Tarot Thursday

Another wonderful blog adventure from Elena - a day to share the wisdom of the Tarot! Read more about Tarot Thursday here. The Tarot is an ever-changing book of mysteries, a map of the soul's journey through life, a series of doorways into the collective unconscious, a repository of the archetypal wisdom of western culture, and a powerful tool for self-reflection & insight into other souls. For me, the Tarot has been a life-long companion. I grew up in a bohemian household. Our rambling farmhouse was filled with art and books, and while most parents were celebrating the suburban lifestyle with bridge and cocktail parties, mine filled the house with poets and painters, beatniks and hippies, wine, music, simple french food, and spirited intellectual debate. One day when I was about five, a great poet came to visit. I remember him as very old and grey, also as clear and gentle. Sitting at the big kitchen table one afternoon (my mother had probably set out a dish of olives, some fresh baked bread, some wine...) he brought out an old deck of Tarot cards, and read for my mother, then for me. I don't remember anything that he said to me - I do remember that he was very patient and spoke to me with great seriousness. But the most vivid part of my memory is the imagery of the cards. The two cards pictured above were in my reading (which was a traditional Celtic Cross spread). The Star was in the centre, and the Four of Wands was the outcome card. I believe this was a sort of life reading. These symbols have followed me through my life, and have given me hope in dark times. Shortly after the poet's visit, my mother went out and bought two decks of cards, one for herself and one for me. That deck is the one I still use today. So this is the story of the beginning of my relationship with the Tarot... more to come next Thursday!