Reading for a friend:

This is what I posted to my blog for her; Any feedback would be appreciated.

ETA Sorry! This was a Celtic Cross.



1) Representing you: 8 of wands. This card is about forward motion, directed change- obstacles have been removed from your path and now you're moving forward, and moving fast.

2) What you carry with you; this could be something that affects you in either a positive or negative way, or both: King of Wands. This king is able to move fast, and contains the potential for great passion, but is in control of himself. He is impulsive, but not ruled by impulse. He is a passionate, fiery leader.

3)The Foundation: 6 of Swords, r. This card says that you feel like you're not moving forward, like you're stuck in one place, or like you're too focused looking into the past, and refusing to see things the way they really are.

4) Where you're coming from: 10 of Wands, R. This suggests that you are coming from a place where you feel overwhelmed and stuck, but were unable or unwilling to ask for help. Progress forward was slow or nonexistant.

5) Overlying issue: Faith. Traditionally known as the Heirophant, this card refers to traditional knowledge, generally of the religious type. It can refer to a teacher or spiritual leader. It can also refer to staying within the boundaries of what is socially acceptable, or blind belief in something.

6) Where you're headed: Page of Cups: This page is artistic, dreamy, and emotional, and studious. It can refer to a child with those qualities. It can also refer to (brace yourself!) pregnancy and childbirth. (You didn't brace yourself, did you? I warned you.)

7) Emotional state: King of Coins. This king is careful, thorough, with both feet firmly on the floor. He is extremely stable, an excellent provider and protector. He is not always quick to act, but when he does act, it is with well thought out reasoning. He is generous, and patient, but once he sets himself on a path, that's the only one he's going down.

8) Unknown factors that affect you: 6 of Coins, reversed. This card is about giving and receiving openly. Reversed, it suggests that you have been giving too much, or that you don't have as much to give as you had thought. It might be a good time to hold back a bit.

9) Hopes and Fears: The Queen of Swords. This lady has a sharp tongue, no pun intended. She is direct and forthright, says what she thinks and means what she says. She is direct, well spoken, and without pretense. She can be hurtful; she also has the ability to be compassionate and gentle- but only when she thinks it's warranted.

10) Probable Outcome: The Tower. The tower is about unexpected change. Life shaking change, something that challenges your assumptions or rearranges the way you life. It's not necessarily negative- winning the lottery would be a Tower moment; but it's not an easy, flowing change. It's sudden.

I am getting a sense that you are seeing things not necessarily the way they really are. You are being too generous, too giving, and holding back from saying or doing what you really feel is necessary because you don't want to be "the bad guy". You have a sense of security that is not necessarily based on reality- and if you don't take stock now, you're headed for a shake up.

There are a lot of people in your spread. I think it might be a good idea to clear away the messages you're getting from all those people around you and really figure out what YOU think.

Perhaps you were struggling with a decision before, and now you've made it you're going full steam ahead. It may be time to take stock of that decision, and make sure you made the right one. You still have time for change.

There are a lot of male Court Cards in the mix with the King of Wands and the King of Coins. Is it possible she has a dominating male in her life that is holding her back in some way or expecting too much from her? To me, this seems more like a father figure who might be disapproving of some of her life choices. I don't think he means to have this effect on her. Might be kind of an aggressive guy, but he only does it because he wants to show how much he cares for her.

Again, the Faith card to me suggests something related to a more traditional family figure. As the issue, I defintiely would feel like she's butting heads with someone in her family or as institution she views as a family.

I definitely agree with the way you saw it as her being too giving and maybe not standing up for herself. The outcome should be pretty interesting!

Hope that helps!

For the way I read, I don't necessarily see a potential teenage pregnancy in this reading just because the Page of Cups showed up (as you mentioned you feared for the seeker in the thread in Talking Tarot that linked to this post: http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?t=127819.) For me, a pregnancy would have to be indicated by more than just one card like that.

As Doormousey said, there is more male energy in this spread than female, so it makes me feel that your seeker may have more to worry about from a man or men in her circle than in the possibility that her daughter might get pregnant. I mean, it could happen. I just think these cards indicate that there are other, more pressing issues your seeker is facing or is about to face.

If I can make another comment, it seems that when it came to the court cards that showed up, you merely gave a "book meaning" for the position instead of what the card meant to you in the actual spread. Maybe if you tried to connect the court's energy to the surrounding cards, you would get a better feel for what the whole spread means. (I'm not saying that your advice to your seeker is wrong, but I think you may have missed a whole lot by glossing over the courts the way you did without tying them into what they might mean in this reading.)

