Busy Sandwich

The two of pentacles is back to sandwich productivity between calls to seek balance.

Some times you have ebb and flow. Sometimes you have grab and sandwich and go.

Hello and welcome to Sage Words Tarot blogs and Sage’s Short Sip Tarot podcast. I’m glad you are here. As always, these short sip readings are Tarot for your day in the time it takes to sip from your coffee. On Mondays we get close to the whole cup by taking a three card look at the week ahead.

Also as always, none of this is a prediction. That whole fix your love life, meet your soulmate, win the lottery nonsense stems from horror movies, fiction and fantasy. Genuine Tarot has more in common with weather reports, folk art and psychology than predicting the future. If someone approaches you individually and offers you a reading that is on a par with those Nigerian prince spam emails and should be treated as such.

Finding a psychic you can trust is one of the things I talk about in Tao Craft Portfolio, but I’ll shamelessly self promote that later. Back to this week. The three cards reflect the general, collective energy environment and give general collective energy food for thought. These readings are made of ideas to inspire you or strategies to help you navigate the energy environment.

Or, like I’ve said for years under the Modern Oracle and TaoCraft Tarot blog names….the future is yours to create, not mine to predict. Tarot doesn’t predict what will happen in life. Tarot helps you to figure out what to do when life happens.

Balance is what is happening – or what we need to create this week.

The fading energy is Temperance, the current energy is the eight of pentacles and the growing energy is the two of pentacles. Long story short, it is a productivity sandwiched between advice to stay balanced.

The Two of Pentacles was fading previously. Now it’s making a comeback on the other side of the layout compared to last week. That hints at ebb and flow, or dynamic equilibrium.

The idea of dynamic balance, of balance in motion like a gyroscope, has been attached to the two of pentales a lot lately. Lately meaning the past couple of years, really.

Both the Temperance card and the two of pentacles card are associated with balance. Temperance is the gentler side of balancing, and today has the feeling of little nudges on both sides of the balancing equation. It reminds us of moderation, and not letting things get too out of control in the first place, but it also gives little nudges when we need to up the volume or intensity of something to achieve balance, like pouring into an empty cup. Temperance reminds of gentle mixing back and forth in order to gently moderate opposites before either gets extreme. There are other keywords like combining, creating, experimenting, but the moderation kind of balance energies are prominent today.

The two of pentacles is more active, and feels like the bigger adjustments that are needed when things have already gotten out of balance. The two of pentacles is more about hauling in the edge of the envelope after pushing it to the limit or pulling back when you are too far out over your skis.

You’ll notice both of these are active, moving concepts. Unless you are stacking Zen rocks or something, when it comes to human life, balance is tied to change. Inanimate, motionless object don’t maintain balance. They just fall.

My favorite example of dynamic balance is a unicycle rider. Watch someone on a unicycle. Staying balanced upright on a single wheel is a pretty good trick. It is difficult enough when you are constantly moving forward, but the really impressive thing is the way they can stay upright without travelling forward. But even then, they are not completely still. If you watch, the unicycle rider is making constant tiny back and forth movements in order to stay upright even when they aren’t moving over a distance.

Movement lends itself well to progress and productivity too.

This week we have movement sandwiched between two other kinds of movement.

“In the zone” comes to mind. There is a lot of science and physics images coming through with this reading.

First we had angular momentum and gyroscopes. Now I see a wave graph. The balance we need this week isn’t about a single point, like a ballerina holding a perfect arabesque, its about wave amplitude and staying in a range. It’s about dialing in the ups and downs to stay within a managable range, not about stopping the changes.

If there is one piece of advice in all three cards put together for this week it would be to keep moving, but adjust your tolerances. Things may be active and changing and productive and busy, but the trick to get through it all is to adjust the amplitude of the ups and downs so that they are managable.

You might not be able to turn of the noise, but you can adjust the volume.

You might not be able to hold the unicycle of life perfectly still, but you can adjust the movements so that it seems like you are staying upright in one place.

Be productive – go for it. Just don’t forget to put the busy in a sandwich of balance.

Thank you so much for reading and listening! Please visit the blog website or the ko-fi page. Your private readings, shop purchases, and virtual coffees all support creating these free weekly readings for everyone.

Want to learn how to find a psychic you can trust? Want to get to know me and the behind the scenes details of a reading with me? Read the new FREE ebooklet TaoCraft: Portfolio and a reading with me will meet your expectations because you will know exactly what to expect. Links are in the episode description for podcast listeners.

