I would like to share with you an exercise I have been doing with the Tarot for some time. Each Sunday evening I pull a card from the deck which will indicate my area of focus during the coming week. Sunday being the first day of the week is a natural time of reflection for me. I first consider the card which I pulled the Sunday before and how it manifested through the events and experiences and my overall impression of the week. Next I shift my attention to the coming week and focus on my wants and needs as well as plans and responsibilities for the new week. Through the process of pulling a weekly card I have gained much insight into the practical application of the Tarot. I also learned and continue learning volumes about the way I personally respond to and deal with opportunities and challenges of life.

Now there are many techniques for selecting a card. I like to fan or spread the cards out in front of me face down. I then close my eyes and very slowly move my hand over the top of the cards until my hand just naturally seems to touch down on a specific card. Sometimes I feel a kind of tingling sensation in my hand and fingers just before I touch the card, or I may feel a temperature change warmer or cooler as I move closer to the card.

I asked a friend of mine, an excellent Tarot reader, if she would share her experience of selecting a weekly card and what she has learned from the process. This is what she had to say, “I approach the card I select with the thought I will learn something new about that card and recognize some aspect of myself I might not otherwise become aware of. I feel the card I select is often more about my internal experience feelings as opposed to doings.” She also sent me such a wonderful interpretation of the Knight of Cups I wanted to include it in this article.

She writes, “This week I selected the Knight of Cups. (Universal Waite deck) The energy of this card is to ‘offer support’ (water to a desert yet a desert with a river flowing through it). I see all the knights of the Tarot as energies striving to accomplish something important, striving to become Kings and Queens in their own realms, fighting the good fight and leading the troops. Each knight offers to do that in their own way with regard to the suit. With the Knight of Cups the need to nurture, feed, nourish, support, encourage and offer love is the way the energy strives to accomplish its’ purpose.

“I see that the desert landscape with the river flowing through it has water — and if it was going to be lush and green, and filled with the fruits of the earth, it would have done so, using the energy of the water that it has right there. If you look at the card, the most desolate area is right by the river — even the trees in the distance are doing better at some distance from the water of the river, than if they stretched their trunk and roots into the water directly. Nothing is growing where the water flows. The message is clear, don’t offer water to an area that doesn’t use the water it already has available. Don’t add your cupful to the flowing river filled with water already.

“The wings on the helmet and on the heels indicate the energy of Mercury the winged messenger. The ‘vehicle’ is the white horse, the horse of spirit. The fish on the suit of armor are red — and the ‘waves’ on the armor remind me of the sign of Aquarius. I interpret this card as reflecting my need to find new people and places to nurture and offer my gifts. I must stop trying to nurture and give my gifts to people and places who already have what they need and make no use of the gifts they have.”

I have also learned that many times the most direct and simple interpretation of a card is the correct one. I find preconceived thoughts about cards need to be re-evaluated in the light of new information; that family, religion, and society influence our interpretation and expectations of cards and their words and images just as they influence our life choices. And most importantly I have seen growth and transformation in myself over time. The cards seem to work as markers of change in my actions and my attitudes.

Keeping a journal of your weekly selection along with a short synopsis of the week and how you experienced the energies of the card will serve as a wonderful tool for reflection as well as an opportunity to see your own growth process.

Kelly is a professional Astrologer, Tarot card reader, & instructor in Metaphysical practices. She can be reached by e-mail, otillery@aol . com or the web www.etcpublishing.com/kelly