Learn with me...
- Visit my YouTube Channel for tutorials and demos.
- Get my book on Amazon or Book Depository.
- Download "The New Celtic Cross" spread (below)
| thenewcelticcross.pdf |
New Workshop:
What’s it all about?
COST: 117.00 - Scholarships Available
BOOK HERE
Each reader finds their own “tarot,” or we should. This is what turns a tarot reciter into a tarot reader. Sometimes we have a hard time breaking free of perceptions, conventions, and traditions—even when they’re holding us back. Sometimes we find that our readings suddenly lack the sparkle or verve we’re accustomed too; sometimes we discover we’ve changed but our readings haven’t; sometimes we want a kick in the ol’ pants so we can break free from a rut.
Re-Learning the Tarot: An Iconoclastic Journey is a workshop designed for anyone feeling that itch.
Each week, we go out on a thin limb to catch some fresh, ripe fruit. In doing, we ignite our curiosity and sense of play in an effort to rediscover this tool we love so much.
Week 1: Your Wrong About . . . (11/16 - 2-4:30 ET)
What if unimpeachable evidence appeared showing that everything we know about tarot is wrong? What would we do? What if the so-called “major arcana” was created by naughty teens making fun of their society’s obsession with status? What if the court cards have nothing to do with royalty and were instead a codified grimoire of pre-modern erotic education? What if the suit of wands has nothing to do with fire or passion and everything to do with agriculture and forestry? In this guided playdate, see tarot for the very first time all over again—and discover what you would say about it if you were the person to discover it for the very first time.
Week 2: This Means Nothing! (11/30 - 2-4:30)
Tarot, it is said, speaks the language of symbols. What if a glitch in the matrix stripped humanity of its memory of common symbolism? What if we had to begin again, creating a new language of symbols completely from scratch? How would we begin? Likely from pure emotion. Look at common divinatory visuals with fresh eyes and personal sensibility as we pretend this impossibility becomes a reality. And find fresh, current, shocking new ways to reimagine what you’ve seen countless times.
Week 3: I Can’t Tell You That! (12/14 - 2-4:30)
Tarot has always held taboos—all of them made up, as is the whole system. The “dos” and “don’ts” of divination generally come not from diviners but from gatekeepers telling us what we can and can’t do. Surprise! That’s usually because we’re suddenly competing in fields don’t like competition. From things we can’t read about to topics we should always avoid, poke holes in the theories and discover where your ethical boundaries really lie.
Week 4: That’s Right! (12/28 - 2-4:30)
Self-doubt. Being wrong. Misreading the cards. We dread it. What if these were totally unnecessary because you (and the cards) are never wrong? What if you always interpreted correctly—no matter what you said, or how confident you felt? Of course, that’s a human impossibility. No one is always right about everything. But in this session, we’ll explore how tenacity and curiosity can prove that most of the time, you are absolutely right! We’ll explore first impressions of card readings and explore how asking the right questions and/or phrasing the interpretation differently can unlock a reading that initially seems totally off, illogical, or just plain wrong.
BOOK HERE
Each reader finds their own “tarot,” or we should. This is what turns a tarot reciter into a tarot reader. Sometimes we have a hard time breaking free of perceptions, conventions, and traditions—even when they’re holding us back. Sometimes we find that our readings suddenly lack the sparkle or verve we’re accustomed too; sometimes we discover we’ve changed but our readings haven’t; sometimes we want a kick in the ol’ pants so we can break free from a rut.
Re-Learning the Tarot: An Iconoclastic Journey is a workshop designed for anyone feeling that itch.
Each week, we go out on a thin limb to catch some fresh, ripe fruit. In doing, we ignite our curiosity and sense of play in an effort to rediscover this tool we love so much.
Week 1: Your Wrong About . . . (11/16 - 2-4:30 ET)
What if unimpeachable evidence appeared showing that everything we know about tarot is wrong? What would we do? What if the so-called “major arcana” was created by naughty teens making fun of their society’s obsession with status? What if the court cards have nothing to do with royalty and were instead a codified grimoire of pre-modern erotic education? What if the suit of wands has nothing to do with fire or passion and everything to do with agriculture and forestry? In this guided playdate, see tarot for the very first time all over again—and discover what you would say about it if you were the person to discover it for the very first time.