Thanks again. See you at the next sip!

Ease up on the woo woo

TaoCraft Short Sip is Tarot in the time it takes to sip from your coffee. Today, quotes about Alan Watt’s potatoes and Mark Salzman’s donkey.

Welcome to the TaoCraft Tarot blog and podcast. I’m glad you are here.

Today’s card is the eight of pentacles.

The pentacles are always grounded, practical cards and today is no exception.

The interesting thing about today’s card is it is reverse engineered. I don’t know about you, but the phrase “reverse engineered” always makes me think of science fiction, alien technology, conspiracy theories and that time people were Naruto running around area 51.

Maybe retrofit would be a better word. If you are interested in elevating your intuitive connection to Tarot, one good way to do that is to come up with an idea and then see what cards come to mind that represent the idea rather than choosing a card at random and letting that prompt the idea. You retrofit the idea to the card instead of the other way around.

Today, the energy around here is decidedly NOT spiritual or woo woo. Which is fine. It is a western, puritanical notion to think that we must constantly strive and work for spirituality and personal improvement. Sometimes the best thing do is do what needs done without all the woo woo or striving or self-judging. Sometimes you just have to sit on your workbench and hammer the dents out of your pentacles before moving on. Today’s energy pointed to the Eight of Pentacles instead of the card pointing out the energy.

Think for a moment about Mark Salzman’s donkey and Alan Watt’s potatoes.

As I’ve said a hoo-zillion times, this is just like when Alan Watts said that “Zen does not confuse spirituality with thinking about god while you peel the potatoes. Zen spirituality is to just peel the potatoes.”

In Taoism it IS personal growth and spirituality to live in harmony with nature. In this case nature means your feelings and energies for the day as much as the rocks and trees kind of nature.

Mark Salzmen, author and martial artist, once recounted the Chinese proverb that “it is the height of stupidity to go searching for the donkey you are already riding upon.

In Wicca for the Solitary Practitioner, author Scott Cunningham has said “the feeling is the power.” So if you are feeling pulled to the mystical or spiritual side of life today, by all means follow that feeling. If you are feeling like having a sammich and streaming your favorite movie, that’s an ok feeling to follow too.

It’s the trend line, not the individual day or data point.

All of those things point to letting the woo woo rest for a bit, and LIVE the things you’ve already learned. Do the things you already know to do. How is state of constant striving any better than not striving at all? Show yourself a little self love by accepting who you are right now and just go about your day with no pressure on yourself for a change. Immerse yourself in the day, and do the do. Do the do regardless of how stressed or how ordinary it all is at the moment.

Stop looking so hard and vibe with your donkey while peeling today’s potatoes. Live what you know for a while before striving to learn more.

Thank you so much for reading and listening.

I always appreciate any likes, subs, shares, follows, questions or comments that you can spare.

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See you at the next sip!

Today’s Tarot: Grind the Cigars

Today’s Tarot card is the 8 of Pentacles.

Basically, it’s a day to just do normal stuff. Grind it out. Get it done. There are no big spiritual or aspirational energies around the card today. It’s all about just building a life brick by brick, step by step, moment by moment.

Even in Tarot, not everything is a big spiritual revelation. Not everything in life has a big symbolic purpose. Like Freud said, “sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.”

Come back tomorrow for the spiritual stuff. For now, at least for today, go grind the cigars.

YouChoose Interactive Tarot: Making Online Tarot Personal

Well, isn’t this opposite day?!

This time, if you want to hear the more detailed card interpretation, it’s in the video. I’m not telling you which meaning is which card, so I hope you’ll watch at least the first bit of the video to choose your card and see the reveal. If you want to spend a little time and feel it out, just pause the video then restart to see which one you picked.

Nothing in Tarot is 100%. The card might not feel right. That’s OK. Claim one of the others if it feels more helpful. Or find another video / blog post and try again to find guidance that resonates with YOU – here, now, today. It doesn’t matter when the video was made or the post was written. The right message has a way of finding you sooner or later.

I hope you’ll follow the blog if you haven’t already – that way you get ALL the new content, video and print-only, right in your inbox or WordPress reader.

The Heirophant: How are you being too much (or not enough) of a people pleasing rule follower. Thank you to all activists who speak for us whenever we’re not sure what to say.

