Hi Friends,
Over the last few months, I've had a lot of Tarot clients asking me about my feelings about December 21, 2012. Do I really think it's the Apocalypse?
No. Well, not in the literal way.
Astrologers tell us that we are at an end of an Age, and beginning a new one. We have traveled through the Age of Pisces in the zodiac, and we are now moving into the Age of Aquarius. Remember that old Broadway classic, "Hair," with its big hit, "The Age of Aquarius"? The Age of Pisces, what we're just finishing up, is considered to be a warring, paternalistic age. The Age of Aquarius, astrologically, is about femininity, peace and love. Wouldn't that be great?
I don't believe that change will happen overnight, unfortunately. Maybe not even in our lifetimes, although it would be wonderful if we could be a part of moving that energy forward, away from school shootings, away from the fiscal cliff, away from Hurricane Sandy, and the like. We ARE at the end of an age. This is the time when all of our systems are breaking. The old ways don't work any longer. Look around you: Every system we have, be it politics, economy, environment, education, health, religion, the traditional family, it is all in a time of violent upheaval as we learn new ways to live and quit fighting to preserve the old status quo. This is the Apocalypse.
Some of you know that in addition to reading Tarot and teaching Humanities, I am a Sylvia Plath scholar. If you're interested in what Sylvia Plath had to say about this end-of-the-world, please check out the PowerPoint presentation I made for the Plath Symposium, this past October. You may view it here.
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Thursday, December 13, 2012
The Next Big Thing: Fixed Stars Govern a Life and The Magician's Girl
The Next Big Thing is a blogging meme conceived by She Writes that gives authors an opportunity to discuss their next book, whether it’s being published or not.
Thanks to P.H. Davies for approaching me to be a part of this project. I am honored that he finds my work of interest. You can read about P.H. Davies’ work here.
What is the title of your book?
I have two companion books nearing completion that can be read either separately or together: Fixed Stars Govern a Life: Sylvia Plath’s Qabalah Code, and The Magician’s Girl: History, Mysticism and the Lives that Shaped Sylvia Plath.
What genre does it fall under?
Both are nonfiction. Fixed Stars may be considered Literary Criticism; The Magician’s Girl is Biography.
Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie?
That’s already been done. ;-)
What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
Because there are two books, you get two sentences:
Fixed Stars Govern a Life is a study of Plath’s Ariel poems as they correspond to the Tarot and Qabalah, dramatically reinterpreting her work in a way that’s been missed for fifty years.
The Magician’s Girl is a biography that looks not only at Plath’s life, but the people and events happening around her, and how these found their ways into her work.
Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
I’m in the process of figuring all of that out right now. I have some proposals out. A university press is likely to be my best option over mainstream publishers, as many would consider this topic to be “academic.” But who knows, right? Sylvia Plath is still a very hot topic, and even fifty years after her death they’re making movies on her, reprinting and re-collecting her poems, and producing her play, “Three Women.” I’ve even seen Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes dolls on Etsy. I’ve also been exploring ebooks and/or self-publishing options. While I love the dream of seeing my books sitting printed and bound on someone’s personal library or bookstore shelf, I also like the idea of my books in digital format, being searchable for scholars and students. As we know, the publishing industry has gone through great changes this past year. As with what happened to the record industry in the 1990s, more artists are going independent due to the ease of availability and communication of the Internet, and widely-available, quality digital publishing tools.
How long did it take you to write the first draft?
I am into my seventh year of work on both books. The Magician’s Girl originally began as an introduction to Fixed Stars Govern a Life, but it soon took on a life of its own.
What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
There are some very good literary criticisms on Plath out there, but none have taken on my perspective of Qabalah and mysticism. Actually, it’s kind of odd that no one has thought to do this. Especially considering Plath’s interest in Tarot and the occult were not too secret with her writings about using the Ouija board, her picture with the crystal ball, all the talk of astrology and meditation, etc. She worshiped her husband, Ted Hughes, for most of their marriage, and Hughes has been widely written of in his literary-occult pursuits.
Sylvia Plath with Crystal Ball
I do believe that both of my books are breaking new ground, and may even cause some controversy, as they essentially build the case that Sylvia Plath’s poetry has been mostly misunderstood for half a century.
Who or what inspired you to write this book?
While obtaining my Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, I had a semester final project in my Poetry, Form and Theory class. My professor, Dr. Steven Schreiner, suggested that I look more deeply into all the Tarot symbolism I kept noticing and commenting on in Plath’s work. I have been a Tarot card reader for over thirty-three years, you see. The modern Tarot was designed to correspond to the structure of the Qabalah Tree of Life. It might have taken both a Tarot scholar and a Plath scholar to see the connection. There probably aren't too many people like me out there.
That was the beginning of work that would swallow up every waking minute, as well as some sleeping ones, over the next six years of my life. And here I go into the seventh…
What else about this book might pique the reader’s interest?
Well, first, no biography has explored the importance and practice of mysticism in Sylvia Plath’s life, as well as the influence of the personalities of Plath’s family, friends, and professors.
Second, no one has aligned Sylvia Plath’s work with the historical events of the time. In addition to her mystic pursuits, she was a very political person, aware of the issues around her. Yet scholars continue to narrowly view her work as mere autobiography. It’s quite unbelievable to me.
To view Sylvia Plath’s poetry through these new perspectives lends exciting new interpretations of Plath’s older poems, and new levels of understanding toward The Colossus and Ariel books. My work is primarily drawn from already-published materials that have never been viewed as collective whole, and also from unpublished letters and archival documents. The reader will come to understand Plath’s development as a poet as she learned to layer in outside meanings in her work, to understand the Jewish and Holocaust references for which she’s received so much flak, and to realize that Sylvia Plath was a great deal more than her terrible personal drama.
There is a larger take-away from these books as well. Both books, but especially Fixed Stars Govern a Life, tangibly illustrate Qabalah as a kind of “divine road map”; it is a system of how our universe works, and to read even several poem interpretations in a row, one has to marvel that Plath did this forty times in Ariel. To me, this proves that Sylvia Plath was a literary genius like no other, and/or that there is some kind of undeniable higher order. Or both. It’s been the most exciting and important work of my life.
Thanks to P.H. Davies for approaching me to be a part of this project. I am honored that he finds my work of interest. You can read about P.H. Davies’ work here.
What is the title of your book?
I have two companion books nearing completion that can be read either separately or together: Fixed Stars Govern a Life: Sylvia Plath’s Qabalah Code, and The Magician’s Girl: History, Mysticism and the Lives that Shaped Sylvia Plath.
What genre does it fall under?
Both are nonfiction. Fixed Stars may be considered Literary Criticism; The Magician’s Girl is Biography.
Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie?
That’s already been done. ;-)
What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
Because there are two books, you get two sentences:
Fixed Stars Govern a Life is a study of Plath’s Ariel poems as they correspond to the Tarot and Qabalah, dramatically reinterpreting her work in a way that’s been missed for fifty years.
The Magician’s Girl is a biography that looks not only at Plath’s life, but the people and events happening around her, and how these found their ways into her work.
Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
I’m in the process of figuring all of that out right now. I have some proposals out. A university press is likely to be my best option over mainstream publishers, as many would consider this topic to be “academic.” But who knows, right? Sylvia Plath is still a very hot topic, and even fifty years after her death they’re making movies on her, reprinting and re-collecting her poems, and producing her play, “Three Women.” I’ve even seen Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes dolls on Etsy. I’ve also been exploring ebooks and/or self-publishing options. While I love the dream of seeing my books sitting printed and bound on someone’s personal library or bookstore shelf, I also like the idea of my books in digital format, being searchable for scholars and students. As we know, the publishing industry has gone through great changes this past year. As with what happened to the record industry in the 1990s, more artists are going independent due to the ease of availability and communication of the Internet, and widely-available, quality digital publishing tools.
How long did it take you to write the first draft?
I am into my seventh year of work on both books. The Magician’s Girl originally began as an introduction to Fixed Stars Govern a Life, but it soon took on a life of its own.
What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
There are some very good literary criticisms on Plath out there, but none have taken on my perspective of Qabalah and mysticism. Actually, it’s kind of odd that no one has thought to do this. Especially considering Plath’s interest in Tarot and the occult were not too secret with her writings about using the Ouija board, her picture with the crystal ball, all the talk of astrology and meditation, etc. She worshiped her husband, Ted Hughes, for most of their marriage, and Hughes has been widely written of in his literary-occult pursuits.
Sylvia Plath with Crystal Ball
I do believe that both of my books are breaking new ground, and may even cause some controversy, as they essentially build the case that Sylvia Plath’s poetry has been mostly misunderstood for half a century.
Who or what inspired you to write this book?
While obtaining my Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, I had a semester final project in my Poetry, Form and Theory class. My professor, Dr. Steven Schreiner, suggested that I look more deeply into all the Tarot symbolism I kept noticing and commenting on in Plath’s work. I have been a Tarot card reader for over thirty-three years, you see. The modern Tarot was designed to correspond to the structure of the Qabalah Tree of Life. It might have taken both a Tarot scholar and a Plath scholar to see the connection. There probably aren't too many people like me out there.
That was the beginning of work that would swallow up every waking minute, as well as some sleeping ones, over the next six years of my life. And here I go into the seventh…
What else about this book might pique the reader’s interest?
Well, first, no biography has explored the importance and practice of mysticism in Sylvia Plath’s life, as well as the influence of the personalities of Plath’s family, friends, and professors.
