Lenormand Journal 2.0 -- Day 1

Pixie's Astounding Lenormand Cards, Edmund Zebrowski, 2012

Last October, I did a series of posts experimenting with using the Lenormand Oracle for predictive readings in daily draws. That's eight months ago, and it seems like I ought to revisit the Lenormand for a refresher.  One thing that's got me thinking about Lenormand lately is this post from LeFanu's Curious Cabinet, in which he laments that one can no longer learn cards with 'just me and my books and decks, nobody correcting me, propelled forward by my own thirst and good old-fashioned study.' He says, 'You’d think that with all the information out there things have never been better and yet it all looks set to accelerate into gobbledegook.  But why does it feel harder to learn Lenormand now than it ever did? Partly there is so much to have to bookmark and not get round to reading. There is so much to put into “favourites” and then never look at again.  So many online courses to print off, bind beautifully and put on the bookshelf.  There are so many systems to set off against each other; French? Dutch? Peruvian? Pose a question out there – what does my bonsai think of me? – then post a three card spread and you will get a plethora of interpretations that won’t help you in the slightest because there are as many interpretations of Lenormand cards as there are people reading them. A daunting thought.'  To which I say, why should this thought be daunting? Surely it should be the most freeing thing you can realize.

Yes, there is a lot of information out there, but there is still no reason why you can't study the old-fashioned way. Just because there are books out there doesn't mean you have to read them. And just because there are loads of websites out there purporting to teach the proper method (Dutch, French, No Layout, etc) that doesn't mean you have to read those, either. Apart from a few basic principles, you are actually free to use the cards anyway you want to use them. (And in fact you don't even have to use those 'few basic principles if you don't want to. Who's to say?) There is a very simple method for avoiding 'other' people (experts or otherwise) getting on your back: don't ask people's opinion about what you're doing. Don't go trawling around seeking confirmation that you're 'doing it right'. And if you still feel the need to read books and websites, keep in mind that you don't have to believe anything that you read in any source -- who are these people to tell you how to read the cards, anyway? They're just people, same as you, people who have worked out a system for themselves or been taught by someone who worked out a system for himself. Are those people any better than you? Of course not - so work out your own system. Simple. 

So, in my Lenormand reading, I don't profess to use any particular system.The Lenormand is a set of 36 common images, each with cultural and historical associations. These cards are not handed from on high by the cartomancy gods -- they were freebies in packs of tobacco, for heaven's sake. It just really doesn't matter -- there is no 'real' or 'true historical' or even 'esoteric' meaning to them. None. In the main, I am a traditionalist and tend to find Dutch meanings in most cases resonate with me, but I have selected the meanings that make sense to me regardless of where they come from (or if they come from anywhere besides my own head), and I don't care if any other reader understands or agrees with me. I post my readings on my own blog rather than in any forum or (god forbid) Facebook, because I don't want or need anyone 'correcting' me. The very idea. 

Anyway, rant over. :)

My Lenormand Daily Draw Journals always have the same format: 

Posted in morning, with time drawn--
1. Question: What is happening with me today?
2. Key Theme: main ideas seen in cards
3. Prediction: the events I predict based on the key themes of the cards drawn

Then in the evening I return to the entry and edit to add--
4. Accuracy: I rate the accuracy of my prediction as High, Medium, Low
5. What happened in relation to the cards: recounting of how I believe the cards played out (or didn't, as the case may be)
6. Observations: any insights about card meanings or techniques 

So without further ado, here is today's Lenormand Journal entry:

Pixie's Astounding Lenormand Cards (by Edmund Zebrowski, 2012, www.delphischamber.com):

Letter + Dog + Coffin

AM (7.30)
Key theme: friend, message, a break, rest or ending (Possibilities: Message from a tired friend. Cancellation from a friend. Message from friend about holiday.)
Prediction: I will receive an email from a friend regarding a holiday (or send one myself). 

PM ( 17.46 )
Accuracy: High
What happened: I sent an email which was not about a holiday, but in which a holiday was mentioned. I noticed this and deleted it, so as not to 'cheat'. Then the reply from the friend mentioned a holiday. Well, I knew this would happen. LOL
Observations: It's probably best not to post predictions where the people you feel are involved in them can see them. Also, focusing the question a bit more (as Chloe suggests in comments) could help avoid self-fulfilling.