Monday, January 12, 2026
Waning Moon
Uranus and Jupiter Retrograde
Good morning, and welcome to a new week, while we, in the US, are still reeling from last week. Last week’s 5 of Pentacles in the identity position made even more sense as the week went on, especially if you are a woman. There was a lot of grief. And I definitely needed Hecate and Holda this past week.
We are in the final quarter of the moon’s wane this week, with the dark moon on Saturday the 17th, and the new moon on the 18th. This final moon quarter is when I do banishing, releasing, and cleansing work. The only thing I release on a full moon is what I am building, so it can manifest. On the waning moon, moving to dark moon, I release what I want to get rid of. The dark moon itself is what I used for strong banishing work. That is not the “only” way or the “right” way. It is the way I’ve found works best within the rhythms of my life.
We had three extra cards fall out of the deck as I shuffled this week. In the photo, they are off to the left of the spread. We will discuss them at the bottom of the spread.
It’s a new month, so we’re working with a new deck. This is the Ask the Witch tarot, which is beautiful, and the card backs are labyrinths, so you can use them for meditation as easily as the front of the card. The deck is edited by Francesca Matteoni, and illustrated by Simone Pace. You can get the deck from Red Wheel Weiser here.
This is one of my spreads, that I call The Elemental Spread. It is very similar to many of the Medicine Wheel spreads I’ve seen, but I made a few tweaks to the way I use it over the years.
We start in the center, with Spirit/Self. This is the overall energy of the week, and how we relate to it.
We move to the position above, with is North/Tangibles, connected to the element of Earth, advice on how to deal with the week on a tangible, materialistic level.
We move clockwise to the third position, East/Thought, connected to the element of Air, advice on how to intellectually deal with the week.
Then we move down to the bottom of the spread, the 4th position, South/Passion, connected to the element of Fire, advice on how to deal with the week from a place of passion and identity.
Then we move up to the left side of the spread, the 5th position, West/Emotion, connected to the element of Water, advice on how to deal with the week from a place of creativity and emotion.
We wind up where we started, at the spirit center, integrating all the information for the week.
These interpretations are mine, based on my experience, intuition and responses to the artwork.
You may have a different experience. This is an overview of the week as it stands now; every decision we make from the moment of the reading can change the outcome. If there’s something in the reading that worries you, you have the information ahead of time so that you can plan, make better choices, or handle it differently than predicted for a better outcome. Tarot sets out possibilities, which you change through your choices and actions.
Center – Spirit/Self: 7 of Wands
This card warns us that, this week, we need to be ready for anything and hold our boundaries. The pressure on them will get worse. We have to be ready to protect what we care about, which is very relevant to current events. Show up for yourself and your neighbors this week.
North – Earth/Tangibles: 3 of Wands
The 3 of Wands is about making a plan, and then taking steps on that roadmap. It’s about vision paired with action. Your roadmap is a guide, and you will adjust as you need to, but things can’t stay as they are. You are defending (above) what you care about, while in motion to create something better in very real, tangible ways. Don’t be afraid to take action that puts big dreams into motion.
East – Air/Thought/Intellect: 10 of Pentacles
This is a card of stability, legacy, emotional and financial support. With everything that’s going on, I was surprised that this turned up in the spread at all. When we look at it in this position, however, it makes sense. Imagine the world this way, and feel, deep in your bones, the positive emotions this brings up. Then, pair that with your intellect as you make your roadmap, defend what matters, and take action to bring this 10 of Pentacles world into being.
South – Fire/Passion/Identity: The Wheel of Fortune
The Fates show up here in the Wheel of Fortune card. This is the only card that I read reversed if it comes up that way. It is upright here, which means the cycle is moving toward something better. Since it is in the position of identity, it means we must embody the mantra “be the change you want to see in the world.” Things won’t get better unless we take the actions the 3 of Wands in the north tells us we need to take to create the 10 of Pentacles world we want. The Wheel of Fortune is also one of the two cards, numerologically, for 2026. 2026 adds up to 10, which is the number of this card. While many distill that down to 1, The Magician, I am working with both of those cards/numbers this year, and this is a good reminder that this is where we are, and we must take the power ourselves to turn the wheel in the direction we want. That language, those words, are hard to write without pain, since turning a wheel is part of what got a woman killed last week. She literally turned the wheel of her car (chariot) away from danger and an enraged misogynist murdered her. And our government is proud of him for that murder.
West – Water/Creativity/Emotion: The Hanged Man
Luonnator, the Finnish daughter of nature, is depicted in this card, which is in the position of our creativity and emotions. She reminds us that everything won’t be solved in this week. It will take time for our actions to have positive results. Slow, steady growth will do more than rash, impulsive actions. Keep showing up. Keep creating.
The three additional cards:
The Star: Aradia, Queen of the Witches, comes to us in the Star, offering us hope and light in dark times.
Strength: Joan of Arc shows up in the Strength card, reminding us that resistance is necessary, and sacrifice is often part of that. Considering how an innocent woman was murdered in the US last week, this card is both an encouragement and a warning. We all know what happened to Joan at the hands of tyrants. But doing nothing is not an option.
The Page of Wands encourages curiosity and fresh ideas, which is something we will need to create change and a better world. The old methods have rotted. The politicians clinging to them and refusing to do what needs to be done for positive change need to be swept away to make room for fresh ideas and trying new things.
There are three wand cards in this spread, reminding us how important it is to be true to ourselves and our core integrity. We also have four Major Arcana cards in the spread, indicating life-altering energy. And a single pentacle card, albeit a good one, saying it’s about tangibles. No cups, no swords in the spread, although there is water in the Hanged Man card in the west/emotions position, and water in the Star card.
This week focuses on being and doing.
Did anything resonate with you, or did you get something completely different? I’d love to hear from you in the comments.
Stay safe.