Aly Dimaculangan
Tarot card reader
Tarot card reader Aly Dimaculangan thinks 2021 burned a lot of people out, but 2022 will be like rising from the ashes. Photo: Courtesy of Aly Dimaculangan
Aly: I’m an eclectic witch with a Roman Catholic background. I use different tools and practices when it comes to my rituals, but I mainly use tarot.
What I’ve seen through my readings is how transformative this year has been, both good and bad. I’m not necessarily saying it’s leaning towards good or it’s leaning towards bad. There are just a lot of changes. It’s really up to us how we interpret that change. I don’t want this to lean towards some toxic positivity message, but I do see that there are a lot of changes that we have to take into account and reflect on. What challenges and opportunities might come in 2022?
Dimaculangan brought out her tarot cards and did a reading at this point in the interview.From what I see here, we have the Page of Cups and Four of Wands, we have the Nine of Swords in reverse, and we have the Page of Wands. I think, ultimately, if there is any challenge, it’s definitely about starting anew. I feel like 2021 has burned out a lot of people, and I do see that it’s about rising from the ashes, if that makes sense, because we have the Page of Wands and the Page of Cups. The Page of Cups talks about emotional fulfillment—something new coming your way, a brand new beginning, a chance for you to redeem yourself, or a chance for you to reclaim some of that happiness that you lost. With the Page of Wands, it’s also very motivating. You’re starting new passions, new projects. People are out and about.
If things get progressively better, I do see that it’s going to cause this daydreamy event. I do believe that it’s also going to be the start of some sort of completion when it comes down to wishes, opportunities. I do see that this is it. I’m pleasantly surprised—my cards have been quite harsh lately—but I do see that this talks about a light, fresh start that may not necessarily make sense at first. But I do believe that for the collective, the nightmare situation is almost over. What’s one thing you want to tell people, to prepare for 2022“I feel like 2021 has burned out a lot of people, and I do see that it’s about rising from the ashes.”
Dimaculangan pulled another card—the Three of Cups—from her deck.Keep your loved ones closer. I do believe that 2022 is something really, really great for the collective. The Three of Cups really is telling me that there is some sort of celebration happening. This is, again, a very, very exciting and very, very renewing opportunity to get closer to your loved ones. Let them know that you love and care about them. Catch up. I think that’s going to be the theme of 2022. Maybe this is a representation that things are slowly but surely going back to normal. If you have connections that you want to rebuild, if you want to bask in the energies of others, 2022 is the right time to do it.
Monica Lopez Gamboa
Astrologer and Drama Therapist
Astrologer Monica Lopez Gamboa says 2022 is a time to process grief and trauma. Photo: Jo-B Sebastian, courtesy of Monica Lopez Gamboa
Monica: As an astrologer and drama therapist, I work in the integration of the language of the cosmos (astrology) and the body (drama therapy) to help my clients live most authentically. In astrology, I work with the birth chart as well as transits (the current movement of the planets) and their symbolism. Your birth chart is a map of where all the celestial bodies were when you were born. Also called a natal chart, this snapshot is captured from the exact location, at the exact time of your birth. This is your unique astrological thumbprint—a holistic image of a person, which describes both inner and other circumstances and all levels of their personal history and experience. The process of understanding our birth chart is the process of embracing your life. It’s the process of radical self-acceptance. What did 2021 try to teach people?
From the Earth’s sky, we see the sun and moon chase each other in a cycle until they finally meet at a certain degree, casting a shadow, causing an eclipse. The points where they meet are called the lunar nodes. Last year, these nodes were in the axis of Gemini and Sagittarius. As such, 2021 centered on communication, the discernment of truth, information overload, the spread of fake news, and subsequent consequences. It was a battle of communication and ideas. There were lessons on truth, speaking with truth and integrity. I’m thinking: defending freedom of speech and the press, defending journalists and democracy in the Philippines.
The eclipses of 2022 are in the axis of Taurus and Scorpio, the fixed (stabilizing) signs of the zodiac in earth and water elements. In fixed signs, the tendency is to hold, to crystallize. The liquid mixture of at least two different molecules precipitates into solid crystals—watery transformation into earthly form. Something is crystallizing within us, yet more often than not, these are the things we resist. When they come together, a rich stable life is created through deep emotional and spiritual healing. With the south node in Scorpio, we will need to process our grief over past trauma from the last few years. What wounds have we kept on picking, unaware that they keep on bleeding? To properly mourn everything we’ve lost, we’ll have to dive deep into the lingering hurt we tend to ignore.
Rituals become ever more important—rituals for life and death, weddings and funerals, celebrating life, and honoring those that have passed. This is a time for having difficult, important conversations. Go to therapy. While our wounds include personal trauma, we now know that we have to heal collective trauma as well—racism, sexism, poverty, and other social inequities. However, as we heal, the north node in Taurus invites us to our growth. The wandering bull will come down to the Earth in order to find pleasure, happiness, and abundance from hard work in the fields. But what is the state of the Earth? We can harvest the fruit of our labor, but only if we have removed the weeds, dug in the dirt, and watered the soil.“What wounds have we kept on picking, unaware that they keep on bleeding? To properly mourn everything we’ve lost, we’ll have to dive deep into the lingering hurt we tend to ignore.”
Chinggay Labrador
Tarot deck creator and card reader
Tarot deck creator and reader Chinggay Labrador says no matter what difficulties arise in 2022, people can lean on self-love. Photo: Courtesy of Chinggay Labrador
Chinggay: My main thrust is that I don’t use tarot for prediction. I think of the cards as symbolizing the breadth of human experience, so any card one picks can be relatable, no matter what a person’s background, experience, or concern is. I believe that tarot cards can be powerful tools to understand one’s present circumstances. They can also help shine a light on one’s intuition, which can be hard to connect to these days because we’re so conditioned to using our logic when it comes to decision-making.
I think 2020 and all the uncertainty it brought to the world opened some people up to the magic of tarot. With everything so unpredictable and unexpected, many people were looking for ways to figure things out and for structures to lean on. And that’s why practices like tarot, oracle, astrology, etc. became popular.I think this continued in 2021. People who hardly ever dabbled in mindfulness practices started getting their feet wet and becoming more familiar with different practices.I find that people who’ve started getting familiar with the tarot can move into 2022 with a more solid understanding of themselves and their relationships. People who’ve cultivated mindful practices with the tarot, maybe, feel a little more equipped to handle whatever comes because they have this practice they can lean on to help them figure things out.What challenges and opportunities might come in 2022?
I think this is a pretty personal thing. The challenges that arise will certainly depend on where people are and what’s going on with them. The tarot card for 2022 is The Lovers, so I would say that no matter what difficulties arise, people can maybe lean on the idea of love—especially of oneself.
The way I would tackle this question is not anticipating the challenges, but knowing that you are equipped with love when things happen. I think regardless of challenges and opportunities, people can always reliably go back to the concept of love and what it means for them.What’s one thing you want to tell people, to prepare for 2022?“No matter what difficulties arise, people can maybe lean on the idea of love—especially of oneself.”
Be kind to yourself, put in effort where it’s needed, and practice ease when it’s called for.Interviews have been edited for length and clarity. Follow Romano Santos on Instagram.
