writing exercise with the tarot

Weekly Creativity Prompt – Adrian’s Adventure

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Prompt: “Draw (at least) three cards, and use them to tell us a story about a farm with talking animals.”

Storytelling with the 愛されガールの かいこつ タロットAdrian Goat was a happy creature all the days of his life. He bounded and bounced around in his pen, climbed and played with the toys, and ate good food every day (The Sun).

One day the farmer left the gate unlatched though, and Adrian became curious. Tempted by the outside world (The Devil), he went against the warnings of Mother Spider and Brother Pig and squeezed through the opening (The Chariot).

He wandered off into the woods (The Fool), and soon found himself all alone as the sky began to darken.

Scared and alone, he could hear rustling in the trees, and he bleated fearfully instead of calling out for help, at a loss for words in the face of his first encounter with true fear (The Moon).

Remembering all the stories that the other animals had told him about wolves and bears with sharp teeth and claws, as the sounds came closer and closer he was terrified of what might jump out at him at any moment (Wheel of Fortune).

When the leaves right before Adrian Goat rustled, he shouted his fear and turned to run, dashing back through the trees and back into his pen, using his teeth to close the gate behind him.  No longer curious or eager for adventure in the outside world, he was now very happy for his safe, comfortable pen (The Hanged Man).

In the woods, Brother Dog and Alfred Horse chuckled to each other as they emerged into the clearing that Adrian Goat had left behind. Chatting quietly with each other as they returned to the farm at a leisurely pace, assured that Adrian Goat had learned his lesson (The Hierophant) and would stray no more.

DECK USED: 愛されガールの かいこつ タロット

Weekly Creativity Prompt – The Magician

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Prompt: Pull the card from your deck(s) that matches the card posted below. Compare the imagery between the card provided and the cards(s) from your own deck(s). How would you read them differently and why?

Tarot of the Hidden Realm - The MagicianTarot of the Hidden Realm – Right, so… Perfection, for me, is not complete without a flaw. This card is essentially the “flaw” in an otherwise perfect deck that makes the deck truly perfect.  (This deck is my “Soul Deck” and thus, perfect for me… not in general.)

I have issues with this Magician.  Issues! I tell you.  Because when I look at him? I see a porn star. A gigolo. A male whore.  That’s what I see, and I’m unable to see anything else.   So yes… he’s a man with all the tools (and what tools they are!) and all the skills as well. He’s ready to go, knows what he wants, and is not just well suited for his work but very good at it.  Interpreting this card leaves me with an awareness that not everyone’s goals and values are going to align with everyone else’s and sometimes you have to focus on what’s right for you and only you.

The Magician in the Four Twenty Tarot, Mystical Medleys Tarot, and Ema Poetica Tarot

Four Twenty Tarot – Classic imagery in a non-classic artform, the Magician in this card is empowered (and a bit baked) and has all the tools they need at their disposal including the four elements that lie on the table and the smoking pipe in her hand as well. Around her sprouts her desires, manifested into reality. I would see this imagery as encouragement to go after that which holds value to you, that you have all you need to accomplish what you want in life if you use your skills, abilities, and tools wisely.

Ema Poetica Tarot – All elements are again accounted for in this card, as is growth in the form of flowers, and the addition of an all-seeing-eye that speaks to me of a greater sense of awareness of the world around them than what is seen in the previous two cards. Not only is the Magician determined and equipped, but they are aware of the world at large and will see hurdles coming and adapt to them to ensure success.   I would read this card as a reminder that there is more to success than determination and skill, and that sometimes to obtain one’s goals we must look outside ourselves at what’s going on around us as well.

Mystical Medleys Tarot – Singular focus is the theme I see in this card.  There is still growth in the flowers at the Magician’s feet, and all the tools are there for his use.  But instead of looking -out- at the world, the eye in this card is the Magician’s head and it is singularly focused upon what he holds and what it can do for him.  Where the Ema Poetica card speaks of looking outward, this one speaks of bearing down one’s focus and buckling down for the effort it will take to manifest what they desire.

DECK USED: TAROT OF THE HIDDEN REALM, FOUR TWENTY TAROT, EMA POETICA TAROT, MYSTICAL MEDLEYS TAROT

Weekly Creativity Prompt – The Hanged Man

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Prompt: “Pull the card from your deck(s) that matches the card posted below. Compare the imagery between the card provided below and the card(s) from your own deck(s). How would you read them differently and why?“

Tarot of the Hidden Realms - The Hanged ManTarot of the Hidden Realm – Eyes open and body relaxed, he hangs inverted and sees the world from this vantage point.  As the green grows up around him, coiling in his hair, a butterfly comes to whisper secrets for him to hear.    In this imagery I see patience, but also a hint of determination in his features. He does not hang for the heck of it, but with purpose.  He is a seeker, and he wants to see this alternate view. Thus, I would see this card as an encouragement to actively seek out new perspectives.

The Stormlight Archive Tarot, Darkened Dreams Tarot, The Kitchen Tarot

The Stormlight Archive Tarot – In this card the figure is bound by one wrist, pierced by an arrow, and run through by many blades, one of which also pierces through his free hand.  He hangs with his head bowed, brought to a knee in his pain, bound through not just ropes or twine, but by punishing pain as well.  As the Hanged Man, this card reminds me that the world looks different to everyone.  Chronic pain, pessimism, punishment, or misfortune can all create a skewed view of reality.  A skewed view we then carry with us as we move through life.  I see this card as a reminder that we must pull out the (metaphorical) blades that keep our past wounds open and raw so that we can heal and begin to rise, straighten from our kneel, and see the world from a better perspective.

