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If you’ve ever felt silly whilst attempting to learn the tarot, or thought about learning but fear you’ll be out of your depth, Maria DeBlassie’s new book is just the one for you. Conversations With the Tarot is a concise and interesting depiction of learning the tarot, helpful in making new learners comfortable on their own journeys. DeBlassie describes how she spent seventy-eight weeks writing a seventy-eight word description of her connection to a card that she drew every morning. Her practice of writing a word for every card for seventy eight weeks straight deepened her respect and understanding of the tarot and she takes the reader right along on a journey with her.
For each of the cards, DeBlassie writes a short poem on the card itself, and then a seventy-eight word report on her insights on the card and how its representation applies to her life. Upon her drawing of the High Priestess she discusses the “divine feminine energy” of the card and how “she is one with herself and one with the world in all its aspects.” The book cultivates the reader’s relationship with the cards through the example of interpretation before any personal practice has begun.
As a wary learner of the tarot myself, DeBlassie explains the cards in a way that makes them seem much less like frightening and mystical objects used only in books and movies, and more like a healthful spiritual practice applicable to everyday life. She encourages readers to “take comfort in knowing that none of us know what we’re doing when we first start developing a relationship with the tarot but, in retrospect, we see patterns emerging in terms of how we read and understand the cards.”
You can find a copy HERE.
Madeline Mertz is FTM's editorial intern and is a Truman State University student with literary journal experience.