1/23/13—Grabbing a New Rope

Today's Draw: The Seven of Staffs in the "What to Leave in the Past" position from the Glastonbury Tarot and the Deck of 1000 Spreads. Do you wish you could just snap your fingers and have a different life? What do you need to let go of so you can grab ahold of that thing you'd rather have? What keeps you from doing it? 

You'll be seeing me use my Deck of 1000 Spreads here more often, I imagine. When tarot readers do full readings for their clients, they usually have the context of a spread position to help them focus their reading. Most blogs just choose a Card of the Day, as I have for the past two years. But adding the context of a spread positions gives us a bit more information about what the cards are trying to tell us. 

Before I get to today's message, I found a curious package on my front porch today. It was curious because it wasn't the size or shape of anything I was waiting on from anywhere. And it came by FedEx, instead of the mail. Inside was the book that goes with the Deck of 1000 Spreads. Now, I've been pretty cool about this whole thing so far, but seeing my name on a book for the first time...well, that's something special. The other day I was responding to someone in the UK about my deck and I checked the book stores I usually buy from in England and they had it for pre-order. Seeing your idea spread around the world is pretty cool, too. And knowing your British cousins (my mom was from England) can walk into a store and see your product on the shelves...wow. 

My book and deck will be sold in a kit with a box. It seems everything is printed and now it just needs to be assembled and shipped out to sellers. I started on this particular journey about two years ago. And now it's this real, tangible thing that the biggest tarot publisher in the US, Llewellyn, is going to send all around the world. And people will know my contribution to this art/skill that I've dedicated so much of my "hobby" time to 25 years. And one day I hope to do the same with the kind of writings I've been doing for you for the past couple of years. Today I'm quite grateful to the universe. :)

Yeah. I wrote that book. I'm cool. 

So, on to what we should leave in the past. At first glance, you're probably thinking, "huh? Leave courage in the past?" That's what I thought when I first saw it. I thought I was going to have to really spin today's entry...haha. But I don't. Because each of the wands that's burning in the fire is the baggage of the past. The man has transferred the energy of his story, his mistakes, his pains and the other aspects of his psyche that have caused issues in his past and present. And he's thrown them in the fire. No more crutches. No more excuses. No more holding on to outdated versions of who he's supposed to be. 

By doing this, he's cleaned the slate and created a vacuum for new things to rush into. In tarot, there's a popular spread or reading layout called the Celtic Cross. And one of the positions is "Greatest Hopes and Fears". And the cool thing about this position is that the card that appears here is usually something we both hope for AND fear. Life often brings that irony...the thing we most want is the thing that scares us the most. 

This clean slate thing is one of those things we both want and fear. We want something new in our lives, but we don't want to let go of what's familiar and predictable first...we want to keep it in our grasp in case the new thing doesn't work out. Even if we hate the old thing. Letting go of one rope that's keeping you in the safe and familiar, just so you can grab another that's going to swing you god only knows where, takes a lot courage. 

So today's card combo is telling us it's time to let go of that baggage and grab on to the new rope and go where it guides you. I started letting go of the old rope a number of years ago when I started committing myself to teaching, writing this blog and working on my people and leadership skills. And when I reached inside that package that landed on my front porch today and pulled out a book with my name on it, I knew the old rope was gone and I had now grabbed on to the new rope. 

I've been preparing for this all my life, in one way or another. I suppose it's possible this will be the only book I write...the only public "product" I create...but I think I know in my heart that this is just the first crack in a dam that will one day burst forth with something only vaguely resembling the quiet, invisible life I have now. 

So it's time to gather up my staffs and ready more of my past attitudes, limitations and false beliefs for the fire. If I want to do more and serve more with my words—which I do—I have to rise to my ambition. I don't have to be there tomorrow, thank god...haha. But I at least have to light the flame. 

What are you being called to burn away?

12/20/12—Questioning Everything

SHAMELESS SELF PROMOTION: If you haven't liked my author page yet on Facebook, please do so at https://www.facebook.com/KTierneySadler?ref=hl. I share tarot tips on that page, these blogs, and it's also where you can keep up with the progress on my Deck of 1000 Spreads, now available for pre-order on Amazon and at http://www.llewellyn.com/product.php?ean=9780738733395.

Today's Draw: The Fool: Percival from the Glastonbury Tarot. Are you someone who asks a lot of questions? Do you tend to keep your questioning on the surface, so as not to challenge or embarrass anyone? Or does your curiosity often lead you into potentially embarrassing rabbit holes?

Percival was one of King Arthur's knights. And he totally blew his first chance at securing the Holy Grail. Why? Because, even though he was curious about the goings on at a castle he was staying at, he didn't ask any questions that would satisfy his curiosity. He didn't want to be considered impolite. 

As you may have noticed, every Daily Draw starts with three questions. They're not always comfortable questions. A huge part of my job as a writer is asking questions and getting to the root of peoples' businesses. Sometimes I ask questions about things businesses don't want to talk about. But I need to know a company's strengths AND weaknesses in order to word things in such a way that it honestly presents the business in its best light. I can't do that effectively without knowing the whole story. 

So I'm a questioner from way back. Of course, I do my best to not be rude or invasive, but that doesn't mean I can't still ask the question. I owe my questioning nature to three things:

• Teachers who encouraged us to ask question by reassuring us there were no stupid questions.
• Stumbling upon the notion of "if you want something, ask for it." I was always afraid to ask for what I wanted until I tried. It's amazing how simple a solution it is! :D
• My own natural intellectual curiosity. I don't know what came first...my career or the curiosity...but the two have worked together in tandem and I think now my "minimum amount of information needed to get rid of me" may be higher than the average joe's.  

