Today we’d like to introduce you to Jen Venegas.
Hi Jen, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
Seven years ago, I lived with my best friend, Aria Serpa. This was during a time when I was struggling with my spirituality. I considered myself an atheist and rejected my Roman Catholic upbringing.
Aria identifies as a witch. She began to mentor me in reading tarot and oracle cards. And we talked a lot about spirituality and religion. I realized that the more I was processing my upbringing, the more I was healing my relationship with my spirituality.
I started doing tarot and oracle card readings for myself and friends about seven years ago. I didn’t charge at that time because I was practicing and strengthening my practice. Three years ago, I started offering “pay what you can” card readings to my friends and followers. That soon turned into doing in-person local events and creating a website where people could schedule a reading with me.
Currently, I am expanding my business to include offerings to spiritual courses. I am in the process of developing the first course, which is centered around intuition and should be out early next year.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
When I first started my business, it was in the summer of 2020. Even though I had been investing and practicing my spiritual practices and tarot/oracle card readings for years, I began to offer these services online. I received a lot of support from both my community and people outside of that. I experienced so much gratitude to be able to help folks with spiritual guidance, practice my gifts, and invest in not only my survival but also thriving.
Once our world began to open up, I noticed that I was booking less readings. I know that this has more to do with more people spending more time outside, working, engaging in social events, etc. than on my gifts. Booking less readings, however, meant that I could invest less into my survival as a disabled queer person.
I also noticed that during that time, I was struggling with feeling connected to my spirituality. I was dealing with some physical health problems and chronic pain that impacted my capacity to do in-person events as often. All in all, I was providing fewer readings. Because my spirituality has been so tied to developing and sharing my gifts with people, I struggled on a deep level.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next, you can tell us a bit more about your business.
Abeja translates to bee from Spanish. As a Latine/Chicane, bringing part of my culture into this business affirms who I am.
I also have a profound spiritual connection to bees of all kinds. As a child, I was fascinated by their “fuzzy” little bodies and always wished I was smaller so I could hug a bee. My primary love language is physical touch, so it makes perfect sense to me that this was a childhood want.
Today, I find such joy and guidance from bees. Witnessing them in nature and being able to ask them for guidance has a deep impact in my life. Learning more about how they interact with this sacred Earth has taught me so much about the roles we also play in our own communities.
With Abeja Rise, I offer spiritual healing and guidance. My current offerings are tarot or oracle card readings and soon – my first online course. I also offer sliding scale prices (which will never change) and don’t turn anyone away for lack of funds. My patrons on Patreon support funding for tarot/oracle card readings that folks cannot afford and also full or partial scholarships for my online courses. I want my gifts and offerings to be accessible to anyone.
My focus is on collective healing with the understanding that I don’t and won’t always know what that looks like. Even so, I donate a percentage of post-expense profits from my offerings to folks in need of mutual aid. My priority is lifting up community and the people I’m in community with through a decolonized framework.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
In January 0f 2021, I had just finished a year-ahead tarot reading for myself. I had pulled one card for each month and interpreted each one. A card that landed on a month later in the year hinted at a mentor or teacher of some kind. Even though this mentor was predicted to enter my life later in the year, because I am a Leo sun, I took some initiative.
For months before that tarot reading, I had been wanting to connect with a woman or femme that was older than me and that could offer me some guidance around long-term relationships and healing my connection with money. Seeing a mentor come up in my reading felt like the sign I needed.
The next day, the woman that would eventually become my mentor “randomly” texted me to ask how I was doing. I instantly knew I was supposed to work with her. We talked about the synchronicities that had happened to lead us to that point, and she agreed to mentor me.
So, my advice is this: Be open to new connections in your life and pay attention to who shows up. If you are wanting to call in a mentor or a supportive community or network, be specific with your needs. Check-in with yourself and be honest about not only what you need but what you can offer in return. And then ask – ask your guides, ask the universe, ask your ancestors. Be open to how they respond and let go of any urgency or timeline to receive.
Pricing:
- Oracle card readings: sliding scale $25-50
- Tarot card readings: flat fee $50
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.abejarise.com
- Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/abejarise
- Other: https://www.patreon.com/abejarise
