Finding true love.

Its part of my nature to acquire,I used to call myself a collector,but now I know I'm a helpless addict.As a kid it started with erasers,my sister and I collected them together-because that way we could have a greater variety and number!So it went,erasers,writing paper,teddy bears,tea cups/coffee mugs and then it happened! I found the Tarot,if I thought I had a "collection issue" before,it all paled compared to what I found now.

At first it was a quest to find the right deck,the one who spoke right into my soul.I thought I had it with my first 1JJ Swiss Tarot,and then with my Etteilla deck,and then again with my Shakespeare Tarot.I did most of my learning and initial training with my Shakespeare,and she was a loyal,hard working deck-until I screwed her up. In my inexperience I read for the wrong person for the wrong reasons and subsequently paid the toll with my deck. I couldn't read with her any more,its like she just shut me out,I tried everything.Cleansing,crystal cleansing,sage smudging everything,but the connection was broken.

I learnt very valuable lessons from that,First that your cards are "alive",so treasure them; Second not to read for people you don't want to,and to NEVER EVER LIE using your cards!I still feel guilty when I touch her for the betrayal of trust. (And right here is where you start shaking your head thinking-poor thing she's cracked!)

After that incident,I was without cards for a long while,searching-until I saw what was to become my beloved in a tarot hand book. The book did a variety of spreads using different decks,and my eyes caught sight of Mary. Mary Hanson-Roberts,became my obsession,I had to have her.I was new to Cape Town so I didn't know where to start my quest,and a quest it was.I read,ate,slept Hanson-Roberts,I searched high and low,until by chance my husband had a company action cricket game in Claremont. There in the complex I found Wizards and Mary Hanson-Roberts.I made a high pitched squeely sound and nearly did my victory dance in the shop.I walked out of the shop with joy,contentment and satisfaction.I still don't know what happened at the cricket,but that night I had eyes for Mary Hanson-Roberts.A heck of a lot of decks later Mary is still one of my favourites( I can type it but not say it-it makes the other decks very jealous!).

I have had two of the H-R decks my first and most beloved passed away at the teeth of my Rottweiller puppy.There was nearly murder and mayhem that night!I felt physically sick when I saw what she had done to my deck.Bella survived,only because my husband drove all the way to Claremont to buy me a replacement deck early the following morning-before I got up!It was touch and go that night.I still don't know how she got my Tarot box open,but it now has a lock-just in case.

The quest still continue,and will go one for as long as there are gorgeous deck out there.To this I say:"My name is Hannette Olivier and I am a Tarot deck addict."