I have a pretty good BS meter, too. It sometimes doesn't kick in until after we're done talking, but when things don't add up, I feel it throughout my body. I'm not a good person to talk to if you want to be a victim or be in denial because I will hone in on the "truth" fairly quickly. I've had more than one person tell me that when they want someone to feel sorry for them, they call someone else. And when they want to hear the truth, they call me. All of that comes from the questioning, curious nature inside me. 

I say all of this because we often think of The Fool as being the guy who leaps before he looks and trusts the universe will guide him safely down. But he's also the guy who starts out on the journey of self awareness and awareness of the world around him that is the major arcana of the tarot. He is on a journey of discovery. Discovery requires curiosity. And curiosity relies on questions. 

There was a time, like Percival, that I held back on the questions out of some sort of anxiety. But that time is long past and I feel comfortable now. Like anything else, sometimes the timing will be off or someone will take offense. Those times teach you. You get a feel for how and how far to question someone. You get a sense for who might open up a little and who just has too many walls up. And you learn to respect others in pursuit of your curiosity. But even so you're still going to have times when you cringe because you stepped in a poo of your own making. 

When it comes down to asking an impolite question about something you feel a need to know about vs. not asking the question because you might be considered impolite, though, I'd go for the former every time. The only regrets I have about questions are regrets about the ones I never asked. 

12/3/12—Believing is Seeing

Today's Draw: The Knight of Vesicas from the Glastonbury Tarot. What do believe about money? Is it hard to get...in unlimited supply...the root of all evil? What do believe about yourself in regard to earning and spending money? Can you see how those beliefs are reflected back to you through your current money situation? 

The Glastonbury Tarot is an out-of-print deck that I have been wanting for a while. It's one of those decks that was never at the top of my list to acquire, but always in the back of my mind. Then a couple of weeks ago someone posted a question about what decks are on your wish list and it occurred to me that my wish list was pretty complete. And then I remembered the Glastonbury. And I went to Amazon and found a seller selling one for a reasonable price and it was like kismet. 

Ever since I was a kid, I've always had a mindset that I never want for much. My parents were by no means rich, but there was never anything I wanted that I didn't get. Nothing I seriously wanted, at least. And throughout my life, I've always thought this a curious thing. Is it because I really don't want much? Is that why I've been so lucky as to get the things I want? Because one thing's for sure...if I had wanted a new car or a pony or anything truly expensive, it never would have happened. 

So that's always been my conundrum...do I always get what I want because I always get what I want (and we're talking material things here, not things like love or a 25" inch waistline)? Or do I always get what I want because I don't really want anything I can't afford to have? There's just something with me and material/monetary things that seems to work out. Like this past spring when Kizzie had to have an operation...the day after learning how much it would cost, a client called me for an "extra" job that had to be done very quickly and would be very time-consuming. The minute I wondered if I could afford it, life told me I could. Kismet. 

So why am I telling you this? Because I like to brag about how wonderful I am and how I'm dripping in jewels? Haha. No. Trust me, I live a simple life and I don't really ask for much, so I'm grateful that I get what I ask for. I'm telling you this because that's the what the Knight of Vesicas is all about. First of all, for those of you who don't know, vesica piscis is that almond shaped form that you see where the two circles intersect in the picture...the shape in the very center of the larger circle. It has mystical/astrological meaning and it's a form in sacred or universal geometry. In this deck, it hearkens to the design on Chalice Well, a holy well at the foot of Glastonbury Tor in England. 

In this deck, the Vesicas take the place of Pentacles, which is the sign of money and material things. And the Knight has conquered this energy. He is in control over it, rather than it having control over him. His command of this energy is so great that he doesn't even have to watch the energy as it rises. He just trusts that it will continue to rise. 

Many times we don't think of anything other than living creatures as having energy. But money *is* energy. First off, the money you have reflects the energy you put into your work. Your paycheck is a reflection of the energy of your work...the energy of your ambition...the energy of your prowess...the energy of your self confidence. The difference between people who earn a lot and people who don't is all about energy. Mind you, I'm not saying "effort". I'm saying energy.

My competitors who make more money than me, do so because they have more drive, ambition, desire, confidence...their set point for what they want from life helps them generate different energy than me. Their desires will have them manifesting different opportunities and recognizing those opportunities when they come along. We attach ourselves to different set points based on what we want, yes, but more so what we believe about ourselves and our ability to create things in the universe. It's not about working harder or merely wanting more. It's about matching your energy to the energy of what you want. 

So what I'm saying here is that if you're in debt all the time, or just making enough to get by, that's based on energy. It's based on the energy of the beliefs you have about yourself and the way the world works. I've believed all my life that I always get what I want and I just don't want a whole lot. So that has been my reality. If I choose to believe tomorrow that I always get MORE than what I want, that will come to me, too. But I'll have to believe it. Which means I'll have to find and let go of whatever is limiting my energy from vibrating to the "more than I want" belief and overall vibe.

My beliefs on this drive every money and career decision I make. The same is true for someone who earns millions, but files for bankruptcy. For Oprah, who will always have way more than she needs. For the modest earner that has a hefty 401K. And for wealthy peeps who live on a budget far beneath their earnings. It's all driven by our beliefs about money, about ourselves and about God, karma and/or our beliefs about manifestation, hard work, etc. 

Do you see this principle at work in your own life? Do you see how the same principles apply to more than just money?