Finding Light In A Heavy Season: Key Themes From The Tarot For The Month Ahead

Feb 3

Episode 11: Finding Light In A Heavy Season

This episode encourages you to zoom out and approach emotions with curiosity rather than judgement. If you’re in a season of needing a little encouragement and support, then this episode might resonate with you.

Episode Details

Summary

In this episode, I’m offering something a little different and sharing a collective tarot reading for the month of February. This reading was inspired by my own need for grounding and clarity during a time when the energy has been feeling especially heavy, both personally and collectively.

The overall theme invites us to notice small glimmers of light and inspiration, even when things feel dark or uncertain. I explore how creativity, expression, and moments of goodness can become anchors during challenging seasons.

The supporting cards encourage us to zoom out, soften perfectionism, and approach our emotional landscape with curiosity rather than judgment. This episode also touches on the value of mentorship, learning, and allowing ourselves to go deeper with the guidance and tools that support us.

This reading is an invitation to move gently, stay flexible, and trust that even discomfort can illuminate the path forward. When we allow ourselves to notice the light that already exists, we create space for hope, connection, and growth to emerge.

This episode is for you if…

You’re curious about expanding your tarot practice and using it as a grounding force to create monthly themes
You’re feeling lost or stuck and want to return to a place of trust and flexibility
You’re in need of some self-compassion and want to let go of self-judgement
You’re looking for support as you navigate your emotional landscape and inner world
You’re going through a period of growth and could use a light as you navigate the darkness

