Mid-Year Tarot Reflection: Where Are You Now?

July 22, 2025By Sheila Ellis

Pause at the crossroads of the year to honor your journey, integrate your growth, and realign with what truly matters as you step into the second half of 2025.

Here we are, standing at the threshold between the first and second halves of the year. July's end marks more than just another month passing—it's a sacred pause point, a moment to look back at the path you've traveled and forward toward the horizon that calls you. This is the year's great intermission, when we can step back from the daily momentum and ask ourselves the profound question: Where am I now, and where am I being called next?

If January feels like a lifetime ago, you're not alone. The first half of any year is often intense with initiation, learning, challenge, and growth. We plant seeds in winter, tend them through spring, and by midsummer we can finally see what's actually taking root. Some of our intentions have flourished beyond our wildest dreams. Others have taught us what we thought we wanted isn't actually what serves us. And many have transformed into something entirely different than we originally envisioned.

This is the beauty of conscious reflection—it helps us see the patterns, celebrate the progress, and make informed choices about how we want to invest our energy in the months ahead.

Before we rush toward new goals or course corrections, there's profound wisdom in honoring what has already unfolded. Too often, we focus so intensely on what's not working or what we haven't achieved that we miss the quiet miracles, the subtle shifts, and the underground growth that's been happening all along.

Reflection isn't about judgment—it's about witnessing. It's about acknowledging that you are not the same person who set intentions six months ago, and that's exactly as it should be. Growth changes us, and when we change, our goals and desires naturally evolve too.

This mid-year reflection invites you to celebrate your resilience, honor your learning, and make space for the new perspectives and priorities that have emerged through your lived experience.

Take a moment to remember who you were in January. What were you hoping for? What challenges were you facing? What did you think this year would bring? If you set New Year's intentions or resolutions, see if you can recall not just what they were, but how you felt when you set them.

Now, without judgment, notice:

What has shifted in your priorities since the beginning of the year?
What challenges have you navigated that you didn't anticipate in January?
What joys or opportunities have surprised you along the way?
How has your understanding of what you want evolved over these months?
What has required more energy than expected, and what has flowed more easily?

This isn't about whether you've "succeeded" or "failed" at your original intentions. It's about recognizing that you've been living, learning, and growing—and that's actually the whole point.

One of the most profound realizations that can emerge from mid-year reflection is how our dreams themselves evolve. The goal you set in January might have been exactly what you needed to pursue in order to discover what you actually wanted. The relationship you thought you desired might have led you to understand what kind of partnership truly serves you. The career move you planned might have taught you something essential about your values and priorities.

This is the wisdom of the journey—it's not just about reaching destinations, but about who we become along the way and how that transformation naturally shifts what calls to us.

Consider:

Which of your January intentions still feel alive and relevant?
What have you discovered about yourself that you didn't know six months ago?
How have your values or priorities shifted based on your experiences?
What new dreams or desires have emerged that weren't on your radar in January?

The Mid-Year Compass Spread

This comprehensive seven-card spread helps you navigate the transition from the first half of the year into the second. It's designed to honor where you've been, acknowledge where you are, and provide guidance for where you're heading. Lay the cards in this pattern:

Card 1 - The Journey So Far: What has been the overarching theme or energy of your first half of 2025?

Card 2 - Hidden Growth: What positive change or development have you not fully acknowledged or celebrated?

Card 3 - Wisdom Gained: What's the most important thing you've learned about yourself this year?

Card 4 - What to Release: What energy, pattern, or commitment is ready to be let go as you move forward?

Card 5 - What to Embrace: What wants more attention, energy, or development in the second half of the year?

Card 6 - Foundation for Moving Forward: What strength or resource will support you in the months ahead?

Card 7 - North Star: What guiding intention or focus will serve you best for the remainder of 2025?

Reading Your Mid-Year Compass

As you interpret this spread, remember that you're both the seeker and the sage. Trust your intuitive responses to the imagery and notice which cards generate the strongest emotional reactions—those often carry the most important messages.

Look for themes and connections:

How does the "Hidden Growth" (Card 2) inform the "Wisdom Gained" (Card 3)?
What relationship exists between "What to Release" (Card 4) and "What to Embrace" (Card 5)?
How can your "Foundation for Moving Forward" (Card 6) support your "North Star" intention (Card 7)?

Pay special attention to any Major Arcana cards, which often indicate significant life themes or spiritual lessons that are particularly active right now.

