You’ve settled in to do a Tarot reading and are calm and focused. You have a question in mind, and you are repeating this query to yourself as you shuffle the cards. You are almost ready to stop shuffling and deal the cards into a spread when one of them flies out of your hands!

This often happens, and it is called a ‘jumper’ card. Some people think it is a special message from the Tarot; others place it back in the deck and keep shuffling. What should you do with this ‘jumper’ card? That depends on what your framework is for your readings.

The Framework of a Reading

You have decided on a spread, a question, and a time frame. When shuffling, you allow your subconscious an opportunity to choose certain cards for your reading. You know that when you finish shuffling, the most appropriate cards for your reading will be on the top of the deck, ready for you to deal them out. This is your framework for the reading.

It is now time to decide how ‘jumper’ cards fit the framework of your reading. Do you want to think they are special? That’s OK; you can. If a card jumps out, decide now if you will look at it and see it as an omen. Or choose now if you will put it back in the deck while you finish shuffling. Or maybe you will always put a jumper card to the side of the spread as an overriding influence for the reading.

Whatever decision you make for the role of a jumper card, stick to it.

Don’t look at a ‘positive’ jumper card and see it as a significant message from the Tarot unless you commit to doing the same thing when a ‘negative’ card jumps out. I see too many Tarot readers choosing to see ‘positive’ jumper cards as meaningful, but when a ‘negative’ jumper card falls from the deck, they ignore it and claim they are clumsy when shuffling. You must be consistent in your reading style if you want authenticity and credibility.