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THE FUTURE IS IN THE CARDS

By Hilary Hagerman

Let the art of Tarot lead you into 2009. But don’t expect an itinerary — take Tarot with a grain of salt.

Salako Kalfou, Director of the Occult Research Bureau in Toronto, said Tarot readings don’t actually determine one’s destiny.

“A Tarot spread indicates a likely or possible future. To know the future alters it.”

There are 78 cards in a Tarot deck. Cards zero to 21 are the Major Arcana and the rest are similar to a regular card deck, except there’s an extra court card — The Page. The suits are Wands, Cups, Swords and Pentacles. This is the Minor Arcana.

Georgianna Boehnke from The Tarot Room said the biggest misconception is that the cards are magical or demonic. Boehnke said the Devil card is most often wrongly labelled as evil. “They’re just cardboard with pictures.”

With some simple math, you can find out which Tarot card represents your personality.

STEP 1: Take your birthday, and add the day, month and year. Eg. Jan. 2, 1988: 1+2+1988=1991

STEP 2: Add those numbers together. 1+9+9+1=20

STEP 3: Check out your personality card:

0 or 22) The Fool: You are the life of the party and take chances.

1) The Magician: You are an ideas person with strong imagination.

2) High Priestess: You are sensitive to the most subtle energies.

3) The Empress: You are compassionate and nurturing.

4) The Emperor: You are assertive, confident and usually in charge.

5) The Hierophant: You are grounded, and people look to you to make decisions.

6) The Lovers: You care deeply about your friends, family and lovers.

7) The Chariot: You are always moving. You are determined and loyal.

8) Justice: Balance is very important to you, and you strive to maintain it.

9) The Hermit: You prefer to be alone, but you thoroughly enjoy life.

10) Wheel of Fortune: New opportunities keep your life interesting.

11) Strength: You have a fiery nature, but balance that with mental peace.

12) The Hanged Man: You see the importance of sacrifice and patience.

13) Death: You know it is important to let go of things and move forward.

14) Temperance: Internal balance and harmony is important to you.

15) The Devil: You are intense and can sometimes be obsessive.

16) The Tower: You are extremely strong, especially when life gets hard.

17) The Star: You are always optimistic, even in the bleakest situations.

18) The Moon: You’re mysterious, and have a depth to your personality.

19) The Sun: You’re playful and fun, and enjoy being centre of attention.

20) Judgment: You have integrity and people rely on your truthfulness.

21) The World: You are enthusiastic and ready to try almost anything. You enjoy life and encourage others.

Ryerson’s forecast: What’s in store for 2009?

January: The Page of Cups. There is a new enthusiasm and optimism. It’s fresh, free and open. It’s a good time to get along and not get too heavy.

February: The Knight of Cups. There’s still optimism and joy. Social networks are at the forefront now. Make sure you’re doing something that grounds you because there might be a tendency to just let it go.

March: The Ten of Swords. There will be a mind shift where worry comes into play. Do you want to hang on to old battles or not? Are you beating yourself up for no reason? Don’t let pain from memories get in your way.

April: The Ace of Cups. This is the card of abundance. But there’s this desire for more. There’s a little bit of discontent brewing.

May: Wealth. There’s going to be upturn in May. It’s about prosperity. Gather your eggs and your seeds because you’re going to need them to plant something new soon.

June: The Queen of Cups. Start emotionally committing to something. What do you want to do about another person or relationship?

July: Five of Disks. In July, everybody worries. It will be a tightening-of-your-belt-type time. Just keep moving and you’ll be OK.

August: Three of Cups. Everybody’s happy again. It’s about enjoying, dancing and sharing. Remember your friends and remember love.

September: The Chariot. Something major starts happening. Something has to be done, there’s going to be big movement and decisions. Perseverance is vital. Stay true to yourself, stay true to the bigger picture and move.

October: The Tower. Something serious is going on September to October. Something will shock us all. It’s time to rebuild and anything can go. Put a star on October 2009.

November: Two of Disks. It’s back to being in control. Change is taking place, but it’s harmonious. It’s change that has to happen. There will be busy, detailed work.

December: Nine of Cups. These are award cups. It hasn’t been easy, but you did it. There is openness, generosity and balance.

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