My Question:

“What does January 2012 has in store for me?

Position 2   Position 3   Position 1

Position 1
Main gift 4 of Swords (A)

Position 2
Main challenge 9 of cups (W)

Position 3
Advice or best course of action. Page of swords (A)

The first thought to come to my mind is “May I return the gift?”

I am using the lovely Anna K Tarot deck.

The 4 of Swords
shows two women in a dark bedroom. Through the window we can see snow. The younger woman in bed is clearly sick and distressed. The older lady sits besides her to provide her with any comfort she can. Two swords are behind the head of the sick lady, one is to her right and one barely visible is at the feet of the bed.

This is obviously a dark, sad card. What kind of gift can it represent?

Will I be grateful to have someone at my side in my time of need?
Or
I will be thankful to be able to be there for a loved one when he or she will need me most?

9 of Cups
A jubilant young couple is shown dancing while a crowd of happy, loving people cheer them on.
This is a happy scene, but the card is positioned in the main challenge for the month. It also follows the sad 4 of swords as a gift.
Perhaps it will be very hard for me to be truly happy and  celebrate an important occasion while experiencing sadness at the same time.
Page of Swords
A young person prepares to do battle with some kind of scarecrow armed with a sword and a shield.

I could interpret this card in two different ways.

A) Practice makes perfect. Rehearse my response will help me face the obstacle better when the time will come.

B) Being aggressive and negative all the time is a waste of energy.

How do I sum up this reading?

Perhaps January will bring me joy and sadness at the same time.

Living in the moment may be hard, but the best thing to do. Face the sadness and be there for whoever may need me. Truly be happy and grateful for joy when it makes an appearance.

Being happy is not a betrayal to whoever I am sad for. Life is a wheel constantly turning. Celebrating happiness is even more important when we are aware of how fleeting it can be.

(A) = air, (W) = water, (F) = fire, (E)  = earth.

As soon as the cards were drawn I knew I would have to work hard to get the guidance the client was seeking.

What happened?
I had in front of me very unusual cards for the questions asked.

What happened next?
I started to explain the first card to my client. A card describing her past experience in love. I knew that Major well, but the meanings that usually apply to that card did not fit her past experience.

How did I respond to that?

First, I felt a bit uncomfortable, as the meaning of the card, as clear as it was to me, did not fit into the client experience.

Second, I thought the client and I had failed to make a connection on an energy level, therefore the best thing to do was to shuffle the cards and try again.

Third, I reflected that more then once in the past I had done that, just to discover that the cards were right after all and wished I could remember them all.

Fourth, I explained to the client what was going on in my head. I then got a different deck and started the reading from scratch. I left the original cards out so that I could refer to them if necessary.

Fifth, instead of letting the client cut the deck I asked her numbers to pick up the cards. I have found in the past that sometimes it is better if I function as a filter between the cards and the client’s energy.

What did I learn?

A lot. The second set of cards were also not what I would have expected for that kind of spread. At first glance they were quite different from the group selected first, but when compared one by one they made a lot of sense.
In essence I did two readings, because I read all the cards from both spreads. I personally decided it was a small price to pay as each card made interpreting the next much easier.

My client had asked for information about her love life. She had no particular partner in mind.
I had therefore suggested a reading that would give us some information on how to improve her love life.

I used a seven cards spread.

Position 1. Where is the client coming from? In other words, past experience.

Position 2. What kind of partner is the client attracted to?

Position 3. What does the client need from a love relationship?

Position 4. What kind of first impression does the client give to potential partners?

Position 5. Where is the strength of the client in attracting the right mate?

Position 6. How does the client sabotage herself in love?

Position 7. Where is the client heading in love within the next six to nine months?

For the first reading the client had picked the R.W.S deck.

The first card was the Hermit.
The second card was the 5 of wands.
The third card was the 10 of swords.
The fourth card was the Queen of cups.
The fifth card was the 10 of wands.
The sixth card was the 8 of swords.
The seventh card was the King of cups.

