conference ever produced. Visit the StaarCon website to see what will be happening, and to get your tickets now.

Readings, Mentorships and Gift Certificates

I am available throughout the holiday season. You can book an appointment directly on my website, or call or text 561-655-1160.

I also have mentoring sessions available if you would like to learn tarot, or build your tarot business.

A gift certificate for a reading or mentorship package makes a wonderful gift! Email me for details.

As we begin a new year, the wisdom that can be found in a tarot reading can offer guidance, understanding, and hope for the future.

Seasonal Blessings with Tarot

Beyond divination, there are so many ways to use tarot to brighten your holidays. If you have a deck that is missing a card, you can hang some cards from your tree! If you are crafty you can buy a mini deck and make ornaments from your favorite cards.

You can also choose cards to give as gifts. Do you have a friend who is looking for a new home? Give them the ‘castle card’, which is the Ten of Pentacles. Do you have a friend who wants to get pregnant? Give them the Empress, a card of fertility. There is certainly a card to represent any wish or desire.

You can give yourself these gifts as well. Simply find the card which represents what you want, and spend some time with it. Hold it to your heart. Breathe with it. If it is not from a working deck you can hang it on your wall or keep it in your wallet. When we work with tarot this way, the energy of the card that you work with can help create that blessing in your life.

The Week in Review

One holiday tradition I was not able to keep this year is my Holiday Open House. It’s very important to me that, each year, I do something to help those in need. Gifts of service, gifts of talent, or gifts of money, it is important that we all help each other out! That is what I wrote about in my blogpost this week.

Check out the playlist of Live Tarot Webinars on my YouTube channel to see what is coming up next, and to watch anything you may have missed.

Remember to like and follow my business page on Facebook so you will be notified for the scheduled live broadcasts I do each week.

From Around the Web

Here are some tarot spreads for the season!

Kate, the Daily Tarot Girl, has this holiday spread.

Here is a Yule Tarot Spread from Cassandra Snow.

Evie Marin created this Holiday Survival Tarot Spread.

Cards for Your Consideration

A great card to help us consider cycles and repeating seasons is the Wheel of Fortune.

This is a card that indicates luck, chance, and fate.

The Wheel of Fortune can also tell us that, although certain things are unpredictable, the seasons will come around each year, without fail.

In a reading, the Wheel of Fortune can speak of unhealthy cycles that need to be broken, as well as the happy things things that return again and again.

Events and Tours

Tarot Topics Newsletter
Volume 3 Issue 52
December 23, 2020

Finding the Spirit

The word ‘spirit’ has so many different connotations. It can refer to how we feel about our school. It can speak of our mood, or our character. We use the word ‘spirit’ as another word for ‘soul’, to speak of the part of ourselves that is eternal and non-physical. We also use the word ‘spirit’ to speak of Higher Power. That same word can be used as a synonym for ‘ghost’, to speak of those who have passed on but are still with us.

Much like the concept of what spirit actually is, the meaning of the word can be amorphous.

The thing about spirit is this. You know it if you have it, and you know it if you don’t.

We can think about spirit as enthusiasm, inspiration, and motivation. We can think of it as feeling a connection to something greater than ourselves.

In those moments when we feel uninspired, we seek that sense of connection, and that spark inspiration. Sometimes it is hard to know where to find it.

In normal times, we can often find spirit by gathering with like-minded people. In these times of social distancing, such gatherings are more difficult, yet not impossible.

We can also find the spirit we seek through prayer, meditation, and divination. We can find it through art, music, and other creative endeavors. This is true whether we are doing the creating, or simply appreciating what others have created. We find our spirit through appreciation of nature, and by reading sacred texts.

In those moments when we feel we have lost the spirit, it is important not to despair. That empty feeling can settle within us quickly. Yet, just a quickly, we can find that part of ourselves that senses what is holy and sacred, that is inspired by beauty, and that feels a part of something larger.

To find the spirit, we just have to be willing to look for it, and to allow it to grow within us.

The StaarCorner

Plans for StaarCon 2021, our online tarot conference happening January 22 through 24, are in full swing. You can see the agenda and purchase tickets on the StaarCon website.