Second, no one has aligned Sylvia Plath’s work with the historical events of the time. In addition to her mystic pursuits, she was a very political person, aware of the issues around her. Yet scholars continue to narrowly view her work as mere autobiography. It’s quite unbelievable to me.
To view Sylvia Plath’s poetry through these new perspectives lends exciting new interpretations of Plath’s older poems, and new levels of understanding toward The Colossus and Ariel books. My work is primarily drawn from already-published materials that have never been viewed as collective whole, and also from unpublished letters and archival documents. The reader will come to understand Plath’s development as a poet as she learned to layer in outside meanings in her work, to understand the Jewish and Holocaust references for which she’s received so much flak, and to realize that Sylvia Plath was a great deal more than her terrible personal drama.
There is a larger take-away from these books as well. Both books, but especially Fixed Stars Govern a Life, tangibly illustrate Qabalah as a kind of “divine road map”; it is a system of how our universe works, and to read even several poem interpretations in a row, one has to marvel that Plath did this forty times in Ariel. To me, this proves that Sylvia Plath was a literary genius like no other, and/or that there is some kind of undeniable higher order. Or both. It’s been the most exciting and important work of my life.
Friday, November 2, 2012
Recommended Reading on Tarot
Here's an excellent article on becoming a tarot reader, and what it is like to learn to read the cards. I could relate to many of this guy's experiences, and certainly to his overall point that tarot is less about fortunetelling, and more about personal growth.
Sunday, October 7, 2012
Nickelodeon Appearance... sort of!
Well, NickMom's episode of MFF ("Mom Friends Forever") is online. Personally, I find reality TV ghastly, but my husband says this show is just terrible enough to be a huge hit. My couple hours of filming got cut down to about two seconds (!), but you can see me at 20:34 right here.
Monday, August 27, 2012
Plath's Poem, "The Hanging Man"
If you're interested in Sylvia Plath's poem, "The Hanging Man," and how it not only clearly addresses the Hanged Man tarot card (not a big stretch there), but also her close friend and colleague, the poet Robert Lowell, please take a look at the Sylvia Plath Info Blog, right here.
© Julia Gordon-Bramer 2012
© Julia Gordon-Bramer 2012
Booking Me As A Tarot Reader For Your Party
As we get into the holiday season, I begin to get lots of calls asking questions about parties. I thought I'd attempt to answer some of the most common questions here:
How far in advance do I need to book you to read tarot at my party?
It depends on when your party is. It is always easier to get a party on a Sunday or a week night than to get a Friday or Saturday night party, but even then, sometimes I am free. Afternoon parties are also easier to schedule last-minute than evening ones.
At the time of this writing (Aug. 27, 2012), most but not all September and October weekend dates are full. But please try me in case there has been a cancellation, or in case I can work you in before or after a party already on my calendar. At the moment, November and December is still fairly open.
How far are you willing to travel?
Without charging you extra traveling fees, I will drive within one hour of downtown St. Louis in any direction. Occasionally, I will do a party or event further than that if I am already in their area for another event.
Can you do parties long distance via Skype?
Yes! I do this all the time. However, they must be prepaid to save my time for actual readings and not bothering with numbers.
How does the payment work for parties, in general?
My party rates are $100 an hour, with a two-hour minimum. I require a $100 deposit to hold the date on my calendar, which is applied to the total cost of your party. I take cash, checks, major credit cards and PayPal.
Some party hosts have their guests all contribute to the cost, and sometimes I will charge each guest (typically $25 for 15 minutes). The party host should decide and work this out with me in advance.
Some party hosts prefer to pay up front so as not to be bothered with money the night of the party. This is fine.
Can you stay longer if we want you for more than the agreed upon time?
I often can stay longer, unless I am booked for a later party after yours. My rates are the same for extra time: $50 a half hour, $100 an hour.
How long is a tarot reading, and how many people can you read for in an hour?
Party hosts often don't stop to realize that a tarot reading is a give-and-take conversation between the reader and the party guest. The party guest will usually want to ask some questions, or at least have time to respond. That said, my absolute shortest readings are ten minutes each; my preferred time to read a party guest is fifteen-to-twenty minutes.
Then, there is the problem with down-time in between. Rarely are party guests physically lined up, ready and waiting to be read. The party scenario is more like this: People drift about, and when the tarot reader is finished with the last person, there will be some general asking around.
"Who's next? Do you want to go, or should I go?"
"Let me go, but first I just need to refresh my drink..."
"I'll be there as soon as I use the Ladies' Room,"
...and so on. This down-time in-between guests can really add up. Point being that it may be my goal to read six people in an hour, but sometimes that just doesn't happen. I'm intuitive, but not so magically magnetic that I can physically pull them to me. Number systems work great, as well as sign-up sheets. Be sure your guests know to keep things moving!
Do you record the sessions for us?
No, but I am fine with you recording or videotaping your session. I have had people set up video cameras, and I have had people turn the recorders on their phones. I have no problem with either. Just please respect the short amount of time I have per person, and realize that fiddling with equipment holds things up.
Are you OK with reading for people who are drunk?
No, I am not. What some people don't understand about the tarot is that it is a tool for introspection and personal growth. There is no growth when one is wasted. As a tarot reader, it is rather frustrating to have to repeat oneself over and over because the questioner can't remember what I said, or what they just asked. No one enjoys being yelled at through an amplified drunken conversation. Drunks tend to get over-emotional too (there is a reason they call them 'spirits', after all) and sometimes can get unreasonably angry, abusive, hysterical or weepy. Please know that I reserve the right to leave early from any event in which I feel uncomfortable or threatened. By all means--have fun, but save the heavy drinking until after you've had your tarot reading.
What kind of set-up do you need?
All I need is a table and chairs, a tall glass of water, and to have the room quiet enough to talk normally. Once I was put in a party room with a live band and I had to ask to be moved to the lobby as I could not scream everything all night. Some people want their readings done in privacy, and so I am often sequestered in a bedroom or a private study. Other people love to hear each other's readings, and they gather around together to listen. It's up to you and what everyone is comfortable with.
Do you dress in costume?
As a rule, no. I do sometimes make an exception for Halloween, as showing up to a costume party without a costume can look weird. Once, I also dressed as Professor Trelawney for a Harry Potter party. I am a serious tarot reader, not an actress or model. It is more important to me to connect with you and reveal your subconscious self and the path that you're on than to look a part.
This is a kids' party/birthday party/wedding/happy occasion. Can you keep the readings all happy?
To a point. If a person has some exceptionally hard times going on, it is likely to show up in the cards. Some cards that we see, like the Tower, or the Nine of Swords, well, there is just no way of getting around that they are bad news. But yes, I can downplay the negative. And the beautiful thing about the tarot is that we can always go toward the positive and ask for advice to prevent a negative outcome.
Will you come to my home/office/restaurant/rented space for my party?
Yes, as long as it is within an hour's of St. Louis. Travel expenses will apply if your event is further away.
What kind of questions do people ask at a tarot party? Do people need to have questions at all?
A party guest does not need to have a specific question, although some like to prepare them written out, so that they do not forget! Typically, I begin a reading with a layout that shows some of the past, present and future. From there, time permitting, we can get into other things.
Is there a minimum or maximum number of people you can read for?
There is no minimum number of people. At my party rates, I will come to your home and read only for you, if you wish. For large events with hundreds of people, you may wish to employ other tarot readers to assist, as I am still limited to my six people an hour. I do know other good tarot readers and am happy to refer you to them.
For large events, I have read as long as seven hours at a time, but I need at least a few ten or fifteen-minute breaks to stretch, refresh and perhaps get a bite to eat.
I hope this helps you. If you have a question I have not covered here, please post it below and I'll answer it promptly. I look forward to meeting you at your next party or special event. To reserve your date, email me at tarot@nighttimes.com, or call 314.517.0158.
© Julia Gordon-Bramer 2012
How far in advance do I need to book you to read tarot at my party?
It depends on when your party is. It is always easier to get a party on a Sunday or a week night than to get a Friday or Saturday night party, but even then, sometimes I am free. Afternoon parties are also easier to schedule last-minute than evening ones.
At the time of this writing (Aug. 27, 2012), most but not all September and October weekend dates are full. But please try me in case there has been a cancellation, or in case I can work you in before or after a party already on my calendar. At the moment, November and December is still fairly open.
How far are you willing to travel?
Without charging you extra traveling fees, I will drive within one hour of downtown St. Louis in any direction. Occasionally, I will do a party or event further than that if I am already in their area for another event.
Can you do parties long distance via Skype?
Yes! I do this all the time. However, they must be prepaid to save my time for actual readings and not bothering with numbers.
How does the payment work for parties, in general?
My party rates are $100 an hour, with a two-hour minimum. I require a $100 deposit to hold the date on my calendar, which is applied to the total cost of your party. I take cash, checks, major credit cards and PayPal.
Some party hosts have their guests all contribute to the cost, and sometimes I will charge each guest (typically $25 for 15 minutes). The party host should decide and work this out with me in advance.
Some party hosts prefer to pay up front so as not to be bothered with money the night of the party. This is fine.
Can you stay longer if we want you for more than the agreed upon time?
I often can stay longer, unless I am booked for a later party after yours. My rates are the same for extra time: $50 a half hour, $100 an hour.
How long is a tarot reading, and how many people can you read for in an hour?
Party hosts often don't stop to realize that a tarot reading is a give-and-take conversation between the reader and the party guest. The party guest will usually want to ask some questions, or at least have time to respond. That said, my absolute shortest readings are ten minutes each; my preferred time to read a party guest is fifteen-to-twenty minutes.