For the second reading the client picked the Gilded deck.

1ST position. Strength.
2ND position. 5 of Pentacles.
3RD position. Ace of Pentacles.
4TH position. Judgement.
5TH position. Empress.
6Th position. King of cups.
7TH position. 6 of Pentacles and for added clarification 4 of wands.

If you are familiar with Tarot reading I invite you to look at one spread at the time and get a feeling for it. Even read them both if you like.

Since I had a real client in front of me, time was a big factor. After quickly looking at all the cards and attempting to interpret the Hermit without success, I proceeded to read one position at the time confronting the cards from the two decks.

At first I had interpreted the Hermit as the client had either been alone for a length of time, or she was one who had spent considerable time on her own between relationships.
In reality, the client had broken up four to five months prior to the reading.
That relationship had lasted several years and before that she had had a few other relatively long relationships.

I did not go back to the Hermit. I just addressed the Strength. It was only  later, after the client had left, that the  meaning of the Hermit in this contest became very clear and simple.

My interpretation of the Strength was that the client had in the past confidently overcome many challenges in her love life. She was good at understanding her partners and how they felt. She was also flexible and she knew instinctively when it was time to stand up for what was important to her and when just go with the flow.

The second position addressed the kind of partner she was attracted to.
Interestingly we had two five. Wands (fire) with the R.W.S. and Pentacles (earth) with the Gilded.
In the first case I would have thought the client may be attracted to competitive people. After looking at the 5 of Pentacles I decided that she was attracted to a challenge.
The five of pentacles had come up before in other love readings with other clients. Whenever it came up in a position of strength it left me a bit confused, some times more than others. In this particular reading it became clear to me that my client was attracted by guys down on their luck. I asked her if her previous partners had been sort of lost when they came into her life. Without hesitation she said yes. So, I smiled and I asked her if she used to take stray dogs or kittens home. Apparently, she only felt the need to rescue guys.

The third position addressed what the client needed from a relationship.
10 of Swords (air) in the R.W.S. and ace of pentacles in the Gilded.
At first glance the two cards appear like opposites, but from a Numerology point of view 10 is 1+0= 1 therefore we have the same number, just at  a different stage, as ten are endings that lead to new beginnings.

By looking at the two very different pictures I had the gut feeling that my client needed  to find her partner when he was in a vulnerable spot and then guide him to a new and much more productive path where they could go on together.

The fourth position addressed how my client was perceived by her partners.
Queen of cups, water, in the RWS and Judgement, air, in the Gilded.

As the queen of cups she came across as a reserved patient lady. Sensitive, good at reading between the lines, with a good heart, slow to pass judgement or take a position. The Judgement card in my opinion raised the vibration a lot. It made my client appear as someone able to give others a second chance at success, able to lift them from the darkness they may have found them selves in. Again, my client to the rescue.

Fifth position. Strength of my client in attracting her partners.
10 of Wands, fire. Empress, earth.
I found this combo very helpful. The 10 of wands was easy to interpret. My clients tends to relieve her partners of their burdens by taking them on herself. The Empress goes a bit deeper. Perhaps I should clarify here that I was not using reversed cards and therefore when looking at cards I had to consider all range of energies, from the positive to the darkest. The Empress is a nurturer.  She is the great mother and here was in my opinion an important key to happiness and success for my client.
As she is a caring , strong and capable lady she could use her talents to nurture her partner to regain confidence in himself. The key here is to give love and support, but trust the partner to be able to do what is needed. The danger here is to mother her partner, protect him and smother him, not giving him the space to grow and succeed by himself.

Sixth position. How does the client sabotage herself?
8 of swords, air. King of cups, water.
Again, looking at the cards as a combo was  helpful to me. The client restricted herself in the ways that she could help her lovers.

