This week, I am so excited to review an exciting new deck that I got from my new friends over at Weiser Books. I am really enjoying working with this deck and, if you enjoy Tarot, I think you will too!

The Uncommon Tarot is a deck that was produced by Shaheen Miro, and it includes commentary by Theresa Reed (aka “The Tarot Lady”, aka one of the fountains of Tarot knowledge that helped me get started and confident with the Tarot).

I think what catches me with this deck, right from the start, is how…well…uncommon it is. When we think of Tarot illustrations, I personally tend to go to any number of iterations of the Rider-Waite-Smith deck and I tend to focus largely on the drawings or illustrations themselves. As such, the “drawing chops” of any one artist tend to make up the vast majority of my impression of the deck. Better drawn decks feel more exciting to me. In short…I’m a shallow, shallow person when it comes to the decks that attract me.

However, in this deck, Miro leans on his (exceptional) skills as a mixed-media artist to create artwork that feels like a patchwork of colorful symbols, rich juxtaposition, and collective feelings. In this way, the deck becomes about much more than its artwork (although the mixed-media approach is stunning and will scratch a different itch than other decks you have). It feels like it honors what makes Tarot so beautiful to me: that it isn’t about the clean interpretations and personal reflections of any single person. Instead, as The Uncommon Tarot reminds me, the art of Tarot reading itself is about honoring and layering the traditions of the previous centuries and countless voices that have built it into what it is today.

As you unwrap this deck, you can feel the time and attention that have been put into the details. From the strength of the magnets, to the structured binding of the “little white book,” what makes this deck so impressive are the details that constitute it.

The little white book itself (which it appears was written by Theresa, or some combination of both her and Shaheen) hits exactly the balance I personally appreciate:

1. It is a welcome and accessible guide for someone new to Tarot
2. It provides a familiar, yet personal interpretation of the cards to stretch the practice of even seasoned readers
3. It gives you guidance for interpretation of the cards without providing a direct interpretation you are expected to simply regurgitate

For the part we’re all always waiting for…just have a look at the cards. They really are outstanding. I will say that some of the imagery rings of a time and aesthetic that I tend not to be the biggest fan of myself…but something about this deck hits differently. The use and appreciation of color, the blending of traditional Rider-Waite-Smith symbols with the artist’s own flair, and the bold combinations and comparisons between images make this deck stand out among any I have seen before. It establishes Miro’s place both as an artist and as a medium himself.

If you are researching this deck, I suggest that you not pay too much attention to the images you can see online. No pictures I have seen to date (including my own) really capture the essence of how bright these colors are, and the distinct details of the deck. If you have a chance to see it in person, I highly suggest it, but I am personally very picky and very pleased with this deck when it comes to that.

As far as shuffling goes, I have to say I think I’ve met my match. I typically prefer exceptionally thick decks, but there is something about the structure of these cards that lends them to be equal parts durable and ready for shuffling. And the card siding is a gorgeous metallic silver that I haven’t seen done this well before. If you do prefer the thick, clumpy shuffling experience, these cards have more of a buttery glide to them that may require you to shift your traditional mechanics. I like my cards to grip a bit tighter, but other than that don’t personally mind much, and I enjoy the feel of the individual card as you hold and interpret it.

All in all, I really adore this deck. Especially for folks who study cards for symbols to latch onto in order to guide their readings, I relish this choice. Shaheen Miro has built something of which I think he should be incredibly proud, and I am so excited to incorporate it into my own practice.

It’s hard to look the same card in the face, day-after-day, and not feel a little…singled out. It feels, childish, of course. It’s just a card after all, you tell yourself, so why does it feel like it won’t leave me alone?

Look, it’s not a particularly new concept: we HEAR what we NEED to hear WHEN we need to hear it. Sometimes, “hearing it” just means being beaten over the head with a message until we accept it. Don’t blame me, I’m not the Three of Swords popping up when you decided to download Tinder for the third time this month after promising yourself you, “would spend some time getting back to your core.” The cards that are meant for us will follow us when the time is right for them to do so.

For me, this card has always been The Queen of Wands. And, when I started reading, I took offense to her. Sure, this lady is warm and cool and collected…but she struck me as a little bit of a know-it-all. I don’t tend to like leaders who know they are good leaders. It isn’t interesting to me when people are aware that they are talented.