Then, there is the problem with down-time in between. Rarely are party guests physically lined up, ready and waiting to be read. The party scenario is more like this: People drift about, and when the tarot reader is finished with the last person, there will be some general asking around.
"Who's next? Do you want to go, or should I go?"
"Let me go, but first I just need to refresh my drink..."
"I'll be there as soon as I use the Ladies' Room,"
...and so on. This down-time in-between guests can really add up. Point being that it may be my goal to read six people in an hour, but sometimes that just doesn't happen. I'm intuitive, but not so magically magnetic that I can physically pull them to me. Number systems work great, as well as sign-up sheets. Be sure your guests know to keep things moving!
Do you record the sessions for us?
No, but I am fine with you recording or videotaping your session. I have had people set up video cameras, and I have had people turn the recorders on their phones. I have no problem with either. Just please respect the short amount of time I have per person, and realize that fiddling with equipment holds things up.
Are you OK with reading for people who are drunk?
No, I am not. What some people don't understand about the tarot is that it is a tool for introspection and personal growth. There is no growth when one is wasted. As a tarot reader, it is rather frustrating to have to repeat oneself over and over because the questioner can't remember what I said, or what they just asked. No one enjoys being yelled at through an amplified drunken conversation. Drunks tend to get over-emotional too (there is a reason they call them 'spirits', after all) and sometimes can get unreasonably angry, abusive, hysterical or weepy. Please know that I reserve the right to leave early from any event in which I feel uncomfortable or threatened. By all means--have fun, but save the heavy drinking until after you've had your tarot reading.
What kind of set-up do you need?
All I need is a table and chairs, a tall glass of water, and to have the room quiet enough to talk normally. Once I was put in a party room with a live band and I had to ask to be moved to the lobby as I could not scream everything all night. Some people want their readings done in privacy, and so I am often sequestered in a bedroom or a private study. Other people love to hear each other's readings, and they gather around together to listen. It's up to you and what everyone is comfortable with.
Do you dress in costume?
As a rule, no. I do sometimes make an exception for Halloween, as showing up to a costume party without a costume can look weird. Once, I also dressed as Professor Trelawney for a Harry Potter party. I am a serious tarot reader, not an actress or model. It is more important to me to connect with you and reveal your subconscious self and the path that you're on than to look a part.
This is a kids' party/birthday party/wedding/happy occasion. Can you keep the readings all happy?
To a point. If a person has some exceptionally hard times going on, it is likely to show up in the cards. Some cards that we see, like the Tower, or the Nine of Swords, well, there is just no way of getting around that they are bad news. But yes, I can downplay the negative. And the beautiful thing about the tarot is that we can always go toward the positive and ask for advice to prevent a negative outcome.
Will you come to my home/office/restaurant/rented space for my party?
Yes, as long as it is within an hour's of St. Louis. Travel expenses will apply if your event is further away.
What kind of questions do people ask at a tarot party? Do people need to have questions at all?
A party guest does not need to have a specific question, although some like to prepare them written out, so that they do not forget! Typically, I begin a reading with a layout that shows some of the past, present and future. From there, time permitting, we can get into other things.
Is there a minimum or maximum number of people you can read for?
There is no minimum number of people. At my party rates, I will come to your home and read only for you, if you wish. For large events with hundreds of people, you may wish to employ other tarot readers to assist, as I am still limited to my six people an hour. I do know other good tarot readers and am happy to refer you to them.
For large events, I have read as long as seven hours at a time, but I need at least a few ten or fifteen-minute breaks to stretch, refresh and perhaps get a bite to eat.
I hope this helps you. If you have a question I have not covered here, please post it below and I'll answer it promptly. I look forward to meeting you at your next party or special event. To reserve your date, email me at tarot@nighttimes.com, or call 314.517.0158.
© Julia Gordon-Bramer 2012
Monday, August 6, 2012
The Terror of Perfection
Sometimes people ask me, "Since you can see the future, your life must be perfect!"
Ha ha. It doesn't quite work that way. Most tarot readers and psychics will tell you, first of all, that they don't read for themselves (and often not for loved ones, either). We are too invested in the outcome, and we can't approach something like, say, if our kids will graduate college, with non-bias. We will look to see what we want, or sometimes we'll freak ourselves out about what we most fear. I'll read cards for myself only if I can truthfully ask: does it matter to me what the answer is? If I can be open and easy about however it goes, I can safely put down some cards on the subject.
The truth is that tarot readers and psychics are all too human. I am forever sharing the Mother Teresa story of putting one's energy in what you want, and not in what you don't want. And then, I catch myself feeding the Worry Monster myself, actually attracting the negative. Sometimes I know what my path is, the universe has laid the plan wide open out before me, and yet I cannot seem to act accordingly. There are those very human moods when one would rather waste a bit of time on Facebook, or go out to eat, than to get a job done.
There is a really wonderful little book called God Wears Lipstick: Kabbalah for Women, by Karen Berg. She has a funny little story to explain the perfect life. If I'm remembering it right, it goes a little something like this:
Bonnie Parker, of Bonnie and Clyde fame, dies and faces St. Peter.
"How do you want to spend the afterlife?" he asks. She asks to be put on a lavish cruise in the Mediterranean. Alas! Soon she is bored.
"St. Peter, I can't take it. Give me some action! I want to rob some banks again!"
Soon, she is back robbing banks. Except that the vault doors are open, and the tellers are happily smiling and handing her the money.
"What?!" she exclaims. "There is no challenge! No fun! What kind of heaven is this, anyway?"
"Who said it was heaven?" St. Peter asks.
Life is not meant to be all perfect. If it were, what would we have to look forward to? Where would be the challenge? What would we strive for, and why would we bother to become better people?
Some of my favorite tarot clients are twenty-something women. They crack me up, in part because I used to be exactly the same way. Simply put, they want it all, and they want it yesterday: the great house; the cool car; the perfect, handsome, successful man; the adorable babies; the high-powered career; the fabulous figure and great clothes. Some even want fame and fortune on top of that. They think there is something fundamentally wrong with them if it doesn't happen at once. They delude themselves that their peers (or at least people they know) seem to have it all figured out.
I always chuckle and say, "And even if you could possibly do all this at once, what would you do with the rest of your life?" We need to prioritize our dreams, just like anything else on our To-Do List.
Ambition can be relentless. Yes, sometimes it is the catalyst to propel us onward to the next great thing. However, ambition can also keep us continually finding fault in ourselves, never giving ourselves a break.
And then, there is a flip side: There are some of us who never get far, who give up on their own ambition. They don't believe in their own success or the possibility to rise above current circumstances. It's a cop-out, of course. Believing in one's worthlessness or inability is ultimately an excuse not to try or do anything. It's denying any inner power or value, and keeping your gifts and purpose from the world.
Qabalah (or Kabbalah, or Cabala, it is all the same message however you spell it) teaches us that we are all connected, just by being alive. That this life is a spirit and that spirit is God. So we are all a part of God, and perfect already. What we see in this body is just our stories.
I have screwed my story up plenty of times, and I am continually rewriting and revising how I think the ending might go. Truth is, even a tarot card reader doesn't know exactly how it will end. I just have to trust that I am on this path, learning the things I need to learn. I will make the choices necessary to bring me to the next place, whether I see that as a blessing, or as an obstacle. As Buddha teaches us, it is all perfect. It is all necessary and exactly as it is supposed to be.
Isn't that both terrifying and wonderful?
© Julia Gordon-Bramer 2012
Ha ha. It doesn't quite work that way. Most tarot readers and psychics will tell you, first of all, that they don't read for themselves (and often not for loved ones, either). We are too invested in the outcome, and we can't approach something like, say, if our kids will graduate college, with non-bias. We will look to see what we want, or sometimes we'll freak ourselves out about what we most fear. I'll read cards for myself only if I can truthfully ask: does it matter to me what the answer is? If I can be open and easy about however it goes, I can safely put down some cards on the subject.
The truth is that tarot readers and psychics are all too human. I am forever sharing the Mother Teresa story of putting one's energy in what you want, and not in what you don't want. And then, I catch myself feeding the Worry Monster myself, actually attracting the negative. Sometimes I know what my path is, the universe has laid the plan wide open out before me, and yet I cannot seem to act accordingly. There are those very human moods when one would rather waste a bit of time on Facebook, or go out to eat, than to get a job done.
There is a really wonderful little book called God Wears Lipstick: Kabbalah for Women, by Karen Berg. She has a funny little story to explain the perfect life. If I'm remembering it right, it goes a little something like this:
Bonnie Parker, of Bonnie and Clyde fame, dies and faces St. Peter.
"How do you want to spend the afterlife?" he asks. She asks to be put on a lavish cruise in the Mediterranean. Alas! Soon she is bored.
"St. Peter, I can't take it. Give me some action! I want to rob some banks again!"
Soon, she is back robbing banks. Except that the vault doors are open, and the tellers are happily smiling and handing her the money.
"What?!" she exclaims. "There is no challenge! No fun! What kind of heaven is this, anyway?"
"Who said it was heaven?" St. Peter asks.
Life is not meant to be all perfect. If it were, what would we have to look forward to? Where would be the challenge? What would we strive for, and why would we bother to become better people?
Some of my favorite tarot clients are twenty-something women. They crack me up, in part because I used to be exactly the same way. Simply put, they want it all, and they want it yesterday: the great house; the cool car; the perfect, handsome, successful man; the adorable babies; the high-powered career; the fabulous figure and great clothes. Some even want fame and fortune on top of that. They think there is something fundamentally wrong with them if it doesn't happen at once. They delude themselves that their peers (or at least people they know) seem to have it all figured out.
