How to move forward in harmony with it all: Five of Cups
The energies are ripe for you to rediscover your true self, remember the things you genuinely love, and embrace all of the things that actually make you happy – to hell with what other people think or if it makes money. (Am taking my own advice there – hence the void scream)
Happy is valuable. A moment of joy is priceless.
The past year of death-card change and chaos energy is finally starting to move away. Things are still weird, but you are adapting to the weird and making friends with your inner demons. Adapting and rolling with whatever happens makes adapting and rolling feel like home.
Loss and release is sometimes necessary to make room for something better.
This is a perfect week for shadow work, very in keeping with the season. Don’t bury your dark side. Make friends with it, and make your light and dark combination greater than the sum of the parts. There is magic to be made in killing the past (a la Kylo Ren) to become who you really are. There is no part of you so bad that there isn’t someone who has been there with you at some point. There is no part of you so dark that you are excluded from the human race.
Dark is necessary for light to shine. Or as my favorite Affordable Floors song says – there is no calm without the storm.
Embrace the dark as a place to let your light shine.
I follow a fair few Tarot readers on social media. @MadamAdam is a favorite. He posted the other day about those who accuse online psychics of being unethical or a scams after he had spent five or so years building a brand and business with ethics and authenticity.
Preach.
Of course my first response was to go grumpy granny bat and think about the 30 years I’ve spent working with spirituality, intuition development and card readings including the past 20 + years of brand and business building. Being thought of as a scam after pouring every ounce of professionalism you got into a being of service while getting a little fair compensation, all above board and tax paid….it’s enough to put a twist in any professional reader’s knickers.
I may have lost a great deal in the fame and fortune department by doing things with ethics and authenticity, but I can go on with life knowing that I did it right. A life of authenticity is a treasure all its own. I worked every moment above board, with ethics and transparency. Now that TaoCraft Tarot and Sage Sips is a blog supported by my labors of love and readers like you instead of being a full-on Tarot reading business, it seems a little silly to have such a detailed policy page.
It may be vestigial, but it is still valuable.
Ethics and authenticity aren’t selling points. They are character traits. They are how you do business, perhaps, but also how you live your life – if your authenticity is, um, authentic.
So here is my policy page, almost exactly as it has always been. Authenticity and ethical behavior doesn’t stop just because you stop answering the phone for in-person gigs and shift your focus to email readings.
At least this way you know that the readings you get with me are STILL highest quality, ethical, and above all authentic.
P.S. – the readings are fun and helpful too. Order yours HERE.
Must be 18 or over to purchase private readings
WHAT I DO
My Tarot readings are customized, ephemeral folk art consisting of a photo of your unique, real world tarot card layout followed by a written discussion of the cards and a purely intuitive summary of the reading.
Readings are delivered as a .pdf or . docx electronic document in an email attachment
The Sage Sips blog, Ebooks by Sage Snow and all associated social media are intended for artistry, inspiration, personal enrichment and entertainment only. They do not predict the future.
The proceeds from readings, memberships, and virtual coffee gifts on ko-fi all go toward the cost to create and web host Sage Sips blog and the TaoCraftTarot.com website.
WHAT I DO NOT DO
I do not predict the future,
I do not accept medical, legal or pregnancy questions.
I do not read anyone without their knowledge and direct consent. This means I don’t read for you without your request first and I don’t read about anyone other than the person getting the reading.
I NEVER approach you individually to offer a reading. If that happens, please report the impostor.
The information and services on this website and in my writings do not diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent any illness. They do NOT replace professional medical care, mental health care or qualified professional advice in any way.
No free or sample readings
I do not accept any liability of any kind. Use these artistic services or the information contained therein 100% at your own risk.
Beginning January 2025 the business portion of this website that offered phone, online, party and in person Tarot readings has closed.
DISCLAIMER, REFUNDS, EXCHANGES
Tarot is highly customized ephemeral art, so no refunds, exchanges or replacement are available.
