Acknowledging Accountability With The Judgement Card

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Drawing The Short Straw 

This blog post was written as my contribution to the Tarot Blog Hop to celebrate the Summer Solstice which falls on 21 June 2015. Our Blog Hop wrangler Alison Cross has asked us to pick a card from the Major Arcana as our subject for this blog post.  I was a late entrant.  I picked the short straw and got the Judgement card.  Why couldn’t I get prettier and more positive cards like The Empress, The Fool, or The Star?  How did I end up with Judgement?

It was purely my choice. Really.  There were a few more un-exciting cards, like the Sun, that none of the blog hop participants had picked at that time.  I could have picked the Sun. But it was boring.  I could have pulled out of the hop too, but that would have made me look like a bloody wuss in front of my Tarotist friends.

Being Accountable For Our Choices

Yes choices.  And that’s what this blog post is going to be about.  At the height of the Summer Solstice, it is a perfect theme because we could all choose to get out of the house and embrace the warmth and abundance Summer brings, or we could choose to stay indoors because we are worried about tan lines.  And if we chose to stay indoors, at least be accountable for the fact that you’ve  just missed out on all that fun and the rest of the world thinks you’re a sad lonely wanker.

Judgement

I am not typically fond of the Judgement card.  The card within my Radiant Rider Waite Tarot deck updated by Virginijus Poshkus, depicts an image of naked bodies rising from the dead, armed raised towards the heavens as an angel blows his trumpet.  Every time I pick this card for a client, the key message would be to get him to re-evaluate what decisions he had made in the past, the impact of these decisions on his future, recalibrate his thoughts about his goals and then reassess his plans to achieve these goals.  The message is very loaded.  Sometimes, it feels as if the card forces the client through a process of going through multiple stages of hoops and hurdles before he can finally get to his prize. Believe me, it is easier if I had picked the Star card and told him, “Don’t worry honey, all’s going to be well.” But life doesn’t happen like this all the time, does it?

In truth, when I kick that lazy-ass Jo out of my space and put my wiser Sun Goddess Tarot Jo’s hat on, the Judgement Card for me is possibly one of the most important cards in the deck.  It is only through the Judgement card, when we are encouraged to readjust the sails on our ship, that we can then move on to the World card, where we sail forward on our journey to achieve our goals and serve our purpose as it was meant to be.

So let’s take another look at the image on the Judgement card.  The angel in the card is Angel Gabriel, the messenger of God who famously appeared to Mary to announce the impending birth of Jesus Christ.   He was the angel that also famously appeared to Zacharias to announce the impending birth of John the Baptist to Zacharias’ supposedly barren wife, Elizabeth.  The naked bodies rising from the dead seems to be responding to the call of Angel Gabriel’s trumpet.  The mountainous terrain, clouds and waves in the background suggests the challenges one has to surmount throughout his journey to his goals.

When you view the Judgement card as a good knock on the head before you wake up your senses enough to walk towards the true potential of what the World card promises, I reckon, it is THE card that truly says it all and in many ways, ties the deck together to underscore what the true purpose of Tarot is, which is to offer you choices.

I have always prefaced my readings with clients by explaining to them that metaphysical tools like Tarot should not be used as “predictive” or “fortune-telling” tools.  Instead, they are meant to provide you with options with which you can make the right choices to influence your own desired outcomes.  The Judgement card points to the fact that whatever is happening with you today, is a result of decisions that you have made in the past.  If you’ve woken up to the fact that whatever you are doing now is not getting you to your goals in the way you’ve hoped, then you have the choice to recalibrate your thoughts, reassess your actions and re-chart your plans.

We do have the ability to make choices and we need to be accountable for the choices we make.

The Lovers

When it comes to making choices, one card that jumps up to me is the Lovers card.  Before I get rapped on the wrist by our blog hop wrangler for going beyond the brief to invite a second card into my blog post when we were only meant to talk about the one card we had picked, which in my case, is the Judgement card, please allow me to explain.