I always chuckle and say, "And even if you could possibly do all this at once, what would you do with the rest of your life?" We need to prioritize our dreams, just like anything else on our To-Do List.
Ambition can be relentless. Yes, sometimes it is the catalyst to propel us onward to the next great thing. However, ambition can also keep us continually finding fault in ourselves, never giving ourselves a break.
And then, there is a flip side: There are some of us who never get far, who give up on their own ambition. They don't believe in their own success or the possibility to rise above current circumstances. It's a cop-out, of course. Believing in one's worthlessness or inability is ultimately an excuse not to try or do anything. It's denying any inner power or value, and keeping your gifts and purpose from the world.
Qabalah (or Kabbalah, or Cabala, it is all the same message however you spell it) teaches us that we are all connected, just by being alive. That this life is a spirit and that spirit is God. So we are all a part of God, and perfect already. What we see in this body is just our stories.
I have screwed my story up plenty of times, and I am continually rewriting and revising how I think the ending might go. Truth is, even a tarot card reader doesn't know exactly how it will end. I just have to trust that I am on this path, learning the things I need to learn. I will make the choices necessary to bring me to the next place, whether I see that as a blessing, or as an obstacle. As Buddha teaches us, it is all perfect. It is all necessary and exactly as it is supposed to be.
Isn't that both terrifying and wonderful?
© Julia Gordon-Bramer 2012
Thursday, July 5, 2012
The Secret Behind Plath's Poem "A Secret"
Click here to learn how Sylvia Plath's poem "A Secret" gives a nod to mystic writer/poet Lawrence Durrell's great work, The Alexandria Quartet. This is a Guest Blog on the Sylvia Plath Info Blog site, with a link directly to the PowerPoint presentation I gave this past June at Goodenough College in London, England for the Lawrence Durrell Centenary.
Because the focus is on Durrell, I do not go into great detail on the first five facets of Plath's poem, but I have included the briefest overview to give you an understanding as to how the pieces fit within the mystical system.
Because the focus is on Durrell, I do not go into great detail on the first five facets of Plath's poem, but I have included the briefest overview to give you an understanding as to how the pieces fit within the mystical system.
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Latest Plath & Mysticism Publication
I'm really happy to announce that Plath Profiles 5, out of Indiana University, has published my latest article, As We Like It: Ariel's Forewords, Plath, and Hughes Pay A Mystic Debt to the Bard.
You can read the content page to Plath Profiles 5 here.
You can read the content page to Plath Profiles 5 here.
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Tarot Reading for Pets
I've had a lot of fun press lately, being on St. Louis TV's Channel 2, 11, and on Show Me St. Louis--all programs titled as reading tarot cards for dogs. Because the segments are short, not all the details of my work are covered, and there are always some things that could be clarified or explained:
First off, please know that I read for ALL animals--not just dogs, which have garnered most of the news attention. Dogs might be the easiest for tarot because they travel well, attend things like Pet Expos and arts fairs, and they are often good in groups (dog parties!). But please know that I am happy to read for most any kind of animal (although to be honest, I don't know how successful I'd be with a fish!). Higher up on the evolutionary chain, I have read for turtles, rabbits, chinchillas, cats, birds, and of course, dogs. I'm up to try reading for any species you'd like to present me--but mammals will likely have the best result.
I do not work from one fixed location, and usually meet my clients at their residence or special event for parties, or at coffee shops and places like that for individual readings. This presents challenges to people wanting an hour-long individual pet reading outside of an organized party. Weather depending, I am happy to meet you and your animal on the outside patio of a Starbucks or elsewhere in the St. Louis area at my $60 an hour rate, versus the $100 party rate. And yes, I am happy to give people readings in this same hour for the owner too.
Cats do not usually travel comfortably, and I don't wish to stress out any pets. I would encourage you to set up a reading with me where I come for a home visit, or to do the reading by Skype or even telephone. No, your cat does not need to meow into the speaker or anything like that. It is your bond with the animal that helps me to read it as much as the animal being there.
On the Show Me St. Louis video, it was noted that I rub the cards on the dog. Yes, I do that when the animal is there in person, just to make more of a connection. This is not essential, and I should be (and am) able to read for your pets, even long-distance, through Skype or by seeing a photo with a name and some basic facts (male or female, if there is a problem you're looking to resolve, etc.).
Here are some of the issues we can explore with your pet:
* behavioral problems and causes
* litter box/housebreaking issues
* physical problems or questions
* unknown histories (for strays)
* repercussions of abuse and neglect
* relationships with other pets and with people
* the pet's wants and needs
* the pet's general quality of happiness
Please keep in mind that I don't have the tools to talk back to the animal! I'm just getting basic understandings of what is going on with your little (or big) friend and what might be done to prevent future misbehavior, etc. Sometimes, it's as easy as changing a brand of cat litter. In the reading I did for the news host this weekend, I saw a bored dog who needed something to occupy his time (he had apparently chewed up and destroyed a dog bed recently!). I can usually identify jealousies, dogs who insist upon being the leader of the pack, fears and peculiar habits. What you as the pet owner decide to do with this knowledge is up to you, and I cannot promise anything but information.
Finally, please keep in mind that anyone who loves their pet enough to care about correcting problems is a good pet owner already. Don't beat yourself up if I see something you might be able to improve upon. Just as our human lives are not entirely perfect and there may be some things we want and need on occasion, so it is with our animals. It does not make you a bad person if your pet is not fully content at all times. Are you? What pets need more than anything is food, shelter, occasional vet care, and love and attention. If you're doing that, the rest is gravy.
© Julia Gordon-Bramer 2012
First off, please know that I read for ALL animals--not just dogs, which have garnered most of the news attention. Dogs might be the easiest for tarot because they travel well, attend things like Pet Expos and arts fairs, and they are often good in groups (dog parties!). But please know that I am happy to read for most any kind of animal (although to be honest, I don't know how successful I'd be with a fish!). Higher up on the evolutionary chain, I have read for turtles, rabbits, chinchillas, cats, birds, and of course, dogs. I'm up to try reading for any species you'd like to present me--but mammals will likely have the best result.
I do not work from one fixed location, and usually meet my clients at their residence or special event for parties, or at coffee shops and places like that for individual readings. This presents challenges to people wanting an hour-long individual pet reading outside of an organized party. Weather depending, I am happy to meet you and your animal on the outside patio of a Starbucks or elsewhere in the St. Louis area at my $60 an hour rate, versus the $100 party rate. And yes, I am happy to give people readings in this same hour for the owner too.
Cats do not usually travel comfortably, and I don't wish to stress out any pets. I would encourage you to set up a reading with me where I come for a home visit, or to do the reading by Skype or even telephone. No, your cat does not need to meow into the speaker or anything like that. It is your bond with the animal that helps me to read it as much as the animal being there.
On the Show Me St. Louis video, it was noted that I rub the cards on the dog. Yes, I do that when the animal is there in person, just to make more of a connection. This is not essential, and I should be (and am) able to read for your pets, even long-distance, through Skype or by seeing a photo with a name and some basic facts (male or female, if there is a problem you're looking to resolve, etc.).
Here are some of the issues we can explore with your pet:
* behavioral problems and causes
* litter box/housebreaking issues
* physical problems or questions
* unknown histories (for strays)
* repercussions of abuse and neglect
* relationships with other pets and with people
* the pet's wants and needs
* the pet's general quality of happiness
Please keep in mind that I don't have the tools to talk back to the animal! I'm just getting basic understandings of what is going on with your little (or big) friend and what might be done to prevent future misbehavior, etc. Sometimes, it's as easy as changing a brand of cat litter. In the reading I did for the news host this weekend, I saw a bored dog who needed something to occupy his time (he had apparently chewed up and destroyed a dog bed recently!). I can usually identify jealousies, dogs who insist upon being the leader of the pack, fears and peculiar habits. What you as the pet owner decide to do with this knowledge is up to you, and I cannot promise anything but information.
Finally, please keep in mind that anyone who loves their pet enough to care about correcting problems is a good pet owner already. Don't beat yourself up if I see something you might be able to improve upon. Just as our human lives are not entirely perfect and there may be some things we want and need on occasion, so it is with our animals. It does not make you a bad person if your pet is not fully content at all times. Are you? What pets need more than anything is food, shelter, occasional vet care, and love and attention. If you're doing that, the rest is gravy.
© Julia Gordon-Bramer 2012
Saturday, May 26, 2012
Ghost Adventures
The other day, while giving a tarot reading in a booth in the St. Louis Bread Company to a client, an older woman walked up to us and said, "a Ouija board! You're fooling with the Devil!" She couldn't have been farther off, and I gently corrected her, told her it was the tarot, not Ouija, and that as she could see, no spirits were lurking about us.
Many times, I am asked if I am a medium, or if I talk to spirits. In an older blog, I had posted about some Ouija experiences (my joke being that the Ouija does not believe in me--I've never been successful with it). Because psychics and tarot readers are always lumped in with the spirit world, I wanted to make some clarifications and share what I know.
Tarot, which shares the framework of the Qabalah, therefore reflects Qabalah power whether one studies Qabalah or not. Qabalists believe that we all share part of the same great spirit just by virtue of being alive. I call this great spirit God. The psychologist Carl Jung called it the "Collective Unconscious." You call it what you want. But with this in mind, we all have a piece of God, or this higher consciousness--great power within ourselves. Tarot and Qabalah are about harnessing our God power and making a positive impact on ourselves, our loved ones, and the world through higher understandings.