Contacting me or making a a ko-fi purchase indicates your agreement with all policies and disclaimers.
Again, use at your own risk. No liability of any kind is implied or accepted.
PRIVACY
Your privacy is a top priority. In order to create and customize your reading, I collect basic contact information including but not limited to name, age, email, reading topic or question, etc. No information is shared except with your permission or in cooperation with legal authority.
Example readings or Q&A readings in the blog are used with the questioners knowledge and consent and with all names, dates or other identifying information removed.
For accuracy, the above basic contact information is re-collected with each new purchase or membership reading request.
Each reading is customized, ephemeral art. A reading’s relevance decreases as time passes. Readings and contact information are routinely deleted.
PAYMENT
PayPal via ko-fi checkout is accepted.
DELIVERY TIME
Each reading is unique and made to order. Please allow 3 to 5 business days for delivery.
Please expect longer delivery times when the order is placed nights, weekends or holidays US eastern time.
Copyright Notice
All written material copyright Sage Snow, all rights reserved.
eBook cover artwork as per front matter attributions, all rights reserved.
Free Blog posts may be shared or quoted under an attribution, share-alike, non-commercial, no derivatives Creative Commons 4.0 international license.
E-mail readings include photos by the author of the client’s individual card layout. The Tarot Waite Smith 1909 card images are public domain. Heart of Stars Tarot 3rd edition used with the direct permission of artist and author, Thom Pham. Animal Wise Tarot used with the permission of DragonHawk Publishing. Alleyman’s Tarot used with permission of Seven Dane Asmund and Publishing Goblin LLC. Other decks are used with publisher’s permission as indicated.
All readings are done by a human being with 30+ years of Tarot experience. No AI tools are used in these readings.
Social Media and Blog Policies
I reserve the right to block any commenter for any reason at my sole discretion
Your support on ko-fi for these free blog readings is greatly appreciated.
Blog comments are moderated, no spam or comments containing multiple links are permitted.
Sage Sips is Tarot for your day in the time it takes to sip your coffee
“Going with the flow” sounds relaxing, doesn’t it?. More often than not, the six of swords carries that kind of energy. Most of the time it talks about healing, progress, transition and placid waters ahead.
It isn’t always that way.
A roller coaster is going with the flow of gravity. A kayak expert in class V rapids is going with the flow too.
The more insane the spins, the stronger the current, the flowing it takes. Going with the flow can be quite a ride sometimes. Going with the flow can seem like crazy advice when life is at its most turbulent.
But on the other hand, can you imagine fighting a current like that?
Sometimes, it is OK to seek out a little comfort, sameness and nostalgia. It can be the bigger boat you need to flow with the fast waters of stressful times.
Which is why I’m going back to my emotional support cup of coffee. See you at the next sip!
Summer hours update:
I’ve been trying to give myself a little patience and grace as TaoCraft Tarot transitions from “freelance business” status to “it’s a hobby”. As it stands now, I don’t do in-person or other live readings. I still do private readings by email (let’s face it – those are my best readings anyway)
What all of that means is that the posting schedule will be more erratic than ever.
BUT
Private readings by email never needed a schedule in the first place. Order anytime. The delivery window is 48 hours but it’s worth it to get the equivalent of a one hour Tarot reading for about half of what most one hour live sessions would cost.
The proceeds from private email readings, ko-fi memberships, and ko-fi virtual coffees all go toward creating and webhosting Sage Sips as an inspiration and lifestyle Tarot blog.
Tarot open for the holidays, no appointment needed.
Add “open during the holidays” to the list of advantages
Why email Tarot?
As good as (probably better) than in person sessions: 100% of my intuition is focused on your message without distractions.
Convenient: order anytime, no appointment needed. Most readings arrive within 24 hours of receiving your order.
