Readings

So here I am, at the International New Age Trade Show, giving readings to a dozen or so folks per ninety minute session.

I love doing readings for the public — especially the sort of readings that change people’s perceptions about what Tarot is and what Tarot can do. One woman today catches on immediately: “You’re removing everything scary about this process. You’re helping people see that these cards can be springboards to new ideas.”

Amen, sister!

Meanwhile, today held some firsts for me:

1) Someone who has read the book thanked me for writing it. I was surprised, pleased, and overwhelmed, all at once.

2) A person looked at my name badge and said, “Oh, you’re the author of Putting the Tarot to Work. Great book.” (The comment made me grin so wide, the corners of my mouth almost met at the back of my head.)

3) A store owner told me she can’t wait to have the book in stock because “There’s nothing like this out there, anywhere. I’ve come here today looking for something new to do with Tarot, and now I’ve found it.”

Between sessions, I wandered the show floor. Some snapshots:

– A vendor selling healing cloths (silk sheets dyed in various hues of orange, blue, and green) persuaded a man in shorts and dark socks to submit to a “treatment.”

The vendor stuffed two corners of the sheet into the man’s collar, then fluffed the rest of the fabric up into the air, as though making a bed. The silk settled around the man’s head and shoulders, making him look like a sort of rainbow bedouin.

“How’s that feel?” the vendor asked.

The man stood there with his eyes closed, as though listening to distant music. Finally, he whispered: “Do it again.”

– A skeptical man submits himself for an “aura photograph.”

“What do you think you’ll be?” the photographer asks, referring the man to a color chart.

He squints. Purple is magical; orange is vitality. He frowns. “Not magical,” he says. “Definitely not magical.”

She snaps the photo and rips open the Polaroid self-developing image. Seconds later, she hands over his portrait. His head is almost obliterated by a huge purple cloud.

The photographer glances at the portrait and says, in her best New Jersey accent, “Who knew?”

– In one booth, people lie down on cushioned tables and allow the vedndors to insert candles in their ears. When lit, the candles burn brightly, giving rise to long, tapered flames.

One man chuckles nervously as the vendor fiddles with the candle. “This ever set someone’s hair on fire?”

The vendor shrugs. “Not lately.”