Tarot of Queries
Iris Seaton | October 6, 2022
This week’s queries: What should I do with time off? What is the best way for me to relax before getting back to my usual routine? What have I been neglecting that I could pick back up during some time down?
Consider these prompts, then choose a number 1-3 that you feel most drawn to. Scroll down to find the card associated with your number and hover your mouse over the card to read.
1
If you chose this card, consider the following:
You’ve been charging towards your goals, whether they are related to school, work or something else. Maybe you’ve been excited to succeed, maybe you’re anxious about your progress. No matter how you feel about these goals, taking a break can’t hurt. Your progress won’t disappear just because you’re focusing on something else for a defined period of time! Don’t use whatever time you have off SOLELY for the purpose of catching up or getting ahead on your work. Remember to give yourself a real chance to relax and enjoy yourself. Allowing yourself rest will make you MORE efficient when things go back to normal.
If you’re not totally comfortable with the idea of taking a break, consider taking a moment to plan. A structure for this time away from your usual routine can help you relax into your time off! Decide what you want to do with this time and figure out the best way to transition back into your usual school routine when your break is over.
If it feels strange or induces anxiety to be idle after working hard all term, remember that self-care and free time mean different things to different people! Some people function best when they have a week to lay in bed and watch their favorite shows; some may want to take hikes every day; others might enjoy painting or writing — there is no ‘wrong’ way to relax. If the classic ‘face masks and movie nights’ deal works for you, great! If not, maybe your version of self care is something different. Consider what level of activity YOU need to feel invigorated when you return to your normal routine.
2
If you chose this card, consider the following:
Contrary to popular belief, The Lovers does not always refer to romantic relationships! While it can mean romance, it can also refer to bonds of any kind or even true self-love. Have you been neglecting love in your life, whatever that looks like to you? If a specific example comes to mind, that’s probably where you should be looking first. Communicate, reorient and decide if your relationships with others have been serving you. Have you been speaking to yourself unkindly? Do you need to call home more often? Have you been missing a certain friend? A break from your usual routine is the perfect time to focus on remedying these issues.
If you’ve been isolating due to midterms or for any other reason, perhaps your break should include deliberate diversion from your typical ‘time off’ plans! Pay attention to your needs and respect that you may require some time to get away from the world in order to relax, but remember that isolation can make depression and other issues even harder to manage. Get out of your comfort zone and try making plans with friends, family or partners!
Alternatively, perhaps you’ve been spending too MUCH time focusing on your people. It’s easy to prioritize the comfort of the people around you or to let the fear of missing out make other areas of your life more difficult. There’s no need to isolate yourself completely unless that’s what feels right to you, but make sure you aren’t burning yourself out interpersonally. No one who truly cares about you will be angry that you’re basing more of your routine around your own needs. Enjoy your time off with friends, family or partners if you want to, but make sure you’re getting time to yourself that feels meaningful. Focusing on yourself doesn’t make you a worse person. You don’t need to compromise your own needs in order to meet others’.
3
If you chose this card, consider the following:
You are EXHAUSTED, huh? The Ten of Swords is a card that signifies something big and unpleasant has happened to you. Don’t deny yourself the right to be upset. It can be tempting to try and sweep your pain under the rug when you get a break — but trying to completely avoid addressing something bad that’s happened to you is not true self-care. Maybe you’re not ready to take major steps towards healing. Try your best not to bottle things up, either. Ride the wave of your emotions — feel them come up, sit with them, then let them go.
On the other hand, desperately trying to damage control something rarely makes anything better, particularly if the issue isn’t totally in your control in the first place. Again, fully bottling your emotions up is one end of an unhelpful spectrum. Ignoring a need for rest in favor of spending every moment thinking about or actively attempting to fix your issues is the other end. It is most likely to make things worse, not better.
This may be obvious, but in case someone needs to hear it — you are not weak, stupid or bad for suffering. Your problems may seem ‘small’ in comparison to others’. So don’t compare them. Your suffering is your own, you aren’t being selfish or ungrateful by feeling bad. There is always someone doing worse; there is always someone doing better. Everyone responds to obstacles differently, you’re not doing it the ‘wrong’ way.