So--ghosts, demons, and spirits:
I have heard of people plagued by poltergeists. Qabalah teaches that poltergeists, very specifically, are repressed energies that manifest outside of an individual. When this crazy kind of playful or even destructive energy appears, it comes from someone unwilling to face deep inner issues. These repressed feelings will come out, one way or another. In the average person, they might come out in the more traditional manner of self-sabotaging behavior or addiction. But Qabalah teaches that there are the handful who dissociate so much from their own energy that they push it outside of their own bodies.
Occasionally, when I am sleepy and there is nothing on television, I'll watch that cable TV show, "Ghost Adventures" on the Travel Channel. I am always disappointed. It's mainly a chance for that Zak guy to show off his muscles and stupid hair. But I digress. I do not dispute that Zak and his gang are actually hearing muffled voices (which they painfully strain to identify as saying something relevant), bumps, thumps, and the occasional flying or falling object. This is psychokinesis in action. Psychokinesis is basically when mental energy is so concentrated (and collected, among the group of them) to cause physical disturbance. Spoon bending, table turning, levitations, great strength in times of emergency, and all the other physical unexplainables would fall into this category. They simply wish for it so much that it becomes reality.
We are all far more powerful than we realize.
The Jewish Torah, which shares a great deal with Qabalah (Kabbalah, in this case) warns against the ease in which one can fall into misusing the occult. Deuteronomy 8:10 discusses divination through "charmed" natural instruments. The Jews believe that direct conversation with the dead interferes with this life and a relationship with the living God. The practicing Jew, and the Kabbalist/Qabalist/Cabalist, therefore does not seek to conjure dead spirits. Qabalists do, however, actively use astrology, astral projection, linguistic numerology and alchemy--all practices to find the divinity and God-power within one's self. I suppose this might be the difference between "black magic" and "white magic."
When one plays with Ouija boards, or crystal balls, dowsing or scrying, automatic writing, or any other number of occult objects designed to communicate with a spirit world, this "channeling" is really finding a way to open up to the subconscious. Ouija and the like get dangerous when one dwells too much in the subconscious, either losing touch with reality, or not taking responsibility for actions, shifting responsibility over to the spirit world. The subconscious can bring to light revelations that the conscious mind is simply not ready to handle. Facing God (full reality) can be frightening.
So, do I believe in a spirit world? Absolutely--but please understand that the tarot is not really a part of that, outside of the fact that the spirit world is a part of everything. When you make an appointment with me, I am not conjuring spirits, lighting candles, saying incantations and the like. The reality is that I am usually sitting opposite someone in the Bread Company, or speaking to you over the phone, interpreting cards in the way one might interpret dreams. It is part a counseling session too, with my sharing advice as the Qabalah would direct. I believe Marianne Williamson when she says, "The Devil is all in your head--and that's the worst place he could be."
© Julia Gordon-Bramer 2012
Many times, I am asked if I am a medium, or if I talk to spirits. In an older blog, I had posted about some Ouija experiences (my joke being that the Ouija does not believe in me--I've never been successful with it). Because psychics and tarot readers are always lumped in with the spirit world, I wanted to make some clarifications and share what I know.
Tarot, which shares the framework of the Qabalah, therefore reflects Qabalah power whether one studies Qabalah or not. Qabalists believe that we all share part of the same great spirit just by virtue of being alive. I call this great spirit God. The psychologist Carl Jung called it the "Collective Unconscious." You call it what you want. But with this in mind, we all have a piece of God, or this higher consciousness--great power within ourselves. Tarot and Qabalah are about harnessing our God power and making a positive impact on ourselves, our loved ones, and the world through higher understandings.
So--ghosts, demons, and spirits:
I have heard of people plagued by poltergeists. Qabalah teaches that poltergeists, very specifically, are repressed energies that manifest outside of an individual. When this crazy kind of playful or even destructive energy appears, it comes from someone unwilling to face deep inner issues. These repressed feelings will come out, one way or another. In the average person, they might come out in the more traditional manner of self-sabotaging behavior or addiction. But Qabalah teaches that there are the handful who dissociate so much from their own energy that they push it outside of their own bodies.
Occasionally, when I am sleepy and there is nothing on television, I'll watch that cable TV show, "Ghost Adventures" on the Travel Channel. I am always disappointed. It's mainly a chance for that Zak guy to show off his muscles and stupid hair. But I digress. I do not dispute that Zak and his gang are actually hearing muffled voices (which they painfully strain to identify as saying something relevant), bumps, thumps, and the occasional flying or falling object. This is psychokinesis in action. Psychokinesis is basically when mental energy is so concentrated (and collected, among the group of them) to cause physical disturbance. Spoon bending, table turning, levitations, great strength in times of emergency, and all the other physical unexplainables would fall into this category. They simply wish for it so much that it becomes reality.
We are all far more powerful than we realize.
The Jewish Torah, which shares a great deal with Qabalah (Kabbalah, in this case) warns against the ease in which one can fall into misusing the occult. Deuteronomy 8:10 discusses divination through "charmed" natural instruments. The Jews believe that direct conversation with the dead interferes with this life and a relationship with the living God. The practicing Jew, and the Kabbalist/Qabalist/Cabalist, therefore does not seek to conjure dead spirits. Qabalists do, however, actively use astrology, astral projection, linguistic numerology and alchemy--all practices to find the divinity and God-power within one's self. I suppose this might be the difference between "black magic" and "white magic."
When one plays with Ouija boards, or crystal balls, dowsing or scrying, automatic writing, or any other number of occult objects designed to communicate with a spirit world, this "channeling" is really finding a way to open up to the subconscious. Ouija and the like get dangerous when one dwells too much in the subconscious, either losing touch with reality, or not taking responsibility for actions, shifting responsibility over to the spirit world. The subconscious can bring to light revelations that the conscious mind is simply not ready to handle. Facing God (full reality) can be frightening.
So, do I believe in a spirit world? Absolutely--but please understand that the tarot is not really a part of that, outside of the fact that the spirit world is a part of everything. When you make an appointment with me, I am not conjuring spirits, lighting candles, saying incantations and the like. The reality is that I am usually sitting opposite someone in the Bread Company, or speaking to you over the phone, interpreting cards in the way one might interpret dreams. It is part a counseling session too, with my sharing advice as the Qabalah would direct. I believe Marianne Williamson when she says, "The Devil is all in your head--and that's the worst place he could be."
© Julia Gordon-Bramer 2012
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
A Reading Regret
I have this situation haunting me. When this happens, I know that energy from the other people involved is keeping me connected to it, and to them. It was one of those moments when I chose to be "professional" instead of to be real, and it is a regret. Allow me to explain:
It began when I was driving west down Highway 40, on my way to a tarot job. This person I used to date almost twenty years ago just popped into my mind. Out of the blue, for no apparent reason. It had been one of those impossible transitional relationships, during my divorce--it couldn't have worked for so many reasons. But at the time, I was feeling so weak and beaten down, wanting to prove I was lovable, wanting to prove there was a relationship I had not failed at, and I kept at it for far too long. We do this to ourselves: we choose relationships that will reinforce our inner beliefs. We choose people who cannot love us when we don't know how to love ourselves. When the inner beliefs are wrong, the relationships are doomed. Anyway, this young man and I ended up having a very ugly split. I saw him a couple times around town, even years later, and he would always turn away.
Ugh, right?
So there I was, driving down the road, and for some reason he came into my mind. I thought nothing else about it.
I met my clients: an older woman and her younger friend. The older woman had seen me read at an event in Saks Fifth Avenue and wanted to schedule her own appointment. Lovely women. The younger one read tarot herself, which I was glad of later for reasons I'll soon explain.
The older woman's reading was first, and I don't recall much of it. Usually I do not remember the readings I do for others. They leave me almost as soon as they happen. I often compare them to dreams, when you're left with little fleeting fragments.
The younger one I remember quite a lot about though, although I don't recall her name. She had a boyfriend who I saw in the cards, and she told me his name.
"Oh, that's my son's name," I said. It is not a name you hear too often. Coincidentally, it is also the name of the past boyfriend I'd had, who had just popped into my mind. But that guy would be in his forties now, long gone from this area, probably married with a family. I didn't even bring it up.
Things kept coming up in her cards. I saw her boyfriend as the Magician card: very attractive, talented, and completely immature (the Magician is Number One in the tarot's major arcana of 22 cards. He has a long way to go). This sounded like my old boyfriend too, but of course, at the time I knew him almost 20 years ago, he WAS a kid.
So, I saw this guy being kind of a delightful distraction for this young woman, and their relationship not lasting forever. She asked about his past and his family. I saw his father, in this particular deck (the Shadowscapes deck), as the Emperor shaman. The medicine man.
It was about this point when I said internally, "Holy sh#t."
Tarot never fails to amaze me. My old boyfriend's father had been a pharmacist. I remembered that much. The mother card was put down next, and it was a princess (equivalent to the pages in the traditional deck, representing children and teenagers). My old boyfriend's mother was just a teenager when his father, considerably older, married her. I remembered this to be true, as well. It's a hard story to forget. I told the facts to my client as I saw them, leaving my memories out. As a tarot reader herself, she could see the cards and know the meanings plainly. Both of us marveled, me for reasons I did not share.
