It’s Wednesday! Let’s revisit the middle card (current energy) from our look-ahead reading from Monday and see how the energy is unfolding for this week.
It’s an interesting phenomenon in professional Tarot reading.
Sometimes the cards will piggyback a message or energy for me along with the collective message for the blog or the specific message for a private client. Sometimes it feels sort of disconnected, like being the pizza delivery person with no connection to the party going on inside the house.
Churning the corner: a Tarot look at the week ahead
It’s Monday. Let’s talk motivation. Mostly because I don’t have any at the moment.
Hello and welcome to Sage Words Tarot blog and Sage’s Short Sip Tarot podcast. I’m glad you are here.
It’s week two of the new schedule where a three card pathway reading for the week ahead posts for everyone on Monday. I appreciate any day that you read or listen. Thank you.
The cards are chatty this week. The intuitive impressions are words as much as mental images. Typically I get more images than words. I don’t thing that shift is particularly significant, I’m fairly clairaudient anyway so let’s just roll with it.
The first card is the knight of cups with the words “emotional churning.” come through here. Knights are generally very active, confident, forward moving cards. In this case, it is in the “diminishing energies” position within the layout. Put those together, and it hints at a time of high emotions, but when that time happens for you as an individual is impossible to say. It may be happening, or it may be close at hand. Either way, I’d guess this time of emotional upheaval and wonkiness shouldn’t last long.
I’ll grant you I’ve had a morning of app and website technical gremlins, so I feel fairly annoyed with that, but those are resolved now and I still feel a sense of malcontent. I get a sense of short tempers, irritability, or of the world getting on every last nerve. Again I get that idea of emotional churning. It might be a residual feeling from the earlier inconveniences, but it it crossing that boundary line we’ve talked about before. If I focus on that boundary between my own mood and the general zeitgeist energy, this feels like more than a stupic app crashing would warrant. Yeah, I was annoyed, but now it feels like so are a lot of other people and over bigger things than that.
Mind that your mood is your own. This card reminds us of two things. First mind your emotional boundaries. What is the objective reality around you right now? Is the stress or emotion you might be feeling objectively warranted, or is it a by-product of worry about the future or dwelling on the past? If that is the case deliberately focusing on right here, right now can help. That’s the mindfulness that people are always talking about.
Let’s try it. Just for a quick moment. Then you can get right back to your regularly scheduled agitation.
First take a deep breath and think about what you feel and how you feel. Good, bad or indifferent, don’t judge it, just name it. How the heck do you feel right now? Is a just a little or is the volume turned up to 11?
Take another deep breath. Now pay attention to right here. Where are you? What is your environment? Pull your attention back from the words on the screen and notice other things like the device itself, the sounds around you, the temperature, how comfortably you are seated or standing.
All of those details.
Pay attention to right now. Forget the past, forget the future, just for a minute. Put all of your thoughts on
This.
One.
Moment.
Is this moment quiet? Does it suddenly feel like “HEY! It’s kinda happy in here!” If that’s the case, you might be resonating with outside energies. If you still feel gnarly and churning, then it’s time to face those emotions. Own them. Even if they are uncomfortable, it’s ok. They are legit. As best as you can, give them…and you…whatever T.L.C is needed. It’s not a personal failure to experience uncomfortable emotions. At worst it’s a signal there is something up that needs some attention, comprehension and problem-solving. At best it’s just you being human.
The good news is that as a diminishing energy, the emotional churn that is our Monday Motivation toward mindfulness (ooooh I do love me some alliteration) probably won’t last long. The high emotional state will churn the corner soon.
Sorry, I couldn’t resist.
The second thing is mind your own emotions. More than just being aware of the boundary, shore it up and don’t leak out. Feel what you feel. Embrace it, accept it, abide with it. Just please don’t spew it on other people. You never know what is brewing inside their emotional boundary bubble so be nice. We are are annoyed in this together – or so it seems.
The surrounding energy for this week is the Ace of Wands.
I hear “carry a torch for yourself.” which is a phrase that I’ve heard before with this card. Wands are associated with fire, our inner world, and our inner passions. Once we get on the other side of annoyance day, then carrying a torch for ourselves…self love, self improvement, self care….whatever name you want to use for it…give yourself a little of that.
If the emotional churn initially motivates, this self care is one thing that the emotions are pushing us toward.
“Spark an idea” comes through too. I also hear “lightbulb” and see that cartoon trope of a light bulb over someone’s head to show they have had a sudden good idea.
When you get the right idea, your instinct and emotion will light up too. When you know, you know, and when you know where you want to go it lights up the path to get there lights up too.
