10.27.2009

Fortune-telling bad. Insight good. Tarot is a tool for providing Insight.

When people encounter the concept of card reading for the first time, the first thing most of them want to ask is, "What's in my future?"

I don't blame them. I did the same thing, Back in the Day. Honestly, we ALL want to know what's going to happen to us, don't we? Will we get that job we want? Will we meet our soulmate? Will we get a letter of acceptance from the school we applied to?

OF COURSE we all want to know how important life events like this will turn out. We wouldn't be human if we didn't ponder that sort of question from time to time. Animals "live in the now", focused only on the present; they neither dwell on the past nor look ahead to the future. Only humans focus on past and future actions and events, and gee, wouldn't it be a tremendous load off our minds to KNOW how things will be, so we don't have to sit around wondering about it?

Fortune-tellers would have their clients believe that their readings can predict the future. But there's a tremendous flaw in that reasoning: the future IS NOT carved in stone. It depends on the foundation that we're laying for it right now, in the present. What we do today is what shapes the future.

So why even bother getting a Tarot reading, then, if it can't tell us what's going to happen? The answer is this: Tarot readings provide, not predictions of the future, but INSIGHT into how the past and present will impact what happens in the future. I equate Tarot to a tool like a compass, in that both of them can tell you what direction you're heading. If your compass tells you you're facing West, and the direction you need to go is Northeast, what will you do? You'll turn around, of course, until you're facing in the correct direction, and then you'll proceed. Because of the compass, you avoided having to backtrack and you got on the right road sooner rather than later.

Tarot readings function in the same way. If you have a Tarot reading on the topic of a relationship, and cards come up that indicate possible conflict or confrontation in the offing, that is NOT an immutable outcome! If, because you saw those cards, you make an extra effort to keep your temper in check and be more understanding when the other person presents their side of the story, perhaps what COULD have been an argument will instead be a constructive discussion. Because of the insight you gain from a reading, you can prepare yourself to act and react in a more positive way.

Fortune tellers DISEMPOWER their clients by behaving as though the clients have no choice but to react to the future that befalls them.. Competent Tarot readers EMPOWER their clients by showing them how they can proactively work toward building the future they want.

If you consult a Tarot Reader, demand empowerment and insight from them; if they can't or won't provide that, then they're merely a fortune-teller and not a Reader, and you will know to seek insight elsewhere. Be proactive in building your own future. Seek insight in all things, and you'll find yourself reaping the rewards of a future you've sown, instead of simply sitting and waiting to see if anything desirable sprouts up of its own accord.

10.26.2009

Welcome!

Welcome to my new website! I have migrated to this site thanks to the closure of geocities.com. Yahoo! has decided to close down geocities.com, and so anyone whose homepage was located there, including me, has had to make a fresh start somewhere else.

If you were with me at Sensible Tarot Readings, then hello and welcome back! If this is the first time we've met, then hello and it's nice to meet you.

Pull up a chair, sit down, and let's talk Tarot!

Code of Ethics

1) The results of all readings will be kept strictly confidential at all times.

2) Readings will be performed honestly and accurately to the best of my ability. I will not interpret the cards based on what the person wants to hear. I WILL interpret the cards with consideration for the recipient's feelings, but I will also provide a truthful and complete answer, without lying by commission or omission.

3) I will NEVER offer, nor attempt to offer, advice which I am neither qualified nor trained to give. This includes (but is not limited to) medical, legal, or financial advice. For assistance in those areas, I will refer the recipient to seek the counsel of a physician, attorney, or financial adviser, respectively.

4) I will ALWAYS answer the recipient's questions about any reading I perform, and there will NEVER be an added fee involved for followup discussion. I want to be certain that the recipient of the reading clearly understands the contents of the reading. When I read for someone in person, I discuss the results at length with the individual. Since the readings on this site are being offered via email, recipients are welcome to correspond via email with me regarding the results at any time.

5) I will always respond promptly to a request for a reading. If for ANY reason there will be a delay, I will contact the recipient, explain why, and arrange a reasonable time frame for the reading to be performed. If this is unsatisfactory to the recipient, their payment will be refunded in full prior to my performing the reading.

6) I will remind the recipient that they have control over their own actions at all times. No card reading results are fixed and unchangeable, and the recipient's own actions are required to nurture and follow up on potential successes, or to take precautions to avoid or diminish possible obstacles. I will do everything in my power to remind the recipient that they are the ones that have control over the outcome of and/or their response to every situation they face. Whether they have opted to have a card reading about a given situation or not, full control over their actions/reactions, and its accompanying responsibility, always belongs to the recipient. Nothing and no one can ever take that power away from them, and I will never state nor imply otherwise.

7) I will reserve the right to respectfully decline to perform a reading for any person who appears to have developed a dependence on card readings in order to make decisions. Excessive reliance on card readings is not only unrealistic, it's unhealthy, and I won't knowingly lead someone down that path. I will respectfully refund the person's payment and decline to do a reading for them, if I believe that their desire to have their cards read will do them more harm than good.

8) I will never use any reading I provide as a method to extract any unannounced fees, or to make a sales pitch for anything else, to the recipient. Charges for any readings will be clearly stated on my site, and there will not be any additional costs involved. At no time in my interpretation of the card reading will I make an attempt to convince the recipient to purchase anything else, including additional readings.

9) I will never attempt to perform a reading when I know in advance that it's impossible to use the cards to answer the recipient's question as it was stated to me. If the recipient has asked me to perform a reading for a question that the cards are not designed to answer, I will inform them of this immediately and work with them to rephrase the question or choose a different question. If we cannot come to an agreement regarding the question prior to my doing the reading, I will respectfully refund the payment in full.

If I know in advance of a time period when I will be offline and unable to check e-mail, the time frame for my absence will be clearly stated on the home page, along with the date that I will resume checking e-mail and providing readings. Correspondence received during my absence, including requests for readings, will be responded to as soon as possible upon my return.