She feels that she needs to rescue them, but she is frustrated when they do not become independent and she has to continue to carry their burdens. She would benefit from attempting new approaches. Give them more space to do on their own. The King of cups reinforced the message for me. I saw the king as my client, always ready to be a good shoulder to cry on and to lean on. Always calm among turmoil, al least on the outside. But as good as a listener this king is, he sucks at sharing what goes on inside him. How are other supposed to know what he needs to be happy if he does not share his own feelings? Remember, the king of cups represents my client.

Seventh position. Where is my client love life heading within the next nine months?
King of cups, water, for the RWS.  Six of pentacles, earth, and four of wands, fire, with the Gilded deck.

With the first spread I would lean to believe a nice lover is on his way for my client. Someone who is sensible, patient, a good listener and a bit reserved, just like my client.
With the second spread the answer perhaps is not as clear ( at least to me).
The six of pentacles indicates that my client will start to be more aware of the exchange of energy between her and her future lovers. She will attempt to have more balanced relationships. She will perhaps try to be generous but also understand why she feels she has to give. The four of wands suggests to me that she will be successful in overcoming the difficult pattern she has been following for so long.

With what I know now the meaning of the Hermit becomes clear. It is just what the picture shows.  In the past my client has had a pattern to go to those who were in a way lost. She offered them hope, help and guidance.

This post is my personal reflection upon watching his show on Psychic scams.

I was a bit disappointed because it seems to me that Anderson did not truly look at the problem deeply as he usually does.

Essentially the show exposed a gypsy psychic being prosecuted for fraud. He also talked to two ladies who had been ripped off by another gypsy psychic and to a lady who was spending way too much money consulting someone.

It was nothing new. People going for a cheap reading being told they had some kind of curse and paying increasingly bigger amount of money to have the curse lifted.

What was new was the huge amount of money that some of this people paid.

I am sorry for the victims, yet I was surprised that two apparently educated ladies could fall for one of the oldest trick out there. Who hasn’t heard about it?

I missed the first fifteen to twenty minutes of the show. I saw a gypsy lady with her lawyer. She had ripped of some people. I don’t know how many or of how much. She didn’t seem truly sorry for what she had done, though she was admitting her guilt. She was risking twenty years of prison. I have to say that did not seem fair to me. Specifically because people who rape and kill get less than that. Even those who commit the most hideous crimes against children get less than that. What is the message here? Is ripping someone of his money worse than taking a life or robbing someone of his/ her innocence, dignity and control over his/her own body and mind?

Something else that bothered me a lot was a lady in the audience. She said she was addicted to readings and that she would call up to ten different readers in a day to find one who would tell her what she wanted to hear. She was the one who called all those different readers, yet we are to blame them?

One of the guest on the show was there with her husband. She was spending stunning amounts of money on guidance, but she was happy with the service, her husband not so much.

Personally I believe there are plenty of good readers out there as well as many charlatans. As in any other business the buyer would be wise to use some common sense.

My suggestions are simple.

1) Find out the fees for the service ahead of time and stick to it.

2) If it is too good to be true be suspicious. In other words, if someone promise you instant wealth or health run the other way.

3) If someone tells you they can make your ex fall in love with you again, walk away.

4) If your life sucks and someone tells you they can lift your bad luck, get up and leave.

5) Moderation. Let some time pass between readings. I would suggest at least 3 to 6 months.

My personal rule of thumb is that I have to work for what I want. If I have a dream I need to do all I can to manifest it in my reality. If my life sucks, I am the one who has to do something to improve it. If I want to find love I will get out of the house and try to find it.

From time to time I get a call from someone unhappy with his/ her life and asking me if I can make it better. My answer is always the same: “I can help you see how you are participating to the problem and perhaps help you find different ways to handle the situation, but you are the only person who can do something about it.”

Guess what? Those callers usually don’t book an appointment. Why? Because they don’t want to assume any responsibility or do any of the work. They would rather pay someone to magically fix it for them or to the very least tell them they have done nothing wrong and no effort on their side is required.

I also think that some people have unreasonable expectations.

When am I going to get married? What is his name? Where and when will I meet him?