Week 2: This Means Nothing! (11/30 - 2-4:30)
Tarot, it is said, speaks the language of symbols. What if a glitch in the matrix stripped humanity of its memory of common symbolism? What if we had to begin again, creating a new language of symbols completely from scratch? How would we begin? Likely from pure emotion. Look at common divinatory visuals with fresh eyes and personal sensibility as we pretend this impossibility becomes a reality. And find fresh, current, shocking new ways to reimagine what you’ve seen countless times.
Week 3: I Can’t Tell You That! (12/14 - 2-4:30)
Tarot has always held taboos—all of them made up, as is the whole system. The “dos” and “don’ts” of divination generally come not from diviners but from gatekeepers telling us what we can and can’t do. Surprise! That’s usually because we’re suddenly competing in fields don’t like competition. From things we can’t read about to topics we should always avoid, poke holes in the theories and discover where your ethical boundaries really lie.
Week 4: That’s Right! (12/28 - 2-4:30)
Self-doubt. Being wrong. Misreading the cards. We dread it. What if these were totally unnecessary because you (and the cards) are never wrong? What if you always interpreted correctly—no matter what you said, or how confident you felt? Of course, that’s a human impossibility. No one is always right about everything. But in this session, we’ll explore how tenacity and curiosity can prove that most of the time, you are absolutely right! We’ll explore first impressions of card readings and explore how asking the right questions and/or phrasing the interpretation differently can unlock a reading that initially seems totally off, illogical, or just plain wrong.
Workshop Agreements
Before committing to a class with me, read the following. These are the “rules of the road” for the learner-centered space I work to create.
- We recognize the realities of history and modernity that leaves people oppressed, disenfranchised, and traumatized. While this may sound dramatic, my expectation is that, at a minimum, class participants accept that homophobia, transphobia, other queerphobias, white supremacy, racism, ableism, classism, ageism, misogyny, and other systematic dogmas are alive and well and hurting people as we speak. This is my first rule, because:
- Learning only happens when we feel safe, dammit! The workshop space should be an actively safe place for queer people, people of color, people of any age*, people of any body type and ability, people of any nationality or faith**, any gender expression, etc., can be comfortable to relax and experience the class. (*Except for the fact that my classes cover topics considered are 18+; **Unless that nationality or faith makes you actively harm others and you’re actively doing that now or plan to.)
- Nobody’s perfect. Any one of us might use the wrong pronoun, mispronounce a name, stumble on an accidentally awkward sentiment, use a word we don’t realize is no longer acceptable parlance, or say something dumb or weird that we didn’t quite mean as it sounded. We’ll all actively attempt to make the generous assumption with each other. (Unless a trend of not-very-thoughtful, easily avoidable behavior appears.) If someone corrects us, we thank them; if we notice we’ve said something incorrect, we fix it. We’re human. And many of us have lingering COVID brain.
- If you’re consistently being a dick, I will kick you out and I will not refund you. Sorry.
- No comparing ourselves! My workshops are designed assuming you have a foundational tarot practice, but are created to compliment the development of your foundation if that’s still in progress. Some of us will have been reading for 20+ years, some of us for 20+ minutes. That’s OK. Some of us charge money for readings (which, supposedly, makes us “professional”) and some of us don’t (which, supposedly, makes us “amateurs.”) In my workshops, the definition of a pro is someone who wants to learn, who is open, who gets excited by new ideas—even when they don’t agree with them. And the mark of an amateur is someone who is closed, refuses to learn, and doesn’t want to encounter anything that runs contrary to their assumptions.
- It’s your time! If you can’t make it, no worries. We’ll miss you, but life happens.
- Introverts: I won’t make you do anything that you don’t want to do. I will occasionally ask you if you want to add anything, and this is to give you the opportunity to chime in if you’ve been too shy so far—but you can feel free to decline. I think you’ll eventually warm up, though.
- Extraverts: You make my job so easy! Your enthusiasm lights us all up and gives the workshop a motor! Once in a while, though, you need to shut up and let others talk, OK? Just a reminder!
