Tarot readings for timing + and perspective from the Eight of Swords

I don’t know about you, but I have been caught up in a flurry of activity these last few months. When life feels like it’s just go, go, go, it’s easy to forget to check in with yourself. When there is a lot to do, we can end up in reactive mode sometimes, just going through the motions in order to check off our to-do lists.

But I get out of sorts in all kinds of ways if I don’t take – or make – a little bit of time to get back to my inner compass and see how I’m feeling about my present moment.

Taking that time allows me to reflect on whether I’m spending time on what I intended to. Outside of my tarot business, I’m a writer, and if you do anything creative you’ll know what I mean when I say that writing is (unfortunately) often one of the first things that falls off the radar when life gets hectic.

We owe it to ourselves to pause and ask: Am I forgetting something as I rush throughout the day?

I don’t mean forgetting to pick up something at the grocery store or neglecting to send an email.

I mean: Am I forgetting to sit down and work on my art for an hour this week like I had planned to? Am I forgetting to try that fun recipe I found online last week? Am I forgetting to sit down and connect with my spiritual practice like I intended to? 

It’s so easy for the days to fly by. It seems like every week, by the time Friday rolls around, my husband and I look at each other and say, “I can’t believe it’s already the weekend again.” 

And when time is passing by like that, it’s all too easy to lose track of the small things that make us feel at home within ourselves. Whether that’s running a bath and sitting in the tub with a book at the end of the day, or going for a walk in the park, or writing in a journal, those little things can end up forgotten to the point where we realize weeks – or sometimes months – have gone by without giving ourselves the vital luxuries of creativity, reflection, and connection.

It's also in times like these when we can end up putting off big changes or making major decisions because it feels like it’s too much, too soon.

And that’s what I hear from my tarot clients sometimes: They show up for readings because they don’t have the headspace or bandwidth to move forward with a change or plan they want or need to make.

“Can tarot tell me if it’s the right time to this?” They ask – “this” being all kinds of things. Sometimes people want to quit their jobs to start businesses because their day jobs are so toxic. Other times clients ask if it’s the right time to leave a partner. Or to move house.

There can be all kinds of risks and benefits associated with a major life change. But when you’re feeling out of touch with yourself, it can be hard to get clear about whether you’re in the right time or place to make a big transition. 

We so often want to have perfect timing in all that we do.

But we also have to be realistic about what we need to do, and why. Sometimes, I talk with clients who really can’t put off a major decision any longer. If your health and safety is in question, for example, then a change can be necessary regardless of whether the timing feels ideal or not. 

And that’s one thing I encourage people to reflect on: Rather than asking, “Is it the right time to make a change?” we sometimes have to just ask ourselves if it is simply time to make a change, regardless of the circumstances.

Timing might be ideal, but it also might be less than stellar. Realistically, it seems rare that absolutely every aspect of one’s life is perfectly in synch at all times.

There might never be a perfect time to move, take a risk, or break up a relationship. There might be times when the conditions of our lives feel more favourable for change, but if we don’t see much of a reprieve on the horizon, that doesn’t mean it’s a “bad” time to correct course. 

It just means that you might have to take on whatever comes with that decision. 

Unfortunately, we all go through times when we feel like we’re in between a rock and a hard place, unable to cope with current circumstances but fearful of adding even more pressure to our busy lives.

In moments like that, I think about the Eight of Swords, and how at first glance, it seems like the woman in the picture is stuck. But over the years, I’ve come to see another aspect to this card: That of commitment.

 What if this woman has simply drawn up her boundaries, put on a blindfold, and refused to let herself be distracted right now? What if she is in deep contemplation, finally allowing herself to come back to her own thoughts in order to see what her inner compass has to say?

 What if she is closing herself off temporarily in order to commit to something new – something that perhaps only she can see and sense right now, and that needs to be worked out in her mind first?

 Ideally, we can make time to regularly be like the Eight of Swords and tune into ourselves while we tune out the world for a moment in order not to feel pulled in so many different directions that we lose sense of what we need or where we want to go next. But realistically, we all get pulled from our paths every now and then.

As long as we keep finding a way back to our inner compasses, however, then we can be reminded that the choices we make might not always feel like they are in perfect timing, but they might still be what we need regardless.

How will you come back to yourself this week?

 Until next time,

 Liz

p.s. Are you looking for a place to practice tarot, build community, and get access to monthly tarot workshops that will help you build your skills? Tarot Study Hall might be what you're looking for.