Liz Worth ~ Tarot

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...

 Whew! If you are following the astrology of the moment, there is a lot going on.

First, we are in eclipse season: The Aries new moon and solar eclipse occurred on April 20th (or April 19th, depending on your location).

And Mercury is retrograde from Friday, April 21 until Sunday, May 14.

If you’ve followed my work for a while, you might have noticed that I try to bring some balance into the usual planet panic that takes place during notable astrological events.

Horoscopes used to play quite a big role in my life at one time. But the increasing popularity of astrology, coupled with the pressure for content creators to compete with a culture driven by clickbait and merciless algorithms, has led me to a different relationship with astrology.

It seems like every month there is a new astrology column telling people to “buckle up” or “watch out.”

And I know that that the kind of language gets people’s...

This isn’t the first time I’ve shared thoughts on questions in tarot readings, but it’s been a while since I wrote about the subject.

And recently, I’ve had some good conversations with tarot clients and peers about the types of questions we can explore together. It’s been inspiring me to ruminate further, and to expand upon the topic.

Asking the right questions is something that, in my opinion, takes time to refine. And that doesn’t just extend to tarot readings.

The questions you ask yourself when you’re making a decision can help or hinder your path to clarity.

The questions you ask when you’re talking with other people can influence the quality of your connections to those around you.

The questions that pop into your head throughout the day can sway your future actions: “What if I did this? What if I try that?”

And of course, all of these questions can lead us in one way or another depending on how we approach them....

This year I’m doing something I’ve wanted to try for a long time: I’m taking a painting class.

When I was younger I used to love drawing, crafting, and creating all kinds of things with my hands. Like many adults, I’ve let some of those interests fall to the wayside over the years and I’ve come to miss them.

There is something incredibly grounding about working with your hands.

I’ve always been interested in painting, but when I’ve tried to paint on my own, I’ve often felt out of my element.

I don’t know if I’m applying too much pressure on the brush. Or how to make an image look the way I see it in my imagination. Or which details to put on the canvas first.

Basically, I don’t know where to begin or what to focus on when I’m on my own.

I know that art can be expressive and fun, and that technique doesn’t have to matter.

But the thing is, it matters to me: I can be creative in all kinds of ways in my life....

Readers of this newsletter who’ve been here for a while might remember that I used to share quite a few thoughts about astrology in this space.

In more recent times, I took a step back from my astrology practice to focus more deeply on tarot, and to re-evaluate my relationship with modern astrological trends.

But I never truly “quit” astrology: It has remained part of my personal spiritual practice all this time, as it has always been.

And so I hope you don’t mind if I reflect a bit on astrology today.

Jupiter has been a major influence for me lately. Maybe it’s because my sun is in Aries, and my moon in Pisces, and the planet of exuberance and optimism has been traversing through both signs this past year.

But Jupiter is now full steam ahead in Aries until May 2023, when it enters Taurus. The presence of Jupiter in Aries feels significant to me for so many reasons, mainly because Aries is the first sign of the zodiac and marks a new Jupiterian cycle.

...

A recurring theme I’ve been moving through this year is the connection between intuition and embodiment.

It’s something I was recently talking about in one of my tarot classes, and it’s something that’s come up through conversations and teachings I’ve had with other practitioners.

One experience that really drove it home for me was when I was studying with Mary Grisey earlier this year, in her psychic mediumship training.

When we think about intuition, channelling, or psychic experiences, there’s a tendency to assume these are things that will happen to us through “higher” or external influences. But instead, these are experiences that often start from within.

If you’re familiar with my work, you’ll know I take a practical approach to tarot and divination. I believe that readings of all kinds are an acquired skill that can be developed and improved with time, practice, and process.

But there’s also an...

If there’s one thing that gets overlooked most when it comes to learning tarot, it’s this:

Your why.

Why do you want to learn tarot?

What do you believe it will do for you?

What do you want to use it for?

What do you hope to be able to gain from the experience?

There can be any number of reasons to learn tarot. You may have several answers to each of these questions, or just one or two.

There is no right or wrong. There is no ideal reason, no purpose that is better than any other.

But to have a purpose behind learning tarot can really help you to figure out what to focus on, which classes to take, books to read, or techniques to understand.

For example: If you want to read tarot for other people, then it will for you to focus on being able to answer a wide range of questions. I always say that if you read for others, you need to be ready for anything that might come up.

Developing tarot skills that help you be flexible, adaptable, and fluid in your tarot readings is key...

There are so many cards in tarot that indicate and inspire new beginnings.

But we have to remember that tarot is balanced: It shows us beginnings, middles, and ends. And all of the various experiences in between those states.

Some cards are static and unchanging, and others signify abrupt endings. Some show the hard work that comes with moving towards a goal, and others show the importance of rest and stasis.

We can’t be changing all the time, of course.

But if you’re craving a clean slate and want to open a new chapter, here are my Top 3 tarot cards to reflect on when you’re ready for a new door to open:

1. The Ace of Cups. I have a special relationship with the Ace of Cups. I find it reliably pops up when I need reassurance that things are going to turn out for the best. Especially when I’m making a big change.

The Ace of Cups is a wonderful card to reflect on for new beginnings in relationships, creativity, spirituality, and the self.

2. The Ace of...

A few years ago, I was a tarot conference when a few readers started talking about gift certificates for tarot readings.

“Don’t buy your friend a reading when they’re celebrating a happy occasion – no one gets tarot readings when things are going well,” one of them said.

He was half-joking, half-serious.

And the more I thought about it, the more it made sense.

Gift certificates aside, it’s typical for people to seek out tarot readings when they are contemplating a dilemma.

Tarot helps people when they feel stuck in a rut or trapped in a tough situation. It helps when they are blocked around a decision, or when they feel unfocused about their overall direction in life.

Sure, some people book in for cosmic check-ins and general life updates, but by and far, I’ve noticed that most clients have specific reasons for buying tarot readings.

This is why tarot reading requires compassion. While it can be tempting sometimes to tell it like...

What does it mean to stay grounded when you’re reading tarot? (Or engaging in any other spiritual practice, for that matter.)

Like many things, the answer will depend on who you ask.

For me, groundedness can encompass many things:

• Staying humble and remembering that it’s not always about you;
• Finding a balance between logic and spiritual belief or faith;
• Developing sound judgment in decisions big and small; and
• Maintaining good energetic boundaries, so as not to get swept up in other people’s emotions or priorities.

Groundedness isn’t something only tarot readers should care about: It’s something everyone can benefit from cultivating in their lives.

But when you’re reading tarot for others, groundedness becomes particularly important. Because sometimes, you might have a querent who is struggling to stay present themselves. Or who needs some help discerning what’s true, and what’s not.

It’s so easy to get carried away with a...