Not every choice in life is gut-wrenching, although it may still be vexing when it comes to making a snap decision: "Should I go with X to the pub or with Y to the show?" In such cases a simple spread with a touch of subtlety is all that is needed when a straightforward yes-or-no … Continue reading An Elemental Dignity “Short-Form” Decision-Making Spread
Decision-making Spreads
The “Build It As You Go” 3-Card Vignette
My aversion to very small spreads is well-known; in most cases, even three cards don't do much for me. However, I often find ways to extract meaningful subsets from larger patterns, especially if there are compelling indicators bringing them to my attention. The "cross" section of the Celtic Cross spread with its "past-present-future" triplicity is … Continue reading The “Build It As You Go” 3-Card Vignette
The “Two Paths You Can Go By” Decision-Making Spread
Popular culture is often a goldmine of spread ideas and titles. In this case, the line "Yes, there are two paths you can go by" from Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" was tailor-made for a decision-making spread. After completing my "pips" cycle of essays, I decided to create a spread specifically for "pips-only" use. This … Continue reading The “Two Paths You Can Go By” Decision-Making Spread
The “Crossroads of Opportunity” Spread
Whenever inspiration for my next post fails me, I turn to creation of a new spread. This one plays off my fascination with inserting unknown qualities (in this case, face-down cards) into my layouts, the implications of which are revealed through certain selective operations. Other than that feature, this is a fairly standard multi-path decision-making … Continue reading The “Crossroads of Opportunity” Spread
The “Mongrel’s Mash-up” Mixed-Media Decision Making Spread
Here's a more radical mingling of tarot and Lenormand decks in a single reading. Rather then mixing the two decks together or creating a separate chain or division in the spread for each type of deck, I scatter the cards between two different lines by rolling a single die to come up with an odd … Continue reading The “Mongrel’s Mash-up” Mixed-Media Decision Making Spread
The “Roadkill Penguin” Decision-Making Spread
When I haven't created a new spread in a while, my imagination tends to go into overdrive (or maybe "haywire" is a better way to put it). The visual layout of this one reminds me of a hapless creature that has been run over by a steamroller - not the ideal outcome for a decision-making … Continue reading The “Roadkill Penguin” Decision-Making Spread
The “Two Out of Three” Decision-Making Spread
I've always found the typical three-card draw to be rather uninspiring. My long-held opinion is that the reader has to inject entirely too much intuitive guesswork into the gaps between the cards to make a compelling narrative out of the sequence. A five-position spread is the minimum I prefer to work with in order to "just read … Continue reading The “Two Out of Three” Decision-Making Spread
The Peaks-and-Valleys Project Management Spread
Whenever I'm at a loss for subject matter to inspire a new tarot spread, I often fall back on the topic of project management, a combined form of decision-making and problem-solving. Nearly everyone has been involved in creative projects of one kind or another, whether at work, at home or in social group settings. Every … Continue reading The Peaks-and-Valleys Project Management Spread
The “Measure of the Moment” Spread
Although this decision-making spread looks complicated, it is more so in its derivation than in its interpretation. At its simplest, it consists of four main elemental cards, each flanked by two modifiers, that represent active agents expressing the thrust of the energies in the matter of the reading. The title refers to the confluence of those energies … Continue reading The “Measure of the Moment” Spread
Changing Gears
This is a reading about a setback and an opportunity. Our ongoing saga of relocating across the State to be closer to our granddaughter continues. A couple of months ago when we had two or three potential houses lined up for viewing, I did a reading that showed we would find a house but probably not … Continue reading Changing Gears
Parsifal's Wheel Tarot & Astrology 