It was the page/ queen of swords/ tower that led me to teenage pregnancy. I am fairly certian that the Page was referring to a person, not a state of mind; and I always see the two cards in those positions as connected because they both deal with the future.

I can agree that I wasn't very clear about the court cards. I really felt that the King of Pents was saying that she felt secure and safe, but that perhaps she was being too complacent or that it was a false sense of security (6 of pents r.) The king of wands... I kind of get the idea that he's a person, and that he's pushing her forward and maybe not giving her time to think. I'm not very good with court cards yet.

I think I'm going to edit things before she sees them, because this was a good point. I got so wound up around the pregnancy thing that everything else kind of faded off- I kind of panicked.

For courts, I usually think of them one of two ways: either they represent a particular person in the seeker's sphere or they signify the attributes of the court that the seeker may need to adopt in order to best face the situation (or conversely the attributes of that court that are working against the seeker that she may need to take into consideration.)

To me, the Queen of Swords is the least maternal of all the queens, but I can see where a teenage pregnancy would be Tower-shocking! So, like I said, that isn't something that would have struck me in reading those cards...

Still, the fact that you grabbed onto that notion and couldn't let it go may go far beyond the cards...it may just be your intuition or gut feeling at its best, and in that way, it could be very appropriate information for this woman. I'm not trying to second-guess your instinct at all...just offering a different interpretation.

OK, this is what I changed it to read on the blog:

I am getting a sense that you are seeing things not necessarily the way they really are. You are being too generous, too giving, and holding back from saying or doing what you really feel is necessary because you don't want to be "the bad guy"(Queen of Swords). You have a sense of security that is not necessarily based on reality (king of pents & 6 of pents r.) - and if you don't take stock now, you're headed for a shake up (Tower).

There are a lot of people in your spread (Kings, Queen of Swords, Page of Cups). I think it might be a good idea to clear away the messages you're getting from all those people around you and really figure out what YOU think. There is a lot of overwhelming male energy around you, and I think the King of Wands is suggesting that there is a man with those King of Wands attributes that's pushing you in one direction or another, and that things are happening very fast, and maybe feel a little out of control (8 and King of Wands) . I'm fairly certain the Page is representing a person, too... it may be time to put your foot down and stand up for what you believe is right. I am also getting a huge sense of having the expectations of others hanging over your head, and the need to please them or meet those expectations being a very oppressive force (Faith).

Perhaps you were struggling with a decision before (10 of Wands), and now you've made it you're going full steam ahead. It may be time to take stock of that decision, and make sure you made the right one. That 6 of Swords r. is SCREAMING "denial" to me- kind of like when someone sticks their fingers in their ears and goes, "lalalala" so they don't have to hear what is being said.

Overall, I am getting a sense of feeling very out of control here- and the need to assert yourself, and the fear of what will happen if you don't.


I was going to credit you guys with your help, as you rightly deserve, but I didn't want her wandering over here and finding the teen pregnancy bit before I have a chance to talk to her myself and say, "Hey, I could be wrong, but THIS was my first thought, so you might want to keep it in mind."

I love the Queen of Swords the mostest, because I identify with her and use her as my signifier, and I really saw her as this person's need to be a mom and not necessarily a friend, and her fear that she would be the bad guy if she did what she feels is necessary and right. So that's kind of how it tied in to me. I also realized, going over the post, that I neglected a lot of the cards in the actual "reading" portion. I like to describe the card meanings briefly and then tie them together at the end, but I did a failtacular job of it this time.

I really appreciate the help, and the feedback.

starrystarrynight said:

I'm not trying to second-guess your instinct at all...just offering a different interpretation.

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I don't feel second guessed or or anything like that- everything I learn only adds to my abilities, if that makes sense- I am an eager learner.

Amary said:

The Tower. The tower is about unexpected change. Life shaking change, something that challenges your assumptions or rearranges the way you life. It's not necessarily negative- winning the lottery would be a Tower moment; but it's not an easy, flowing change. It's sudden.

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I think winning the lottery would be more of a Sun moment, as Tower is so disruptive and painful. It sure doesn't hurt to get a bit of extra cash and it sure isn't going to be a problem either, and it would be so easy to stick it in my pocket, the transaction would go like greased lightening.

Just out of curiosity, does your friend know you blog her readings? Will she know others have had input into it too?

I ask because I feel it's a bit different here on this site, as everyone assumes (I hope) that the reading/"work" is public.

Just wondering.

River

She knows, I had her permission and offered to do it privately, but she said on the blog is fine. I am finding, though, that I am uncomfortable with doing them publicly, and that is going to be the last one; it seems like over time I am hitting more and more personal things and less fun surface stuff.