The image on the Lovers card looked quite a lot like the Judgement card.  Both have an angel in the background, but the key difference is that while there are naked bodies rising from the dead in the Judgement card, the Lovers card depicts a naked man and woman. Unlike the feel of the Judgement card which seemed cold, the Lovers card depicts a sun shining boringly over the couple, offering warmth, positivity and comfort. The snake in the tree points to the story of Adam and Eve and infers that life has full of temptations. The flames behind the man is a symbol of passion.  The angel in the Lovers card is the angel Raphael, who is the angel of healing.  The Lovers card tells me that hard choices that aligns with my personal values would have to be made. In spite of the fact that some of these choices are so difficult and puts me between a rock and a hard place, I should be assured that I am guided by my angel who will be helping and healing me through that process.  Only if and only when, I muster the courage to make the right choice, can I truly move forward along my journey to get to my goals.

Moving Towards Achieving The True Potential Of The World

When I reflect on both the Lovers and Judgement card together, I am reminded that  throughout a lifetime of challenges, along with its fair share of good times, I did have the ability to make choices that shaped how I responded to these challenges.  Whatever outcomes I had experienced as a consequence, were all attributed to the choices I made.  Judgement, tells me that I am almost reaching there.  I am almost getting to my destination.  It is a card placed just before the final card of the major arcana, the World, and quite aptly too.

When we can finally acknowledge that we do have the power to make things happen and embrace new opportunities by letting go of the past which may not serve us anymore and changing the way we think or changing our plans along the way, the World would be ours to hold.

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About The Writer:

The writer of this blog post is a marketeer by trade, and an intuitive reader by accident who deploys the combined modalities of a Tarot, Numerology and Astrology overlaid with her Clairvoyant and Clairsentient skills to deliver her readings with authenticity. She was awarded a Certified Professional Tarot Reader qualification from the Tarot Certification Board of America (TCBA) and is also a certified numerologist.  She is currently running a consultancy based in Singapore called Sun Goddess Tarot,  which provides confidential intuitive readings combining the metaphysical disciplines of Tarot, Numerology and Astrology via face to face and emails as well as readings at corporate and private events and workshops.  As a member of the American Tarot Association (ATA) and the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI), Joanna governs her practice under the associations’ respective code of ethics.  She is currently mentoring fellow intuitives on the path of developing their intuitive potential and actively teachers Tarot and Numerology as well. 

Website: www.sungoddesstarot.com

Email:  Joanna@sungoddesstarot.com

Facebook:  www.facebook.com/SunGoddessTarot

Twitter: www.twitter.com/SunGoddessTarot

Instagram: @SunGoddessTarot

A Day Wasted On A Tarot Card

Hidden Agendas – 7 of Swords

 

Today, I picked the 7 of Swords from Maria Kurara’s Black Cats Tarot deck as my Card du Jour and that got me reeling in a sense of dread about coming to work after a restful weekend. The card warned me of the prospect of being embroiled in a situation that involved people with hidden agendas.  I truly had no time for corporate politics at this time, not especially, with the fact that after  recovering from the upheaval of a departmental restructuring, we now had to get on with a ton of work around projects that were marked “urgent”.  I had to steel myself to be wary of those whose goals were not aligned with mine or were not aimed at a higher good. This calls for an introspective approach to work issues.  I reminded myself that I should not be reacting to anything or anyone when challenged today.  It could be part of a hidden agenda to get me in trouble.

 

So I spent most of today keeping to myself, keeping my head down, and just reminding myself to be tactful and sensible at meetings.  The day passed with no incident apart from a missing avocado that I had asked and paid for, but did not get, at the sandwich shop nearby.

 

As I tucked into my sandwich at lunch behind my desk, I waited with my guard up for anyone that might pass by my desk whom I thought fell into that description of the 7 of Swords.  Every email that came in, was scanned in-between the lines for hidden meanings that I thought was meant to trap me into responding with one of my explosively sarcastic replies.  

 

The only indication of what the 7 of Swords card might have pointed to, was my time wasted in trying not to get into any trouble of sorts, my inability to contribute effectively at meetings for fear of being slapped at the back of my head for not being aligned to management, and my open expression of sheer joy when a member of the management team called of a conference call due to conflicting appointments, hence delaying the project deliverables for awhile.  I felt so guilty about making my work day so unproductive just because I built a “protective shell” around myself, more concerned with my own needs rather than that of the company.  

