Future Tarot

AJ writes:

I have nothing specific other than “what does this year hold for me?” I have to add that the latter half of last year sucked, though not as hard as some years I’ve had. Life has been hard up until four years ago.

Overview: In spite of your proclamation to Miss Michele that acclaim is what brings you satisfaction, the cards show a huge emphasis on emotions, and seeking “parent figures,” mentors. Although Miss Michele hates to say it, based on the placement of the cards, your parents *may* be returning into your life, leaving you with a difficult choice to make. Let’s go month by month and see what the Tarot has to say.

January – Five of Cups – Not surprisingly, the Five of Cups starts off the year. This shows a certain emptiness in your life, perhaps still recovering from years of hurt or just starting to show these feelings. Whatever happened in the latter half of the year that “sucked” continues.

February – the Fool – February will bring you out of your doldrums in a *big* way. I see the last half of the year’s events letting go to bring you into a new phase, in which you really let your ‘inner teenager’ out, but with positive consequences, rather than having people view you as immature. Your thoughts and words will be put into action, and you may even see some opportunities, as a direct result of your personality, pop up.

March – The Six of Cups – often described as the “good old days” card. AJ admitted himself that he missed out on “fun” teenage years. February and March will blur into one adventure of fun and immaturity, but with little danger of negative consequences.

April – The Three of Rods further reinforces the Fool, urging you to take action on the opportunities offered. You won’t plunge blindly, but will take time to consider how best to proceed and will do so with knowledge, perhaps taking on a leadership role in your chosen community, be it the blogosphere or the office.

May – The Empress reveals that a female mentor may step up to help you in this role… She will, additionally, help you confront your own feelings about your mother, and your very definition of the word as you perceive it. Very appropriate, in the month of Mother’s Day. Additionally, you will be enjoying the bounty that the opportunities in April have presented you. The two consecutive Threes in this reading show your ability to enjoy life, and the Spring will give you the means to do so…everything will come together as you begin to enjoy the fruits of your labor. It’s going to be a good Spring!

June – King of Pentacles - June brings us a curious card, a father figure/mentor card in the Court Card, King of Pentacles. So funny that the exact cards you wished not to see appeared in this throw. That which we think about manifests… in the positive or negative. When you say, “I don’t want to see my parents,” the Universe hears “parents” and acts accordingly… giving you lots of parent substitutes and cards that leave Miss Michele shouting, “mother and father!”

The King of Pentacles follows our theme of grasping opportunities and seeing them through to completion to bring you wealth, satisfaction and career success. Oddly, once again, June is Father’s Day. This card could indicate a male mentor who assists you on your quest. You are ready and eager to learn all that he can teach.

July – July brings us the Lovers, another major arcane indicating a choice must be made. The scenario as I see it: your parents come back into your life, you make a choice to either repair or not repair the damage done. (Too much information often clouds the interpretation… )
Alternately, you may have a decision to make about this opportunity… in either event, the decision leaves you…

August – Feeling lonely in August, as the Four of Cups surfaces. Far from your gregarious self this month, you have retreated for careful contemplation. The decision in July has left you closing your emotions off again. However, this contemplation is opening the door for a better future. The up-turned, yet empty, cups shown on the card show a willingness to receive love and acceptance once you release the hurt you’re feeling.

September – Seven of Swords – The Seven of Swords indicates a lack of trust. You opened yourself up in the spring and summer, only to find yourself alone and more cynical come the fall. Be wary of a depression that will cloud your thoughts, creativity and abilities to work creatively.

October – Six of Pentacles – October brings you out of your doldrums, where you find yourself repaying a karmic debt. After the help given to you in the Spring, you decide to “give back” by helping others in a similar way and will feel fulfilled by it. You realize there is more to life than just yourself and what you can get from others, and learn the beauty in giving and sharing, mentoring others with your own wealth of knowledge. Or you don’t. That’s your choice. But the Tarot advises that fulfillment awaits if you do.

November – Seven of Cups – November finds you with your head in the clouds a bit, with big dreams and visions but not sure how to put them into place.

December – Knight of Swords – It becomes clear in December, when you employ logic to fulfill your pie-in-the-sky visions. After a turbulent “emo” year of letting your emotions get the best of you, you take positive action. The danger is in become too serious and focus on facts.