Private: engage with your Tarot message in a timely and place that is right for you
Comfortable: get your reading with all the comforts of home. No travel, no appointment, no stress
Great for first time readings: get an easy sip of Tarot to see if it is right for you
Affordable: no physical location means lower costs – I pass the savings on to you.
Best for book lovers: email Tarot is a reader’s reading.
Why Email Tarot?
It’s my specialty: My email readings are equally as good & probably better than live sessions. For me, typing or handwriting the reading is a relaxed mindset closer to channeling or automatic writing. I can fully engage with the intuition and energy without having to reserve bandwidth for spoken language or social interaction. The intuition is more intense and flowing on my end, giving you a richer, more expressive reading experience. At minimum, any distance format will give you the SAME reading as you would in person – but at a fraction of the cost.
Q: How can you read me if we aren’t together?
A: The distance between us doesn’t matter because I’m not reading you, I’m reading energy or spirit to get guidance on your behalf. Spirit energy is universal, it’s everywhere all at the same time, physical distance doesn’t matter.
The words are the same whether I say them out loud, type them into an email or write them on paper. The only difference is the way in which you enjoy receiving your message, not in the message itself.
Phone sessions tend to be social, light, chatty, friendly. Your questions are answered in the moment as we go along. Written or recorded readings are private, powerful and intense. Written words amplify the emotion and magick of the moment. All distance Tarot readings include a follow-up email to answer any questions you might have.
Free for you now: The archives are free to explore with the search bar on the right of this page (scroll down on mobile) There are years of general audience / collective energy Tarot readings to browse. Those might hold the answer you need. At the very least it will give you a sense if we are a good match to work together on a larger, personalized reading. “Ask Me Anything” using the contact form on the AMA page. That gets a FREE Tarot inspired answer in the blog, no promises about when it will post. It is a public post, but all identifying information is removed to protect your privacy as best as we can.
Affordable, convenient, cozy and kind: Email readings are my specialty and most arrive to your inbox within 24 hours. No appointment needed for email readings.
Live readings average 30-45 minutes but please allow up to 1 hour if needed
in-person: we meet in a quiet public place. I don’t keep a physical office and pass the savings on to you.
All Tarot readings are customized ephemeral folk art intended for entertainment, enrichment and spiritual expression. These advice style readings do not predict the future. No medical, legal, or third person questions
It’s a little early, but I’m posting our seasonal hello and welcome to new readers for the #KofiPostChallenge that introduces the new pin a post function
Hi everyone!
My name is Sage. I read Tarot, write blogs and knit stuff.
I’ve read Tarot cards since 1993, professionally since around 2003. My specialty is email readings.
Why email? I’m a writer. These Tarot readings are an extra good fit for first time Tarot readings, book lovers, introverts, and very busy people who want a Tarot reading but don’t want to fit another appointment into their schedule.
Typing out the Tarot reading for you is a relaxed mindset that is closer to channeling or automatic writing. Your message gets my fullest attention. By working online I don’t need a physical location and pass those savings on to you.
All of my readings have flat rate, up front prices $5 – $40
You can order email readings 24/7, no appointment needed. Most orders are to your inbox within 24 hours or so. (It is just me, one real live person pulling real world cards, so the schedule has to be flexible)
You get a photo of your real world layout in your reading.
All of my policies are transparent, up front and spelled out on my main website HERE.
There are years of free general readings on the BLOG. Feel free to browse through them to see if you think we would be a good match to work together (and I hope we are)
If you enjoy a little (almost) daily Tarot, please check out my Sage Sips membership tier which includes on-request one card private Tarot readings for you along with discounts, special offers and exclusive content.
Sage Sips blog is Tarot in the time it takes to sip your coffee (or whatever you like to sip this time of day)
Cheers!
P.S. It’s still the dog days of summer and the cat is still shambling! Zombie Cat yes/no Tarot readings are still available to purchase until the autumn equinox and are a FREE upgrade to member readings.
I’m so grateful for each and every one of you reading this. I enjoy writing this blog so very much.