I think our future is in the making. We have an idea. We have potential, but we also have free will and so do all the people around us. We are also products of habits and we tend to repeat ourselves. When we look at our past, confront it with our present, it is often easy to see where we are heading. When we don’t like the outcome we can try to understand how we are getting there and hopefully find new strategies to shift somewhat the outcome. I believe good readings can be very helpful in giving people heads up, and more objective views of their situations. They can give hope and a bit more clarity. They can also be fun, but they cannot replace your free will or good judgment.

Just the way I see it. Feel free to disagree.

While in Florence I had the opportunity to do a few Tarot readings as well as a Reiki treatment. I traveled with two decks, the Legacy and my latest purchase, Anna K. Tarot. I am getting to know this deck by looking at it, reading the companion book and using it for personal use. It is a nice little deck. I find it fresh and happy even though the bright colors still give an overall dark result. It follows the RWS but some cards deviate from it a lot and I will have to wait and see how I will end up reading them.

While in Italy the kids and I took a lot of pictures. One of them turned out to be a beautiful display of The Strength card in every day life.

We were visiting some relatives of mine in the country side. The photo shows my daughter in a tender moment with a loving German shepherd named Nerone. Take a look at the photo and see for yourself.

Hay House

Since reading this book I look at people differently.

Face reading can provide a lot of information.

The author explains what certain features mean. The ears tell about childhood, the hairline about adolescence, the forehead has information about our 20s, the eyes are about our 30s, the nose is about our 40s, the mouth our 50s, the chin our 60s , the jaw our 70s and the sides of the face are about the 80s and 90s.

The author also explains about the 5 elements: water, wood, fire, earth and metal. Each element has certain characteristics and dominant features. Most people are a combination of elements, with one or two dominant over the others.

By looking at the dominant features in a person you can determine what elements are more strongly represented.

As an example large ears are a water feature which also tells of endurance and the ability to take risks. Large earlobes indicate you are good with money. A strong chin equals strong will.

Thick, bushy eyebrows belong to the wood element and they indicate drive, confidence and ambition. A small space between eyebrows is a sign of a person who works best independently.

Curly or red hair, light in the eyes = fire element

A pointed tip of the nose tells of a curious nature, while a rounded tip speaks of enjoyment of the pleasure and comfort of life.

A round face, a big mouth, full lips are all consistent with the element of earth.

A large mouth indicates a generous person who treasure friendships. Vertical lines above the upper lips reveal disappointment, resentment.

A large nose, prominent upper cheeks, concave or lined lower cheeks are all signs of metal.

A perfect nose = idealist.

A bump just below the bridge of the nose indicates a need to be in charge.

Prominent cheeks show you can hold positions of authority and can handle giving orders.

Flat cheeks on the other hand suggest you prefer to work on your own and do not like to be supervised.

I personally find reading specific features or wrinkles easy. What I find challenging is identifying the predominant elements in a person. I guess that will come with time and practice. I can hardly wait as I believe that to be the most revealing part of this ancient practice.

As an example, to know that someone has a lot of water will tell you that:

he feels things deeply, will cry easily, needs a lot of time to make a decision, will have courage, determination and tenacity to spare. Water people love to lie down, walk and speak slowly, tend to be late often. They like to stay up late and sleep late. They like to wake up slowly from their fascinating and vivid dreams and they need a lot of alone quiet time. Water people wear soft clothes that tend to flow, the hair is often long, the footwear is the kind they can kick off easily. They like to live near water, they prefer open plan houses.

Fire people on the other hand are exuberant, joyful, yearn intimacy, are passionate, love change and new experiences. They laugh a lot, joke, talk and walk fast, they are great at multitasking. They love to flirt. They create drama, have a tendency to exaggerate. They like to be noticed.

They like to have fun with clothes, dramatic combinations, high heels, sexy styles. In the home cutting edge design, unusual architecture and design, collections. Fire people often work in marketing, public relations, sales or are performers.

To sum it up The wisdom of your face is a book that will make you look at people in a totally different way. It is funny, direct, compassionate and very informative. I highly recommend it.