 

Own up now.  How many of you had fallen into the same trap when you pick a similar card to advise you on how best you should be managing your day?

 

So my day at work came and gone, and I hurried to my slew of back to back Tarot reading appointments in the evening.  Funnily, out of the 3 readings I had done, the common card that showed up in the Advice position was the Judgement Reversed.

 

So this brings me to the next topic of accountability.

 

Accountability – Judgement Reversed

 

The reversed Judgement card from the Radiant Rider Waite Tarot deck updated by Virginijus Poshkus, was a poignant reminder to me that I could not be totally free of blame, for whatever could potentially happen to me, at work or at home.  Every time we collide head-on with the “negative train”, we blame it on everyone around us and the external environment that we are in, but we forget that we are the artist behind that canvas we call life.  We need to be accountable for our actions, knowing that every decision that we had made in the past, actually accounts for what we experience today.  Why would I need to lie in wait for people with hidden agendas, welding a knife behind their back when I should be confident about the amount of meticulous effort and thought that had gone into my work?  If there were changes within the department or the company, why would I need to build a barbwire fence around myself when I had made that decision to stay on with the company to deliver on its business objectives, aligned with the management team?  When I made that choice to spend a good number of years with the company, it is somewhat like a marriage.  I had chosen to commit my time and effort to co-creating a successful business with the rest of my colleagues.  There will be rough days, and there will be great days.  But most of all, these would be meaningful days built on my original decision to stick with it through thick and thin.  Ultimately, I am accountable for my own decisions.  If I choose to leave the organization in the future, then, I would need to ensure that I am accountable for the consequence as well. No complaints.

 

Ultimately, I needed to let go of my fear of changes and challenges that may come my way. I  needed to let go of my dislike for certain people whom I worked with and who were responsible for some of the more unpleasant days I had at work, because it did not serve me well at all.   I needed to let go of past perceptions of my role and my scope of work within my company when departmental reorganizations happened, because these perceptions only serve to limit the potential of what my team can do in the future.   I needed to deal with past disappointments from people at work who indeed had hidden agendas.  Clinging on to these  limited my growth in the company. The truth of the matter is, I cannot control what happens within the environment, but I can control how I react to whatever happens within my environment.  

 

One of my favourite cards is the Devil card from Judith McKay Stirt’s The Cook’s Tarot deck.  It reminded me that I can never be bonded to negativity unless I allowed it.    I had the power to break free from the chains of negativity in a tension-filled job, in the best way that made me most accountable to my family, my staff, my company and myself.

 

See how much Tarot can teach you with just 1 card in the morning?  Not wasted at all.

 

About The Writer:

 

The writer of this blog post is a marketeer by trade, and an intuitive reader by accident who deploys the combined modalities of a Tarot, Numerology and Astrology overlaid with her Clairvoyant and Clairsentient skills to deliver her readings with authenticity. She was awarded a Certified Professional Tarot Reader qualification from the Tarot Certification Board of America (TCBA) and is also a certified numerologist.  She is currently running a consultancy based in Singapore called Sun Goddess Tarot,  which provides confidential intuitive readings combining the metaphysical disciplines of Tarot, Numerology and Astrology via face to face and emails as well as readings at corporate and private events and workshops.  A member of the American Tarot Association (ATA) and the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI), she also mentors Tarot protégés on behalf of the American Tarot Association

 

Website: www.sungoddesstarot.com

 

Email:  Joanna@sungoddesstarot.com

 

Facebook:  www.facebook.com/SunGoddessTarot

 

Twitter: www.twitter.com/SunGoddessTarot

 

Instagram: @SunGoddessTarot

 

 

 

 

 

A Paradoxical Perspective At The First Signs Of Spring

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This blog post was written as my contribution to the Tarot Blog Hop to celebrate the Celtic festival of Imbolc on 2 February 2015.

