a spread for the eight of wands

hello, friends. earlier this month i shared a new essay exploring the powerful, purposeful energy of the eight of wands. today, i've got a tarot spread for you that i hope can help you wrangle, channel, and utilize this intense, sometimes overwhelming energy.

but first! fill your cup, a live workshop on everyday nourishment that i'm hosting with jeanna kadlec, is today at 3pm eastern time — and you can still snag your spot! come talk tarot, astrology, and self-care in heartbreaking times with us:

to me, the eight of wands is almost always exciting: it's an energy that i can get lost in, one of creative output and passionate effort. as someone living in a disabled body, who regularly deals with days where just getting out of bed and feeding myself is a struggle, i usually have a few days each month where i work at a rapid, wild pace. it's like my mind and body have just been begging for a low-paid, relatively well-rested day so that i can get all of my thoughts onto the page. i'm in one of these days right now, cranking away, sharing my joy with you in anticipation of a pub date a few weeks away.

i love these days, if i'm being honest. i love feeling like it's all i can do to get the words out as quickly as possible, love knowing

but these kinds of days would be impossible without structure. i know exactly how many newsletters i'm going to send out each month, exactly how many podcast episodes i need to outline and record at a time, exactly which courses i'm working on for future sales. i map out my business a quarter at a time, though my mercury-ruled brain demands flexibility to craft new workshops or put together new offers when they bubble up unexpectedly. but on days when i have the energy to work hard, i have a waiting list of tasks i can throw myself into, and know in advance what needs to get done.

that structure is my unlit fuse: the track that i've laid out for myself in advance, knowing that i can only light it on days when i have the energy to carefully monitor that spark as it races along its anticipated path. without that structure, none of this would be possible.

the trick, for me, is recognizing when the fuse is finished burning, and it's time to put the fire out.