Internally, I was doing battle: should I share with her that he had once been my boyfriend? Logic told me, without asking his last name, that I did not know this for sure. But tarot, of course, does not operate on logic. Feelings told me that this was my old boyfriend's life we were looking into.
The entire time, I wanted to say, "is his last name...?" I wanted to tell her what was on my mind, but professionalism kept me from speaking. I thought it might potentially embarrass her. Or me. There should always be distance between me and a client, right? These were the battles in my head.
We wrapped the reading up. The women and I had bonded, despite my withholding of my own past with him. If it was him. What if I were wrong and it was someone else? Better to keep quiet. We hugged and they promised to call again. I gave them both my card, knowing that the young woman would probably show it to the boyfriend. Knowing he'd probably say, "Well, of course she was right. She knows everything about me!" The woman had seen the cards herself to know I had not orchestrated that. They called me--I did not call them. Still, I felt somehow wrong for not coming clean.
The energy of this situation, which happened at least six months ago, is still all around me today. I feel haunted, and wonder if the girl feels betrayed, if my ex feels scammed, I wonder just why this event won't die in my mind. Psychic energy is such a weird thing. We are all so connected--far beyond our understandings.
I would like to think that maybe I am writing this today to draw their attention, that one or both of them will read it. To show the awkwardness of my position, both in knowing, and not knowing, her reading. To tell my ex that a lot has changed, there are no hard feelings, and I wish him peace and love as he travels that major arcana to The World card.
© Julia Gordon-Bramer 2012
It began when I was driving west down Highway 40, on my way to a tarot job. This person I used to date almost twenty years ago just popped into my mind. Out of the blue, for no apparent reason. It had been one of those impossible transitional relationships, during my divorce--it couldn't have worked for so many reasons. But at the time, I was feeling so weak and beaten down, wanting to prove I was lovable, wanting to prove there was a relationship I had not failed at, and I kept at it for far too long. We do this to ourselves: we choose relationships that will reinforce our inner beliefs. We choose people who cannot love us when we don't know how to love ourselves. When the inner beliefs are wrong, the relationships are doomed. Anyway, this young man and I ended up having a very ugly split. I saw him a couple times around town, even years later, and he would always turn away.
Ugh, right?
So there I was, driving down the road, and for some reason he came into my mind. I thought nothing else about it.
I met my clients: an older woman and her younger friend. The older woman had seen me read at an event in Saks Fifth Avenue and wanted to schedule her own appointment. Lovely women. The younger one read tarot herself, which I was glad of later for reasons I'll soon explain.
The older woman's reading was first, and I don't recall much of it. Usually I do not remember the readings I do for others. They leave me almost as soon as they happen. I often compare them to dreams, when you're left with little fleeting fragments.
The younger one I remember quite a lot about though, although I don't recall her name. She had a boyfriend who I saw in the cards, and she told me his name.
"Oh, that's my son's name," I said. It is not a name you hear too often. Coincidentally, it is also the name of the past boyfriend I'd had, who had just popped into my mind. But that guy would be in his forties now, long gone from this area, probably married with a family. I didn't even bring it up.
Things kept coming up in her cards. I saw her boyfriend as the Magician card: very attractive, talented, and completely immature (the Magician is Number One in the tarot's major arcana of 22 cards. He has a long way to go). This sounded like my old boyfriend too, but of course, at the time I knew him almost 20 years ago, he WAS a kid.
So, I saw this guy being kind of a delightful distraction for this young woman, and their relationship not lasting forever. She asked about his past and his family. I saw his father, in this particular deck (the Shadowscapes deck), as the Emperor shaman. The medicine man.
It was about this point when I said internally, "Holy sh#t."
Tarot never fails to amaze me. My old boyfriend's father had been a pharmacist. I remembered that much. The mother card was put down next, and it was a princess (equivalent to the pages in the traditional deck, representing children and teenagers). My old boyfriend's mother was just a teenager when his father, considerably older, married her. I remembered this to be true, as well. It's a hard story to forget. I told the facts to my client as I saw them, leaving my memories out. As a tarot reader herself, she could see the cards and know the meanings plainly. Both of us marveled, me for reasons I did not share.
Internally, I was doing battle: should I share with her that he had once been my boyfriend? Logic told me, without asking his last name, that I did not know this for sure. But tarot, of course, does not operate on logic. Feelings told me that this was my old boyfriend's life we were looking into.
The entire time, I wanted to say, "is his last name...?" I wanted to tell her what was on my mind, but professionalism kept me from speaking. I thought it might potentially embarrass her. Or me. There should always be distance between me and a client, right? These were the battles in my head.
We wrapped the reading up. The women and I had bonded, despite my withholding of my own past with him. If it was him. What if I were wrong and it was someone else? Better to keep quiet. We hugged and they promised to call again. I gave them both my card, knowing that the young woman would probably show it to the boyfriend. Knowing he'd probably say, "Well, of course she was right. She knows everything about me!" The woman had seen the cards herself to know I had not orchestrated that. They called me--I did not call them. Still, I felt somehow wrong for not coming clean.
The energy of this situation, which happened at least six months ago, is still all around me today. I feel haunted, and wonder if the girl feels betrayed, if my ex feels scammed, I wonder just why this event won't die in my mind. Psychic energy is such a weird thing. We are all so connected--far beyond our understandings.
I would like to think that maybe I am writing this today to draw their attention, that one or both of them will read it. To show the awkwardness of my position, both in knowing, and not knowing, her reading. To tell my ex that a lot has changed, there are no hard feelings, and I wish him peace and love as he travels that major arcana to The World card.
© Julia Gordon-Bramer 2012
Monday, May 14, 2012
National TV!
The blessings continue, and it looks like Nick At Nite will be featuring Yours Truly as a guest on a reality TV show, for their new "NickMom" series coming out later this year. The show I'll be on features two housewives in St. Louis, with a working title of "The Judi and Kate Show," but I suspect that will be changed. My episode will be taped this weekend; I am the tarot reader who will be a guest at a daughter's graduation party, reading for the stars. Should be fun--watch for me in the Fall!
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Star (and Card) Wars
When Gandhi said, "Be the change you wish to see in the world," he did not mean to be the model citizen. What he meant was that when there is war outside of us, for instance, we need to look for the war inside of us, and correct that. Like most people, I keep forgetting this.
I've got a little war going on, and it's the strangest one that I ever could have imagined--over the Tarot cards. At first I thought it was a joke. I thought it was initiated by someone I'd had a falling-out with as a kind of a sick joke, but I did my homework and this is for real.
There is this group of people--amazingly, more than one--who stalk me and other Tarot readers with any kind of success. They try and sabotage my reputation through videos, through blog comments, etc. They believe it is their job in this life to make Tarot a game. Tarot began as a game, sure, but they are hell-bent on bringing Tarot readers down who use Tarot for divination purposes. Astronomy began, really, as astrology--closer to a religion. Does this mean the stars should only be used for zodiac purposes? That penicillin, derived accidentally when one was looking for a cure for food poisoning, should only be used for what it was intended? It is all so silly.
It's quite perplexing. I mean, there are people dying of hunger, AIDS... surely there are more worthy causes to put one's energy into than fighting a one-sided war that perhaps maybe only about ten people in the entire world care about anyway. Fighting a cause where no one is hurt and some are maybe even helped?
So, I have to turn back to Gandhi, and to myself, and say, "Just what the heck is going on here?" If everything is a mirror, as the Qabalah, from which the Tarot is intentionally or unintentionally (and therefore, miraculously) structured (see two blogs ago for more on that), then I need to look at my feelings for these people. The first is a feeling of attack, which I understand from my spiritual work as coming from a place of feeling utterly powerless and needing to matter, in any way that can be recognized. So I know that, even with my successes of out of the country symposiums and conferences, of publications and media appearances, there is a part of me that still feels this sadness too.
The second thing that I feel is simply overwhelmed by the incredible waste of time! I know that I have a judgment on these people and any meaningful purpose they have in this world. Have these people NOTHING better to do than to harass a person unknown to them? And so, I must turn to myself again: Where am I wasting time? Am I running so fast and hard toward purpose that I forget I already have it (and so do they), just by being a child of God? That is something to look at. While I consider myself to be a fairly efficient worker and high producer between my writing, scholarship, teaching and Tarot, there can always be some pockets of my schedule better-spent. I will work on that.
I thought this might be a carryover from negative feelings left from that person I'd had the falling out with, whom I mentioned earlier. I searched my soul, and even did some detective work on the Internet because I'd had some uneasy vibes and dream communications from him. I consciously banished all bad feelings. After all, if I had kept this person in my life, none of my successes or happinesses would have ever happened. Knowing him was a spiritual and creative blessing to me, and his leaving was a greater one still. And should he search his heart, he knows the same is true for him.
The people that I have not-so-affectionately coined "The Tarot Crazies" will probably continue their crusade. I will battle them, I suppose, by working to correct the places within me that still struggle with peace, with wanting to waste time, and with not believing I'm enough. Maybe if the rest of us are the change we want to see in the world, games will not become wars and Tarot will be viewed with an open mind, for any purpose one wants for it. And maybe, just maybe, I'll be glad these people once wandered through my life, too.
© Julia Gordon-Bramer 2012
I've got a little war going on, and it's the strangest one that I ever could have imagined--over the Tarot cards. At first I thought it was a joke. I thought it was initiated by someone I'd had a falling-out with as a kind of a sick joke, but I did my homework and this is for real.