Our wrangler Karen Sealey had asked that we explore the topic of “Oracular Anomalies” for this particular blog hop. That was initially deemed as an interesting feat  for me because I could not even pronounce the  words – oracular anomalies, let alone understand what that meant.  For someone who did not celebrate Imbolc, to finally understand what the festival meant after spending 2 years in the company of this wonderful Tarot blogging community,  this new phrase Oracular Anomalies had given me a month of worry. I remembered muttering to myself, “ Oh Karen, it finally dawned on me what Imbolc is. Now I have to try to find out what Oracular Anomaly means? Damn you, woman.”   

 So what I had decided to do was to break the phrase down the way I did with my Muay Thai and boxing training.  I broke the moves and combinations down during my training sessions so I could practice them each week in the hope of improving over time.  Often, a light bulb might switch on, on one of the combinations when I realized that it was created to simulate a situation when I am met with an aggressive opponent who might push me to the corner of the ring and leave me with no room to move.

The light bulb switched on for me about Imbolc too.  It made sense that my friends were lighting candles in every room to mark the day of Imbolc when it was a festival that celebrated the beginnings of Spring and the rebirth of the Sun.  It made sense to me that Karen had asked that we themed this blog post “Oracular Anomalies” so that we could share how our experience with Tarot had cracked a new dawn for us.

The Fool

So today, I want to write about the Fool card and the card I picked for this blog post was the Fool from the Radiant Rider Waite Tarot deck updated by Virginijus Poshkus.   I looked at the card in detail and started asking, “Why is this card marked 0?” It is the first card of the Major Arcana, so why could they not just mark it as 1.  Why did they have to label it as 0?  A journey had to start somewhere.  For numerologists like us, new beginnings, fresh new starts, a first step to a new journey is always marked by the number 1.  Yet, the Fool card which is a card of new beginnings, fresh new starts, a first step to a new journey, is labeled as 0. I had no answers to this ”anomaly” apart from the fact that we numerologists used to think that Tarotists were a complicated bunch that needed to just sit and chill for a bit.

In the card, the Fool had the image of a man about to step off  the cliff.  His head looked up to the sky as if trusting the Universe to guide his hand along his journey.  His dog beside him was like a companion assuring him that wherever he went, he will not be alone.  The card illuminated in bright orange, full of sunshine, hope and positivity, as one would feel when they embark on a new journey.  As a numerologist, my lifepath is 7 and I do not take unnecessary risks, often rendering a lot of thought and analysis to every move I make particularly when it comes to my career goals.  This Fool card however, seems to depict a man who is about to fall off a cliff and not giving two hoots if he did or not.  I do trust the Universe, and I am thankful for the support I get from my friends and family.  However, as a believer of this reality that I am a creator of my own circumstance, I find it difficult to let go in the belief that I would not fall off the cliff just because  I have got the Universe, my friends and my family holding my hands. I don’t mind taking risks, if they are indeed calculated ones.    So that brings me to how I saw the numerological significance of the Fool card evolving.

While The Fool is marked as the number 0 card in Tarot, it is also the 22^nd card of Tarot – the beginning and the end.  As a numerologist, 22 is the number of the master builder and when we reduce it, it becomes 4.  4 is the number of the Emperor card in Tarot. The master number of 22 may suggest the presence of an older soul coming into one’s lifetime to make an important contribution for mankind be it in the spiritual, medical, religious, educational, or creative field. The 22 number often suggests that one is endowed with gifts enabling him or her to lean towards leadership and inspiration and those who have this number in their birthdates often feel a heightened sense of obligation to the community, hence needing a greater measure of discipline, humility, control and awareness.  This speaks to me from the voice of the Emperor’s card.  The Emperor is an archetype that represents authority, structure, discipline and stability.  He is able to create order out of chaos because of his keen sense of structured and meticulous planning and he is able to provide and protect because of his wisdom, experience and authority.  As the Fool meets the Emperor along his journey, he gets offered guidance and direction.  With his strong leadership, the Emperor mentors, supports and advises the Fool as he navigates his journey towards his goals.  

