Frivolous Friday: Tarot Reading

Today, I’m going to describe and interpret a Tarot reading for you. You know what Tarot is, I’m sure. I own a deck of a design I don’t enjoy too much. That was the reason I’ve wanted to create my own Tarot deck, where an artist will draw the cards and I will decorate each with a brief verse reflecting its core characteristics.

Still, the deck is here, and with it goes a booklet with explanations and instructions. I’ll use that and you’ll follow my reading. While shuffling the cards, we should think of the question. Well, that is difficult. I never know what question to ask. Maybe I should try to be smart and ask: “Which question is the best one?” or something of the sort.

I’ll use just the Great Arcanas because using the whole deck will be tiresome. So, here we go. Shuffle, shuffle, split in two groups, then shuffle more. Take some cards, turn them head down and then repeat the whole thing. I draw 7 cards and put them face down on the table. I have to be careful and not turn them head down while drawing, because their meaning changes when they are head down.

What Can I Expect from the New School Year?

1. Past influences: The Magician
Obviously, in the past, we relied on the spiritual to lead us rather than the material. Is that regarding our daughter’s schooling? Because, as far as I know, she’s in a private school, and the material aspect in the form of annual tuition fee, is quite well presented. The ruling planet of the Magician is, however, Mercury, which gives me some peace, as our girl is very mercurial. Does this word even exist?

2. The Present: The Empress
The present is subject to the relaxed balance between positive mind and love. I have nothing to add here.

3. The Future: The Temperance
First, let me say that the Empress next to the Temperance also indicates that some inheritance is to come, but one which is smaller than the expectations. Well, who had any expectations anyway? Plus, what does this have to do with school?
But, let’s move to the interpretation of our future. If we can wait, the results will be worth the wait. I like this. Moving on.

Before that, I should mention that the above three cards influence one another and intensify their positive effects. So, keep the balance and rational thinking, and we’ll rock it!

4. The Methods of Action: The Judgment
Important changes will come and the influence of our daughter over others will increase. For that to be successful, she needs to have a philosophical mindset and life view.

5. Others’ Attitude: The Hermit
Hm, others will not be very supportive, it seems. Rather, she will have the freedom to listen to her own mind and the opportunity to consider everything without rushing. I can’t say if it’s good or bad. Normally, it’s good, but now we speak about school, and no schoolchild should be alone. We expect support from the teachers. The number of this card is 9, which is also our daughter’s number, so let’s see.

6. Potential Hardships: The Force
A possible difficulty will come from group dynamics. The child needs to listen to her own mind and must overcome her own lack of confidence. The anger from competition should be silenced and defeated. Well, upon my soul, this is difficult.

7. The End Result: The Chariot
Wow! Am I not the luckiest mother alive? Why, the Chariot is one of the best possible cards to come up for an end result. It speaks of success, issues overcoming and triumph. It also says we’ll have a pleasant journey.

So, after this reassuring Tarot reading, I can go shopping and buy some school necessities for the starting year, can’t I?

The Theme behind November PAD

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Image credit: Rebecca Barray

For today’s post I decided to tackle the November Poem-A-Day Chapbook challenge and focus on its prompts. Some time into the challenge in 2010, Robert asked whether or not we have found any particular theme behind it. Then I managed to identify a theme for myself and formed my chapbook around it. Of course, I didn’t follow that theme throughout all my poems. Not only does it need a lot of pre-planning, which I am completely incapable of, but that also means very severe sticking to the theme, another incapability of mine.

In 2010, the theme I saw unfolding behind Robert’s prompts was the cycle of a love affair – starting with opening the new page, all the way to lessons learned.

In 2011 I participated in the challenge again. I do that alongside NaNoWriMo as a way of pumping my creative enthusiasm. My busy daily routine then, however, didn’t allow me the time to sit down and consider whether or not there was a theme behind the prompts. Moreover, I skipped several and that only added up to my frustration.

However, here I am, participating in NovPAD again. A fellow-poet, Maxie Steer, put that theme question across, so I started thinking. This time Robert doesn’t offer the prompts himself, so we can’t suppose he has a hidden theme for the chapbook. This time he picks prompts from participants’ suggestions. The challenge started with my own Matches prompt (which was a great honour). Here is the list, so far:

  • Matches
  • Full Moon
  • Scary
  • Just Beneath…
  • Texting
  • Right /Left
  • Circle
  • Talk Back to a Dead Poet
  • When He’s Gone
  • Foreign Word/Phrase
  • Veteran Poem
  • Non-existing Device (that should exist)
  • Letter/Recipe
  • Stuck
  • Tradeoff
  • Last line becomes First: Thrilled
  • Wheel
  • Glossa-form
  • Gathering/Letting go
  • Song Title: On a Lonely Island
  • Paradise
  • Deep

I started by a love poem, then I wrote a life-asserting poem, some vague scary stuff, a self-irony poem, a love lost poem in the unsuccessful form of a text message, a pun poem and then the Circle prompt came by and I wrote a poem of my Daddy. After that, and after talking to Maxie, I started thinking that perhaps this chapbook may focus on my daddy and my relation with him. I have many poems written about him, but several more won’t hurt. After that the When He’s Gone prompt hit it again. In between, however, I still wrote either love or nature-inspired poems. What can I say? Sometimes I just want to write that, depending on the prompt!

I must state it honestly that I am a bit behind on the prompts and I have been thinking about what to write, or, more precisely, how to write it. I have just vague ideas and feel I am too slow. Luckily, this post is not about NaNoWriMo, because I have had a complete crash over there 🙂

 

What is your incline with the PAD prompts this year?