Recently I sat down to have a conversation with Michelle Welch about her forthcoming book, and her presentation for StaarCon. You can hear this exciting conversation wherever you get your podcasts, just look for the latest episode of StaarCast. Or you can see it in video form on YouTube.

Join us for Class Tomorrow!

Tomorrow evening, Thursday, December 17, at 7 pm EST, I will be teaching an exciting tarot class on Zoom.

Tarot Stories, Trends and Blends is a class that will help you learn to weave the cards together into a story. No matter how well we know the individual cards, until we know how they work together it is hard to give a comprehensive reading.

This class can be a game-changer in your tarot journey. Class fee is $37.50. Register now!

Messages from Spirit Tarot Spread

Very often when doing gallery-style readings in a group, a popular question is “What does spirit want me to know?”

This is a wonderful, open-hearted way to hear direction from the Universe, via the cards.

Sometimes we need a message from spirit when we are not feeling our own spirit, when we are having a hard time finding our motivation, our inspiration, and our enthusiasm.

Here is a tarot spread to try during such a time. Lay out the cards in any way that feels right.

Begin with a short meditation to clear your mind. Consciously open your heart to the wisdom of spirit as you shuffle your cards.

Card 1. What can I do to access my spiritual strength?

Card 2. What can help me find and feel my spiritual grounding?

Card 3. What can I do to find my enthusiasm and inspiration?

Card 4. What message does spirit have for me?

The Week in Review

My blog post this week is about the Five of Wands. I wrote it because the Five of Wands figured prominently in readings I did Friday on Facebook Live.

My YouTube channel is growing every day. Are you a subscriber?

From Around the Web

Are you looking for a great book for yourself, or as a gift? NPR’s annual Book Concierge will help you find something great.

Tarot cards have made their way to Rolling Stone magazine.

There is a rare and special Jupiter/Saturn conjunction happening on December 21. Here is what that all means.

Cards for Your Consideration

Every single tarot card can speak of a spiritual connection, or lack thereof, in some way. My favorite card for finding that spiritual connection is the Ace of Wands.

I find all the Aces to be very powerful cards, in many ways as powerful as the Major Arcana cards.

The Ace of Wands brings the power of Fire. In a reading, this can discuss a passionate connection, a new creative project, or even something that inspires humor, or anger.

When we are looking for the spark of energy that can help connect us to spirit, or help us find the spirit within ourselves, the Ace of Wands can be a tool to help us manifest that.

In a reading, the Ace of Wands can indicate any new project, or new inspiration. This card can also direct us to the source of our energy, that is, our inner spirit.

Upcoming Events and Tours

Tarot Topics Newsletter
Volume 3 Issue 51
December 16, 2020

Laughing All the Way

Although this is, in many ways, a different holiday season than usual, some things remain the same. Holiday music is here! Different people feel different ways about 24/7 Christmas music. I have to admit that I kind of like it. Even though we hear the same songs every year, sometimes one will strike us a bit differently. From that, we might learn, or grow, or find a new perspective.

This year the song that did that for me is “Jingle Bells”. It is not really a Christmas song. But it is a happy song about enjoying winter weather. Living in Florida, snow references at Christmastime become fun and ironic.

The line that has stuck with me all week is “laughing all the way”.

I think it is interesting that “Jingle Bells” remains such a popular holiday song. How many of us have ever ridden in a one-horse open sleigh? And, if we did, why would we laugh all the way?

Laughter is a universal response to many different situations. In the song, there is probably nothing funny about being in the sleigh. The laughter that is referenced is the kind of laughter we do at amusement parks. Sometimes we laugh, not because something is funny, but because we feel joy. We laugh simply because we are having fun.

Children do this quite naturally. We often think about children laughing, not because they heard a joke, but because they are playing, and enjoying their play.

As adults, we don’t laugh this way as much as we did when we were children. We might laugh at jokes, at a comedy show, or at a funny movie. We might laugh in an unkind way, making fun of someone else’s misfortune.

Now, whenever I hear the song “Jingle Bells,” which I am sure I will hear an infinite number of times each and every holiday season, I am going to use it to remind me to laugh, simply at the joy of living.

