âHow can I do better?â
This question is reverberating around the world right now.
Anti-racist actions and education have become bigger priorities in spiritual communities recently, including the tarot world.
As a result, I have seen a number of Black women make pleas through their social media accounts for people to stop contacting them by private messages to ask, âHow can I help? What can I do? How can I be a better ally?â
For those who are not content creators or who are not public-facing in their work, it might come as a shock just how often boundaries get crossed online.
I donât know what itâs like to get asked about anti-racism education, or how to support Black Lives Matter.
But I do know itâs a huge problem for tarot readers and astrologers to get contacted by people requesting free readings, feedback on their natal charts or tarot spreads, or advice on whether an ex is returning.
So I can only imagine what others deal with on a regular basis â and especially now, as s...
I have been feeling frustrated lately.
And impatient. And tired â not physically, but intellectually and emotionally.
Especially by what I see in so-called spiritual communities, from so-called spiritual people who push conspiracy theories and promote paranoia, suspicion, and careless information.
I know that conspiracy theories exist in all types of circles.
And spiritual work is not my only work. But it is a place I spend much time in, and a place I choose to lead from, so itâs what Iâm going to address today.
I am expanding on some thoughts I shared in a previous post that bears repeating, and bears witness with the astrology of the moment.
I always encourage discernment, logic, and groundedness in all that we do. My life's work is based in spiritual practices, art, and magic, but that doesn't mean I don't have space in my life for critical thinking, science, and rational thought.
If you study tarot, astrology, or other spiritual practices deeply enough, you will learn that they...
Today, I want you to think about something you really want to accomplish.
Maybe you want to launch a new business in the next six months.
Maybe you want to run a marathon next year.
Maybe you want to learn a new language.
Maybe you want to write an album, or a book, or build an artistic career.
Whatever it is, I want you to hold onto it for a moment.
What does fear have to do with your goal? Maybe it influences your actions a little, or a lot. Maybe fear is what is keeping you from moving forward right now.
Maybe youâve found yourself thinking, âIf I knew there a good chance this plan would work out, I would do it for sure.â
Maybe youâre waiting for that sign, confirmation, or guarantee.
I think Iâm a pretty good person to talk to about fear, though probably not for the same reasons people expect.
In my work as a tarot reader, I often answer questions about goals: People look to tarot for certainty, outcomes, and predictions.
âWill this work out?â
âAm I on the right path...
Back in March, when things first started to close up in response to the pandemic, my friends and I were â in hindsight â naĂŻve about how long this was really going to last.
I was on my way to the gym one morning when a friend I chat with there was on his way out. âItâs closed,â he said. The sign on the door had just gone up. We walked a couple blocks together and when our directions split off we said, âSee you in fourteen days, I guess!â
My friends who have local shops all said the same. They hung signs on their doors that said, âWeâll be back again soon!â
Still, two weeks without bars, restaurants, gyms, and stores seemed long â especially when weâve gotten so used to our 24/7, go, go, go lifestyles.
Ah, how quaint it all seems now when I look on it. How cute! We thought we would be back to ânormalâ in a matter of days.
A few weeks into this new normal, I started to realize that this was going to mean my tarot readings would change â especially in regards to the common question...
Do you want to be of service?
I know I do. Being of service is one of the reasons I became a tarot reader.
And I know that a lot of you out there feel the same, whether you read tarot yourself or use it for guidance in your life.
A lot of us who are committed to spiritual growth and intuitive development are often people who also want to heal ourselves, and others.
And so it makes sense that a lot of set out to find paths that allow us to be of service.
How? There are many ways we can be of service:
Volunteer work through a charity or community centre, lending a hand to a neighbour or family member, or pursuing a career path to puts you on the front lines are just a few examples.
Before I landed on my tarot journey, I wanted to be a writer. But when I was looking into college courses, I also considered a social work program.
I ended up in journalism, feeling that it was a good way to bridge the two. Later, after I transitioned out of the media industry, I started working on no...
âBoundaryâ is a word that seems to be on everyoneâs lips lately.