There is this group of people--amazingly, more than one--who stalk me and other Tarot readers with any kind of success. They try and sabotage my reputation through videos, through blog comments, etc. They believe it is their job in this life to make Tarot a game. Tarot began as a game, sure, but they are hell-bent on bringing Tarot readers down who use Tarot for divination purposes. Astronomy began, really, as astrology--closer to a religion. Does this mean the stars should only be used for zodiac purposes? That penicillin, derived accidentally when one was looking for a cure for food poisoning, should only be used for what it was intended? It is all so silly.
It's quite perplexing. I mean, there are people dying of hunger, AIDS... surely there are more worthy causes to put one's energy into than fighting a one-sided war that perhaps maybe only about ten people in the entire world care about anyway. Fighting a cause where no one is hurt and some are maybe even helped?
So, I have to turn back to Gandhi, and to myself, and say, "Just what the heck is going on here?" If everything is a mirror, as the Qabalah, from which the Tarot is intentionally or unintentionally (and therefore, miraculously) structured (see two blogs ago for more on that), then I need to look at my feelings for these people. The first is a feeling of attack, which I understand from my spiritual work as coming from a place of feeling utterly powerless and needing to matter, in any way that can be recognized. So I know that, even with my successes of out of the country symposiums and conferences, of publications and media appearances, there is a part of me that still feels this sadness too.
The second thing that I feel is simply overwhelmed by the incredible waste of time! I know that I have a judgment on these people and any meaningful purpose they have in this world. Have these people NOTHING better to do than to harass a person unknown to them? And so, I must turn to myself again: Where am I wasting time? Am I running so fast and hard toward purpose that I forget I already have it (and so do they), just by being a child of God? That is something to look at. While I consider myself to be a fairly efficient worker and high producer between my writing, scholarship, teaching and Tarot, there can always be some pockets of my schedule better-spent. I will work on that.
I thought this might be a carryover from negative feelings left from that person I'd had the falling out with, whom I mentioned earlier. I searched my soul, and even did some detective work on the Internet because I'd had some uneasy vibes and dream communications from him. I consciously banished all bad feelings. After all, if I had kept this person in my life, none of my successes or happinesses would have ever happened. Knowing him was a spiritual and creative blessing to me, and his leaving was a greater one still. And should he search his heart, he knows the same is true for him.
The people that I have not-so-affectionately coined "The Tarot Crazies" will probably continue their crusade. I will battle them, I suppose, by working to correct the places within me that still struggle with peace, with wanting to waste time, and with not believing I'm enough. Maybe if the rest of us are the change we want to see in the world, games will not become wars and Tarot will be viewed with an open mind, for any purpose one wants for it. And maybe, just maybe, I'll be glad these people once wandered through my life, too.
© Julia Gordon-Bramer 2012
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Fox 2 News
I was on Fox 2 News and KPLR Channel 11 yesterday reading Tarot for pets. Check it out here.
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Tarot, Ancient Symbols, and the Qabalah
Sometimes people wonder how the Tarot corresponds to the Qabalah Tree of Life (also spelled in derivations of "Kabbalah," for the Jewish system, and "Cabala," for the Christian brand).
Here is an easy visual to explain:
If you'd like to read more, there is a pretty good overview here.
The illustrations on modern day Tarot cards all incorporate elements of myth, alchemy, astrology, astronomy, practices and rites going back to ancient times. Look at the Magician card, number one in the major arcana, for example:
He represents Hermes Trismegistus, the ancient Greek's god of magic and communication melded with the Egyptian Thoth. He is for whom Hermeticism, or practitioners of occult Qabalah, take their name. Hermes holds his wand to the heavens and his hand points to the ground, representing the Hermetic principle, "As above, so below." He is the number one, so he is the initiate, learning. The tools on his table represent the four elements of the earth (and the four suits of the tarot): air/swords, water/cups, fire/wands, and pentacles/earth.
Another example of ancient symbolism is the High Priestess card:
She is the Egyptian Isis, the most powerful and spiritual woman in the Tarot deck. She sits between King Solomon's pillars of Mercy and Severity ("Boaz" and "Jachin"), written of in the Bible. Behind her is a veil, representing the occult (meaning "hidden"), and pomegranates, the fruit Persephone ate that kept her in Hades for one dark season of winter (this myth representing the triple goddess of maiden, mother and crone). Isis sits with her foot on the crescent moon, as the moon's 28-day cycle reflects the feminine on earth.
There are many other legends and symbols built into Tarot cards, with the idea being that these, like Jung's universal archetypes that touch the collective unconscious in us all, open intuition and understanding of one's self and others.
While it's true that Tarot started as a card game, the evidence shows it to be much, much greater than that.
Thanks for reading. Feel free to send me your questions and I will blog on them as I have time.
© Julia Gordon-Bramer 2012
Here is an easy visual to explain:
If you'd like to read more, there is a pretty good overview here.
The illustrations on modern day Tarot cards all incorporate elements of myth, alchemy, astrology, astronomy, practices and rites going back to ancient times. Look at the Magician card, number one in the major arcana, for example:
He represents Hermes Trismegistus, the ancient Greek's god of magic and communication melded with the Egyptian Thoth. He is for whom Hermeticism, or practitioners of occult Qabalah, take their name. Hermes holds his wand to the heavens and his hand points to the ground, representing the Hermetic principle, "As above, so below." He is the number one, so he is the initiate, learning. The tools on his table represent the four elements of the earth (and the four suits of the tarot): air/swords, water/cups, fire/wands, and pentacles/earth.
Another example of ancient symbolism is the High Priestess card:
She is the Egyptian Isis, the most powerful and spiritual woman in the Tarot deck. She sits between King Solomon's pillars of Mercy and Severity ("Boaz" and "Jachin"), written of in the Bible. Behind her is a veil, representing the occult (meaning "hidden"), and pomegranates, the fruit Persephone ate that kept her in Hades for one dark season of winter (this myth representing the triple goddess of maiden, mother and crone). Isis sits with her foot on the crescent moon, as the moon's 28-day cycle reflects the feminine on earth.
There are many other legends and symbols built into Tarot cards, with the idea being that these, like Jung's universal archetypes that touch the collective unconscious in us all, open intuition and understanding of one's self and others.
While it's true that Tarot started as a card game, the evidence shows it to be much, much greater than that.
Thanks for reading. Feel free to send me your questions and I will blog on them as I have time.
© Julia Gordon-Bramer 2012
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Sylvia Plath Symposium 2012
I am absolutely delighted to announce that I will be presenting on the poem "Ariel" at the Sylvia Plath Symposium 2012 at Indiana University, October 25-28.
Here is my abstract:
Plath’s “Ariel”: The Feminine Arrow into the Apocalypse
By Julia Gordon-Bramer
“Plath’s ‘Ariel’: The Feminine Arrow into the Apocalypse” explores the fifteenth and title poem from Ariel, examining its numerical correlative Tarot card, Temperance, as the poem matches with Temperance’s meanings and symbols. Excerpted from Fixed Stars Govern A Life: the mystic reinterpretation of the work of Sylvia Plath, the poem “Ariel” is matched directly to the six facets of Qabalah: Hebrew/Tarot correlations; alchemy; mythology; history and the world; astrology and astronomy; and arts and the humanities. Plath’s genius with language is still mostly unrecognized, as a single poem such as “Ariel” contains so much complex detail. This presentation will take the reader line-by-line to reveal the Hebrew, gematria, and numerological correspondences, as well as an occult initiation rite. Plath wove in details of classical literature such as King Arthur and The Little Mermaid, and Irish Medieval, Celtic, Norse, and Babylonian myth in celebration of female power and fire. Astrologically, the poem “Ariel” explores the Age of Pisces as it moves into Aquarius, and the Mayan prediction of the end of the world in 2012. Perhaps most impressively, however, is the juxtaposition of the real-life history of the World War II bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the sideline tales of American fighter pilots and female foreign correspondents. Incredibly, these thirty-four lines do it all.
Most have understood the poem “Ariel” to be about a wild ride on a runaway horse. And that might still be true—as one small and less-significant meaning. We have always known that “Ariel” is one of Plath’s greatest poems. Now, it is time to understand why.
Here is my abstract:
Plath’s “Ariel”: The Feminine Arrow into the Apocalypse
By Julia Gordon-Bramer
“Plath’s ‘Ariel’: The Feminine Arrow into the Apocalypse” explores the fifteenth and title poem from Ariel, examining its numerical correlative Tarot card, Temperance, as the poem matches with Temperance’s meanings and symbols. Excerpted from Fixed Stars Govern A Life: the mystic reinterpretation of the work of Sylvia Plath, the poem “Ariel” is matched directly to the six facets of Qabalah: Hebrew/Tarot correlations; alchemy; mythology; history and the world; astrology and astronomy; and arts and the humanities. Plath’s genius with language is still mostly unrecognized, as a single poem such as “Ariel” contains so much complex detail. This presentation will take the reader line-by-line to reveal the Hebrew, gematria, and numerological correspondences, as well as an occult initiation rite. Plath wove in details of classical literature such as King Arthur and The Little Mermaid, and Irish Medieval, Celtic, Norse, and Babylonian myth in celebration of female power and fire. Astrologically, the poem “Ariel” explores the Age of Pisces as it moves into Aquarius, and the Mayan prediction of the end of the world in 2012. Perhaps most impressively, however, is the juxtaposition of the real-life history of the World War II bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the sideline tales of American fighter pilots and female foreign correspondents. Incredibly, these thirty-four lines do it all.