There is something deeply spiritual about joyous laughter. There is even a yoga practice called “Laughter Yoga” which teaches people to practice laughter for their well-being.

Sometimes we need to laugh in the face of things that scare us. Laughter can be part of the grieving process, too.

Life is never easy, and only sometimes fun. Yet, there is always joy, and always humor.

Sometimes humor feels inappropriate, or irreverent. In spiritual matters, I think laughter can always be part of prayer, worship, and divination. If laughter hurts someone, or makes fun of someone in a hurtful way, it may indeed be inappropriate. Yet, if we can laugh at ourselves, and laugh at both our joy and our pain, our laughter can often lighten our load.

The StaarCorner

You can now see the agenda for Staarcon and see the Accelevents platform where we will be holding our conference. Tickets are available!

This week on StaarCast I was excited to catch up with Maria Luisa Salazar, who will be presenting at StaarCon in both English and Spanish. See how a science teacher became a full-time tarot professional!

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

We are so excited for StaarCon, and for the amazing team of presenters and exhibitors we are assembling. We hope you will plan to join us!

Tarot Stories, Trends, and Blends Live on Zoom

Join me Thursday, December 17, 7 to 9 pm EST, for a tarot webinar that will increase your ability to find meaningful information in every reading.

While a single tarot card can give a great deal of insight, the skill of tarot reading is in understanding how the cards work together to tell a story. This class will teach practical techniques for combining the meanings of cards and connecting the cards in a reading.

This will be the last Zoom class until February 2021, as we prepare for StaarCon in January.

Class fee is $37.50. Register now on Zoom.

Is Tarot Funny?

Years ago, I started a photo album on Facebook entitled, “Is Tarot Funny?” The goal was to find picture of people laughing during tarot readings and collect them there. All these years later, I still have only two photos. Yet, I know for a fact that a lot of laughter can happen at the tarot table. A lot of tears can happen there, too. I suppose it is hard to have one without the other.

I try to give my students the ability to find the humor in a tarot reading when it presents itself. Sometimes the cards speak in ways that are so poignant, or so ironic, that it really does seem funny.

Sometimes laughing helps us relax enough to find our intuition, and to find deeper meaning in the cards.

The important thing to remember is this. That we are laughing at the tarot table does not mean the information is trite, or that we aren’t taking the divination process seriously. A good tarot reading will elicit a great number of emotions. The more we can be present for those emotions, the better the reading will be.

The Week in Review

2021 is almost here, and it will be the Year of the Hierophant! Find out what that might mean, and learn more about tarot numerology, in my new blogpost.

Did you catch my class on YouTube, Time and Tarot? You can watch it in archive, and you can check out the rest of my YouTube channel while you are there!

My Facebook business page is where I do live readings most Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays.

I am also live on the StaarCon page on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

From Around the Web

Learn more about Laughter Yoga.

Here is a Happiness Tarot Spread from Maven Unmasked.

Sun Goddess Tarot has a Christmas Tree Tarot Spread for you.

Cards for Your Consideration

There are many tarot cards we might associate with laughter. The Fool, of course, can represent merriment. So can the Three of Cups.

The element of Fire is often associated with humor. Therefore, the Ace of Wands can inspire laughter, and all of the Wands court can speak of people with good humor.

The card I want to specifically consider is the Knight of Wands. In the way this card is illustrated in the popular Waite-Smith tarot images, he seems too big for his horse. There is something goofy about him.

Other decks picture him differently, but many find a way to express a certain care-free aspect of the Knight’s personality. In Word Spirit Tarot he is lounging on his back while riding his horse.

Like all Court cards, the Knight of Wands can represent a person, a situation, a quality of being, or a piece of advice. In any of those cases, laughter, joy, or humor might be a part of the equation.

The element of Fire is also associated with creativity, passion, motivation, anger, spirituality, and sexuality. That humor is in that mix speaks to its power.

The Knight of Wands might be one of the more humorous Fire cards, not only because of how he is often pictured. As a Knight, he is youthful, and may be expressing the joy of youth. He is in pursuit of something. Indeed, he may be actively pursuing fun!

Upcoming Events and Tours

Tarot Topics Newsletter
Volume 3 Issue 50
December 9, 2020