The Emperor

This spoke to me a lot and cracked a new dawn for me as like the Fool, I had been meandering along my journey of discovery about my spiritual self. Beyond the work around tarot, numerology and astrology, I had been developing my clairvoyant and mediumship skills.   Along the way, I met a lot of teachers and mentors who were manifested by the Emperor card in tarot.  They have been critical to my spiritual growth, developing my knowledge and my skills and encouraging me along the way. Today, I take on the mantle as an advisor, teacher and mentor to my students, leveraging the same energies of the Emperor’s card, yet I am still on the Fool’s journey of making  new discoveries every day.

If you look at the Fool card closely, the terrain is rough, and there are mountains surrounding him.  Where the Fool steps next, could be a perilous road ahead.  In the same way,  I had been through a tumultuous journey of bad experiences ranging from health, career and familial issues.  However,   had also learnt that I cannot make new discoveries, learn new things, or make fresh starts if and when I cling on to vestiges of these negative issues.   This then brings me to another card  that had the numerological energies of the number 4  - the  Death card.  Death is numbered 13 in a Tarot deck, which when reduced, becomes a 4.  

Death

It made so much sense.  As the Death card suggests, one needs to let go of unhealthy aspects of life, and all vestiges of negativity that no longer serves in order to pave the way for a  fuller life of new learnings and experiences that the Fool needs to go through to enrich his life. My entire spiritual journey had been one big purging exercise of what I had previously thought as rational and explainable. I remembered how I had gasped at my clairvoyant experiences and dismissed it as over-thinking and a result of work stress.  I had to purge my ignorance, to open my heart, mind and soul to the messages that my spirit guides were trying to give me.   I remembered how I had brushed my intuitive gifts under the carpet because of the fear of being laughed at.  I learnt to purge my ego so I could help my clients through their own journeys.  I remembered how I had stayed away from books and tarot cards because they were not aligned with my religion as a Roman Catholic.  I learnt to purge my fear as I helped others through their lack of knowledge and ignorance and opened their heart and mind to the fact that my intuitive gifts were God-given.

Thanks Karen for suggesting such a difficult topic to celebrate Imbolc, the dawn of a new Spring.  In Singapore, we are celebrating Spring too with the coming Lunar New Year, so this topic is very apt for me as I visit my relatives over the Lunar New Year period.  You see, just a few years ago, these visits were a deft practice of how fast I could “eat and run” after visiting each home.   Now, many of them want me to stay longer so that I could do random Tarot and Numerology readings for their respective guests at their homes. 

Here’s hoping that everyone who reads this blog post be blessed with Springtime abundance.

Blog Before     |      Master List      |        Blog After

About The Writer:

The writer of this blog post is a marketeer by trade, and an intuitive reader by accident who deploys the combined modalities of a Tarot, Numerology and Astrology overlaid with her Clairvoyant and Clairsentient skills to deliver her readings with authenticity. She was awarded a Certified Professional Tarot Reader qualification from the Tarot Certification Board of America (TCBA) and is also a certified numerologist.  She is currently running a consultancy based in Singapore called Sun Goddess Tarot,  which provides confidential intuitive readings combining the metaphysical disciplines of Tarot, Numerology and Astrology via face to face and emails as well as readings at corporate and private events and workshops.  A member of the American Tarot Association (ATA) and the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI), she also mentors Tarot protégés on behalf of the American Tarot Association

Website: www.sungoddesstarot.com

Email:  Joanna@sungoddesstarot.com

Facebook:  www.facebook.com/SunGoddessTarot

Twitter: www.twitter.com/SunGoddessTarot

Instagram: @SunGoddessTarot

Happy New Year And Bring On 2015

Happy New Year!  2015 is finally here!  

What are your aspirations for 2015 and how are you empowering them?   When I thought about my aspirations for 2015, I dug deep at  my experiences in 2014 for lessons I could bring into the new year.   

