I did a reading for my husband this morning using the Deviant Moon and the “Can of Worms” spread.  Here is how it worked out.   You can find the spread used, below in the previous post.

BBB’s  Can of Worms – What do I need to change and shape to achieve my goals?

Ace of Pentacles.  This Ace is a fierce Dragon which holds a large beautiful Pentacle in his hands.  The book describes this Ace as; Perfection, Balance of material and spiritual realms.  Having the will to succeed.   Bob is a perfectionist with any project he undertakes.  Especially when it’s a job or project that he is working on for someone else.  He has the skills, knowledge, drive, talents, at his fingertips to succeed, so what is holding him back?  Doubt.  That small nagging self-doubt and lack of confidence that he can successfully reach his goals.  He has to believe in himself and his abilities and stop beating himself up when he feels he has not done as well as he believe he should have.

Outer Influences found in The Chariot.  (negative)  Not feeling like he is in control of his life and decisions that need to me made.  As long as there is that self-doubt, there is no definite direction to travel.  A fear of failure in venturing out,  keeps The Chariot from moving, which is what it is designed for.

How to remedy this.  Death.  A total change is called for.  A complete metamorphosis.  Usually painful and always scary, a new way of thinking and looking at yourself and the world around you is needed.  How can this be accomplished?  The next card is the High Priestess and offers further advice on how to make this remedy happen.  The High Priestess is traditionally about knowledge, wisdom, and intuition.  Tapping into and trusting your instincts.  This I feel calls into play some of the aspects of the Ace of Pentacles in regards to the Balance between the spiritual and the material.   You can’t have one without the other.

The Eight of Wands Rx gives the advice here that these changes will not happen overnight.  It is a process and will take time.  Rushing the process will not bring the results that you are seeking.  Along with this card I am wondering if the High Priestess is also a person that can give advice and guidance to Bob in his metamorphosis.

Escape.   The Moon card in this deck speaks to dark influences, trickery, illusion, subconscious control.  Fooling yourself?  Subconscious sabotage.  Being a puppet rather than the puppeteer.  This is IMO definitely an Escape situation.   You should let this worm escape because if it hangs around at all, the doubt can creep back in taking away your control of being the puppeteer.

How many times in your day to day experience have you thought, “What can of worms did I open now?”  Or at least something like that.  For me opening a “Can-of-Worms” is the equivalent of asking the hard questions and expecting a truthful and objective answer.  The questions we would rather dance around and not ask, let alone actually answer.  These questions can cover as wide a range as you have imagination for.   Ask the hard questions of yourself.  An example might be;  “What do I need to change in my attitude to bring more happiness in my life?”  This would be an extremely hard question for a lot of us to answer objectively for ourselves and could open that proverbial can of worms showing yourself what you probably don’t wish to see.  Maybe it’s a situational type of question.  You’re dealing with a touchy issue at work and ask, “Should I open this can or worms?” or “What will happen if I open this can worms?”  Anyway, you get the idea.

Here are some sample ideas to use for this spread.  Customize it to best fit your needs and situation.

(illustration by B.B. Bailey)

Steps to help open and examine what is in your “Can of Worms”

• Card one — Using the can opener:    (insert question here) example.  “How do I change or shape my actions in order to achieve my goals?”
• Card two — A Peek under the lid:     The outer influences that affect me in a negative manner.
• Card three — Prying the lid:   Once the negative issue has been revealed, this is the best course of action for  remedy
• Card four — Take a good look inside:  Looking at the problem straight in the eye (s) and realizing it’s quite fixable and not as bad as you first thought.  This card is for further help and advice with meeting the problem head on.  (puns intended)
• Card five – Containment.  The positive influences that I need to hold onto and utilize.  Things or people that can help me deal with the negative/slimy worms I find in my can.
• Card six — Escape.  Once you have a clear idea of how to deal with your particular “worm” put him to work for you.  Use him to your advantage to lure what you want/need to you.  Or, if the situation calls for a complete release, he can be the one that got away.  In most cases though, the worm that tries to get away is the one that needs the most attention.

What Can of Worms are you going to open?