Darkened Dreams Tarot – In the imagery of this card we see a figure that ascends as if defying gravity, their wrist anchored to a barren tree as they are pulled upward, defying gravity.  This imagery speaks to me of astral projection while the colors of the card speak to me of enlightenment.  As the body is anchored to a tree, it makes me wonder if it is not the tree’s soul that floats above, seeking new adventures and perspectives that it cannot experience when rooted to the ground. I see this card as an encouragement to explore and try new things, seek out new experiences and allow them to expand one’s perception of the world.

The Kitchen Tarot – In this deck, the Hanged One is named the Kitchen Timer with the added input of the words “miracle worker” etched into the arms of the chef with their third eye open and the other two eyes closed. There is something to be said for the old adage “time heals all wounds” and, in a way, this is true…. -if- you are willing to be open to the healing that time offers us.  I would see this card as an encouragement to wait.  To wait and to watch, and to keep an open mind.  Allow yourself to move past your own first impressions, and look deeper.

DECK USED: TAROT OF THE HIDDEN REALM, THE STORMLIGHT ARCHIVE TAROT, DARKENED DREAMS TAROT, THE KITCHEN TAROT

Weekly Creativity Prompt – The Feels

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Prompt: “Draw a single random card from (one of) your favorite decks and share how the card’s imagery makes you feel.”

The Pinokkio Tarot by Sagittis - The FoolDisgusted. I mean honestly, that was my first reaction when I saw this card. Disgust.

Pinokkio has decided to lay among the grass and flowers, and because he’s not paying attention to his surroundings and has lain himself down in an inadvisable place, he’s going to get pissed on by a dog.

Interestingly, my feeling of disgust concerning this card are very similar to the feeling of disgust I get when I find people who are willfully ignorant and choose to do stupid shit without thinking about it first. So the feeling is very accurate for the Fool where I am concerned, as the Fool is often quite irresponsible and oblivious to their surroundings in most cases.

My disgust in this picture would turn my perspective on the meaning of the Fool’s placement in a reading into something slightly more cautionary or negative. Ie: a warning about not paying attention, taking care to do not do foolish things, or a message about thinking before you act.

DECK USED: PINOKKIO TAROT BY SAGITTIS

Weekly Creativity Prompt – Memories

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Prompt: “Draw (at least) three cards and use them to describe the first memory that the card combination brings to mind.”

Storytelling with the Don't Starve TarotThe Wolf and The Fox
(The story of Gideon and Twist)

There was once a young fox that was fiercely independent and thought he had everything he needed in life (The Magician). He went through his days doing what he wished without commitments (The Fool), running his life with efficiency and single-minded focus.

One day this fox met a great big wolf who stirred up things within his soul that he didn’t understand (The High Priestess). It made the fox uncertain, as he felt unbalanced in the wolf’s company, and so he often ran away from the wolf (The Moon) even while at other times he was irresistibly drawn to be in the wolf’s company again and again (The Devil).

There came a time in the wolf’s life when everything he knew fell apart and those he trusted turned on him (The Tower), upsetting not just his current life but what he saw as his future (Judgement).

In kindness, the fox reached out to the wolf to make sure that he was okay (The Empress). In the conversation that ensued, the fox provided insight (The Hierophant) and perspective to the wolf that the wolf had not considered, and which changed his outlook on his situation entirely (The Hanged Man).

The wolf found the fox to be a breath of fresh air into his life (The Star), and recognized the great amount of joy the fox provided for him not just in his time of darkness but in all the time they’d known each other (The Sun). He began to earnestly pursue a relationship with the fox (The Chariot), and eventually the fox stopped running (Temperance).

Now the wolf and the fox travel as one (The Lovers). They take care of each other and support each other through thick and thin (Strength), facing life’s path together side-by-side as they move forward into the future (The World).

DECK USED: DON’T STARVE TAROT

Weekly Creativity Prompt – Music Lovers

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Prompt: “Have you ever listened to a song and suddenly realized “This song is such a Tower/Emperor/Hanged Man song!”? This activity is based off of a love for music and how we associate music with the world around us. Pick (or randomly draw) five cards from your deck. Then, for each card, pick (or find) a song that you feel fits that card perfectly.”

Fate | Flower Tarot Cards

Four of Cups – Only Happy When It Rains by Garbage
https://youtu.be/GpBFOJ3R0M4

Six of Cups – Walk On the Ocean by Toad the Wet Sprocket
https://youtu.be/12bM1CqHoBY

The Sun – Don’t Worry Be Happy by Bobby McFerrin
https://youtu.be/d-diB65scQU

The Devil – Not an Addict by K’s Choice
https://youtu.be/JT2SsWOCoEw

Fate | Flower Tarot Cards

Knight of Wands – Firestarter by Prodigy
https://youtu.be/wmin5WkOuPw

Judgement – Ain’t No Rest For the Wicked by Cage the Elephant
https://youtu.be/HKtsdZs9LJo

Knight of Cups – I Will Possess Your Heart by Death Cab for Cutie
https://youtu.be/PsCV61zsdtA

Nine of Swords – X Amount of Words by Blue October
https://youtu.be/X_jY7wILH-E

DECK USED:  FATE | FLOWER TAROT CARDS