I have just set up a Google Wave account. If you would like a reading via Google Wave, let me know. Click my email link in the sidebar on the right, change the "[at]" to "@", and contact me via email for details.
Fees are the same as the ones posted in the sidebar. We simply have a new way to deliver the reading to you.
Technology rules. :-)
Showing posts with label Article. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Article. Show all posts
11.10.2009
What to AVOID when you want a reading
Today's article is about a topic that makes me genuinely angry. It's the fact that some people will prey on others' fears by running psychic/Tarot reading "scams".
If you ever go into a shop for a psychic, Tarot, palmistry, etc. reading, and the proprietor starts telling you that you have a curse on you, forces of darkness have attached to you, etc., PLEASE make that your cue to politely pay what's owed for that one session and make an exit from their shop. Do not listen to all these ominous, dire things, because they are UNTRUE. The so-called "reader" is feeling you out to see if they can scam you out of more and more money to remove this alleged "curse", "darkness", or whatever nonsense they're spouting. They'll keep right on needing more and more money to remove bigger and worse "evil" from your life, for as long as you are willing to pay them. DO NOT FALL FOR IT. Please!
Do visit THIS SITE to see how some of these scammers work.
You will see that in my Code of Ethics, I specifically mention in Item 8 that all fees are stated up-front and that a reading will never be used as a way to extract additional money for anything else, including additional readings. I said it, I mean it, I stand by it. The entire reason WHY that item is in my Code of Ethics is to distance myself and this site as far as possible from the charlatans who prey on vulnerable people.
Let me assure you, there is NO "curse" on you, and there is no force of "darkness" or "evil" attached to you. If you are experiencing a rough time at the moment, it's something that we all go through at different times in our lives. Ups and downs are a part of life. You can get through the rough time WITHOUT throwing money after money at someone who needs more, more, and more payments to remove the "curse", "evil", and/or "darkness".
Tarot is a tool for insight, NOT a tool for scaring peoploe or prying money out of people's wallets. If you see someone behaving otherwise, walk away. They don't have your best interests at heart.
If you ever go into a shop for a psychic, Tarot, palmistry, etc. reading, and the proprietor starts telling you that you have a curse on you, forces of darkness have attached to you, etc., PLEASE make that your cue to politely pay what's owed for that one session and make an exit from their shop. Do not listen to all these ominous, dire things, because they are UNTRUE. The so-called "reader" is feeling you out to see if they can scam you out of more and more money to remove this alleged "curse", "darkness", or whatever nonsense they're spouting. They'll keep right on needing more and more money to remove bigger and worse "evil" from your life, for as long as you are willing to pay them. DO NOT FALL FOR IT. Please!
Do visit THIS SITE to see how some of these scammers work.
You will see that in my Code of Ethics, I specifically mention in Item 8 that all fees are stated up-front and that a reading will never be used as a way to extract additional money for anything else, including additional readings. I said it, I mean it, I stand by it. The entire reason WHY that item is in my Code of Ethics is to distance myself and this site as far as possible from the charlatans who prey on vulnerable people.
Let me assure you, there is NO "curse" on you, and there is no force of "darkness" or "evil" attached to you. If you are experiencing a rough time at the moment, it's something that we all go through at different times in our lives. Ups and downs are a part of life. You can get through the rough time WITHOUT throwing money after money at someone who needs more, more, and more payments to remove the "curse", "evil", and/or "darkness".
Tarot is a tool for insight, NOT a tool for scaring peoploe or prying money out of people's wallets. If you see someone behaving otherwise, walk away. They don't have your best interests at heart.
11.08.2009
Always trust your gut instinct -- it's there for a reason
Did you ever describe your actions to someone in this way:
Notice a theme here? The "something told me" part? That's what I want to focus on today. My personal nickname for that Something is "the little voice", and I assure you that I have never failed to regret ignoring it.
Sometimes that "little voice" warns us when our subconscious is picking up on nonverbal cues that our conscious mind is missing. For example, we could be waiting for an elevator, but when it arrives, there's just one person in it and we feel a strong reluctance to get into the elevator and be alone with that individual. Any time a situation, a person, a place, etc. makes you feel concerned for your safety, listen to your instinct.
Sometimes, the Little Voice can't be described as anything other than a premonition. Again, take it seriously. A friend of mine was driving home when a warning light illuminated on her dashboard. There wasn't anything else obviously wrong, but something told her to find a safe place to pull off the road. She did so, right before the car abruptly stopped working entirely. Had the car failed on the highway or on the bridge she used as part of her route home, there could have been a serious accident. Instead, everything turned out OK and no one was hurt.
So in short, pay attention to your instincts. God gave them to us for a reason. Treat them as the gift that they are, and use them well.
