Big Bear Tarot

This is a good question. Every reader is different, but I will tell you what you can expect from me.

If you come in to see me LIVE, you will sit across from me at a table with a blue table cloth on it, probably. Every tarot reader has their own table decor! And we probably all like it if you enjoy the way we decorate the space.

On my table you’ll see a little stuffie of Yukon Cornelius, my mascot for my readings, and a blown-glass tray full of my business cards. You’ll see a few stones or crystals, mostly for decor, but they are ones I’ve picked up over the years. I may have Lapis Lazuli, Serpentine, Red Jasper, Quartz, Selenite, and some common river rocks from adventures I’ve had kayaking.

I use the selenite to “clear” the deck before we use it, and clear my own head space from expectations, and I will say this out loud to you.

People choose a 20 min, 30 min, or 45 min reading from me. The first two we can usually do a four card spread with them— Situation, Challenge, Advice and Outcome and I will add some clarifying cards.

You will probably come either with a question, or with the openness to have me ask the cards, “What does [your name] need to hear today?” If we ask the cards that question, we may get all sorts of answers. It will usually pick whatever’s on your mind the most. When I say, “it will usually pick,” what I mean is that there is some spirituality going on in a tarot reading and I will talk about that further in another post. Other readers will have different ideas about what is happening during a reading, and they can also be valid opinions. I shy away from any reader who has an absolute concrete definition of exactly what is happening in an tarot reading–true across all instances and all time. That kind of certainty is dangerous to have with ANYTHING.

Nevertheless, if you go for option b–asking the cards, What do I need to hear today?–be ready for a deep reading. I don’t know what they will say, but it’s usually very personal.

I will lay out four cards across from me (upside down to you) and then I will turn them so that they are sideways so that you and I can talk about them. I think of a reading as a negotiation that we do over the meaning of the cards. I give you what I know about what they can mean, and we find a narrative within that. You add the context and I can build on that context by adding clarifying cards and oracle cards if we get there.

You may have time for follow up questions.

LONGER READINGS

In a 45 min reading, I usually do a Celtic Cross–a spread of 10 cards, 3 more advice cards and an underlying energy card to show us what may be hidden under the questions we’ve asked, or something we aren’t aware of that may be unconscious or subtle influence on the question and the answer that is given.

When you talk to a tarot reader it can feel both very modern—there are some lovely modern decks that we use, and we talk about current events, and we chat about your life and it can feel like a therapy session or a deep talk with a counselor. You are coming for advice.

You are also participating in a very ancient activity: consulting the oracle. This goes waaaay back to pre-recorded history, most likely in multiple cultures, but certainly back to the Greeks and Romans, where visits to the Oracle or the Seer happened so that people could ask important questions that they needed answers to that couldn’t be answered by any other wise people (I’m assuming). Also, the spiritual nature of the Oracle gave a gravitas to the answer as it came from the gods.

We are not unfamiliar with this kind of asking questions of a God, are we? Prayer is very similar to a tarot reading—but prayer usually doesn’t involve any props any more.

It used to.

There’ll be a post on that later too–but briefly, Hebrew priests in the Bible had the Urim and Thummim to use as sacred objects to discover God’s answer to difficult questions. These objects, very similar to another common Biblical tool, lots, allowed someone to ask a question and someone would toss these and their random roll or placement after the toss would give the Oracle, the Priest, whomever, and idea of what their answer would be depending on how they landed. We just separated those two today. Prayer is in churches and at home and you wait for a silent answer. And we put the LOTS over in Vegas on the dice table. That may be a GROSS simplification, but “casting lots” is either more like dice, or “drawing straws” as it lets randomness make decisions (or HELP make decisions)

Do you have to do what the cards say? Will what the cards say come to pass?

Ah, the prediction part. Some readings may include a prediction. Some don’t. Sometimes you may just want to ask—why I am doing this thing? Or how can I stop doing this thing? lol. Other times, we will probably see a card that predicts a PROBABLE outcome, if everyone keeps on the course they are going. I also provide a POSSIBLE outcome, if something changes, if you make a different decision. I also provide ADVICE cards so that you have some idea of what to consider when making choices.

I was taught to make sure that NO ONE let the cards make decisions for them. In my experience the cards do not say DO THIS. If you are expecting a DO THIS moment from the cards, you might be disappointed. We shouldn’t give anything power over us. We shouldn’t give any ONE power over us. You should make decisions for you.

A reading gives you possibilities and options. It lets you know what is at stake, what other people might be influencing the situation, and especially how you are feeling about something. It may go into the history of how you got here, and what may be driving your decisions from the past or present.

A reading is a portrait of you at this moment.

When the reading is over, you can take a picture of the cards.

I encourage that–so that you can remember what was said.

You are allowed to record the reading if you like. Or you can take notes. But a picture also allows you to look up some cards for yourself if you like.

At the reading you can talk about anything–listen to your own intuition–add that to the reading. A reading is a conversation between you and yourself and me as a guide.

I hope this helps a bit. I welcome you to book a reading with me sometime and try it out!