Nine of Swords: Is the thing that’s keeping you up at night really worth losing sleep over? What are you making bigger than it is? Let go what needs to go and get some real sleep.

Eight of Pentacles: Just do it. Set aside any high minded spirituality or over-intellectualizing and peel the potatoes, chop the wood and carry the water.

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The Equinox announcement list so far:

  • Zombie Cat yes/no Tarot readings by email are $5 off until Halloween. Get yours HERE
  • the ko-fi shop is open with ebooks available for purchase and instant download
  • The virtual tip mug is open, which supports the production of this blog, podcasts and YouTube videos
  • Clairvoyant Confessional season 2 begins soon, such as it is. Evil villian monolog style still applies. Send your questions for a free on-air Tarot reading to ClairvoyantConfessional@gmail.com

Today’s Tarot: Make, do

Tarot turned on its head: I choose the card. You use your intuition to pick the meaning.

Let’s turn Tarot readings upside down for once. I choose the card, YOU use YOUR intuition to pick the meaning for today. Let me know in the comments how you like this format.

Today’s card brought an avalanche of quotes and pithy little sayings to mind. You Choose which one most speaks to you today:

“Just do it”

“Write it. Shoot it. Publish it. Crochet it, sauté it, whatever. MAKE” – Josh Whedon

“Follow the process, not the plan” – Adam Savage

“The Universe doesn’t give you what you ask for with your thoughts – it gives you what you demand with your actions.” – Steve Maraboli

Walk your talk / actions speak louder than words.

Path Through the Week

At first I thought the Hermit was a reading I’d done for a person, but actually it was today’s short on YouTube. There is a LOT of overlap between the blog and the channel, but not 100%. Following the blog is the best way to get everything, especially blog exclusive, print only content – but if you can spare a like, sub, or share on the ‘tube I’d sppreciate it!

Happy Memorial Day Weekend

Hi everyone!

Just wanted to wish you all a happy and safe Memorial Day weekend. Daytime for me will be busy with some non-Tarot obligations, but I still have time for email Tarot if anyone wants a reading. The podcast and youtube channel will be back next week, although probably a day late because of the holiday. Zoom / phone readings are closed until June 1, and in-person & party Tarot return in September with updated appointment times and service area. 2019 prices remain in effect throughout the website, and the blog is still totally free (no member or premium content)

Both science and intuition point toward us turning a corner. It feels like a transporter jump or some sort of blurry force-field wormhole foldspace science fiction kind of boundary transitioning us to a post-pandemic world. Things have been disrupted. NOW is our time and our chance to solidify things into something better. NOW is the time to stay laser-focused on the world we want to live in. NOW is the time to pour our energy into kindness, equality, inclusiveness – all the things so lacking in the 2016-2020 era. NOW is the time to manifest something better but, as Richard Bach reminds us, it may take some real work.

And so it begins

Best Wishes to everyone – Ronda

Wordless

“In case you haven’t guessed already, I loves me the bullwhips. The meticulous, repetitive, stretching, checking, cutting, lacing; it is deeply meditative.”

Adam Savage, speaking on Mythbusters about whip making.
public domain

Intuitive messages are wily things. Sometimes they as clear and as forceful as a frying pan to the face, other times they are cagey and elusive and evolve slowly.

We’ve seen this recently as the cards speak in a cascade over the course of the wek. They have been speaking about various aspects of rest & respite. Rest through finding quiet, introspection, and literal physical rest (Four of Swords) rest through a change of perspective (Hanged Man) and today, mental respite through physical activity. Physical activity can be at any level. Some people find a long run the best possible way to clear the mind and ease stress. For me, running IS a stress. Any repetitive activity that doesn’t require a high degree of mental involvement can very much take on the deeply meditative quality that Mr. Savage describes. Putting the neurochemistry and endocrinology of running aside, the key here is the degree of mental involvement, not the cardiovascular involvement. Repetition can be soothing for some people. Mantra & bead meditation is an example, too. Arguably, low key repetitive activity occupies or so-active “monkey mind” enough to allow allow a meditative state to emerge.

Bonus points for doing the thing by yourself. Social behavior, even with one other very close person, engages our mind more than meditation or whatever meditative activity alone, or at least if we are left alone to our thoughts by the people around.

Anything can be a meditative activity. Tai chi is a classic example. But you can add jogging, knitting, and bullwhip making to the list too. Today, maybe this weekend too, is an excellent time to find that physical thing to do that gives rest to mind and spirit.