"I wasn't originally going to try [x], but then something told me I should, and it turns out I liked it!"
"Something told me to go back and double-check whether the door was locked, and sure enough, it wasn't. So I locked it."
"Something told me to avoid taking that shortcut today, so I went another route. Turns out there was a huge traffic jam on the road I usually use. Good thing I went a different way."
Notice a theme here? The "something told me" part? That's what I want to focus on today. My personal nickname for that Something is "the little voice", and I assure you that I have never failed to regret ignoring it.
Sometimes that "little voice" warns us when our subconscious is picking up on nonverbal cues that our conscious mind is missing. For example, we could be waiting for an elevator, but when it arrives, there's just one person in it and we feel a strong reluctance to get into the elevator and be alone with that individual. Any time a situation, a person, a place, etc. makes you feel concerned for your safety, listen to your instinct.
Sometimes, the Little Voice can't be described as anything other than a premonition. Again, take it seriously. A friend of mine was driving home when a warning light illuminated on her dashboard. There wasn't anything else obviously wrong, but something told her to find a safe place to pull off the road. She did so, right before the car abruptly stopped working entirely. Had the car failed on the highway or on the bridge she used as part of her route home, there could have been a serious accident. Instead, everything turned out OK and no one was hurt.
So in short, pay attention to your instincts. God gave them to us for a reason. Treat them as the gift that they are, and use them well.
11.06.2009
The Transparent Tarot Deck -- what a fascinating experience it is!
I recently purchased the Transparent Tarot, a deck which is printed on transparent sheets of plastic. Its images are designed so that a person can stack cards of a reading one atop the other and glean additional levels of meaning from a given reading.
Well, I've tried some "stack the cards atop one another" readings, and WOW. What a boost of insight comes from having a new way to interpret the cards! I keep thinking of the game referenced in Star Trek, 3-Dimensional Chess, because taking a 3-card reading and stacking the cards gives a 3-dimensional card spread.
I can tell that the mental workout I'll be receiving as I practice new reading techniques will serve me in good stead when I work with my more conventional paper decks.
What a fascinating learning experience this is turning out to be. :)
Well, I've tried some "stack the cards atop one another" readings, and WOW. What a boost of insight comes from having a new way to interpret the cards! I keep thinking of the game referenced in Star Trek, 3-Dimensional Chess, because taking a 3-card reading and stacking the cards gives a 3-dimensional card spread.
I can tell that the mental workout I'll be receiving as I practice new reading techniques will serve me in good stead when I work with my more conventional paper decks.
What a fascinating learning experience this is turning out to be. :)
11.04.2009
How did I become a Tarot reader?
When Geocities.com closed down its websites last month, my original webpage was lost in the process. I chose to re-establish my online presence with a blog. I want to provide my site's visitors with information and commentary. I have many things to say, and I wanted to have an easily-maintained, accessible forum in which to say them.
There are some questions that need to be answered for newcomers to this site, including "Who am I, and what qualifies me to offer Tarot readings in the first place?"
Who I am is a married lady who first encountered Tarot cards in 1978, when I was in high school. Two close friends of mine, who are sisters, purchased a Rider-Waite Tarot deck and learned to do readings. They, plus two other friends and I, were fascinated by the Tarot. The cards contained amazing artwork with levels upon levels of symbolism to learn. The process itself of learning Tarot interpretation was both interesting and challenging, and we gravitated toward it immediately. Even as rank beginners, we could see some genuinely on-target results and we were encouraged to continue.
I say "we" because the five of us were teaming up to interpret readings, even back when we only had the one deck. One or the other of the two sisters would shuffle the cards and lay them out in the Celtic Cross spread, and then all five of us would pore over the books (which my friends got at the same time they bought the deck) to interpret the cards' definitions, as well as their relation to the other cards in the reading. Bouncing ideas off each other the way we did really helped us ALL learn more quickly. Before long, the three of us who didn't own a Tarot deck went out and got decks, too. I know I got my deck, also a Rider-Waite deck, in March of 1978. We continued reading both as a team and individually. I gained a lot of experience and confidence in my reading, thanks to having lots of practice and feedback right from the beginning. From then until now, I've read for friends and family.
In 2004, I decided that it was time for me to do more with my reading, and I set up my first website; that original site eventually led to my creation of THIS website. I hope that I can both gain and help to provide insight via Tarot readings.
There are some questions that need to be answered for newcomers to this site, including "Who am I, and what qualifies me to offer Tarot readings in the first place?"
