This column is dedicated to my tarot twin Val, who knows what I am going to before I do. Thank you sweetie for being a great friend and mentor, and inspiring this month's column.
Now I've got the sappiness out of the way I must apologise for my long goodbye. It was never my intention to disappear for four months. I managed to get a really good job and that has been taking up most of my time and energy so tarot was put on the back burner for a while. It was necessary but I'd be lying if I said that I didn't feel guilty about it. Once again my career took centre stage and everything else suffered a bit for a while. I definitely had Temperance issue, but now I think I have achieved a better balance. I've also had to make changes regarding the publication of this column. Instead of writing a column every week I am going to write one at the beginning of the month probably on the first Sunday, my work schedule permitting.
When I was unemployed I promised myself that once I got a job I would buy myself the Tarot of Dreams, which I duly purchased after passing my probation period. Now I had said to myself that I would not need any more decks after buying that one. Yes I can hear you all chuckling in the back row at that… I even posted on how it was a strange feeling not to have any decks on my wishlist… That lasted about ooooh two hours until I found some books and a deck. The deck in question is the Bright Idea deck.
This is proof positive if any were needed that I suffer from Tarot Mania Syndrome or TMS. Possible symptoms of this affliction include always having decks that you want to purchase, decks screaming BUY ME!! in shops and running out of space to store them. A sufferer is always on the look out for new decks, and it is also a common feature of this syndrome that you may purchase more than one deck at a time. It is not solely confined to decks it may also apply to bags and tarot related books as well.
A tarot mentor or buddy is a very good thing to have but for a TMS sufferer it can have far reaching consequences. A friend may innocently show you pictures of a deck that he or she may have acquired and it almost instantly ends up on your wish list. Of course one can exert some degree of self control but once you have TMS, you have it for life. I know it happened to me today with the Hanson-Roberts deck now also appearing on my list.
As well as the inevitable consequences for one's bank balance, there are also other things TMS sufferers have to negotiate such as the reactions of their family and friends on hearing you may have purchased another deck. Reactions vary but common ones include 'Not another deck!' or 'Why do you need another one for?' For those who suffer from Tarot Mania Syndrome the answer can be quite simple. For each tarot deck that we own, it is like having another friend to consult and confide in. Each deck provides with a valuable different insight into our lives, and helps us make better decisions. To us, each new deck gives us a better understanding our ourselves. That alone is worth the occasional strain on the bank balance.
I leave you now with my own wishlist.
Decks
Books
Seventy Eight Degrees of Wisdom by Rachel Pollack
The Forest of Souls by Rachel Pollack
Mary K. Greer's 21 Ways to Read a Tarot Card by Mary K Greer
