Now that the Sacred Year Planner is finished (after all those updates and edits), I’ve found myself with a little unexpected free time—and honestly, I wasn’t quite sure what to do with it at first. I’ve been soaking up some reading time with Viola Davis’s “Finding Me” (if you haven’t read it yet, I can’t recommend it enough… her wisdom got all up in my spirit). I’m almost done with that, and it got me thinking about what I want to study and explore next, both in books and in my own spiritual practice.
One thing that’s been calling me is dream work and studying divination. So in this video, I’m sharing the start of a personal deck study with the Hoodoo Tarot. This practice feels especially close to me—especially at this time of year—because it connects back to my ancestry, my unique approach to spiritual practice, and the cycles and rhythms of my own life. I talk about how I chose my deck (and why I have two), how I keep my practice grounded (yes, including thrifting for the perfect sparkly bag), and why this study is both exciting and a little uncertain for me.
I get honest about the juggling act of making space for spiritual practice as a mom and how I balance all of my roles, even with a little one in tow. I also share a bit about using physical movement as a spiritual practice, the ups and downs of nurturing my body, and the dreams I’m holding for the future—including growing my own food and learning more about holistic living.
There’s a story in here about loss, too—how my hard drive with ten years’ worth of creative work just quit on me, and what it looked like to sit with that, feel it, and let it spark something new instead of just grief.
Topics and reflections in this video:
- How I approach divination and deck study, especially through a Black ancestral lens
- Small rituals that keep my practice real and rooted (including those little moments like shuffling a deck or getting outside in my house dress)
- The invitation to prioritize physical health as part of holistic wellness, not as an afterthought
- What it’s teaching me when things unexpectedly end or change, and how I let that create space for what’s next
This isn’t a polished “how-to” or a step-by-step lesson—just me sharing where I am right now, what I’m learning, and the little practices and stories that are shaping my days. I hope there’s something here you recognize in yourself, or something that sparks your own reflection.
Wrapping Up the Sacred Year Planner
Now that the Sacred Year Planner is complete, which I spent a good bit of time updating, publishing, re-editing, all the things—that’s done. Which means I have free time. And honestly, I don’t know what to do. So, I’ve been reading. I’m almost finished with Viola Davis’s “Finding Me.” Absolutely love, love, love that book. I’ve gotten so many nuggets of wisdom and life inspiration from her words. I’m not sure what I’m going to read once I finish that book, but I’ve been thinking ahead, trying to figure out what I want to focus on and read and study next year. One of the things I’ve been diving into is dream work.
Exploring Divination and Deck Study
I’m definitely studying divination and things along those lines. I’m going to be doing a deck study for myself, and I’ll probably share as I go along. I decided to use the Hoodoo Tarot. I actually have two of these decks—a friends and family edition, and then my personal edition. This is my personal deck. I colored the edges black. I thought this deck was in storage and I needed it.
I used it often; it’s one that stays with me. But like I said, I thought it was in storage, so I ordered another copy. When I got the second copy, the original appeared. So, this is the bag I store it in. I got this at a thrift shop. I love thrifting. Isn’t this cute and sparkly? I also keep some crystals in there with it—lapis lazuli, a piece of labradorite.
Combining Decks and Ancestral Connection
I’m going to be studying this deck in conjunction with another deck. The Bible is a big part of hoodoo practice, as far as what you can do with it. So I want to study it and see if the assigned associations with the Bible align, and just see what it means to me, to my practice, those kinds of things. I’m really excited about that. This was kind of inspired by the Drop ‘Em 78. I was initially going to participate in that, but I decided to go deeper and explore tarot through the lens I’ve been studying, which is Sacred Spiral Divination—my unique way of looking at and reading the cards, different associations and things like that. I’m very excited to be creating space for this. I’m sure it’s going to take me longer than 78 days, just because my time is not necessarily my own with a little baby.
I’m being intentional about this. I kept going back and forth about what deck I was going to use. At first, I wanted to use the Magical Hours Tarot. I still want to do a study on that deck—I really want to do a study on all my decks because I think it’s a great way to really learn and connect with the deck, improve as a reader, and develop my intuitive gifts. It’s funny because this deck is actually in order, so I thought, hmm, okay. Around this time of year, I like to read decks that feel more connected to my ancestry, so I was trying to choose between the Hoodoo Tarot and the Antiques Black Tarot as the deck I really wanted to work with. I might weave in the Antiques Black, which is an amazing deck all its own.