The time has come to just say it – writing is my forte and typed Tarot readings are my best work. I do live and in-person readings really well – video readings, online readings, and over the years I’ve built some serious party chops at big events (CMU, Nordstroms, Arthritis Foundation of Pittsburgh & more)
I want to spend time and energy in 2024 getting back to where it all started: typed distance readings. I want to give a little love to the blog with some longer reads and deeper dives. So thank you, thank you, thank you for coming along.
“I don’t have ducks. I don’t have rows. I have squirrels and they are hosting a pagan rave.”
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As much as I enjoy a good squirrel rave, this needs a touch of logic and a methodical approach. The “there is no plan” plan is still very much in place, but the general rule of thumb is:
Monday – Choose Your Card. Watch the video in the post or on YouTube. PAUSE the video at first so you can CHOOSE your card, then RESTART the video to see the reveal. A short reading is in the video description and on social media. A more in-depth card of the week reading will be right HERE on the blog. A lot of our holidays fall on Monday here in the U.S so on those days I may not post.
Wednesday – BTS or Learn With Me: Starting today, I plan to do behind the scenes (- ish) posts that give you a peek inside my method and philosophy of Tarot reading. OF COURSE it is mostly shameless self promotion because I want you to buy email Tarot readings from me. But with a little luck we’ll all maybe find a little free fun and inspiration along the way
Friday – something completely random or a quick one card meditation to satisfy my completionist side and fit that nice M-W-F pattern
The weekend newsletter is going on hiatus until I can figure out how to switch it from Substack to WordPress. I’ll keep you posted on that, although I’m hoping you’ll follow the blog (right column on laptop, scroll waayyy down on mobile) Three posts a week isn’t bad and posts go straight to your inbox, just like a newletter would anyway. But that’s to sort out another day.
Comments are always open and you are welcome to CONTACT ME with any questions and get an answer in the blog. Unless it’s spam. Then I’ll prolly block you.
It’s all me
This ain’t my first rodeo as they say.
I’ve been reading cards in some capacity since the early 1990s. You know, when the whole world was black and white and computer memory was still 5 inches across.
At first I just read for friends & for myself because why pay the phone company and Dionne Warwick’s friends huge amounts of money for something you could do yourself? After a while, a friend suggested that I try working on one of those online sites (eternal gratitude, girlfriend!)
Taking her advice, I did Tarot readings on Keen, Advice Trader and Allexperts all under the nickname Baihu. Within a few years of some serious hustle, I’d done hundreds of readings. Yes, you read that right, hundreds. I stopped counting around 400 or so. After a while, enough was enough of the experience building for free or nearly free.
I started my own part time Tarot practice with ModernOracleTarot.com, the Tarotbytes blog, and Quirk & Flotsam Etsy shop. During those years I did in-person, party, phone and email Tarot readings.
The name was fun, inspired by The Oracle character from The Matrix. Despite that, I made sure Modern Oracle had a carefully curated, super sanitized, white-washed image that was nice and non-threatening to any random local conservative suburbanites that might stumble across it. I had a family to protect, after all.
Now, that family is all security minded working adults and I don’t have to be around school district soccer moms any more (whew!) Modern Oracle just didn’t fit anymore, so I re-branded in 2018 to TaoCraft Tarot which was a much more authentic representation of myself and my Tarot philosophy
I’ve studied Tai Chi, and Taoist philosophy as long as I have Tarot and Reiki almost as long. I’ve had an interest in magick and witchcraft longer than any of it, even as a very small person watching Bewitched re-runs on TV. The TaoCraft name was very meaningful to me, but it didn’t seem to make as much sense to new clients. People seemed to stumble over it a bit. That’s a big problem because these Tarot readings that we do together are not about me … they are all about and for YOU.
So re-brand number two: Sage Words Tarot
Easy to pronounce, easy to understand, basic, common words that get the point across on multiple levels.