Most have understood the poem “Ariel” to be about a wild ride on a runaway horse. And that might still be true—as one small and less-significant meaning. We have always known that “Ariel” is one of Plath’s greatest poems. Now, it is time to understand why.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Plath, the Tarot, and author Lawrence Durrell
I am very excited to announce that I'll be presenting on Sylvia Plath's poem, "A Secret", as it relates to the Tarot and author Lawrence Durrell's great work, The Alexandria Quartet, at the Lawrence Durrell Centenary conference in London, England.
The event will be held at London's Goodenough College and the British Library, June 13-16, 2012.
Details forthcoming.
The event will be held at London's Goodenough College and the British Library, June 13-16, 2012.
Details forthcoming.
Monday, January 16, 2012
On Accuracy, and "Fortune Telling" vs. Tarot
Every now and then, people call or write and ask me the question about my Tarot readings, "How accurate are you?"
It's kind of a hard question to answer, because it depends on what the questioner means. I'll explain.
Have I ever been wrong? Absolutely. That happens. There are some people with whom, for reasons unknown to me and probably varying, I just can't make a connection. I would say, on average, that at every big party or event where I'm reading for a lot of people, churning them through one after another, there is maybe one person who just doesn't "hit." It can be as frustrating to me as to that person. Oftentimes that person might feel left out, especially when friends around him or her are howling with surprise and laughter, or moved to tears from the cards.
There are a couple of ways I explain this. In my own defense, most often, this will be in a noisy place like a conference or a party (although even that is usually not a problem). Sometimes, I feel a bit challenged by the client--they have set out to prove me wrong--and the whole situation can feel combative and uncomfortable from where I sit. Sometimes, the person is so personally guarded and fearful of what I might see that he or she is not "letting me in." I have had some individuals who have done a lot of spiritual/New Age work and may have a belief that they are much further along than I see they are. And I have had more than one occasion when someone told me, "No, that's totally wrong, I'm not like that..." and then friends who had been watching pull me aside later and say, "You were exactly right. She just doesn't see this about herself..."
One needs to know a couple things about the Tarot. First and foremost, it is a tool for opening up the subconscious; it is psychological, and less about hocus-pocus. One needs to approach a Tarot reading understanding that everything in this life has been created by our own power. We've all seen people, or have ourselves been in a downward spiral, right? When you're on the outside of that, watching someone fall into the abyss, it's quite easy to understand how someone attracts bad things. Their minds are programmed for misery and looking to create more of it. They are actively seeking misery and failure, and finding their 'proof' in everything. We've all been there--hopefully not for long. I have not been immune.
I like to tell people that upward spirals are just as possible (and common). Our life results are set by our mindset, which is changeable. What we THINK is what we get. We see what we think and get in the Tarot cards. Likewise, the Tarot can be a powerful tool to offer suggestions to change any negative results coming up that are in our control.
So what about the fortune-telling aspect of Tarot? Will I get the job? Will I marry? Will I be rich? Well, it is my belief that this is all within the control of our attitude, as well. My cards will show you if you are on the right track, and they will offer you advice on how to do things differently, if that's your path. It may be that you think you want something in the moment, a mate or a corporate job, perhaps, but maybe that's not right for who you truly are. Maybe that's something you are not yet ready to face, because you've been trying to live up to other's expectations, and you've been missing that important part about knowing your own needs. These are the kinds of answers the Tarot will reveal.
Like any Tarot reader, I have experimented, misusing the cards and asking inappropriate questions. An example of an inappropriate question would be what horse will win a race, what are the lotto numbers, or who will win an election (the cards once gave me John McCain over Barack Obama, clear as day). I think the cards mess with us a bit in these situations. Tarot is NOT "fortune-telling" in that sense. It is only about what we can control in our lives. The fact is that presidential election or horse race (same difference, right?) is out of my personal power. Had I been reading for John McCain, Barack Obama, or the owner of a race horse, the reading would have been different. Those people are personally invested in a way that I am not.
That said, I did pick up a pack of Madame LeNormand fortune-telling cards (from the French courts of Napoleon and Josephine) which have a very different feeling to them, and yes, they are the ones to warn of losing fortunes and such. If you'd like me to bring them to your next Tarot appointment, just say so. I still need the book to translate these cards, however. I consider these cards "entertainment-only" with no promises. I have much greater trust in the Tarot.
A last word about "wrong" readings: because I believe that we are all in the driver's seat with regard to our lives, and we are creating everything to teach us what we need to know to take us to the next place on the journey, I believe that sometimes that "wrong" reading is exactly what we need to hear. I have had clients tell me that after leaving an appointment with me they were sure it didn't fit, that it felt all wrong, and then three or six months later everything I said came true.
As a never-ending student of mysticism, Tarot and Qabalah, it's my goal to risk it all and put it out there--betting one hundred percent on my intuition. I try to let go of the ego that fears I could be wrong. I know that the words I say will be exactly right for that person in that moment, because that person called me there. I still have my fearful moments. I still have that ego voice spring up now and then, wanting to make the client happy and tell him or her what they want to hear over what I see. I try to let that go. My clients might not always like it.
I hope that you'll come to me if you are open, honest, and brave enough to take control of your own life. It's not all about chance and fortune--it's about taking control of your own direction and owning your own power to create the life you want.
© Julia Gordon-Bramer 2012
It's kind of a hard question to answer, because it depends on what the questioner means. I'll explain.
Have I ever been wrong? Absolutely. That happens. There are some people with whom, for reasons unknown to me and probably varying, I just can't make a connection. I would say, on average, that at every big party or event where I'm reading for a lot of people, churning them through one after another, there is maybe one person who just doesn't "hit." It can be as frustrating to me as to that person. Oftentimes that person might feel left out, especially when friends around him or her are howling with surprise and laughter, or moved to tears from the cards.
There are a couple of ways I explain this. In my own defense, most often, this will be in a noisy place like a conference or a party (although even that is usually not a problem). Sometimes, I feel a bit challenged by the client--they have set out to prove me wrong--and the whole situation can feel combative and uncomfortable from where I sit. Sometimes, the person is so personally guarded and fearful of what I might see that he or she is not "letting me in." I have had some individuals who have done a lot of spiritual/New Age work and may have a belief that they are much further along than I see they are. And I have had more than one occasion when someone told me, "No, that's totally wrong, I'm not like that..." and then friends who had been watching pull me aside later and say, "You were exactly right. She just doesn't see this about herself..."
One needs to know a couple things about the Tarot. First and foremost, it is a tool for opening up the subconscious; it is psychological, and less about hocus-pocus. One needs to approach a Tarot reading understanding that everything in this life has been created by our own power. We've all seen people, or have ourselves been in a downward spiral, right? When you're on the outside of that, watching someone fall into the abyss, it's quite easy to understand how someone attracts bad things. Their minds are programmed for misery and looking to create more of it. They are actively seeking misery and failure, and finding their 'proof' in everything. We've all been there--hopefully not for long. I have not been immune.
I like to tell people that upward spirals are just as possible (and common). Our life results are set by our mindset, which is changeable. What we THINK is what we get. We see what we think and get in the Tarot cards. Likewise, the Tarot can be a powerful tool to offer suggestions to change any negative results coming up that are in our control.
So what about the fortune-telling aspect of Tarot? Will I get the job? Will I marry? Will I be rich? Well, it is my belief that this is all within the control of our attitude, as well. My cards will show you if you are on the right track, and they will offer you advice on how to do things differently, if that's your path. It may be that you think you want something in the moment, a mate or a corporate job, perhaps, but maybe that's not right for who you truly are. Maybe that's something you are not yet ready to face, because you've been trying to live up to other's expectations, and you've been missing that important part about knowing your own needs. These are the kinds of answers the Tarot will reveal.
Like any Tarot reader, I have experimented, misusing the cards and asking inappropriate questions. An example of an inappropriate question would be what horse will win a race, what are the lotto numbers, or who will win an election (the cards once gave me John McCain over Barack Obama, clear as day). I think the cards mess with us a bit in these situations. Tarot is NOT "fortune-telling" in that sense. It is only about what we can control in our lives. The fact is that presidential election or horse race (same difference, right?) is out of my personal power. Had I been reading for John McCain, Barack Obama, or the owner of a race horse, the reading would have been different. Those people are personally invested in a way that I am not.
That said, I did pick up a pack of Madame LeNormand fortune-telling cards (from the French courts of Napoleon and Josephine) which have a very different feeling to them, and yes, they are the ones to warn of losing fortunes and such. If you'd like me to bring them to your next Tarot appointment, just say so. I still need the book to translate these cards, however. I consider these cards "entertainment-only" with no promises. I have much greater trust in the Tarot.
A last word about "wrong" readings: because I believe that we are all in the driver's seat with regard to our lives, and we are creating everything to teach us what we need to know to take us to the next place on the journey, I believe that sometimes that "wrong" reading is exactly what we need to hear. I have had clients tell me that after leaving an appointment with me they were sure it didn't fit, that it felt all wrong, and then three or six months later everything I said came true.
As a never-ending student of mysticism, Tarot and Qabalah, it's my goal to risk it all and put it out there--betting one hundred percent on my intuition. I try to let go of the ego that fears I could be wrong. I know that the words I say will be exactly right for that person in that moment, because that person called me there. I still have my fearful moments. I still have that ego voice spring up now and then, wanting to make the client happy and tell him or her what they want to hear over what I see. I try to let that go. My clients might not always like it.
I hope that you'll come to me if you are open, honest, and brave enough to take control of your own life. It's not all about chance and fortune--it's about taking control of your own direction and owning your own power to create the life you want.
© Julia Gordon-Bramer 2012
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