Overall, the year’s focus is represented in the Queen of Pentacles. This will be a pivotal year for you in terms of learning how to give and take—tangible objects, advice and information, as well as love and acceptance. You’ll be more sensible in business manners—earning enough to pay that killer mortgage and then some, but will learn the rules of “the Secret,” you give back what you put out to the Universe.
I see you in the ‘middle phase” of your learning experience with the universe. No high-number cards have come up, but you started with “zero” in the fool and worked up to a seven, with ideas in the intangible thoughts phase. This is supported by the cups in the reading.

Please come back often, and tell us how the year is progressing for you!

Heartchakra, too, is asking about her career path. Heartchakra says:

I’m a friend of Joanna’s and I am blown away with how accurate your reading was for her. I am struggling with similar issues. In my case, I am a book designer and published writer struggling with debt and trying to find work. My degree is in fine arts, something I left behind a long time ago and never fully embraced. I would like to go into illustration, while continuing to write and design, as a way to reconnect with that side of myself. I am wondering if illustration is the right path for me.

Miss Michele did another five card reading for Heartchakra. Well, tried to. Some sticky cards made that difficult… (No, they weren’t really sticky, they’re clean! But two kept coming out at a time.) Let’s explore the original five cards, and also see if the clarification cards add greater insight.

In the past, the Six of Swords, Heartchakra began to move away from hard times. She may have taken a literal journey, or this could indicate leaving one path (which she found challenging) for another.

The present shows still more Swords, the Six, (and the Nine, holding on for dear life!) There have been a lot of shake-ups in Heartchakra’s life in the recent past, and she faces the potential for yet another move and career change.

Additionally, she’s been cheated or wronged in some awful way. The Nine of Swords, the Nightmare Card, corresponds to this. The damage was very bad and Heartchakra is left wondering how she will recover.

The Hidden Influences, shown in the Major Arcana, the Hermit, demonstrates a need for isolation, for Heartchakra to be alone with her thoughts. Her desire for solitude to nurture her creativity is influencing her career move. The Hermit is the number nine card, the second nine in this reading, which shows a life cycle coming to an end. The focus is on letting go of the old.

Nines also indicate possible self-deception (supported by the Seven of Swords.) Is this change really what you want, or are you just running away from a bad situation? Make sure you are running toward something, not away. Nines say that this is the time to tie up loose ends.

The Tarot’s Advice is to wait, exemplified in the Hanged Man, the proverbial card of “slow action.” Take time to look at things from a different perspective, re-evaluate goals and priorities, and be true to yourself.

Now, Miss Michele is not saying “don’t follow your heart” if you believe illustration is the path for you. The tarot isn’t written in stone and it only shows one possible outcome. Just explore your motives carefully before making any changes in your life and go slowly. Build a strong groundwork.

Rarely does Miss Michele do a reading where so many cards say the same thing. They are practically screaming answers. The King of Swords, throwing in his two cents in the Advice position with the Hanged Man, is a card of truth, careful consideration, control, rationality and objective judgment. And, again, he speaks of tumultuous change, as shown in the suit of Swords.

The last card, The Lovers, points to a very positive Outcome. Three major arcana in this reading definitely point to a major life change on the horizon! The Outcome says you will make a choice between two divergent paths–it could be an either/or situation in your career–not both–which is why the tarot advises caution. But the Lovers is all about Choice, and you are entirely free to choose.

You will face a test before you discover which choice is correct, and it may be quite an ordeal, but you will know which answer is the right one when the time comes.

Well, on this rainy, chilly morning I had some difficulty finding any ambition. When I finally got moving, my thoughts danced in a thousand different directions.

My question for the Tarot today: Will I find focus and get things done?

The card?
The Lovers.

A major arcana for a not so significant question. What could this mean?

My thoughts could be on my husband, looking forward to some leisure time with him, and R&R. It sounds like I’m going to need a lot of discipline to focus on my work today!

The Lovers card also indicates a significant choice to be made: one path or the other? I’ve been pursuing a lot of freelance work, querying and applying for jobs. Will an opportunity arise that means I have to make a choice about a big project or continuing to do what I’m doing? I *like* what I’m doing… I don’t want to give up now, while it feels as if I’m on the right path!