A Picture. A Thousand Words. Which Matter?

What the heck is going on here? Sometimes a card’s meaning is initially baffling. We have to pause to look it over from different angles to see what it’s trying to convey. Usually, the confounding ones are trying to surprise you. This one doesn’t disappoint.

My signature Tarot Postcards are like those sold in an art museum. Some of them actually are. It can be obvious what they’re portraying. Sometimes we have to put on our detective hats. When I’m looking for psychic messages in a card I start by using a technique a docent once taught me. I find a particular detail that attracts my attention, and ask, Why am I drawn to this? At this moment, in this card, it’s the sign with two arrows that says, “Full Serve, Self Serve”.

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Ah Ha! So the card is suggesting a Choice, Facing a Decision. In the Full Service aisle, you pay a little more but don’t have to get your hands dirty and may even get your windshield cleaned and the tires checked. Or you can save and pump the gas yourself. Can you see how this is a metaphor for, say, a home improvement project? You can hire it out or do it yourself. Or it could be about a job or move, a question of staying or going.

But then I zoom out and look at the whole picture, simply asking, What is this? It’s a gas station. Ah Ha! So this is about Refueling or Recharging. But there’s something odd here. The place has been overrun by grass and some sheep have taken over. The place doesn’t seem to be open anymore. Ah Ha! So this is about a Decommissioning.

Nature taking over a manmade building? That’s kinda funny. Ah Ha! So this is about Humor. I always seek to find the humor in psychic readings. A road, or any other property, left unattended, will eventually be taken over by nature. Ah Ha! This is about Who’s Really in Charge Here.

If this photo were in a museum, you’d turn to the placard on the wall for information about the piece. In this case I’ll write about the inspiration behind this Work of Art. “This image is of a construction site in Midtown Manhattan on Twelfth Avenue. The area is being prepared to be leveled and cleaned in preparation to erect a high rise luxury apartment building.”

Ah Ha! So this is about Progress, A Neighborhood Improvement Project, Property Development. Every card is rich with meaning. How will yours speak to you?