What’s Tripping You Up? A New Tarot Spread
Sometimes change comes in odd packages. If there is something people always notice about you — a habit, a train of thought, a way of looking at things, a behavior — that you yourself can’t stand or don’t like dealing with? Could be that the Universe is pointing it out so you can choose what to do with it.
Sometimes we don’t let go of these negative items because we don’t know who we would be without them. Do they define you? Do they help you make sense of the world? Or are they just so ingrained that you can’t imagine not having them in your self-closet?
I’ve designed the “Trip You Up” Spread, to help you look at these sort of things and decide if you want to own it or dump it. Let’s take a look at the cards our subject Lonnie pulls when she has quit yet another organization because she couldn’t get along with the other people in it.
WHAT DO MOST PEOPLE POINT OUT ABOUT YOU THAT YOU DON’T LIKE? This is where you give voice and definition to the “sticky bit” that keeps cropping up.
The Princess (in some decks, the Page) of Pentacles often talks about someone who is done with learning and wants to teach. Lonnie admitted that yes, she thinks she knows more than the other people in most organizations and tries to show them the right way to do things…all the time.
WHY DO THEY FOCUS ON THAT NEGATIVE POINT? Here, the cards may help you with a little insight about what this habit/train of thought/behavior is always something that comes to people’s immediate attention.
The Six of Pentacles does indeed say assistance is a good thing — but when asked for, not forced on someone. Notice that the two people in the card are holding their hands up to the wealthy man; he is neither demanding their attention, nor their servitude.
HOW HAS THAT PARTICULAR “POINTING OUT” SERVED YOU? What is it that knowing about this uncomfortable truth has brought you?
With the Four of Pentacles, I was intrigued to see that we were continually getting the Pentacle cards, which are specifically about the value of something. And I was especially interested on what the card says in relationships: “your deep rooted fear of abandonment causes you to cling to a relationship that hasn’t worked for some time.”
In other words, if this is a repeating pattern, isn’t it time for Lonnie to find out what it would be like not to try and “fix” every situation?
WHAT WOULD YOU LOSE IF YOU DUMPED IT? Here you need to dig deep to learn and acknowledge what makes this sticking point useful to you.
Judgement says that if Lonnie stopped trying to run the show all the time, her inner “Judge” couldn’t keep her ego front-and-center. Here, Lonnie sheepishly admits that she is always worried that people think she isn’t good enough and so constantly running things helps her “prove it” — to herself, if no one else.
WHAT WOULD YOU GAIN IF YOU DUMPED IT? Believe it or not, loss can indeed sometimes be a gain. What would come into your life in a positive manner if you ditched this particular problem-child?
The Queen of Swords says that if Lonnie leaves others to run things, it means that she would be able to look more deeply at what is important to her WITHOUT worrying about other opinions. Yes, this Queen is often an independent woman who works alone — but she relishes it.
Altogether, these cards helped Lonnie understand that she was so addicted to other people’s approval of her that she didn’t know who she would be if she was on her own.
And THE RESULT WOULD BE…
The King of Swords: I chuckled on this one. Because when Lonnie becomes the Queen who does not need to rule others, she would find her King — a thinking man who relished working with her and who would be a true partner in whatever project she cared to undertake.
This spread asks you to think deeply about the answers and acknowledge some tough ideas — but if you are serious about wanting to make changes in your life, this will be a useful tool for stepping up to those sometimes hard-to-swallow turnarounds.
