Thank you for that beautiful, insightful, and very, very helpful reply.

The Russian Tarot of St. Petersburg was my first deck. I'm part Russian, so I guess it speaks to a part of my soul. The artwork you mention is what it is most famous for, and sometimes I admit I just sit and stare at the cards, lol.

All the best to you in your herbal studies; may this lead to a happy and properous future!

I'm in a rather difficult situation at work. It's too long a story for this post, but I did a reading on it and here's what came up. Please see if you can make any sense of it other than what I interpreted.

I did a Work Horseshoe Spread with the Russian Tarot of St. Petersburg and it came out this way:

Ace of Coins (Pentacles) -- The Past (things that have influence on the present circumstances) -- Various interpretations: A time to stay open to changing professional fields; a short-lived job that provides skills and information one will use at a later date (the reason this gave me the creeps is that two psychics have already called this job a "temporary job" for me). I came to this job fleeing a nasty situation at another job where I was being forced out and I have struggled with depression and mood swings ever since, which also have led to the current situation.

Knight of Cups -- The Present (the present situation at work) -- Various interpretations: any business that caters to drinking, dancing and loud entertainment (the store I work at is famous for its inexpensive wine and forward employees); a liar who is a big talker and name-dropper (a coworker and possibly one of my bosses); a deadbeat person who is unreliable (three of my bosses); feeling unsure about which way to go (me).

Four of Clubs (Wands) -- What is Positive about the Situation -- Various interpretations: any business that warmly welcomes customers (the store I work at); my creative gifts could generate income to help me purchase a home; getting a fresh perspective on my employment picture; moving on to better financial circumstances; finding the perfect home during a major change of residence.

The Hanged Man -- What is Negative about the Situation -- Various interpretations: full or no participation in business (ahem...that's my situation at work); your hours are decreased (again, ahem...); waiting for a decision that affects your job future (rather, in my case, anticipating that there will be no decision because there isn't a future); you see a situation differently than your coworkers.

Strength -- Outside Influences on the Situation -- Various interpretations: your inner strength pulls you through a messy crisis; achieving success after a difficult confrontation; building up funds to leave the rat race and develop a more self-sufficient lifestyle (in fact I am looking into attending a farming school next year).

Knight of Clubs (Wands) -- Best Course of Action -- Various interpretations: escaping serious financial difficulties without a scar; tackle problems; moving forward; departure or flight.

Seven of Coins (Pentacles) -- Results of Action -- Apprenticeship; work not yet completed; visualization; thinking ahead; planning; slow growth. One interpretation I read was "no success in farming" LOL.

The scariest thing about this layout was the position of the two knights -- directly across from each other in the layout; each heading in an opposite direction -- the Knight of Cups toward the left (or out of the picture in the past), and the Knight of Coins heading right, into the "future," as it were.

Hi. I'm a fairly new Tarot reader; I've been playing around with the cards for about 5 years and just lately have been able to make sense of the most garbled card combinations. But I'm relieved to finally find a community where I can discuss some of my readings and get help deciding if my interpretations are apt. Often I come up with 2 or 3 different possibilities, lol.

Thanks for having this community.