Churning emotions are a hint that something needs to change, that you need to turn a corner. A spark of an idea will let you know when the change is at hand and just what corner to turn.,
The growing energy is the two of pentacles. That’s where we are headed, and that’s a releaf. I ‘hear’ it will all wash out in the end.
I see pancakes.
Here is why.
Have you ever made pancakes from scratch? Most recipes tell you not to mix too much at the end, and that lumps are OK because they will cook out in the end, and mixing them out now will make the pancake chewy and tough.
That’s sort of the flow of energy here. It’s lumpy and weird at the start, but if we hang in and roll with it, it will all cook out in the end. We’ll churn the corner to a more balanced energy fairly soon.
Hang in there my friends.
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Hello and welcome to Sage Words Tarot blog and the audio podcast version Sage’s Short Sip Tarot.
Merry Monday everyone!
This is what I call a Pathway layout for our reading that is intended to look ahead at the week coming up. I’m writing this on February 20 for the week from now until the 27th, but you can apply it anytime that you watch it if it feels right to you. The way I read Tarot isn’t tied to time any more than it is tied to physical space. That’s how and why that Tarot over distance by email, phone, zoom meeting, blogs and podcasts all work. That’s why they are as valid of an art form and as valid of a source of inspiration as any other Tarot reading.
A private reading with this layout will have a slightly different focus, intensity and level of detail compared to these general energy reading that we do here, but they function the same way at the core. The focus is the energy environment. This is a read of the zeitgeist to give you ideas how to best navigate the energies and situations at hand. Like have said for years – Tarot isn’t about predicting what will happen in life, it is about figuring out what to do when life happens.
The Pathway layout parallels the old style past, present, future layout that inspired it, but it is more about the flow of energy rather than the flow of time. It can help us navigate the near future, but the near future for the collective energy can mean hours, days or weeks for an individual. It really is up to you to consider, accept or reject, and then apply any given intuitive information no matter whether the reading is in person or at a distance, individual or collective.
In my version of the pathway layout, instead of past, present and future the cards symbolize energies that are fading, the strongest energy around right now and energies that are growing in strength or influence. It is very much like a weather report. There are no inevitable warnings in Tarot like there is with weather, but it can hint at what is possible, even probable. It’s the personal enrichment version of take your coat because a cold front is coming.
When I do a private reading, I start with a paragraph I call the “general pattern.” That part looks at the layout as a whole and considers things like repeating numbers, the ratio of major to minor arcana, and in the longer readings, the proportions of the various minor arcana suits. This is also a good time to talk about any purely intuitive impressions that pop up right off the bat.
If you have followed the blog or listened to the podcast for any amount of time you already know about the see, hear and feel thing.
When I say “see” it means the intuitive impression comes in the form of a mental image. “Hear” means it is an impression of words or music. “Feel” most often a vague hunch, one of those “I don’t know why but…” sort of things. It almost never means a physical sensation, so that gets special mention if it happens. Don’t hold your breath for that one.
In this case, three cards aren’t really enough to comment about minor arcana ratios. The flow reads from right to left. I’m an English speaker, so it helps the connection to intuition to disconnect it from the way language reading flows. Here we see two minor arcana cards flowing into a major arcana card which hints at building energies just ahead. Things are heading in a direction of more energy, more change, and a faster pace. I also intuitively hear the song “People Are Strange” by The Doors. I’m guessing this means there is a chance of things sliding off the rails, going a little pear shaped or just plain getting weird. Remember, it is easier to put out a small fire than a big one. Forewarned is forearmed as the old adage goes. This isn’t predicting that something bad is going to happen. This saying that there is potential for strange days – like the weather analogy. Bring a jacket because it might be chilly this evening – that sort of thing.
The diminishing energies are represented by the Ace of Wands. Wands cards are connected to the element of fire and our inner passions. This connects to some one card readings I’ve been doing the past several days. Not all of them were public, so no details, but the basic vibe of it all was plant your seeds now. The energy is right for new projects to have good outcomes.
The window for that is closing…so don’t wait. Plant those seeds, follow those passions so you can move on to the business ahead and also protect those delicate beginnings you just planted so to speak.
The Page of Cups is one of my personal favorite cards. For it I ‘hear’ “embrace the strange” which is another way of saying roll with it. The more adaptable and fluid you are, the better the week will go for you. It fits that this message comes through a cups card, since cups are associated with the element water. Here I am reminded of the famous Bruce Lee quote “Be water my friend.” It might be weird, but go with it. This is the vibe that is strongest right now and will be the greatest help in the transition from the diminishing Ace of Wands energy to the growing Tower energy.