Sage is an herb with a familiar flavor from sausage and holiday turkeys. Sage in aromatherapy calms anxieties, lifts moods and promotes optimism. Aromatherapy can come in the form of burned incense and dried leaf bundles. Sage smoke can be used to metaphysically clear the energy of a space but should not to be confused with the indigenous practice of smudging. They are two paths from two cultures that wind up in a similar place, but each deserving of its own respect.
I hope that a Tarot session with me leaves you feeling calm, comforted and hopeful, just like sage aromatherapy.
Sage is also a word meaning wise, symbolic of Tarot’s wise advice.
Sage is now my pen name and Sage Words Tarot is the website where it all originates.
TaoCraft is still under there a little bi. It’s like a new business in an old Pizza Hut building. You can’t deny the structure underneath. The same is true here. My work is still guided by the Taoist treasures of simplicity, honesty and kindness. I still follow the Reiki ethic of only doing energy work with those who give knowing consent. I never ever approach or spam an individual to get a reading.
Advertise? Sure. I have coffee to buy and web hosting to pay for. Your reading orders (no appointment needed for video or email) memberships and virtual coffee donations all go toward keeping the lights on in this humble little Tarot shop in cyberspace.
Thanks so much for reading! Next up: One Card Friday. See you at the next sip!
Two days ago was a “blue moon.” It’s not common, but it’s not spectacular. It’s not something that is going to grab you by the nose and make you look. A blue moon is just two full moons in the same calendar month. It is a subtle thing because most of us go through life not knowing what phase the moon is in on any given night. No matter what the cool social media graphics show, the moon is the same color it always is.
It was also a “super” moon. Google “perigee” and “apogee.” Orbits aren’t perfect circles. They are off a little, just a tiny bit ovalish and wobbly. Sometimes the moon passes just a little bit closer to earth and seems a tiny bit big-ish because of it. That’s a so-called super moon — any full moon during a close perigee kind of orbit.
These little details don’t happen often, and they both happen at the same time less often, but it is still one of those natural cycles we’ve been talking about. It’ll be a while, but there will be another super blue moon in time.
Super moons and blue moons are slow and subtle things. So are tides and seasons and the growth of trees. That’s the kind of changing and shifting energy that has been around lately. Slow, gradual, gentle change but change nonetheless. Even continental drift will get you to the other side of the planet eventually.
I suspect energies will move on come Monday’s Energy Path reading. It feels like the gentle cycle change has peaked and is drifting beyond. Here I again I intuitively hear the song “We Don’t Need Another Hero (Beyond Thunderdome)” It seems like energies are gently moving beyond thunderdome, not back to paradise.
Power of 3 (9 cards) Set of three yes/no questions for complex “this or that” questions but with the clarity of a simple yes/no answer. Question or topic required. If you describe what you need, I can adapt it to this unique yes/no format for you – $45 only available to ko-fi supporters
Extended TaoCraft (7 cards) The same layout used in live readings in-person and online. Shows the 3 card path you are on, advice, alternatives, helping energies and potential challenges – $40
TaoCraft Tarot (5 cards) Written by me and in use since 2003, this layout empowers you and your choices with the original five cards in the extended layout above – $30
Year Ahead (5 cards) Gives a theme for the four seasons coming up and a card to symbolize the entire year ahead. Great for New Year, birthdays and more – $25
TimeFlow (4 cards) the get-organized reading with “Let it rest, let go, que it up, and let it flow” cards – $20
Pathway (3 cards) A modernized version of the classic past-present-future layout with a focus on navigating your path, not predicting the future – $15
Zombie Cat’s Yes/No (3 cards) reads ANY questions with 100% guarantee to contain words, and at least a 50% chance of being dead wrong – $15
Short Sip Contemplation (1 card) – Tarot for your day in the time it takes to sip from your coffee. General advice or a focused follow-up to a longer readings we’ve done together – $5
Sage Sips / TaoCraft Tarot 
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