Looking Back At 2014

I looked back at 2014 with a lot of gratitude for the blessings of new friendships made, new opportunities that came my way, the spiritual growth that I built through my experiences, important lessons learnt and an even stronger bond with the family.  The Tarot year card for 2014 was the Chariot, the 7th card in a Tarot deck, The Chariot is a card representing victory and success in achieving goals through sheer determination and focusedness.  The card urged me then to strive for success  through self discipline, determination and the courage to step up and assume accountability for my life and my passions.   2014 being  a year 7 in Numerology urged me not to act impulsively when confronted by issues but to galvanize my thoughts  with proper evaluation of the repercussions and impact of my actions.  I was so grateful for the times I was guided to step back and reassess the way I got to my goals.  In a year when I juggled my full time career in Marketing and Public Relations, with my business as an intuitive consultant and teacher, my training in boxing and Muay Thai and my hobby as a freelance fight journalist,  I was forced to look at where best to invest my time and energy, and make the right choices to ensure that I took care of the people around me as best as I took care of myself.

Looking Forward To 2015

So here are my perspectives about 2015:

Year Numerology

The year is governed by the number 8 in numerology.   8 is the number of executive power, ambition, opportunities, abundance.  8 is the number that urges one to dream big and turn these dreams into reality.  8 asks that you harness the right resources to create your own opportunities.  8 is about making astute financial plans and leveraging the  right financial opportunities. The number fans the flames of bold decision-making based on good judgement, confidence and the determination to attain one's goals.   Finally, the number 8 forces me to leave all negative aspects of my past so that I can be ready to tread on a journey of self -discovery, embrace new growth and approach every challenge with a can-do attitude.

Strength In  Tarot

In tandem with the numerological 8 influence, the Tarot year card for 2015 is the Strength card, which is the 8th card in the Major Arcana of the Tarot deck.  Strength is a card reminding us of the power of human will, determination and the tenacity of the inner spirit.  You are advised to harness the traits of this card as you approach 2015, and know that sometimes, soft persuasion in the face of challenges is more effective than brute force and aggressive confrontation.

Year Of The Goat

In about a month and the half, we will be welcoming the year of the goat. The 8th animal in the Chinese zodiac.  Goats are gentle creatures known to coexist very well with men and other animals.  They have a determined streak and their tenacity is second to none,  Have you seen  goats scaling treacherous mountains to hunt for food?  That's the tenacity you will need to leverage when you maneuver the challenges of 2015.

Full Moon In Cancer

The first full moon of the year appears around 5 January, in Cancer.  The full moon is a time of manifesting your goals and with this full moon, powerful energies are at work to support you on this quest.  The Cancer full moon urges you to tap your inner wisdom to make the right choices that could influence your desired outcomes.  You will find that you will need to dig deep and surface every sinew of insecurities, confront them and allow your intuitive sense to point you in the right direction to your goals.  

Sun In Capricorn

Until 20th January, the Sun is in Capricorn and it fuels your ambitions to turn your dreams into reality and attain your goals.  The 8 numerology will fan the flames of this ambitions during this period.  As long as you work towards your goals leveraging conventional wisdom, you should be on your way to getting what you have set your mind to achieve.

Mercury Retrograde

Mercury goes retrograde from 21st January to 31st January.   In case you do not know what Mercury retrograde mean, please refer to my previous blog post.  Do not hide in the closet in the face of mercury retrograde. See it as an opportunity to reassess everything you are doing to get to your goals. In fact, you might have to re-evaluate your goals and then re-chart your journey to get to your destination.  Do not allow your fear of Mercury Retrograde to cast doubts on what you can achieve. 

Day Numerology

Finally, 1 January 2015 is numerologically governed by 1.  A New Year always bodes a brand new start for you.  If you had spent time thinking about your New Year resolutions, it is time to put them into action. What's your resolution?  My resolution for this new year, is to focus on goals that bring me the greatest fulfillment and to power these goals with the courage to follow through on my passions.

So there you go, definitely a colossal amount of things to ponder on as you prepare to confront the new year.  I hope my perspectives are useful in helping you maneuver your 2015.

Here's wishing you many blessings of sunshine and laughter for the new year.

