stop making things harder for yourself.

hello, friends. today's offering is all about using tarot as a simple, daily ritual, instead of making your practice more complicated than it needs to be. i wrote earlier this month about how using spiritual tools consistently can literally help to regulate our nervous system, and a few days ago bronze and gold subscribers got a tarot spread around this too — but in today's piece i'm going to offer some more tangible advice for actually creating that ritual.

to that end, today's special offer is a fun one: two new tarot mini books to walk you through crafting a simple personal tarot ritual, whether you're a morning reader or a nighttime reader. these resources are priced at $16 each, but if you purchase in the next 24 hours with code DAYANDNIGHT, you can get one for only $10. (if you really want both, go for it! just know that there is quite a bit of overlap, so you likely only need one or the other.)

today's gifs are brought to you by the west wing, which i am currently rewatching for like the seventh time. i drink from the keg of glory.

so many folks i'm talking to lately are burned out on their tarot practice, but still craving connection, insight, opportunity for reflection. they want to use the cards, to find their way back to a tarot practice, but overwhelm and emotional exhaustion have made this particular ritual feel completely out of reach. if this is you, you might also find this extending to your spiritual practices in general, or your creative practices. (i will be offering a new support remedy for the spiritual/creative challenges very soon. stay tuned.)

and i get it — things have been so heavy and hard. the economy is brutal, the climate crisis is ramping up in horrifying ways, the violence against palestine and lebanon and so many other countries seems to have no end in sight, americans are bracing for another trump administration when our current government is still a mess, and too many other stressful and scary things to count. i know many people feel totally depleted and burned out, just trying to get through the days without losing all hope for the future, doing whatever they can to survive.

tarot can't magically fix all of the gigantic, systemic problems that we're facing. i would never claim that. but tarot can offer you support, guidance, insights, advice for navigating your daily life, and clarity for finding your place in broader community work. tarot can help you come back to yourself in ways that actually feel accessible. tarot can remind you of the wins you've already accomplished, the resources that are at your disposal, the goals you've set and the visions you still carry.

i created these new mini books because i really wanted to make something that would help y'all reconnect with your cards. but whether you're interested in them or not, i also want to make sure you hear me when i say this: stop making things harder for yourself. when you're already drowning, when it already feels like you're overwhelmed with tasks or activities or responsibilities, adding something else can quickly just become another item on your massive to-do list.

you're probably doing a lot. you might already be doing too much. we don't always have complete control over our responsibilities and tasks, over the things that must be done to survive. there aren't always a lot of items that we can delegate, delay, or remove from our to-do list.

but that's why spiritual practices, creative practices, reflective practices, don't need to feel like a chore: they are allowed to simply be supportive, enjoyable, relaxing, inspiring, stimulating, motivating, or whatever else you want them to be. these are things you get to choose, to customize, to adjust, as needed.

and regardless of what your tarot practice has been in the past: if your cards feel distant right now, or if you're struggling to find the magic in your practice, using a gigantic new spread or trying to sink back into an intensive tarot study might simply feel too challenging to be useful. forcing yourself to work with the cards the way you did in different times might actually not be possible, or healthy, or even useful.

i don't want you to just be banging your head against a wall (or a desk) here — i want you to actually start engaging with your cards in a way that's supportive and helpful. i want you to feel excited to pick up your deck again. i want you to be armed with questions and spreads that help you approach your day, or reflect on all that happened that day, with grace and ease. and i want you to get what you need from your practice — not what you think you should need, but what you truly and actually need.

a few reminders: first, your cards are not disappointed in you. you don't need to feel guilty if you haven't read tarot in a few days or weeks or months or even years. you don't need to mentally punish yourself for not prioritizing tarot above everything else recently, for not reading five times a day, for not having a big gorgeous tarot altar or doing twenty-card spreads all the time. the cards are not mad at you, and you haven't permanently damaged your tarot practice. it's gonna be okay.

to that end, you really can just start reading tarot again, whenever you're ready. you don't have to do a big cleansing or a big ritual or feel superstitious about picking your cards back up. it's very much fine and normal to just start working with the tarot again after a break, with little to no fanfare.

if you want to turn this new initiation into a special ceremony, by all means, do your thing and enjoy it — but it's not a requirement.