And with so much confusion, tension, and uncertainty in our world right now, boundaries are becoming more important than ever for our own individual self-care.
But while boundaries can be easy to identify, they are not always easy to enforce. Guilt and insecurity can sabotage your boundaries faster than you can say âno.â
Read on for my tips and practices to help you get clear about boundaries.
First: Everyone needs boundaries.
No matter how open, helpful, or available you want to be.
Boundaries serve an important purpose: They protect your time, energy, and feelings.
Healthy boundaries help you take control of your schedule, prevent drama, and deepen your relationships.
Yes, thatâs right: Good boundaries can actually bring you closer to the people you love.
Sometimes we shy away from stating or setting our boundaries because we worry that it might push someone away, hurt someoneâs feelings, or put up a wall.
Do ...
Ego is something you hear about a lot.
It comes up in spiritual conversations, therapy sessions, tarot readings, and self-help books.
Maybe youâve talked about your own ego, or felt the weight of someone elseâs ego.
We all know at least one person whoâs got a larger-than-life ego.
Take my late friend, Nik Beat, who was a poet and performer. Nik used to introduce himself on stage by saying, âThe ego has landed.â
But is ego bad, or good?
Something I hear a lot from my clients and students is that they worry about making âego-based decisions.â
When we dig a little deeper into what they mean, there is usually a lot of guilt under that statement:
Guilt about being selfish, putting yourself first, or prioritizing your happiness.
Is it wrong to follow an ambition? Is it wrong to enjoy your life?
I donât think so.
To be honest, if I always put my own desires last, then I wouldnât have done much so far.
A lot of people enjoy the books I have written, but those books would not...
One thing I did not expect to emerge through this global pandemic is the number of conspiracy theories that are out there.
Just as this virus continues to spread, so does the suspicion about it all.
Spiritual communities are rampant with it, including the tarot world. Which surprises me, but then it doesnât.
Spirituality and conspiracy theories have often shared space together. One of my earliest exposures to this crossover was here in Toronto in the â90s.
My friends and I would go downtown on the weekends where we would run into a religious group on Yonge Street. They would stand on the street handing out flyers warning against the coming age of microchipping, which they believed would signal the arrival of the anti-Christ. The chip was âthe mark of the Beast.â
But Iâm not going to go into a big, long list of various theories out there, old or new. My point in bringing this detail up is to say that Iâve heard a lot of different ideas over the years, and Iâve heard a lot of sus...
The end of the year can be one of the busiest seasons for tarot readings.
Everyone wants to know whatâs coming up in the year ahead:
"Will this be the year I find love?"
"Will my business be more profitable?"
"Will I move or change jobs?"
Overall, these are pretty common questions that people bring to tarot readers all year round â regardless of the calendar date.
Which is why, a couple of years ago, I started to question my own attachment to doing New Yearâs readings for my community.
One thing that I grappled with was that life is not linear. Many of the things we are hoping for donât just magically fall into place just because we changed the date on the calendar.
And so to expect that a certain date is going to signify something â be it love, success, or any other kind of goal â didnât feel quite right.
Especially because some of the things we are hoping for in the New Year require some kind of planning or action.
I also realized that New Yearâs readings were starting to feel like entertainme...
I have a lot of goals.
Iâve always been one to make bucket lists, New Yearâs lists, to-do lists, constantly keeping an eye on the short and long-term.
So often, Iâve look at other people who see to be moving towards their dreams and would ask, âHow do you it all?â
For years I felt like I was living a double-life: I wrote three books in six years, all while working 35 hours a week on top of it.
It definitely wasnât easy, because of course I didnât just have work and writing to focus on. I also had to take care of myself with the small things â groceries, laundry, errands â and maintain my relationships, and find some down time here and there.
But Iâve learned a lot about prioritizing, staying focused, and being realistic about my needs vs. my ideals.
These days, there is one thing I do to make sure I keep moving towards my goals on a daily basis: Before I get ready to go to bed, I write down my three most important things to do the next day.
Sometimes these priorities will be...
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