The five of swords is about conflict, but not the big conflicts that is so in the news and so stressful to so many of us. This isn’t about a moral line in the sand. This is about selfishness, ego, squabbles with a big dose of pettiness. Be clear about what is important and what is petty noise.
What to do: Emperor
My first thought when I saw the Emperor was “look at the side eye on that guy.” The Emperor is associated with responsibility, reliability, confidence in your own power and competent leadership. Do you, engage with the important things, but remember you are not other people’s drama. Disengage from useless drama and nonsense. Rise above. Rule your own inner kingdom, protect your own inner peace, let the immature ones figure it out for themselves. Save your strength for when it really matters.
Sage Sips is Tarot in the time it takes to sip your coffee
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What the energy is: THE LILIES – folks are tired. It’s the end of winter, not quite spring. The energy environment is craving sincerity and stability. Provide that where you can to make the week better, but also protect your own peace of mind.
What to do about it: THE CHILD – the bear in Christoper Butler’s artwork here is key. Kids tell it like it is, so give your fullest honesty and authenticity as you can, but hold on tight to your teddy bear. The deck author writes that the bear symbolizes protection and empowerment. Being authentic is a place of strength. Protect your inner true self: from others, but also from your own inner critic, and let the real you shine.
Deck: Healing Light Lenormand by Christoper Butler copyright 2021 all rights reserved Llwellyn Publishing, used with permission (free tarot education)
New exclusive content for members today: “Other Oracles”
Believe it or not, Tarot isn’t the only intuition amplifier in town.
No matter what kind of Oracle or divination technique you use, the real engine underneath it is your human connection to universal energies – your intuition.
We all have that natural intuitive connection, but sometimes spirit speaks in whispers. I’m here to help you turn up the volume and translate those whispers into actual English sentences that you can use.
Email Tarot is my specialty. As a writer by nature, I can give you a very convenient and enriched Tarot reading at a distance through email – the same or better than an in-person reading. We can talk about all of the advantages of that another time.
Today, on the members only blog we are starting a series about other oracles, other tools and techniques for accessing and amplifying intuition.
First up: I Ching. Join Sage Sips members on ko-fi to learn more about this ancient divination technique
Sage Sip Membership: $5 monthly
Free one card Tarot readings upon request up to 3/month
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Click HERE to join and read more about the I-Ching and other oracles over the coming months
Sage Sips is Tarot in the time it takes to sip your coffee. Private Tarot readings are OPEN and support this free public blog and the Sage Sips YouTube channel.
Choose your card. First impulse is usually best, but if you want to take more time feel free to pause the video and restart to see the reveal
Strength: Work hard, play hard. You are strong. Use that strength in all aspects of life: for others, for yourself, for work, for play, to grow, to rest…you got this.
Hanged Man: Timing is everything. A little wait now could have benefits later. Watching, waiting, planning are all doing something. Mental and emotional activity counts, even if it isn’t outwardly visible.
Private reading orders, shop purchases, memberships and virtual coffees all support this blog, the non-monetized YouTube channel and free readings on the socials.
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
Sage Sips is Tarot for your day in the time it takes to sip your coffee.
Get a personalized reading HERE. Private reading purchases support the this blog and its YouTube channel.
CHOOSE your card from the snapshot above, then watch the video to reveal your card and get the reading in video description or below.
Strength: Never confuse blind fanaticism with strength. The strength you need requires a presence of mind and compassion not just brute physical endurance.
“Digger” Death: Change is not only inevitable, sometimes it is a relief. Bury that thing and walk away. Let it go.
“Bones” Death: Look for what lies beneath. Knowing the whole story can change your perspective, your feelings, your decisions. In other words, knowing the whole story changes everything.
Deck: Alleyman’s Tarot by Seven Dane Asmund used with permission
A behind the scenes look at the how – and why – of reading Tarot
Before we get to the WHAT and the HOW of Tarot, let’s start with WHY Tarot.
Why get readings?
Why give readings?
Why do readings for yourself?
Why ask why? (as that old TV commercial said)
As I see it, it all comes down to one thing: freethinking.
Free your mind. Question everything. Ask why and draw your own conclusions. Tarot supports that. Tarot encourages that. Tarot enables that. If a Tarot reader wants you to do what they say without question – run.
image: ffrf.org Please support separation of church and state
Over the years I’ve learned, sometimes the hard way, to trust my intuition. But it is a big ask for you to trust my intuition too. I’m honored whenever anyone trusts me enough to get a reading. I will always treat that trust with the respect and dignity it deserves. That’s why I ask members to request readings each time even though the reading is included in their membership. Consent is an important part of respecting you and the Tarot process. That’s why I won’t read people other than the individual getting the reading. People outside of our conversation have not given consent to be a part of the reading and it is important for us to respect them as well.
