letter of the law (the tarot)

I studied the tarot with Cheryl Forrest in 1984 and have been reading the cards ever since. She called her tarot workshop "Intuitive Counselling through Non-Traditional Tarot."

Traditional tarot ascribes different and frequently opposite meanings to cards when they are drawn upside-down, or "reversed." Non-traditional tarot doesn't use upside-down cards; they are all studied upright although the cards around them influence their meaning as they do in traditional tarot.

A tarot card reading is not about revealing a mystery or telling you something fabulously surprising about yourself or prophesying your future or dazzling you with psychic knowledge of your past or your present. It's about taking note of the challenges of human life -- understanding how they apply to us individually -- and thinking about how to make the best of them.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do you charge for readings? 

Yes I do. Happy to barter too.

If you pay me in dollars and don't think your reading is worth it, I offer a money-back guarantee within 30 days and am happy to say that no one has ever taken me up on it.

What kind of readings do you do?

• General reading:
Looks at your life using a standard nine-card layout reflecting your inner self and environment, lessons to be learned and personal challenges to meet, recent past and present and near future conditions if you keep on exactly as you are. You can then ask the cards three questions.

• Birthday, wedding, anniversary reading:
This one-card reading can be referred back to all year and often much longer. It's a special-occasion card that keeps on giving, as opposed to being shoved into a drawer or thrown into the recycling bin and never seen or thought about again.

The birthday card speaks to what's happening in the person's life and what they'll need to remember throughout the coming year. The wedding or anniversary card advises a couple what they would be wise to focus upon for the good of their relationship, often pointing out areas that will be or are of particular challenge.

• One Year reading
Looks at the 12 months ahead, using a 13-card draw.

Do readings have to be done in person?

Nope. If you can't visit me, I "tune in" just as I would if you were here. I draw the cards for you, then type out and email your reading.

May I purchase a reading as a gift?

Yes and no.

• There's one reading you can give to a friend; it's the birthday, wedding, or anniversary card. You provide your friend's name, email address and birthdate, wedding date or anniversary date. I do a one-card draw and email the interpretation to your friend for their special occasion (along with a note forwarded from you). The reading is confidential; you don't get a copy, but I'll notify you when it's been sent and will send you an image of the tarot card itself.

These tarot "greeting" cards offer insights that are useful for a long time to come, and are meaningful to those who receive them.

***

• I'll only do General and One Year readings for people who request them directly. If you want to pay for the reading, that's between you and your friend. But gift certificates, surprises -- no. You know how you can lead a horse to water, but ... ? Well, this is like that. A tarot card reading is an intimate conversation that will give a person a lot to think about, and some guidance, over the year that follows. I do readings for people who are interested in having this conversation.

Who Do You Think You Are?

The tarot has surprised me many times over the past 40-some years. The cards have surprised the people I've read for, too.

My readings are not always 100% "correct" and they aren't meant to be; the message in the cards is being translated by a person whose own experience and perspective are a filter that cannot be 100% removed, not even for the duration of the reading. If a reading is 80% correct, that is a good score.

This is why you must always take any reading with a grain of salt: think for yourself, don't believe everything you're told, and make your own decisions, regardless of what the reader tells you. Responsibility for your approach and your actions always belongs to you.

And for heaven's sake don't believe, just because someone has the ability to give you true details about your past and present, that they are giving you correct details about what's coming in your future! Scam artists who will charge you to have them "clear" your dark cloudy mojo are not working in your best interests. They want your money and are using their psychic skills to convince you that you will suffer if they don't help you. Making use of perfectly human psychic abilities (which we all have) is not always done by honest or caring people, and scam artists (and personally messed-up readers) are out there. Remember: grain of salt. There isn't anyone out there who knows more about you than you do.

It's important to find a reader who can get out of the way and tell you what the cards are saying to you, rather than imposing her own ideas and values. Also, is it someone whose sensibilities you trust? The reader's beliefs and heart make a difference, no matter how "good" or "accurate" s/he is. Choose your tarot reader with care.

If I'm doing my job right, I correctly tell you what the card says (as opposed to what I think, which is often quite different).

How can tarot cards know anything about me?

I can't explain it— I mean, even if I could it would still be mysterious.
Let's stick to the simple and obvious, for now: the cards are a useful tool for examining your story. They're a fabulous visual aid. Each card represents a condition in life that all of us are likely to experience.

Would you do a reading for me?

Pretty sure I would! Write to me at STUBBLEJUMPERSCAFE@GMAIL.COM. Put TAROT in the subject line. I'll get back to you and we'll make our arrangements. Please be patient while waiting for my reply. I don't check the email every day.

Tarot card readers don't know anything you don't know and they are not fortune-tellers. They have no special powers; they cannot read your mind, they don't know your secrets, and are not above any of the problems of life. Tarot readers are only people who have practised translating into words what the cards suggest in pictures. The cards tell a story. Intuition helps relate it to you and your life.