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A Mirror and A Map | blog by Shara Morales | October 2024

Tarot Storytime: A Mirror and A Map

I recently met a bright little girl who had never seen herself in the mirror.

She was living in a very rudimentary home with her parents in a rural vineyard in the north of Spain. I was on a pilgrimage early in September, and as it happened, the strong winds made me lose my map – my GPS – and my way that day. I took respite in this little girl’s cozy home; I was informed I was farther from the road than I had originally thought, so I needed to stay a couple of days to recover my energy and orientation.

Like a bubbling headwater, an exquisite friendship unexpectedly emerged. She wanted to show me everything around, the talking trees and the curvy river and her parents’ fresh harvest: round and luscious nectarines, prunes, apples, and colorful disjointed grapes – some sweet and fluffy, others hard and sour, and others almost half-rotten or dry. In a whirlwind, her mother ushered us into the kitchen to help her make marmalade.

Next day, when the wind had quieted down, we bathed by the river. I had brought my kit with my hairbrush and a pocket mirror with me. When I was brushing my hair, she peered with curiosity; there she was, her pure reflection looking back at her, with her vibrant almond eyes, dirty cheeks, and heart-shaped lips. Her eyes became as big as stars.

“Is that me?” she asked. I was surprised she had never seen herself in a mirror. I gently said “Yes.”

“Oh, is this really me?” she asked again louder. Her mouth wide open in amazement, she was touching her face in disbelief. “Oh, is this lovely face mine?”

This time, she was not questioning, but letting her image enter deep into her heart, bewildered and grateful. She couldn’t help swirling, “Thank God, I am beautiful, I am like an angel!” she yelled.

She was enraptured, in a way I had never seen before. I don’t mean in a Narcissistic way, but in a way filled by a love of wonder; a love of truth, a love of self-recognition… a love of one-self  upon seeing oneself for the first time, like both a familiar friend and a beautiful stranger.  She and I returned to her house –  “back home” – to a home that was new to her and now changed  I joined her in sweet self-appreciation and self-recognition.

A true Tarot reading is like that. It is a mirror and a map. Every card opens for an extraordinary inner meeting, like seeing oneself for the first time. 

Sometimes we might think that the mirror can be scary, unflinching, and harsh. Sometimes a spread can feel like an unpredictable lottery of triggers and affirmations.  Yet deep down Tarot is a map and a mirror, a gift that can help us locate and ground ourselves, to recover the rhythms of nature, wherever we are, whatever the season.

A true Tarot reading redirects our attention and energy to what matters: To nourishment, to creating the needed inner and outer space to move again in resonance with life, to discovering ourselves within this space, to naming what is going on, to relating the colors and the shapes of our experiences with the others around us, just as we are, just as they are.

The very next day I got my map back – or rather, I finally could access the GPS to find my location. It was time for me to return to the world, and that included teaching Tarot. The little girl and I promised to be in touch; she kept the mirror, and I kept a marmalade jar.

The experience was a moment where time and life as I know it were suspended briefly.  It transported me and forever altered the life of the girl,  my newest friend.  But it also changed me and left me with some questions: What can we make with the inner harvest of this season – making sweet preserves with the fruits of our experience? Are we – am I – ready to look inward, into look the mirror of the world as if for the first time and position oneself back on the map in the right direction, realizing one’s life purpose?

Sometimes when we face the strong winds of change, life can feel scary, as if we are losing our way. For those times, let me suggest this little girl’s prayer: “Oh, God, let me see the truth no matter how beautiful.”

Tarot is a map and a mirror unlike any other book of images you will encounter.  If you are ready to see the truth, try Tarot.  SOI’s approach to Tarot, which is the basis of my Tarot practice and teaching, is especially powerful, meaningful, and practical.

~Shara Morales, SOI Certified Practitioner

Shara is teaching several Tarot courses of varying lengths, cost and level of skill for SOI in the 2024-25. Please check the SOI Calendar for details. Sign up for SOI Tarot starting October 26!