The British Psychological Society defines autonomy as “feeling psychologically free and having the ability to control your life.” Psychologist Carl Jung said that “Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.” That’s another reason why I do Tarot readings the way I do.
No fortune telling.
No predicting the future.
My style of Tarot is all about empowering your choices. It’s about supporting your autonomy. It’s about personal growth and greater understanding. It’s about processing difficult emotions. It’s about breaking free from thought-habits that narrow our experience of life.
That’s why I offer professional readings. That’s why I teach people to read Tarot for themselves. That’s why I use Tarot for myself. This post is a case in point.
On the exact day I was originally planning to publish this post, there was a spate of famous Tarot authors saying exactly these kinds of things on social media. It hit me at a vulnerable moment and I was half a hair away from giving up. If the heavy hitters are suddenly saying the stuff I’ve already been blogging about since 2005 (ish) what’s the use?
I’d been planning this post for months but kept getting interrupted by life, the universe and everything it seemed. So now, why bother? Why should I add my voice to theirs when it seems no one has been listening to us (and maybe still aren’t?)
On the other hand, why shouldn’t I? My voice and intuition is just as valid as theirs (and so is yours, by the way.)
It was literally one of those six of one, half dozen of the other type of decisions. On one hand it would make no difference to the big picture if I trashed the post. On the other hand, adding my voice to theirs might just amplify what genuine Tarot can do.
I did exactly what I would advise a client to do – I drew a card for inspiration.
The Allbright, art by Annalise Jensen for Alleyman’s Tarot by Seven Dane Asmund. Deck used with permission
The Alleyman’s Tarot was close at hand and a quick shuffle and cut revealed the Allbright card from one of the expansion packs, not a typical card in the RWS Tarot card structure. I think it was made especially for this deck.
“The Allbright brings hope and illumination to knowledge of the past and to those undertaking difficult tasks. She is never far from those who are faithful, and those who have the courage to ask for aid.” – Annalise Jensen, artist.
I took that as a nudge toward writing and posting this. It is a little leap of faith to act on ideas like posting would be in service to aka “faithful to” the years I’ve put into Tarot work and to the art of Tarot writ large. It felt like a reassurance that the Zeitgeist energies would let me be heard by someone somewhere despite the many louder voices saying the same thing. I’m acting on the notion that the Allbright is a symbol of wisdom and will shine the light that draws in those that need this particular type of Tarot guidance.
The light shines brightest when we lift it up. The message sounds loudest and reaches the farthest when we all speak.
That’s why.
That’s why I’m posting this and is one example how Tarot can help us move from a silly little coin toss dilemma to greater insight.
Why use Tarot cards and Tarot readings? Not because they give us easy answers, but rather because they point to the right questions. These symbolic cards shine a light on the right path for our walking and working to begin.
Thank you so much for reading Sage Sips today. Next up: You Chose: Tarot Card of the Week. Fingers crossed for an upload tomorrow.
Love and Romance Tarot Layout at a special introductory price for Valentine’s day
Over the years, I’ve done one card love & romance themed Tarot readings in the blog. I’ve collected all of those in an eBook in the shop. You can read them for free if you are willing to rummage around in the archives.
It’s pretty clear that the one card reading in the blog idea has run its course.
This year I wrote the “My Tarot Valentine” romance reading layout, inspired by the poetry collection Triquetra: The Dance of Worlds. The collection has three sections, the reading has three cards with similar themes. The three cards in this reading are:
The Inner World: personal growth, your relationship with yourself
The Outer World: the big picture, your relationship with life in general
The Dance of Worlds: Close interpersonal relationships – romance, marriage, family, children (whatever is top of mind for you when you seek the reading)
These readings are intensely personal and not at all well suited to a collective energy reading. I cant ever really bring myself to try. The overall structure is the same as with ALL of my email and video readings. It starts with a photo of your real world card layout plus general impressions, then it goes card by card and wraps up with a “psychic summary.” The summary is an opportunity to put any purely intuitive impressions that might connect to the cards – or not. Sometimes there are aromatherapy or crystal impressions that come through…
For example right now I’m getting the impression of rose scent (ugh…not my favorite) and clear quartz points. Why clear quartz and not the usual lovey-dovey rose quartz? I dunno. Maybe someone needs to think about making a connection to their higher selves to get through a hallmark holiday that jabs at their loneliness, or to better speak their love language to those already in their life. That’s for you to say if and how that random tidbit resonates with you
Since this kind of reading simply doesn’t translate well into blog content, these special My Tarot Valentine layouts are $5 OFF compared to all the other three card readings. Please try one today. You can purchase anytime, no appointment needed. Please allow 2-3 business days for delivery.
