Madame Helen is one of the few remaining psychics in downtown Phoenix. The business has been family owned since 1956 and offers palm reading, tarot cards, and future telling. (Photo by Mario Mendez)When I was a preteen, I furiously scrolled through Astrology.com to calculate whether my crush’s sign was compatible with mine. Despite what the horoscopes insisted, he wasn’t into me and these fantasies never originated. Six years later, my trust in fortune telling has since become more realistic; however, there is still that 12-year-old in me who wants to know what life my future holds. To find out, I recently decided to contact a psychic.
To pursue this interest, I searched for palm readers in downtown Phoenix and came across Madam Helen’s Palmistry, situated inside a house that had been converted into a full-time fortune telling station. The location is less than a mile from the Downtown campus, so it seemed convenient enough.
Approaching this house, however, revealed to be somewhat intimidating since the front yard contained a small amount of grass that still managed to grow too tall and was covered by random, rusted objects which haven’t moved in a very, very long time. To add to this eeriness, I had to ring the doorbell up to four times before a tiny voice came through the screen door, asking whether I would like a $20 palm reading, a $30 palm and tarot reading or a $50 palm, tarot and fortune package.
As intrigued as I am by old cards and glass orbs, I stuck with palm reading alone since my college budget does not allot much gray area for spontaneous fortune tellings.
Once I told the faceless stranger what I wanted, I was introduced to a house where an intimidating lawn is nothing in comparison to its interior. The entire house seems to be cluttered with knick-knacks — walls decorated with bohemian patterns and gnomes with faces plastered with eerie smiles. Photos were not permitted, but, rest assured, I was thoroughly creeped out.
Shortly after, a teenage girl beckoned me into an office and told me to sit. I complied and then asked whether I would see Madam Helen soon. She then informed me that she would be doing the palm reading, because her mother had taught her.
In other words, I spent $20 to get my fortune told by an apprentice.
Even so, I couldn’t help myself from getting wrapped up in the life Madame Helen’s daughter spelled out for me. Although she insisted that “I’m going to tell you the truth of what I see, not just what I want you to hear,” the next 15 minutes sounded like a script of what I had dreamed my life to be.
According to the hidden inscription on my hands, I will live to be at least 80-years-old, but, before my time ends, I will live a fulfilling life of love, travel and success.
Apparently, I have already met the man I am going to marry (that is, if I decide to marry at all, which may or may not be a major plot hole) and will have twins. I am certainly not looking forward to the impending doom of my lady parts, but if I am going to have kids, I suppose I’d better go the full mile.
Luckily, I still have time before my palm-written destiny determines my need to settle down. I will spend the next decade or so building up my career and travelling across the world. I will enjoy just the right amount of money to decide which places I’d like to visit while still living comfortably in my own home. I may not be rich, but that is not something that matters to me.
As sketchy as this experience was, I am content with my results. Perhaps I’ll know in 20 years whether destiny meshes with reality, but, until then, everything remains uncertain. All that’s left is letting it happen.
Reach the reporter at aplante@asu.edu or follow her on Twitter @aimeenplante
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