How I’m Approaching the Study
I’m going to be studying the Hoodoo Tarot throughout the end of the year. I’ll share what I’m doing as I go. I have a set of questions I’m using to explore what the card means—through how I perceive things as a healer and a coach, through cycles and rhythms, and through the lens of hoodoo and magic. I think it’s going to be very interesting, and I’m excited. I’ve got a little notebook for this, and I’m going to take my time. I’ve got the Biblical Tarot, the Bible, the guidebook for both decks, and some other hoodoo books I may reference. I don’t know how deep this is going to go, but I’m assuming it might get a little deep.
I’m glad I chose this deck and look forward to working with it. I’m going to sit down and do a reading to see—I shared that reading before, like a little spread I created. It’s just two cards: how am I beginning, and what to expect from the study. I want to see what comes up. I’ll probably use a different deck to do it since this one is in order and I don’t want to take it out of order, though it wouldn’t be that hard. Yeah, I think I will use this.
Reconnecting with the Cards
I’m going to use this deck. Gonna shuffle, shuffle, shuffle all the cards, because I haven’t read with it in a while. Shuffling for me is also a form of meditation and helping me reconnect with the energy of the deck. Then I can do a reading. When I go back and put them in order, that’ll give me time to spend looking at the cards, reconnecting with the imagery, the energy, and the intention of the deck. Things are happening.
I do feel better, so I plan on sitting down and doing some more videos soon. I’m also practicing just recording in the moment, so you may see more of me like this, just chilling. I’ve got my little house dress on because I went for a walk. It was such a great walk.
Rethinking Health and Movement
It was hot, but not so hot it was unbearable. I can tolerate that type of hot. Walking up and down the hills, I got a good sweat in. Moving my body felt really good. I feel like my insides are glowing. Also, I signed my daughter up—well, I signed her up for this healthy habits program through the YMCA, not realizing I needed to do it with her. I’m learning a lot about nutrition and ways to make fitness fun—not just for her, but for me too.
She’s really enjoying it. We’re starting to look at the foods we eat differently. So much stuff is processed, and there’s a lot I know I’ve needed to change for a long time—I’ve resisted or whatever. Really sitting with that. One of my dreams is to have my own property, a garden where I can grow beautiful flowers, herbs, fruits, vegetables, so I can have fresh foods. I live in North Carolina and there are a ton of farms where I can get fresh produce and fresh meats. So, just being very intentional about my physical health.
Fitness as a Spiritual Practice
I did a video a few years back where I talked about fitness as a spiritual practice, and that’s very true. Sometimes we can be really developed mentally, emotionally, spiritually, but our physical side isn’t as strong as it could be—or the opposite: super fit, but avoiding our emotions or spiritual selves. I’m realizing I can record more if I just show up like this and not try to do all the things. So we’ll see how that goes.
But yeah, physical fitness is a spiritual practice. Sometimes we avoid that aspect, or we avoid our emotional or mental health. I really want to be balanced in all the areas because that’s when we can truly shine and thrive.
Letting Go of the Past and Embracing What’s Next
I wanted to give you an update, and I’m excited about what’s to come. I’ll share as much as I can, as far as the divination practice I’m doing, the deck study, everything going on. I was looking through my hard drive and found I have an external drive for my photos and design things, and a separate one for my files, documents, everything I created. That drive with all my files just stopped working. I lost over ten years of journals, courses, guides, all the things I’ve learned and created. Everything was on there. It was a little devastating, but at the same time I thought, maybe it was time for me to let that stuff go, because a lot of it I didn’t do anything with. That created space for me to create new things.
I looked at it as a divine reset, time to start over, and I just rolled with it. I tried plugging it in today just to see, maybe, but no—it’s gone. Maybe I’ll try to recover it someday, but the prices quoted were over $2,000 for restoration and no guarantee. So, I just took a deep breath. Whatever was on there I didn’t use or share, the time expired. I’m just starting over, and it’s okay. Learned a lot about that.
Finding Old Stories and Moving Forward
I just wanted to do a quick update. Like I said, you’ll probably see more videos like this from me because it’s much simpler for me to just hit record and share.
Oh, I wanted to say too—I was looking through the other drive with my photos and video, thank goodness I didn’t lose those. I found some old recordings of myself I never shared. I might share them, I don’t know—it’s a little, I don’t know. It was just interesting to witness how long I’ve been blogging and sharing my story and experiences. So that was pretty awesome.
But that’s it. I’ll see you next time. All the things live at javonatisdale.com—that’s my digital home. You can check out my blog posts, podcast episodes, or audio recordings. I have different offerings if you need support. I’m here, and I’ll see you in the next video. Peace.