This special introductory price and the My Tarot Valentine layout both end 29 February 2024
Hello and welcome to Sage’s Short Sips: Tarot for your day in the time it takes to sip from your coffee. I’m Sage and I’m glad that you are here.
Sometimes, when things go a little wonky, you just pick up the pieces and go on without a second thought. It’s like the upside down or reversed cards we’ve talked about before. Sometimes it feels like nothing so I flip the card and keep going. Sometime the reversal feels significant so I read it as a caution that some aspect of the energy is blocked or turbulent.
The same process applies to making the youtube videos of the real world card draw that inspires all of the short sip posts and pods. Sometimes things get clumsy or stuck filming the card draw for the day. Most of the time I just scoop up the cards and re-do it so it fits into a 15 second tiktok or youtube short. Today I was the stuck one instead of the two cards that stuck together for this video. I thought about scooping up the cards and re-shooting, but I felt stuck on this and got a niggly little feeling that the other card…both cards together really… might be important.
Today we get the eight of swords PLUS the eight of cups.
The second card surprised me by being an eight card too. Getting two eight cards back to back feels significant. It might just be validation that the two cards are indeed connected and working in together for today’s message, but it feels bigger than that. Eight isn’t ringing any bells for me personally. What about you? Anybody with an August birthday? Anyone connecting to any August event: a birth, death, or any anything from any August in the past? Any connection with the eighth of any month? Any eight connection at all with the number 8 that lights up for you?
Is that vague and stage cold reading enough for you? Anybody and everybody can probably drum up some connection with either the number 8 or the month of August. All of these suggestions are the standard, banal, boilerplate interpretations of repeating numbers in a Tarot reading. I only mention it because it feels important to the collective energy part of this reading. Like everyone on the planet, I can think of a connection for me with August…so trust me. Your gut will undoubtedly know if your 8 or August connection is energetically significant or not. You’ll know if this is something meaningful that you should pay attention to, or if it is just coincidental B.S. that you can brush right off.
That, I suspect, is where all the scammy hype rip-off Tarot readers and psychics go off the rails by making some big, ego-inflating deal out of common coincidence rather than supporting your individual intuition.
Don’t listen to me, don’t listen to the cards. Listen to your own instincts. The cards, and my role as a reader is just to support your understanding with a few little nudges, creative prompts and lots of food for thought. In the end, your thinking matters more than any coincidences that might come along to fuel it.
Which brings us circling right back around to the the two-card message for today.
Swords have to do with mind, intellect and action. I’m reminded of a line from some 90s song “free your mind, and the rest will follow.” It was some pop song girl group, and I don’t remember a single thing else about it other than that one lyric, but that one line has always stuck. They don’t call it a hook for nothing. This is the message from the 8 of swords today. The card is talking about freeing your mind.
The figure on the card is surrounded by swords and blindfolded. One of the key ideas of this card is that freedom is still possible even when the odds seem stacked against you. The key is to use creative problem solving. In this Pamela Smith card image, the figure’s feet are bare but unbound, and there is a gap in the swords encircling the person. They’d have to be really, really REALLY careful but they could feel their way to freedom given enough time. There would be a price to pay in shallow cuts, but the freedom is possible with the right action.
The eight of cups is connected to emotions more than the cutting intellect and precise careful action suggested by the eight of swords. The eight of cups is about the bittersweet moving on from heartbreak into the future, from emotional devastation into emotional healing. Sure – there were good times. Sure – there were painful times. But sometimes the only way forward is through, and the only way through is to let the past go.
Now put both cards together – free your mind AND free your heart. For true freedom, both mind (attitude, understanding) and heart (feelings, intentions) have to change AND move on from the old ways. Both cards imply movement from a bad situation toward a better future.
Thank you all so much for reading and listening today. I hope everyone, including podcast listeners will follow the free blog, as I always have some blog only content in the works. You can opt in by putting your email in the box in the right hand column of the blog website (link is in the episode description for podcast folks). You can unsubscribe at any time, although obviously I hope you won’t. Instead of unsubscribing, send a blog comment. I use the feedback to improve things or get content ideas. So thanks in advance for any comments, questions, likes, subs, follows or shares that you can spare.
The blog, podcast and youtube channel are not monetized in any way and depend on audience support. Please visit the Ko-Fi page where your shop purchases, no appointment needed email tarot readings, memberships and virtual coffees all help me to bring you this free to access Tarot content.
Sage Sips / TaoCraft Tarot 
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