After completing your tarot spread, spend time with these journaling prompts. Let your writing be exploratory rather than conclusive—sometimes the most profound insights emerge when we simply let our thoughts flow onto paper.

On Growth and Change:

What aspect of my growth this year has surprised me most?
How have I shown up differently in challenging situations compared to last year?
What patterns or habits have I outgrown, even if I didn't consciously try to change them?
Where do I feel most confident or capable now that I didn't six months ago?

On Learning and Wisdom:

What has this year taught me about what I actually need (versus what I thought I wanted)?
How has my relationship with uncertainty or change evolved?
What beliefs about myself or the world have been challenged or expanded?
Where have I surprised myself with my resilience or capability?

On Relationships and Connection:

How have my relationships shifted or deepened this year?
What have I learned about my communication style or emotional needs?
Where have I been more authentic or vulnerable than before?
How has my capacity for setting boundaries evolved?

On Purpose and Direction:

What activities or experiences have felt most aligned and energizing?
How has my understanding of my purpose or calling evolved?
What dreams or goals feel more important now than they did in January?
Where do I feel most called to focus my energy in the coming months?

An essential part of mid-year reflection is making peace with the paths not taken, the goals not reached, and the plans that unfolded differently than expected. This isn't about minimizing disappointment or pretending everything is perfect—it's about finding the wisdom and value in all of your experiences, even the challenging ones.

Consider creating a small ritual to honor what didn't manifest as you expected:

Write a letter of gratitude to a goal that didn't work out, acknowledging what it taught you
Create a simple ceremony to release expectations that no longer serve you
Practice forgiveness for any ways you feel you've fallen short of your own expectations
Celebrate the plot twists that led you toward unexpected gifts or opportunities

Remember, the path of conscious growth rarely looks like what we initially envision. Often our deepest learning comes from navigating the unexpected with grace and openness.

Based on your reflection and tarot insights, this is the perfect time to realign your intentions for the remainder of 2025. This isn't about setting entirely new goals—it's about adjusting your focus based on what you've learned about yourself and what you've discovered about what truly matters to you.

Consider:

Which of your original intentions still feel relevant and energizing?
What new priorities have emerged from your experiences this year?
How do you want to approach the next six months differently based on what you've learned?
What would you focus on if you trusted that you're exactly where you need to be right now?

Instead of creating a long list of new resolutions, consider choosing just one or two areas where you feel most called to invest your energy and attention.

Based on your reflection work, craft a simple intention for the second half of 2025. This might be:

A way of being you want to cultivate (more present, more trusting, more creative)
A relationship or connection you want to deepen or heal
A project or area of growth that feels most alive for you
A pattern or habit you're ready to transform with compassion

Write this intention somewhere you'll see it regularly, and consider how you might honor it through small, consistent actions rather than dramatic overhauls.

As we reach this midpoint, remember that you're not just reflecting on six months—you're participating in the ancient wisdom of cycles. Just as the natural world has seasons of planting, growing, harvesting, and resting, our personal growth follows similar rhythms.
The first half of the year often carries the energy of initiation and expansion. The second half typically brings opportunities for integration, manifestation, and preparation for the next cycle. Understanding these natural rhythms can help you work with your own energy more wisely rather than pushing against it.

As we prepare to transition into August and Virgo season, we're moving from Leo's expressive confidence into Virgo's practical wisdom. This makes it the perfect time to take the insights from your mid-year reflection and begin translating them into concrete, sustainable changes in your daily life.

The second half of the year offers us the opportunity to ground our dreams in reality, to practice what we've learned, and to create lasting change through consistent, loving attention to what matters most.

Deepen Your Reflective Practice

If this mid-year reflection process resonates with you, Writual Society offers ongoing support for seasonal transitions and conscious goal-setting throughout the year. Our monthly workbooks include guided reflection processes, seasonal tarot spreads, and practices for aligning with natural rhythms while creating meaningful change.

Our community gatherings provide sacred space for sharing insights, processing transitions, and supporting each other's journey of conscious growth. There's profound value in reflecting on your path alongside others who understand that authentic development is rarely linear and always worthy of celebration.

[Join Writual Society to deepen your practice of conscious reflection and seasonal alignment with ongoing guidance and community support.]

What has surprised you most about your journey through the first half of 2025? I'd love to hear about your mid-year insights or any revelations from the Compass spread in the comments below.

Mid-Year Tarot Reflection: Where Are You Now?