Last Year I Began My Journey into Tarot Card Readings, Here's What I've Learned So Far - Jessica Cobabe

Ever since I was a kid I have been into crystals, spells and gazing up at the moon so it was only a matter of time before I was destined to pick up a tarot deck. Honestly, I was super intimidated at the thought of tarot because I was afraid I was going to do it wrong or mess things up so I would often gravitate towards affirmation decks, oracles cards and things that seemed less complicated.

The first set of affirmation cards that I ever had were a gift from my mom. I had been through a really bad breakup and she would gently remind me that I am loved and to say affirmations in the mirror. I had a hard time even looking at myself in the mirror because I felt worthless. Then in the mail one day, I received a deck of hand written affirmation cards with little magazine cutouts for pictures that she had made me. I still have them and they are one of my most prized possessions.

The second time I experienced affirmation cards was at a Spa in Cabo. An affirmation card was left on my robe and it told me it was time to move on from my current job situation and I remember something in my gut told me it was spot on. My boss was toxic and terrifying and months later I had taken a leap of faith into the unknown and it was one of the best decisions I have ever made.

Trying My Hand at Tarot Readings

Last year I decided to try my hand at tarot and invested in not one, but two tarot decks. I thought I had found the perfect deck on Etsy last year and it was such a huge disappointment. The cards looked like they were a beautiful rose gold and foil deck but when they arrived (after almost 2 months of waiting) they were nothing like I had imagined and honestly would have returned them but the seller was less than helpful which basically gave them bad energy from the start. The other deck I have is lovely and minimalistic, I had seen at a REVOLVE event, but the cards are rather large making them less than ideal for shuffling and I realized that I had wanted them because I felt like that was what the ‘IT’ girls were using.

I carried them around with me for months but never felt all that drawn to them and so they basically just sat there collecting dust. Then one night late last year I remember doing a reading for my cousin in the basement of our grandparents house. I had no clue what I was doing, we were having a lovely spa night and we’d had a few drinks so after doing some skincare treatments we decided to bust out the tarot cards.

We were laughing so hard the whole time because I didn’t know if he was supposed to shuffle, was I supposed to shuffle? Who pulls the cards? What did they even mean? While we may not have gained much insight from the cards that night, I learned two valuable lessons: The first was to stop taking everything so seriously, I don’t need to be an expert at everything to enjoy it. The second thing was the only way I was going to get better at tarot readings is to do some research and practice.

Resources That Helped Me Learn How to Read Tarot Cards

I began Googling tarot cards for beginners and two articles really helped clarify things for me and empowered me to continue my journey:

How to Read Tarot Cards: A Beginners Guide to Understanding their Meaning

How to Do a Basic Tarot Reading for Yourself or a Friend

Below I am sharing some of my favorite resources that I have started using from my favorite tarot journal and meditation pillow to fun books that I have been reading on ancient self-care rituals and ways to honor the lunar calendar. I guest long story long is that if you are interested in learning more about Tarot cards and learning how to manifest your destiny the best thing you can do is trust your gut and be ready to fumble through it. You know what they say, perfection is the enemy of progress!

It wasn’t until my 38th birthday in February that I decided to invest in a deck that really felt like me. So I took to Google once again on a quest to find the perfect deck and that is when I found Threads of Fate and that is when everything changed. I know it sounds cheesy but it’s true! The cards were made of a heavy gold foil and ethereal color palette. The decks are almost $100 a piece and I was kind of nervous to invest that much money, but my birthday money was burning a hole in my pocket so I decided to pull the trigger. When they arrived I was blown away, they were everything I had dreamed of and more. The illustrations are absolutely lovely and the deck is filled with beautiful energy.

I have done a handful of readings with them so far and it blows my mind each time how the cards I pull specifically address the questions I am asking, to the point where the guidebook feels like it was written just for me. It has been such a fun journey that I am barely scratching the surface to and am so excited to dive deeper into learning the art of tarot.

All in all, I’m super excited about this journey and am happy to answer questions you might have but keep in mind, I am probably just googling the answers for you! 😉