Who I am is a married lady who first encountered Tarot cards in 1978, when I was in high school. Two close friends of mine, who are sisters, purchased a Rider-Waite Tarot deck and learned to do readings. They, plus two other friends and I, were fascinated by the Tarot. The cards contained amazing artwork with levels upon levels of symbolism to learn. The process itself of learning Tarot interpretation was both interesting and challenging, and we gravitated toward it immediately. Even as rank beginners, we could see some genuinely on-target results and we were encouraged to continue.
I say "we" because the five of us were teaming up to interpret readings, even back when we only had the one deck. One or the other of the two sisters would shuffle the cards and lay them out in the Celtic Cross spread, and then all five of us would pore over the books (which my friends got at the same time they bought the deck) to interpret the cards' definitions, as well as their relation to the other cards in the reading. Bouncing ideas off each other the way we did really helped us ALL learn more quickly. Before long, the three of us who didn't own a Tarot deck went out and got decks, too. I know I got my deck, also a Rider-Waite deck, in March of 1978. We continued reading both as a team and individually. I gained a lot of experience and confidence in my reading, thanks to having lots of practice and feedback right from the beginning. From then until now, I've read for friends and family.
In 2004, I decided that it was time for me to do more with my reading, and I set up my first website; that original site eventually led to my creation of THIS website. I hope that I can both gain and help to provide insight via Tarot readings.
11.02.2009
How does Tarot reading "fit" into my life?
I realize that everyone who reads Tarot cards is approaching the process from their own perspective. That's as it should be. If you're not bringing your real self to the reading process, you've gotten off on the wrong foot from the very beginning.
However... there are some crucial things to keep in mind, whether you are a Tarot reader yourself, or whether you are a person who is in search of someone to perform a reading.
For one thing, no one -- Reader or Seeker (the reading recipient) -- should ever lose their perspective. Tarot Cards are a fascinating tool, but they do NOT hold power. The ability is in the people connected to the reading -- the Reader and the Seeker -- NOT in the cards. That's the same way that my eyeglasses are not the reason I can see, but they are the reason I can see more clearly. My EYES are where the ability to see lies, not the eyeglasses. If my eyes couldn't see, all the eyeglasses in the world wouldn't help.
Also -- and this is important -- no one should ever forget, for even one instant, just where our ability comes from. I, personally, am a Christian and I believe that all our abilities, as well as everything we are and everything we do, come from God. Other persons who practice other faiths might assign different names to our Maker. But no matter what name or gender we use to refer to the One who made us, the point I'm making is that we should never, ever place the cards ahead of our Creator. Cards are pieces of paper, and the moment we start to worship them instead of the One who made us is the moment we start going down the wrong path.
That's not the only way to start moving in the wrong direction, however. Another dangerous obstacle is the temptation for a Reader to start acting like THEY are the one who should be glorified or worshipped. Nope, sorry -- we're all just regular people, whether or not we happen to have studied Tarot cards or anything else. A Reader who behaves (or worse, believes) that they are above other people somehow is a Reader who's heading for a big fall and a harsh lesson to the contrary. A Seeker who places a Reader on a pedestal is in for a major disappointment at some point, when they find out that the Reader is just as human as they themselves are, instead of being some kind of superhero(ine).
However... there are some crucial things to keep in mind, whether you are a Tarot reader yourself, or whether you are a person who is in search of someone to perform a reading.
For one thing, no one -- Reader or Seeker (the reading recipient) -- should ever lose their perspective. Tarot Cards are a fascinating tool, but they do NOT hold power. The ability is in the people connected to the reading -- the Reader and the Seeker -- NOT in the cards. That's the same way that my eyeglasses are not the reason I can see, but they are the reason I can see more clearly. My EYES are where the ability to see lies, not the eyeglasses. If my eyes couldn't see, all the eyeglasses in the world wouldn't help.
Also -- and this is important -- no one should ever forget, for even one instant, just where our ability comes from. I, personally, am a Christian and I believe that all our abilities, as well as everything we are and everything we do, come from God. Other persons who practice other faiths might assign different names to our Maker. But no matter what name or gender we use to refer to the One who made us, the point I'm making is that we should never, ever place the cards ahead of our Creator. Cards are pieces of paper, and the moment we start to worship them instead of the One who made us is the moment we start going down the wrong path.
That's not the only way to start moving in the wrong direction, however. Another dangerous obstacle is the temptation for a Reader to start acting like THEY are the one who should be glorified or worshipped. Nope, sorry -- we're all just regular people, whether or not we happen to have studied Tarot cards or anything else. A Reader who behaves (or worse, believes) that they are above other people somehow is a Reader who's heading for a big fall and a harsh lesson to the contrary. A Seeker who places a Reader on a pedestal is in for a major disappointment at some point, when they find out that the Reader is just as human as they themselves are, instead of being some kind of superhero(ine).
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.
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.
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