With all of the cultural and spirit-driven holidays occurring this weekend ranging from the playful to the ritual, it might be meaningful for you to take some time this weekend and think about what you’ve learned and continue to learn from lost loved ones and express gratitude. Whether  or not you celebrate any of the holidays — Halloween, Samhain, All Hallows’ Eve, All Saints Day or Day of the Dead — this weekend is a great half-way point for reflection and meditation on the cycle of life and death. The take-away will inspire you for months to come. I promise you this.

Ask the tough questions: What old way of being needs to die? Where is your weak spot? What habit needs to be broken? What karmic family pattern need to be released? Even though the pattern is not serving you anymore, what have you learned from it?

Tarot deck used: Morgan Greer tarot

Ask lost loved ones to help you answer the tough questions and see if you get a response. Meditation is a powerful tool.

Write down the messages you receive on a piece of paper and burn it to symbolically release the old way of being.

Halloween also acts as a social kick-off to a holiday season that will last until the end of this year. As the days get shorter, darker and colder and we prepare for the winter months physically, mentally, and emotionally many of us retreat indoors to be with our community. Keep yourself warm and snug by making meals, talk about favorite family meals from childhood, tell stories from the past, look at old photographs and simply remember days gone by.

November is a strong month for remembering the dead but also communicating with the living. How you communicate will be important at social and family functions.

A tarot card that keeps coming up for many people for the month of November is the Queen of Swords. People who are represented by the Queen of Swords are clear communicators, they think things through, use a direct and strategic approach with their communication and have clear boundaries. Boundaries are so important when it comes to celebrations and social functions. What kind of boundaries do you uphold for yourself at this time?  Remember that it is ok to set time limits around how long you stay at social functions. You can also choose who you interact with and for how long. If there are some social niceties that need to take place, be cordial and stick with the facts during communication and skip the stories that create drama.

Your work? Strive to laugh more and bitch less. Rise above it.

For the month of November, I will be doing tarot readings that tackle tough communication questions with family, friends and coworkers. If you want to learn more about navigating tricky social functions or family/work drama seek me out.

Monday from 6 to 9 at Night Light Lounge

Tuesday from 6 to 9 at Corkscrew Wine Bar

Thursday from 6 to 9 at What’s Upstairs