Journaling is the Initiation

Now that we have discussed the pull-reflex

the next step in making sure that your tarot readings are unbiased is journaling your initial thoughts, feelings, and responses to the cards.

There is no wrong way to do this. Seriously…….

The only wrong way to engage with the tarot is through not engaging. It is important, especially in making sure that you are giving yourself an unbiased reading, that you are taking notes or documenting the way you work and interact with you cards.

This doesn’t have to be some long poetic diatribe on each and every card. It can be a list, bullet points, pictures, connections to things like colors, songs, or memories.

Why is journaling the initiation?

Journaling is the initiation between you and the cards because it shows the natural and free-flowing thoughts and emotions that come through in that moment. It shows the nuance.

Each day that you engage with the tarot there is a difference in energy, and in connection. It may not be exactly “correct”, but as a tarot reader I believe that correctness should not come before perfection. That is why every reader, no matter how many books, courses, or workshops they attend will have those slight differences in their own interpretation and understanding of the cards.

If you journal in the morning, at night, during a moon ritual, return to your latest journal entries and then write down how the card came forward in actuality. This is why I think it is important not to strive for complete correctness. That can create expectations of the ways that the cards are going to flow in your life, and when they don’t adhere to that expectation (and they never will), you find yourself questioning even more.

So, return to your latest journal entry, and check in. Write down how the card(s) actually came forward. Document how your initiation contained similarities, differences, complete out-of-the-blue surprises with the cards. This is the connection forming in real time. What a beautiful thing!

Some things to consider when journaling about the cards:

• It is important to date each entry. That way you have a roadmap of your personal path with the tarot. How beautiful is that?
• No matter the format (handwritten, electronic, art-inspired), keep your entries. Return to them, read them again, see the similarities and the differences between you and the cards from that space now in the past, and the present moment.
• You can use your journal entries to compile a set of notes that form a clear-running connection with the cards.

After you have engaged with your latest entry, and some of your earliest ones, you will start to see the threads forming that encourage a deeper understanding of how the cards come forward for you. You will see the ways in which your free-flowing initiation was spot-on. These are the times when your intuition (whether felt or not) was speaking to you. Other times, you will see that your entries are completely out of alignment. This could be a time when ego was present, when a feeling was not fully worked through, or any other situation that could have altered the understanding.

Don’t get discouraged at these moments. These are the ways you really learn the tarot. It isn’t in some book or course. It is in the precious and intimate unfolding each day, seeing where you are truly in alignment, and where you need to connect more deeply to intuition.

Thank you for reading. Stay tuned for the next blog post in creating an unbiased connection to your cards. Don’t forget to sign up for the Trust the Tarot booklet which is designed specifically to help you engage with the tarot in this way.