Okay so this whole Tarot thing… I’ve been dipping my toes into it lately, honestly more curious than anything else. Saw folks online raving about spreads helping navigate life’s chaos. Figured, why not give it a shot? Here’s what went down, messy bits and all.
Starting Point: Feeling a Bit Adrift
Felt kinda… blah this past week. You know that feeling? Not a big crisis, just a general “meh” about what direction to take things. Work stuff, personal stuff – all just swirling around feeling a bit disconnected. Needed something simple, not some complicated ritual. That’s when I stumbled on the idea of using spreads specifically for life stuff. Sounded practical.
Digging Around and Choosing My Poison
Dusted off my deck – nothing fancy, just a Rider-Waite knockoff I got years ago. Hopped online looking for “simple life spread.” Saw tons! Felt overwhelming honestly. People posting intricate layouts with like 10 cards. Nah. Too much for me right now. Wanted something manageable for a rookie.

Settled on two simple spreads people seemed to vibe with:
- The Past-Present-Future Spread: Dead simple. Three cards lined up. Figured this was a safe starting point to see where I’m coming from, where I’m stuck, and where I might be heading.
- The “Insight for Today” One-Carder: Exactly what it sounds like. Pull one card in the morning as a kinda theme or something to chew on for the day. Less pressure.
Jumping In: My First Go with Past-Present-Future
Alright, cleared a spot on the table. Took a few deep breaths – felt a bit silly, gotta admit. Shuffled those cards like a total amateur. Cards flying everywhere, dropped a few. Total mess. Laughed at myself. Finally felt kinda done shuffling, so I laid ’em out left to right:
- Card 1 (Past): Knocked one over pulling it. Smooth. Ended up with Ten of Cups. Happy families vibe? Made me think about recent focus on family stability, maybe feeling that foundation.
- Card 2 (Present): Pulled the Hanged Man. Oof. Suspended? Waiting? Stuck? Yeah, that hit the “meh” feeling right on the head. Felt uncomfortably accurate. Sitting in limbo land.
- Card 3 (Future): Flipped over The Star. Hope? Renewal? Relief washed over me a bit. Still vague, but dang, that felt way better than the Hanged Man gloom.
Sat with that Hanged Man card for ages. Honestly bugged me. Made me think hard about what I was actually waiting for. Maybe I just needed patience? Or maybe it was a kick to stop waiting and do something? The Star definitely gave me a little nudge to keep going.
Testing the Daily One-Carder
Next morning, kept it real simple. One deep breath, quick shuffle, pulled a card. Got the Ace of Pentacles. New opportunities? Practical stuff? Material things starting fresh? Okay, cool. Kept that thought in the back of my head during the day. Saw some small practical opportunities pop up – nothing huge, just noticing them felt different. Did I seize them all? Nah. But being open to the idea felt useful.
Tried the one-card pull for a few days. Some made sense immediately (Page of Wands on a day full of little annoying tasks? Yeah, felt like flailing energy). Others? Total head-scratcher. Three of Swords on an otherwise okay day? Who knows. Maybe I missed something.
What Worked (And What Was a Dumpster Fire)
- Keeping it small was key. Three cards? One card? Doable. More than that? My brain short-circuited.
- Simple spreads are magic. Didn’t need complex patterns. Past-Present-Future laid a clear line.
- Messy shuffling is normal. Dropping cards? Knocking them over? Laughed it off way easier than expected. It’s not a performance.
- Some cards just slapped me in the face with relevance. Like the Hanged Man. Uncomfortable but weirdly helpful.
- Others were confusing gibberish. That Three of Swords? Still clueless. Maybe it just wasn’t clicking that day.
My Big Realization? It’s Just a Tool
This wasn’t about predicting the lottery or getting definitive answers whispered by angels. Honestly? Felt more like holding up a funky little mirror. It threw stuff back at me – feelings I was avoiding, potentials I hadn’t considered. That Hanged Man? Made me confront my own inertia head-on. The Star? Gave my grumpy self a dose of “hey, lighten up.” The daily card? Just made me pay a tiny bit more attention to the day’s flavor.
Did it solve all my problems? Hell no. But was it a surprisingly practical way to spark some self-reflection and maybe shift my perspective? Yeah, actually. It did that. Probably gonna keep experimenting with these smaller spreads when life feels fuzzy. Now… where’d that Three of Swords energy come from? Still driving me a little insane!