The Tower is the surprise, big, sudden game changer of an event or energy shift. Some associate The Tower with chaos, and the opportunities that can lie within chaos. I like to think it can also be a world changing shift in perception. It can represent a sudden insight, the brain wave, the AH-HA moment that changes everything, especially if you are able to put it into action. Here I am also reminded of the “Lighting in a Bottle” card from Dane Asmund’s excellent Alleyman’s Tarot deck. Not all sudden change is bad. It can hold opportunity like the classic meaning for the card and the old proverb says.
Making the most of those kind of bolt-from-the-blue situations is seldom fun or easy, but worth the effort in the long run. Like we talked about in the “The Makings of Magic” post and podcast episode, if you are going to catch lighting in a bottle you have to stand in some thunderstorms.
At this point in private readings, I talk about any crystals, aromatherapy or other intuitive impressions that may come through. Those are far to individual to put in a general audience reading like this. The best advice I can give at this point is to use whatever supports your adaptability. Use whatever healthy coping you knows help you stand strong in a sudden storm. This is a chance draw from your experience…or maybe learn some new things for later…but now is the time for rolling with any lightning strikes so you can catch it in that proverbial bottle.
Thank you so much for reading and listening. Any likes, subs, follows, shares or virtual coffees you can spare are always gratefully appreciated. Podcast folks can, as always, find the related links in the episode description.
Tune in next Monday for our next look at the next week ahead. Daily Sip members, tune in every weekday for a Tarot contemplation in the time it takes to sip from your coffee every weekday.
Ace of Wands Short Sip Tarot: carry a torch for yourself, those you love, and the things you love to do.
I do love a good coincidence.
Thank you for reading and listening to TaoCraft Tarot. I’m glad you are here.
I drew the Ace of Wands for today’s Short Sip, found this excellent Nelson Mandela quote, then the same card and vibe turned up in a private reading for a client. The Ace of Wands intends to be heard today!
I am reminded of Joseph Campbell, American author and expert in comparative mythology and comparative religion. I read his book The Power of Myth 1990 – ish around the time I started reading Jamie Carson & David Sams, Ted Andrews, Scott Campbell, and you know…Tarot. The Ace of Wands today is akin to Campbell’s most famous quote about “follow your bliss.”
It also resonates with wise words from Nelson Mandela, “There is no passion in playing small – in settling for a life smaller than the one you are capable of living.” The Ace of Wands also reminds me of quotes from Steve Jobs that have been floating around social media lately “You’ve got to find what you love… the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it.”
Or, put more succinctly, “…we believe that people with passion can change the world for the better.”
If the Ace of Wands resonates with you today, that is your cue to let your light shine. Carry a torch…for yourself, for the people you love, and for the things you love to do.
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TaoCraft Short Sip is Tarot inspiration in the time it takes to sip from your coffee. Today: The Ace of Wands and creative inspiration.
Hello and welcome to TaoCraft Short Sip: Tarot inspiration in the time it takes to sip from your coffee. I’m glad you are here.
Today’s card is the Ace of Wands.
Wands are associated with the element of fire, inner fire, inner passions and in the case of the ace, creativity, new projects and inspiration.
Young Einstein is one of my favorite movies. It’s a comedy. It’s fun. It’s timeless. It’s about the time space contiuum. The Ace of Wands tends to remind me of one scene where one character accidentally makes a bomb and Marie is telling Albert to do something. He calmly eats an apple and asks for a moment because he’s having an idea. If you watch this clip from YouTube, keep in mind the movie was made in the late 80s before the end of the cold war and before the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The part about nuclear bombs is chilling, given current world events. It’s funny the things you can forget in thirty years.
But back to the Ace of Wands. Albert may seem to be just standing there eating an apple, but he’s thinking. He IS doing something.
The same thing applies to creativity and inspiration. Taking a break from one project to pursue something else for a little while is a perfectly legitimate part of the overall creative process. James Bach makes a similar point in his book Secrets of a Buccaneer Scholar. I really enjoyed the book and would highly recommend it to anyone who is in or is thinking about a creative career.
I’ve heard that creativity isn’t really making anything new, but rather putting existing things together in a new way or finding deeper connections between things that on the surface seem unconnected. When you are creating a physical object, you just can’t magic it up out of nothing. You have to have the right supplies. Ideas and inspiration work the same way. Whether you making something or having an idea you have to have the raw materials to work with. To make connections, you have to have stuff to connect.
Live a little. Go experience or pay attention to something, anything. Make your magpie collection of life experiences that you can use for inspiration later on. It counts. Looking for inspiration IS doing something.