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Welcome to The Shoreline, where we explore the tender in-between seasons of the human experience. My name is Kim, and I'm here to support you as you navigate your next becoming. Here, we don't fix, we listen. We don't rush, we allow. Hello and welcome. I'm so glad you're here. For this episode, I've been toying with the idea of doing something a little bit different, and all roads have kind of been pushing me in this direction. So today, I'm going to be offering a collective tarot reading for the month of February. This is inspired by someone who I really look up to, Lee Harris and his guides, The Zs. Every month, they offer an energy update, where he talks about some different themes that he gets from his guides. And I've found his energy updates really grounding and supportive and aligned for me personally. And so taking that as kind of inspiration, I thought that I would offer you a tarot reading for the month of February. And this feels particularly aligned and important, because right now, the energy just feels really heavy, both for the collective and for me personally. And when I start to feel a little bit lost, when life feels really heavy, I find it's important to come back to the tools I know and one of the tools that always supports me is tarot. And so that's what I would like to offer you. A tarot reading, I'm going to pull some cards and just talk about the different themes that come up. So let's go ahead and get into it. For this reading, I'm going to be using the animal spirit deck and the tarot deck from The Wild Unknown. These are two decks that I've been using since I started doing tarot about nine years ago. They're the decks that I use when I do readings for others, and they're just always the ones I want to come back to. So again, I'll be using the animal spirit deck and the regular tarot deck from The Wild Unknown. And I'm going to be doing what's called a clarity reading. It's a four-card spread. There will be one card that's kind of the overall theme, and then three cards that are kind of the supporting elements or the factors at play. This reading, the clarity reading or spread, is the same spread that I use. If you were to book a one-on-one call with me for the Shoreline coaching sessions, this is kind of the same draw that I would do. So this gives you a little taste of what that might look like and what a clarity reading might look like, just kind of in a different way, because this is going to be more of a collective energy reading and not personalized to you. So let's go ahead and get into the cards. The first card that I drew is the overall theme for the month of February, and it's from the Animal Spirit deck. The card that I drew is the Firefly. This card is part of the air sign kind of set of cards, and the image on the card is very dark. There's a lot of kind of black on the card with a small drawing of a firefly in the center and a little bit of light radiating out from the firefly. And I really like this image because I think that the essence of this card is really guiding you to look at obstacles and challenges and difficulty in a different way. I like to kind of look at what's in my path as if it's intentional, as if it was put there to push me into a certain direction. And I think that this card is kind of reflecting that and showing that like during dark times or heavy times, there is opportunity for light. And in fact, maybe there is more opportunity for light, for creativity, for connection than if maybe everything was just sunny and perfect and fine. I think that this card is really guiding us to look for glimmers in our life. I've talked about this before that we're wired as humans to be constantly looking at what's wrong. And this isn't to say that you should just turn away from whatever is happening in your life. But I think it's about taking intentional time and space to allow the good in. This is a theme that's been coming up for me lately. I've been noticing just how unfamiliar it is for me after kind of going through a really difficult year to just allow things to be good, to allow myself to be okay, to take in positive experiences. And when the energy is heavy, when life feels really hard, that's what is important. And it doesn't have to be something big. It's about looking at those moments in your day where you can just take a deep breath and say, like, this is what I'm looking forward to. Maybe it's your morning cup of coffee, or maybe it's a walkout side, or maybe it's intentional time with your family, but just looking for those little glimmers of goodness, of hope, and just allowing it to kind of permeate into your being. And the other side of this card, I think, is really talking to creativity and inspiration. I think there's opportunity for really beautiful art to come through when we're struggling as a collective. And so this card is kind of encouraging you to take any bits of inspiration you get and really run with them. Make something. Create. Express yourself. Whatever that looks like, take what you can. And when those little bits of inspiration come in, use them and find a way to to express and allow that energy to really come in through you and go full circle and be released through expression. So that's kind of the overall themes that I'm seeing is really the energy to me feels really heavy. There's a lot going on. And yet, there is opportunity for connection, for hope, for light, for creativity, for inspiration. And how can we find those bits and allow them into our space, into our being? One thing that I really love about the animal spirit deck from The Wild Unknown is there's a bit in the guidebook at the bottom that talks about when the energy of the card is in balance, when it's out of balance, and what you can do to bring the energy into balance. And I love sharing these bits. I don't usually share too literally from the guidebook, but I just find these bits to be so helpful. So for the Firefly card, when it's in balance, writes creates brainstorms. So really tapping into creative energy, into inspiration, when out of balance, burnt out feels dull. And to bring into balance, write a poem or draw. So you don't have to, if you're not a writer, if you don't like to draw, you don't have to do those things. But I would say like to bring this energy into balance, find a way to express yourself creatively. Maybe it's through writing or a visual art, drawing, painting, maybe it's collage, maybe it's dancing or singing, whatever it is, find what works for you and find a way to get that creative energy out into the world. Okay, so let's get into kind of the supporting elements of this Firefly theme. For the supporting elements, I drew from the Wild Unknown tarot deck. So let's just get into it. The first card that I drew was the Daughter of Swords. The Daughter of Swords is another air card, which means that it has to do with our minds, with kind of intellect. And this card in particular is about, to me, it holds kind of the energy of perfectionism. This card is about having really good insights, but also kind of seeing too much. And whenever this card comes up for me, I think about just kind of zooming my perspective out a little bit, to kind of look at it more from like a bird's eye view, instead of looking at things kind of really close. And I think that in relation to the overall theme of the Firefly, this card is really asking you to kind of just take a step back and to kind of look at things from that greater perspective and to not always look at all of the little things that could have been done differently. Again, it's kind of that like what's wrong attention that I've talked about before. And instead of looking at all of the little ways that things can go wrong, all of the little mistakes in your days, in your weeks, can you zoom out a little bit and look at kind of overarching themes and look at maybe what's going right, what's good? Because I think that gives us the opportunity to really shift our perspectives and to kind of raise our energy a little bit and let go of a little bit of that heaviness. I think of like when I'm feeling super on edge or super stressed, it's like, I just want to cling tight to everything and I'll be gripping something really hard and not even realize it. And it's like, can you just let go a little bit? Can you take a step back? Can you release the need to tend to every little