About The Writer:

The writer of this blog post is a marketeer by trade, and an intuitive reader by accident who deploys the combined modalities of a Tarot, Numerology and Astrology overlaid with her Clairvoyant and Clairsentient skills to deliver her readings with authenticity. She was awarded a Certified Professional Tarot Reader qualification from the Tarot Certification Board of America (TCBA) and is also a certified numerologist.  She is currently running a consultancy based in Singapore called Sun Goddess Tarot,  which provides confidential intuitive readings combining the metaphysical disciplines of Tarot, Numerology and Astrology via face to face and emails as well as readings at corporate and private events and workshops.  A member of the American Tarot Association (ATA) and the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI), she also mentors Tarot protégés on behalf of the American Tarot Association

Website: www.sungoddesstarot.com
Email:  Joanna@sungoddesstarot.com
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/SunGoddessTarot
Twitter: www.twitter.com/SunGoddessTarot

The Joy Of Gifting At Yule

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This blog post was written as my contribution to the Yule 2014 Tarot Blog Hop which was wrangled by none other than the joy seeker herself,  Arwen Lynch.

Yule, on 21 December,  is a celebration of the Winter Solstice when we experience the longest night of the year, in anticipation of the start of  the cycle when the day gets longer. In the darkest of hours, I began to turn inward to ask myself, what truly fulfills me, what have I given of myself and what have I recieved that had given me joy.   

Many do honour the balance between light and darkness at Yule, so I would like to look at Yule as a representation of the need for balance in my life.   This year has seen me attempting to balance time and energy amongst the many commitments I have on my plate. Most of these commitments involve my giving a lot of time and energy to the people around me who matter, but I had to also learn to balance these efforts by giving myself time and space, and taking care of my own needs.

So Arwen did have foresight when she asked that we focused on one Tarot  spread for our Yule blog post.  This was a spread about the joy of gifting.  When I approached the topic of what had been giving me lots of joy, it really came down to the passion that had driven me to put 100% into each and every commitment that I had been involved in throughout the year.  

When I shuffled my cards to  Arwen’s Tarot spread the one message that I took out of it was that the biggest gift the universe had given me, was the courage which saw me through my passions.  

Using the Morgan Greer Tarot Deck by Bill Greer and Lloyd Morgan, below is my interpretation of the cards picked to Arwen’s Joy of Gifting Tarot spread.


What gift would I give the world if I could? - Queen of Pentacles


The Queen of Pentacles is an embodiment of balance.  She balances her life well with her capability of sustaining a productive career whilst using her sense of selfless love and compassion to generously spend time on nurturing and caring for people who matter.   This is a great card to pick for what I would love to be able to give the world.  My life has been inundated with multiple commitments all of which seem to rank equal in terms of priority.  I have been juggling my full time career as a marketing and PR professional, while running my consultancy Sun Goddess Tarot, my  assignments as a freelance sports writer, my family and my kickboxing training.  I do admit that the multiple activities on my plate have been overwhelming.  I hardly have time for friends and family.   There are days I even connect with my own husband and mum on facebook.  So yes, the gift I would like to give the world, particular to the people who matter, is my time and my energy, yet be able to efficiently balance this with my  other priorities.  


What gift would I want from the world? - The Hermit


 The Hermit reminded me of my role as someone who should be using my skills, experience and passion to guide and inspire. However, to do this best, I needed to be able to take care of myself.  The only way I could take care of myself, was to give myself some space and time for introspection and surround myself with positivity.   So I saw 2  interpretations with the appearance of the Hermit.  As a gift, what I would love most from the world, would be the gift of space.  Just as I put a lot of demands on myself, I sometimes feel that there are a lot of expectations from me coming from multiple sources.  I am expected to perform at my peak at work, as an intuitive reader, as a mentor and guide to my team and my clients.  I am expected to deliver on projects and assignments as quickly as I can before the next assignment comes in.  I am expected to make vast progress in my kickboxing training because of the commitment of time and resource that I put into it.  So I think the best gift would be space.  I need space to be alone, tap into my inner self, recalibrate my thoughts and my spiritual energy.  While I appreciate being surrounded by so many wonderful people, I do appreciate some alone time, free from expectations.  I need space.   The second interpretation of the Hermit is in terms of a spiritual guide and mentor.    I do have a spiritual guide and mentor but she is so far away from me, in France.  One of the  best gifts I could have is the ability to spend some time with her in person and surround myself with her strength and positivity.  We are oceans apart but I am so glad that we are so spiritually connected enough for me to learn so much from her.  