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If you ever get a chance to listen to Menage A Tarot podcast, I recommend it…not my parts, but listen to David and Kate. They are two of the wisest Tarot readers – wisest people – I’ve ever met. I don’t remember which episode it was, or if it was one of our many off-air conversations, but David mentioned one time that it was a good idea to listen for messages for yourself at the same time you are reading for others. Except he said it way WAY better than I ever could. Today’s card aside, I highly recommend Menage A Tarot, along with David’s new podcast Ninth World Journal and Kate’s website Daily Tarot Girl. Good stuff, that.
Yesterday, we talked about the tweek to the interactive you-choose-your-own-card video readings. The focus is shifting from the week ahead to just now, whenever you happen to access the video. The shorts are the same, Tarot for today…now…whatever day, whatever now it finds it way to you. The biggest difference between the two is YouChoose readings and the Today’s Tarot shorts is the format. YouChoose is more of the energy-environment, energy-flow kind of read. Shorts are going to be vague, pithy, and (hopefully) fun advice for the day kind of things. They are all going to look alike, and the whole reading is on the screen. It’s fun for me to distill the whole message of the card down to one sentence fragment. That’s why I like Twitter. Brevity is the soul of wit as Shakes peare wrote.
Whatever day you choose your card, that it day where it applies. Whatever day the idea crosses your path, it’s an idea that matters and the day it matters on.
If it sounds like trying to be messenger for synchronicity, it is.
Interpreter of energy, messenger for synchronicity; That’s what Tarot Readers do.
Get your message from synchronicity: order your email reading HERE, 24/7 no appointment needed. To see the extended menu of lower cost and specialty layouts click HERE
Sifu Gracenin told us that the best way to train for a thing is to do a thing.
The same is true of creative work – or anything really.
Creativity, new ideas, or enthusiasm for a project are all mercurial, wispy, unpredictable aspects of the human psyche. No wonder ancient Greeks and modern creatives alike blame the whole thing on a bunch of capricious Muses. You never know when you are going to get whacked with the cosmic shillelagh of creativity.
Which begs the question of what to do in the times in between, when your capricious Muses are missing in action and you are hit with an equally unpredictable time of uninspired apathy. To borrow a phrase from the sneaker people, just do it. “The best way to train for a thing is to DO a thing.”
Here is an analogy for the “My Hero Acedemia” and superhero fans out there…if you can only bring your superpower up to 5% today, OK, but DO that. But by doing that, you might be able to dial up the full cowling to 8% another day. If you persist at 5% power today and 8% later and so on, then you’ll be more ready and in a better place when time for full power comes along.
Or in other words, if you are feeling uninspired today, take it easy on yourself – on the inside – but still do what you need to do. The inspired feeling will come in its time. “Fake it until you make it” has its moments of utility. Work within your limits but don’t stop altogether. Continue to act within your ability, and in time your capability will increase whether you feel enthusiastic about it or not. Then you can be in a better, bigger place to act on creative inspiration whenever it does hit. That’s the sweaty part of the Thomas Edison quote “Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration” but an important part just the same. Hiking along with your ordinary walking stick is as important as getting whacked with the cosmic inspiration stick we see on the Ace of Wands.
BUT I would still very much like to know your thoughts about yes or no readings in general, this particular format, anything. Comments are open. If for some reason it gives you grief, email me at TaoCraftTarot@gmail.com and I’ll get it to the blog.
OR ask Zombie Cat anything.
Zombie Cat shambles off this weekend, but he’s willing to barter. If you have a yes or no question, he’ll answer it at no charge in return for answering publically on the YouTube channel. Don’t worry…no identifying details are ever used. Nobody has any interest in doxing anybody. It’s entertainment only, all disclaimers apply, wear a mask, wash your hands, swim at your own risk, no lifeguard on duty.
The Ace of Wands is picking up a thread of energy from yesterday’s Page of Swords. There is still a sense of thinking and an intellectual process of some kind. The Ace of Wands is all about creativity, but in this case is a practical creativity and the logic of making that steps forward. Adam Savage’s excellent book Every Tool’s a Hammer comes to mind. He talks about the problem solving aspects of art, making and creativity in general. Flights of fancy are one thing. In imagination, anything is possible. It takes some serious problem solving and logical making to bring that imagination to tactile, usable life. Creativity combined with making an idea into a real thing is a whole-brain process. It requires us to connect disparate dots, plan, use logic, organize and experiment.
Just because something has never been done before doesn’t mean that you can’t do it now. Just because no one has done something before doesn’t mean that you can’t be the first. Just be ready for some industrial strength problem solving. Dream the dream, then create the logical make.
Provide for your passions. In a day filled with work and coffee and things to do, can’t you find just 10 or 15 little minutes to do something, anything, that is meaningful to you? Give a few minutes to a thing you love and it will give you some love in return.
Sage Words Tarot 