detail to try and plan out every single moment in your life? I think that this card is really asking us to release some rigidity. How can we be a little bit more flexible and find that flow? And flow doesn't always mean only doing what feels light, bright, good. It's more about in what ways in your life are you going against the current? And can you find a more easeful way to navigate? Can you kind of go with the current and allow it to give you a little bit of momentum instead of working so hard and trying to paddle against it? Because the current's going to be there no matter what. If you've ever been in a boat, on a paddleboard, in a kayak, you kind of can get that, understand that sensation of like when you're trying to like go against the current and you're not working with it, it's really a lot more work than if you were just kind of like, okay, where's the water taking me? And how can I use that flow to get where I want to go? It's about working with what's in your path instead of trying to work against it. So that's the Daughter of Swords. I want to move on to the next card, which is the Mother of Cups. And the Suit of Cups in Tarot really is talking about our emotional landscape. And the Mother of Cups to me is a really intuitive card. It holds the energy of the high priestess, but just kind of in a different way. And the card itself depicts a swan who's kind of like agitated, and her feathers are ruffled. And I think that that's a really good representation of the energy of this card. And, you know, a swan is a really refined, beautiful creature. We often see them kind of just floating on water, really calm, really tranquil. And this is depicting kind of the opposite of that. And I think it's asking us to kind of look at our own triggers. Like, where in our lives are we becoming a little bit aggressive, a little bit defensive? What is pushing us to kind of project? And really, like, where in your life do you hold a short fuse? And I'm not saying you need to go in and, like, fix it, but really just can you take that information and hold it in front of yourself and just kind of examine it and say, oh, wow, like, I didn't notice that, you know, when it comes to certain situations, I really have no patience. Like, where in my life am I feeling that agitated, aggressive energy? And maybe I dive a little bit deeper into looking at, why is that? What is, what am I being called to learn from this knowledge and this information that I'm taking in? And again, like, going with the flow, working with your intuition and working with those little nudges that you're getting, instead of just kind of pushing them away, how can you invite that in and give yourself a little bit of space to just say, like, wow, that really surprised me that, like, I randomly was in my car and got, like, road rage and wanted to, like, yell at someone or, you know, I was at the grocery store and this happened and now I'm upset or whatever it is. Like, the examples don't really matter. Whatever it is in your life, like, can you go one layer deeper and examine that on a deeper level? And again, going back to the overall theme of the firefly, can you view these agitations, these triggers as intentional parts of your path, showing you something that you need to know, shedding light on something that maybe was in the dark before, and it's coming forward to help propel you forward or to prepare you for what's next on your path that you can't see yet. And so, just holding the energy of the Mother of Cups, I think it's really asking us to evaluate and examine our emotional landscape. Look at those triggers that are coming up, looking at those little ways that we kind of can lose our cool and go a layer deeper. What's underneath the surface? What emotion lies beneath anger? Anger and aggression and being defensive, it's a way to protect ourselves. And what lies beneath that is maybe sadness, hurt, whatever it is. Can you go a layer deeper and just see what's beneath the surface and learn from it? And with that idea of learning, the next card that comes up is the Hierophant. And this card is part of the major Arcana of Terror, which just means that it's a card that holds a little bit more weight, and it's just a little bit... I don't want to say more intense, but it's more of like a heavy hitter. It's just like a bigger theme than maybe the other ones. I think it's just a more prominent card than the others. And the Hierophant really is about learning, seeking knowledge, and inviting a mentor kind of into your life. So maybe there's some area in your life where you've been really wanting to dive deeper or learn something more, and this card kind of is an invitation to maybe seek out mentorship in some way. Maybe that's working with a teacher of some sort, a coach, a guide. Maybe it's working with your intuition. Maybe it's going back to school, taking a class, taking an online class, whatever it is, I think that this card is is inviting you to go deeper in some aspect of your life, and also kind of invite new experiences in. Again, kind of with the other cards that have come up, it's about being open and flexible and just curious about what's going on in your life, and if there's something that you've always wanted to learn, or if there's some area where you're like, I feel like I just want to dive a little bit deeper, this card is giving you that invitation. And I think that you don't always, maybe you know what it is you want to sign up for or what you're leaning towards, but if you don't, and if you're just like, I have a desire to dive deeper, but I'm not really sure what that looks like yet. Set that intention, whatever that looks like for you, maybe you speak it into a voice note, maybe you write it down somewhere, just maybe you just think about it and set that intention of like, I want to dive deeper and I'm open to a teacher or a mentor coming into my life, and you'd be surprised at what might show up for you. So, that's your reading. Kind of also looking at these cards collectively. I wish that I could just kind of show you a picture really quickly, but I can't, so I will try to describe it to you. But all of these cards are very similar. They all have a lot of like, black in them. All of the backgrounds are really dark with like, little bits of light. And what's most interesting is on all of these cards, all of the animals depicted, they all fly. So all of the supporting cards, the Daughter of Swords, the Hierophant, the Mother of Cups, they're all birds. The Daughter of Swords has an owl on the card. The Hierophant is a crow, and then the Mother of Cups is a swan. And then finally, our overall theme is the firefly. And so there's a lot of like, buoyancy, a lot of airiness to this reading. And I just think that's just interesting to note. And so with all of the heaviness that I've noticed and that I've been feeling collectively and personally, I think that these cards are really guiding us to find light. Light in the sense of like good and positive experiences, but also just being a little bit more flexible and a little bit less rigid and like finding the flow where we can. And so that's where I want to leave you today. If you found this reading helpful, if you want to dive a little bit deeper, I am always here for you. You can always book a Clarity reading with me, and we can either build on what I've shared today, or we can do a completely new reading. Wherever you're at, I truly want to support you and help you find your way. And so reach out. You can go on my website, you can send me a message through the contact form, you can book a reading, you can just send me an email. I just want you to know that I'm here for you, and I support you. And that's what I have for you today. So I hope that you take good care while the waves carry you closer, and know that your next version is already waiting on the shore.

If you’re feeling stuck in the foggy middle and exhausted from having to always “figure it out” alone, I want to invite you to…

Connect to your north star using my FREE Intention Setting Worksheet.

Book a tarot reading to clarify where you’re heading next

Learn about my favorite tarot decks and why I love them

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Kim Kogane is a writer and intuitive guide helping you navigate the tender in-between seasons. She lives in Seattle, Washington with her dog, Cauchy, and three cats. Learn more about Kim.