Past/Present/Future
Merlin Trotter first learned to read tea leaves at the age of 13. Fortune-telling was a family affair growing up in the orchards in Kent so it all came naturally to him. Only a few years later he started reading for others. The boys laughed and teased him about having a "girl's job" but what they didn't know was that it got him into all the best parties. He says life was way more interesting back then—no tellies, no phones, and the city looked different. Now, much older, he keeps the magic alive by reading tarot on his narrowboat as it cruises through the canals of London.
I meet Adele in her tucked-away shop at Angel Market on a Sunday afternoon. The air is thick with the scent of burning sage, the space is filled and breathing vintage. She welcomes me in, and for a moment, we simply observe each other. The shop is cosy and intimate and my mind wandering amidst the fashion, layers of costume jewelry, blue tablecloth set for tarot and the large shop window into the tiny street. As we discuss belonging, places, and contentment, Adele prepares for the tarot reading. She shuffles the cards, and one falls out: the Nine of Cups. "A good card," she remarks, and we begin.