After I noticed her popping up all over the place, I didn’t believe this phenomenon could be anything more than an accident. I chalked it up to the cut dimensions of the cards being ever-so-slightly distinct, making some cards a fraction of a millimeter wider, and thus making them easier to pull. Even between two different decks. Even somehow convincing myself that three decks later, the measurement disparity was some sort of conspiracy. It didn’t take long for me to realize, however, that I could shuffle and cut the deck in a dozen different ways, controlling for physics, and the messages would still be there…even if the deck needed to use other cards to get me to the same conclusion. There is no escaping it…and I had to start asking myself why I wanted to escape my reading in the first place.

…Did I really get into tarot only to reject the divine messages coming my way?

The reason so many of us find our way to divination tools is because they offer us answers that we can’t find elsewhere. Some of us have too many options, and we hate making decisions for ourselves. Others don’t trust that any action we take will be the correct one. Whatever your reason is for choosing to invest the time and energy in this practice, channel it before you draw. Each and every time. Accept the guidance you are being given, and find ways to apply it, or take a break from asking for the guidance to begin with! A break isn’t a bad thing…but going into a tarot reading with conditions for accepting the outcome…that’s a bad thing.

Over time, The Queen of Wands had helped me realize what I need to conquer about myself. My own appetite for excellence, being great in the eyes of others, succeeding; these are the things I have allowed to compel me throughout my life. She was sent to me as a totem to recognize that what I resent in other people is what I display myself. She helped me realize how to empathize with them and accept what I shouldn’t be judging, while also deciding what elements of my own inspiration I find acceptable, and what needs to change. It’s taken a lot of time for me to sit with that and to alter my leadership style accordingly.

As a sidebar, please also remember that the cards we see in our readings aren’t the only elements of importance. Just as impactful as the cards that we see every day or every few readings, are those cards that really just don’t seem too interested in us. The cards that evade us at every turn. These cards can help remind us what messages we DON’T need (often because we have moved past previous crises or have done the shadow work that helped us grow and evolve). Don’t you think that a reminder of all the hurdles you have overcome, and a vantage point on your own growth is a valuable reflection point?

I haven’t seen The Star in a reading for myself in months. I pulled it for a client the other day and had to remind myself of its meanings because it had just been so long since I had to think about it. But that makes sense…my life is in a pretty happy spot, to be honest. I’m not seeking out new inspiration and sources of hope…I’m feeling grounded and connected to the earth. It would be a bit of an energetic waste to remind me what I realize every day: The world is a massive and gorgeous pool of inspiration and opportunity. I’m lucky enough that my worldview has incorporated that truth into my default understanding. So I let The Star spend her energy helping a new batch of graduates realize their potential. I let her remind my friends of the raw potential that accompanies a job transition. I’m going to hang out with The Queen of Wands to remind me that, on occasion, it’s okay to look around and realize that it’s okay to know I’ve got a grip on it all.

And yet, for those willing to take the chance, the leap can bring joy, adventure, and finally, for those with the courage to keep going when the wonderland becomes more fearsome than joyous, the leap can bring knowledge, peace, and liberation.”

— Rachel Pollack

I’ve always been fascinated by Tarot. From the first time I saw a card shuttered behind the squeaky hinge of a cabinet in an antique store when I was young, it felt like a mystical art to me. More than that — it felt like a passion I had forgotten.

It took me almost 30 years to get back to passion I left behind before truly discovering. On a work trip to New Orleans, I got my copy of Arthur Waite’s The Pictoral Key to the Tarot, found it endlessly confusing (if you haven’t given it a shot, it’s written like an academic text), and moved on to more…contemporary methods of clamoring my way into enlightenment.

I could spend hours yammering on about my love of the metaphysical world and my spiritual connection to the people I share space with, but this journey is more about us than it’s about me. I feel connected to this idea of bringing more people into appreciation and use of Tarot, and I want to make it easy to ask difficult questions — to stumble your way into your first reading with half a heart and an eyebrow raised. It’s okay if you aren’t fully on board with “this stuff.” I want to help you sort through your thoughts. Whether you feel they are divinely guided by spirits or whether you want to see Tarot as a physical tool to talk through your needs, hopes, fears, and competing drives, I want to make myself available as a guide.

Put simply…I want to be your Bro.

About that word: “Bro,”…let’s get it out of the way–it feels as weird to say and I’m sure it does to hear. But hey, it rhymes, and it works with the ideals I’m trying to uphold. Humor me?

As I continue on this journey, I’ll talk more about my philosophies and my approaches, but for now I just want to leave it at this: I believe that there is something in Tarot for everyone. If it’s not “for you” today, that’s cool with me. But if you want to challenge or explore the notion, I’m here with and open mind and a penchant for writing and conversation. Whether you are a seasoned Tarot veteran, or someone hearing about it for the first time, a college quarterback, or a middle-aged housewife, let’s be Bros, shall we?