How I Stumbled Into This
I gotta be honest, I always messed up tarot readings. Pictures? Symbols? Yeah, beautiful, but also confusing as heck. Which part mattered most? My brain felt scrambled trying to remember all the meanings. I needed something simpler, faster, like training wheels.
Then I found this dusty old book in a thrift shop – practically falling apart, but the chapter titles talked about keywords. Basic stuff. I thought, “Could it really be that simple?” Decided to rip the band-aid off and just try it blind. Worst case, another confusing reading session, eh?
Getting My Stuff Ready
First things first. Grabbed my trusty Rider-Waite deck – feels familiar, you know? Cleared off my kitchen table because my actual desk looks like a hurricane hit it. Then I dug for supplies:
- A huge stack of little sticky notes – the smallest, plainest ones I had.
- My favorite, slightly chewed, black pen.
- A list of basic meanings I printed ages ago (don’t judge, memory ain’t my strength).
I sat down, took a deep breath, and felt kind of ridiculous. Was I really gonna papercut my cards?
Sticking Words Everywhere!
Started flipping through the Major Arcana cards one by one. The Fool. Okay… beginnings, innocence, spontaneity? The book said one core concept. I scribbled “New Start” on a sticky note and slapped it right on the top border above the picture. Did the same for The Magician (“Manifesting”), The High Priestess (“Intuition”), right on down the line.
Then the Minor Arcana got the same treatment. That Knight of Swords charging? “Action!” stuck right on his face. Three of Cups ladies laughing? “Celebration!” Easy peasy. Felt messy as hell – cards sticking together, notes overlapping images – but hey, progress! Whole deck was suddenly plastered in tiny words. Looked like a colorful porcupine.
Testing It Out (Spoiler: Messy!)
Time for the real deal. Shuffled my sticky-note monstrosity. Felt clumsy, papers crinkling. Laid out a simple three-card spread – Past, Present, Future. Past card flipped: Seven of Pentacles, now wearing “Patience/Waiting”. Hit me instantly about that project I rushed last week… yeah, patience was NOT my strong suit. Present card: The Chariot. “Determination” stuck right on it. Felt like a punch in the gut ’cause I’d been slacking on my fitness goals. Future: Ten of Cups. “Happy Family.” Huh. Mom did call earlier about visiting…
Did it take longer? Oh heck yeah, fiddling with sticky notes. Was it perfect? Nope, some words felt off later. But the meaning? It flew into my brain way faster than squinting at symbols ever did. Like instant captions for tarot.
Tweaking and Seeing the Magic
After a few more tries, I ripped off some stickies that felt wrong. “Strength” on The Chariot? Nah, “Control” felt better. Changed it. Wrote smaller to stop covering the art. Suddenly, wasn’t just reading cards – I was talking to them. The keywords became anchors, letting the picture details add flavor instead of overwhelming me. Pulled The Tower with “Disruption” – instantly understood it wasn’t just disaster, but shaking things up.
Started doing readings without constantly checking the guide. Felt smoother. Less “Ummm…”. More “Yeah, this makes sense!” The sticky notes turned into training wheels I barely noticed.
How It Actually Changed Things
So, is it fancy? Lol no. Does it use deep, obscure keywords? Nope. Mine are simple, almost dumb. But here’s the kicker:
- It’s stupid fast now to get the core message.
- My readings feel way more confident – less guessing, more knowing.
- Guests? I can actually explain the cards without sounding lost.
- And hey, if a sticky falls off? Just replace it. No biggie.
Fancy keywords? My butt. Simple words stuck on cardboard? Freaking genius. Takes 5 minutes per card and maybe some glue if you’re tidier than me. Stop staring at confusing art and start sticking words on things. Trust me, it’s a game changer.
