Forever Phoenix 369

One of my favorite decks to work with is the African American Tarot. I hold a deep respect for it, and at the same time, I sit with a complicated relationship to the name itself.

The term “African American” has never felt entirely accurate for me. Historically, people who look like me have been classified, reclassified, and renamed repeatedly, often by systems that did not ask us who we were. My own family history reflects that reality. Those labels were administrative, political, and convenient, but they were not always truthful or complete.

What I appreciate about this deck is that it reaches beyond a single label. It speaks to African spiritual systems, folklore, ancestral memory, and the lived experience of Black people in America, all at once. It holds survival, intellect, creativity, grief, brilliance, and continuity.

Ngũnza “Traps Death” & Daniel Hale Williams Six of Swords Context

Ngũnza “Traps Death” originates in Central African Kongo spiritual traditions, where Ngũnza refers to a spiritual authority, ritual specialist, or prophetic figure operating at the crossroads between the physical and spiritual worlds. These figures were understood as mediators of life, death, and transformation.

The phrase “traps death” does not mean controlling death itself. Spiritually, it symbolizes the interruption of destructive cycles, protection of life force, and refusal of unjust or premature endings. To “trap death” is to delay, redirect, or neutralize forces that threaten balance and continuity. It is the conscious declaration: this pattern ends with me.

Paired with this symbolism is Daniel Hale Williams (1856–1931), a pioneering surgeon who performed one of the first successful open-heart surgeries in 1893. At a time when Black physicians were largely excluded from hospitals, Williams founded Provident Hospital in Chicago, the first non-segregated hospital in the United States, creating space for Black doctors and nurses to practice and learn.

Williams embodied curiosity, disciplined reasoning, and experimentation. He advanced medicine by moving beyond convention, often without precedent or institutional support. He did not wait for permission. He moved forward because remaining still was not an option.

Reflection Questions for you!

What is the first image or symbol that stands out to you, and why do you think it caught your attention?

Where does your attention go first: the figure, the movement, or the surrounding environment?

If this image were speaking directly to you, what would it be asking you to notice or release?

I've been sitting with the Mother of Baskets from The Hoodoo Tarot. At first glance, I see someone who feels welcoming, beautiful, youthful, and mature all at once. There is an auntie-like safety here, a quiet psychic awareness that feels steady rather than loud. Her energy is warm and familiar.

The longer I stay with the card, the more introspective it becomes. The background especially draws me in. The numbers and patterns remind me of a game system I don't fully grasp yet, but I understand it at a beginner level. That curiosity led me into research, and that research opened the door to deeper insight.

I am curious what you see.
What stands out to you first?
Do the background details speak to you, or does your focus stay with the figure?
Does this image remind you of a person, a memory, or a story?
What might I be missing that you notice right away?