What gift have I gotten that brought me joy? - 3 of Pentacles Reversed + King of Wands


The reversed 3 of Pentacles threw me off and I had to think long and hard about this.  So I picked a second card to clarify the reversed 3 of Pentacles and the King of Wands appeared.   I finally saw the light when I realized that for years, I had been leading a life of mediocrity.  Life was wrought with the mundanity of the usual rigmarole of work and home and that triggered my restlessness.  The King was a reflection of how I had decided to inject passion back into my life by getting involved in activities outside my comfort zone.  I started to lift my consultancy Sun Goddess Tarot to a new level by investing in a newly developed website, better content and a search optimization strategy.  I got more than I bargained for when I was asked to conduct more workshops and do a lot more consultancy work for corporates who valued my intuitive gifts enough to obtain my help as they navigated their businesses, both start-ups and established ones.  Another niche area had just opened up with parents of newborns who had been asking me to use numerology to select names for their babies.   I started paying attention to my health and fitness but got  more than I bargained for when I fell in love with kickboxing.  When I fell in love with kickboxing and gave it 100% of my commitment to be a competitive kickboxer, I got more than I bargained for when I became a freelance sports writer specializing in mixed martial arts.


What gift have I given that brought me joy? - King of Pentacles


Another King!  The King of Pentacles is an embodiment of one who nurtures, guides, advice and mentors others.  He provides much security and stability to others through his skills, experience, and maturity.  I do like to think of myself as the King of Pentacles. I feel much gratitude that I am able to financially provide for the family, so that they can all live comfortably and have a wee bit extra to enjoy a little luxury from time to time.  However, I think as I harness the strengths of the King, I am more than a financial provider.  As a daughter,  I have been a listening ear to Mum as she dedicates all her time and energy to taking care of my Dad who had been recovering from a stroke.  As a wife and mother, I have been holding the hands of my husband and son everyday, supporting them in everything that they do.   At work, as a manager, I am more friend and sister to my team than I am a boss as I guide and mentor them through their work.  As an intuitive reader, I support and advice my clients when they meander their way through difficult situations.  In truth, I am grateful that my gift to the world is my ability to harness the strengths of the King of Pentacles.


What is one last thing that I would like to share this season? –  9 of Wands

The 9 of Wands is a message of courage and persistence.  It is definitely an apt message for me to share with everyone this season, with the hope of inspiring others with the same.  You see, juggling multiple commitments on my plate is not easy.   I have had a tough time with a balancing act between all these commitments, which are of almost equal importance to me. And I consider them so because I am passionate about everyone one of them.   However, what keeps me going everyday, is that my persistence and courage are what sees me through these passions as I manage them each day.  When I can follow through with my passions, then the juggling act would gradually become effortless.  Today, I consider my marketing career, my intuitive consultancy, Sun Goddess Tarot, my hobby as a freelance sports writer, my kickboxing training and my family as my passions.  That courage and persistence I leverage to help me manage these passions, are the universe's gifts to me.

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 About The Writer:

The writer of this blog post is a marketeer by trade, and an intuitive reader by accident who deploys the combined modalities of a Tarot, Numerology and Astrology overlaid with her Clairvoyant and Clairsentient skills to deliver her readings with authenticity. She was awarded a Certified Professional Tarot Reader qualification from the Tarot Certification Board of America (TCBA) and is also a certified numerologist.  She is currently running a consultancy based in Singapore called Sun Goddess Tarot,  which provides confidential intuitive readings combining the metaphysical disciplines of Tarot, Numerology and Astrology via face to face and emails as well as readings at corporate and private events and workshops.  A member of the American Tarot Association (ATA) and the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI), she also mentors Tarot protégés on behalf of the American Tarot Association

Website: www.sungoddesstarot.com
Email:  Joanna@sungoddesstarot.com
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/SunGoddessTarot
Twitter: www.twitter.com/SunGoddessTarot

This was created by Morgan Drake Eckstein

A present from my sister-in-law, Cal, all the way from Scotland to Singapore, with love

The Joy Of Gifting Tarot Spread Using The Morgan Greer Tarot Deck