In the darkest of seasons, the Yule sun begins to rise a little earlier each day, and all the world seems ready for change. Use the Solstice Light spread to strengthen your hopes for the future. Plan, make wishes, raise your spirits—knowing that the creative fire of spring is promised to you at Yule.

If you have a specific question in mind, ask it as you shuffle the cards.To begin, shuffle the cards and place them in positions one through six, as shown.

Position 1: Returning Hope.
What are you hopeful about? If this card feels negative to you, it depicts painful issues that will be resolved or healed in the coming year. Remember, all cards show a spectrum of life, from happy to sad, and offer opportunities to learn wisdom.

Position 2: Making Wishes.
What does your heart desire? Again, if you don't like the card, it is because it depicts an uncomfortable situation that you wish were different.

Position 3: Seeking Visions. What is your vision for the future? Where do you see yourself next year at this time?

Position 4: Sense of Balance. What will restore balance to your life? If the card feels negative, it is because it shows an area of your life that is out of balance and where you need to focus your efforts to restore order.

Position 5: Goodwill Toward Others.
Your expression of love. Yule is the season of giving. In what way can you open your heart to others? If this card makes you uncomfortable, it indicates a situation in need of repair, forgiveness, or making an amend. Note whether card four, your sense of balance, is related to card five, goodwill toward others.

Position 6: Advice.
The next step. Planning. The action card. What can you do on the mundane level during the winter months to make your hopes and wishes real?

Look at cards one through five: your hopes, wishes, vision for the future, sense of balance, and goodwill toward others. What story do they weave together to advise you on your next course of action?

To complete the Yule reading, you can meditate with the cards, write a journal entry, keep the cards on the altar until Imbolc, or simply close. Carry a card or two with you during the day to strengthen the connection between you and your vision for the future. Affirm your personal power to plan the life you want: "I awaken to the season of Yule and bring my spirit's desire into balance. This, or something better, is manifesting for me now, for the good of all, harming no one, according to free will. So must it be."

Excerpted from Tarot for All Seasons, by Christine Jette