third: your rituals and habits might look different now than they used to. your tarot practice gets to evolve over time. and especially if you've been reading for awhile, if you've been evolving in a broader sense across different areas of your life, it makes sense that your relationship with the cards would evolve too.

there might be some grief that comes with this revelation, and i encourage you to hold space for those feelings as needed — but an evolving or shifting practice is normal, and i would even say that it can be healthy. don't be afraid to let that old ritual shift and grow alongside you, to try new things, to see what sticks this time around. don't cling to something old just because it's old, especially if it isn't actually working for you anymore — and don't judge yourself for craving something different.

fourth and finally, it's okay if it feels weird, or absurd, or uncomfortable to get back to your personal tarot readings, or to develop a new routine instead. creating a habit, or rebuilding a practice, takes time. revisiting a relationship that grew stale can feel awkward. your shuffles might be clumsy, or your interpretations might feel confusing.

the more you do it, the easier it will get — but especially at first, it might seem like you're doing something strange, or even something wrong. you're not. give yourself time to observe, to check in, and even to laugh at the strangeness if you need to. this may take some trial and error, and that's just fine.

so what makes a tarot ritual yours? and how do you figure out what's going to work best for you?

as ever, i encourage you to start with some reflection and introspection. what are you looking for from your regular readings, whether they're daily card pulls, weekly spreads, or something else entirely? what kind of support are you craving? what kinds of truth are you willing to hear? what are you afraid to ask or hear, that might be holding you back from a consistent practice? what would help set you up for the day or week or month ahead, or, what would allow you to reflect honestly and intentionally on the day or week or month that you have just moved through?

think about techniques, too. how many cards do you actually like to read at a time? which techniques help you focus, listen, absorb truths? (for example, do you actually like using reversals? or do you just feel like you should use reversals?) what feels good for your specifically right now, and how can you prioritize those preferences in your practice?

then, get practical. consider what kind of tarot reading or practice would support those goals, and how accessible that theoretical ritual actually is for you. think critically and realistically about how you can create a ritual that is going to directly set you up to receive what you need, without demanding more from you than you're capable of giving.

if you're someone who wants simple, to-the-point advice from your cards, asking the deck each morning something like "what do i need to keep in mind today?" or "what do i need to know today?" and pulling a single card might immediately help offer you some practical, accessible guidance.

but if, for example, you realize that you're actually more interested in building a slow gratitude practice, then a weekly reading that helps you celebrate the wonderful things that happened during the past seven days might ultimately be much more supportive for you right now. finding or creating a spread that you can use every single week might be a great way to build that routine from the ground up.

there are times when we need reality checks and wakeup calls, when it's important for the cards to call us on our bullshit or help us see something for what it really is. these are moments when the cards can empower us, encourage us, serve as the kick in the ass we need to summon our courage and take the big risk and do the damn thing.

but if you've been struggling with heavy emotions, fear, helplessness, or uncertainty; if the idea of asking your cards big questions sends your spiraling into a panic, i hereby give you permission to chill out and create a much simpler, gentler routine for yourself. it's okay to want the cards to not feel scary when the world feels scary, or to want something sweet when your circumstances taste bitter. learn to identify and ask for what you need from the cards, and it won't only serve you in your readings — it'll also serve you in your life.

if you're looking for some simple spreads that you can start using in the mornings or evenings, i highly recommend starting with my free am / pm tarot spreads. and don't forget that my spread archive is also completely free to access and includes dozens of spreads for various occasions, emotions, challenges, choices, and situations. and if you want help creating a personalized tarot spread to use for your daily or weekly or monthly practice, i will literally write you one.

your tarot readings don't have to be huge, complex, or intensive right now. pay attention to what you're really craving, and allow the cards to help you find it.

remember that if you'd like in-depth support for building morning or evening tarot rituals, for the next 24 hours my new mini books are on sale for just $10 each with code DAYANDNIGHT!

and since you read to the bottom of this email, a little secret: i haven't shut down yesterday's special offer yet, and i won't until the end of the week. if you'd like to participate in december's daily tarot container remember your strength, sign up now to also get my email journaling course strength & starlight for just $1.

more tomorrow 🖤