Jack Of Wands blogged these questions and I figured why not give them a whirl. 2020 has been a sucky year and he is correct – we need to set our minds toward 2021 and some positivity. The astrology and numerology for next year supports better times ahead, and a less gloomy but still serious year. As I recover from COVID and have fewer moments of fog and exhaustion, I’m looking forward to better times.
- What was your first Tarot deck? My first Tarot deck was The Marseille. I highly don’t recommend it as a first deck, unless you possess an understanding of medieval art. At the age of 17 I most certainly did not.
- What is the biggest mistake you ever made in a Tarot reading? I can’t think of any one moment. However, a constant theme that used to underpin my readings was that I would not call out things that I saw because they greatly deviated from accepted card meanings. This would happen when I read for other witches or readers. It was a very annoying voice in my head that would say something to the effect of, “You’re way off base and they’ll know it because they do this, too, and maybe they’re better at it.” This never happened with my muggle clients. Not ever. I had no problem calling things out. I’m happy to say that I no longer suffer from this, and the majority of my clients are practitioners of many fields of divination. I now officially love being the reader’s reader.
- Who has had the greatest influence on you as a Tarot reader? As far as authors go, Dusty Bunker, Faith Javane, and Gail Fairfield. Linking the Tarot to numerology had a door-opening effect on my intuitive faculties. Gail’s work showed me that there was a psychological aspect to Tarot, and that some really miserable cards could have extremely positive meanings. I’ll also say Crowley for his most excellent deck, MJ Cullinane for her most excellent decks, and Benebell Wen for Holistic Tarot, a book that could only be better if it was leather bound.
- Share a spread you love. I love “The Empress Check In”, from Tarot Court Cards, by Leeza Robertson.
- How does Tarot intersect with your religious/spiritual beliefs and practices, if at all. Tarot fits into my beliefs as a practical tool to help me laser in on things. I think of Tarot the same way I think of astrology and numerology: it’s not a belief system per se. Whether I “believe” in these systems or not, they are accurate and beneficial to me.
- What is the best question you’ve ever been asked in a Tarot reading? Hmmmmm. It was a funny question. I was working at Little Mysteries in Halifax back in the 90s, and this woman said “Why am I such a colossal fuck up?” As far as questions go, I’m pretty sure most Tarot authors would say this is how not to ask a question, but it led to my first ever past life reading and was she ever floored.
- What is the worst question you’ve ever been asked in a Tarot reading? My worst ever question happened over and over again this year once I started booking readings again. It was “Should I just kill myself?” or some such variation, like, “Will my family be better off if I die tomorrow?” I closed up shop right when things were starting to clip along because it was literally every other person. I waver in my feelings on this. Sometimes I think about this and I feel so much empathy because the global shutdown has been horrible for a huge segment of society in every country and sometimes I feel very angry, like how fucking dare you try to put that on me? I was nice to everyone and referred them to the appropriate crisis lines. I shuttered my presence and just pressed along at my day job. However, the day job is no more, and I’m sticking my head back out of the hole again.
- What deck do you use most often right now? The Halloween Tarot. I’ve had it for years and it’s one of my favourites. It’s so stinking cute!
- What card in the Tarot deck is hardest for you to connect with? The Two of Wands. No special reason. It’s just so “meh” for me.
- Which card do you use as your significator? Whichever card pops up for that position, but if I had to pick one for right now in my life, I’d choose The Magician.
- Share one special technique you love for interpreting the cards. In case you are ever stumped, keep a brief list of keywords in your head for the numbers 1-9. The Aces are the keywords of number one, as modified by their element, and so on for the two’s, three’s, etc. The court are eleven through fourteen and can be reduced, as well as the majors. It’s a quick and dirty way to get your brain thinking.
- What’s the most innovative reimagining of a Tarot card you’ve seen? Most decks are Rider clones. They may have breathtaking artwork but nothing new is going on in them. I’m going to come back to this after I’ve given it more thought.
- What’s the hardest thing about reading Tarot? I don’t know if it’s ever been hard, but I’d definitely say the sheer volume of information that is available can be overwhelming. I’d definitely suggest that new students choose one author to start with and not buy every book and deck they see. It’s difficult *looks at bookshelf*……very, very difficult.
- Why did you decide to start reading Tarot? I started reading Tarot when I was seventeen. I knew nothing about nothing where New Age or witchcraft anything was concerned. I grew up in the days of two channels and rabbit ears on the TV, sheltered on a military base. I felt quite literally pulled into a bookstore in 1989, and I walked out the door twenty dollars poorer, with The Marseilles Tarot. I didn’t know what to do with Tarot, but I felt compelled to learn.
- Share three Tarot books you’d recommend. If you can get your hands on them and you’re a beginner, How To Read The Tarot and How To Use Tarot Spreads, by Sylvia Abraham. She was a witch’s witch and quietly taught Tarot until well in old age. She presents an easy to follow system that helps imprint the cards onto your brain and makes the reading flow. Her book on spreads is just plain fun and it’s my most dog-eared falling-apart book. When you’re ready to fill your brain and want something a little more tome-like, I enthusiastically recommend Holistic Tarot, by Benebell Wen.
- How are you working to deepen your Tarot practice right now? I’m looking more into the shadows side of the cards…..you know, because 2020.
- Which suit in the Minor Arcana is your favorite, and why? Call me morbid, but I love The Swords. I didn’t until later this year. I had some mighty stabby readings this year. Gail Fairfield’s work was a big help in learning to see the many layers in this suit.
- Share one trend you would like to see in Tarot publishing. I’ll be a bitch, lol. I’d love to see publishers move away from the New Agey benign, saccharine, everybody wins style of Tarot book. I tend to prefer older books, from the 70s and beyond because they give the good, the bad, and the ugly. They emphasize practise, they don’t blow sunshine up your ass. There’s also a greater emphasis on ties to astrology, numerology, and occult practices as opposed to Wicca in older books. I cringe when I get readings and the reader carries on about my non-specific “energy” and every card is “things are going to change”.
- RWS, TdM, or Thoth—which do you prefer and why? Thoth. Hands down. Crowley was a genius. Batshit crazy, but a genius.
- What’s the greatest lesson you’ve learned from Tarot? That the future is not set in stone.
- Pull a card to forecast what 2021 is going to be like for you. Hahahahaha. There was a time that this card would have made me cry. After 2020, being an agent of change and contributing to the overthrow of existing structures fills me full of BRING IT ON.
