25 April 18: Eight of Coins/Earth

Dedication to craft. 

“Do what you love and you’ll never work another day in your life”  –

Confucius, maybe.

I’m glad to have drawn this card today (spirit says high five) because I’d wished I’d given a little more love to the ‘workaholic’ yesterday of the 10 of Wands (that was yesterday, I’m assuming).

I shall dedicate this card to yesterday’s card.

This industrious, dedicated, nuts and bolts card – salt of the Earth: Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn -is given some serious weight under this Taurus Sun and Virgo moon – the Devil is in the details, and Virgo is the ultimate détailler*.  Our human is at their workbench or computer knocking out whatever it is they knock out for a living, but they don’t ‘knock it out’, not at all. Every piece is examined, examined again. Smooth this edge, stand back, look at it again, is it exactly the same as the others? Let’s look at it one more time. 

Any master of any craft (I’m a Flamenco student/performer for 20 + years. Those Spanish teachers are tough, to say the least. Seriously. ) has spent hours and years and days and hours and measure ‘success’ not on money or fame but in the hours invested in a day, in a life, on their craft. The thing is once they’d discovered that’s what they were born to do, they never even cared to do anything else. Why would they?

1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8

AGAIN.

1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8

AGAIN.

1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8

The 8 is a very powerful number and of course the sign for ‘Eternity’ when turned on its side.

Chilling out behind your work. Enjoying your process.

“I can do this forever.”

 

 

*détailler : what can I say. Virgo Sun AND Virgo moon. I wanted to say ‘detailer’ but wasn’t sure if that was a word so had to check in the middle of typing the sentence and it isn’t really in English but it is in French so that’s what I shall use. That’s what I mean. 

 

 

 

24 April 18: Temperance & Eight of Wands

Civil discourse. The Tarot card Temperance means basically just what the word itself means: moderation,  the perfect mix, a healthy balance. The process of ‘tempering’, as in tempering steel, is a heating/cooling/heating/cooling process, the balancing and counterbalancing of temperatures until the forge is exactly right.

On this card of the Major Arcana associated with the astrological sign Sagittarius an angel stands tall, radiating a golden halo. The androgynous angel stands with one foot in the water of a clear blue stream or pond, the other on a grassy bank. It – the angel – pours liquid back and forth patiently between two cups, taking the time to find the right balance, the right mix. This is a card of self-restraint and of good health in general, or a time of recovery and renewed energy after a period of being  ‘out of whack’ for some reason (rehab?).

The Eight of Wands is also associated with the element of Fire in the Tarot (Aries/Leo/Sagittarius) and is a fast card, meaning what it brings it brings quickly. It’s all about communication. Eight slim, straight branches are shooting through the air in formation, like arrows. In fact, this card does often mean journey by air, and these could even be planes flying in formation. The angel on the Temperance card is quite used to flying, and re-enforces the possibility of a trip by air and over water.

An interesting pair. Temperance wants to take its time, and the fiery Eight of Wands wants it now. Someone is showing restraint, someone is not.

The Eight is a communication card and can bring messages or news. There may be some long-distance trip coming up – fast. Not a lot of time to think about it – but then again, the presence of time-conscious Temperance could also mean you’ve thought a lot about it, have gone ‘back and forth’ for a long time and are finally ready to make a move – or an announcement of some kind. You’ve been ‘biding your time’ and now can’t wait to put the pedal to the metal.

If there are discussions to be had, keep it light. Consider words and tone carefully. Be patient, measured, and considerate. If you are the one delivering or presenting information, be sure it is ‘fair and accurate reporting’.

You may be called upon to mediate or manage some sort of situation, to find the ‘middle ground’ or the right combination of elements that ‘make it work’.

 

Consider your words, don’t lose your temper, and have a nice flight.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

23 April 18: Ten of Clubs/Wands/Fire

Under pressure. 

“Ya feel me?” – Saturn, the Taskmaster

This is a card of being overburdened. On this card (Rider-Waite, Morgan-Greer) is a man (or woman, of course)  struggling under a massive bundle of clubs (long, straight, stout branches) all starting to sprout new leaves. He can barely carry them all and stumbles along with his load, doing the best he can, both arms wrapped around this bundle so big he can’t even see the way in front of him – the forest for the trees, as it were. Poor guy, he doesn’t know what a day off is.

I always get a manic energy with this card. This may be a person who gets ‘all fired up’ and then bites off much more than he or she can chew and ends up completely overwhelmed.

Or, everyone dumped their work on this guy because they knew he’d do it.

There may be a deadline, and everyone just wants it done at this point, so ‘I’ll just do it myself..” But he’s got to get those staves in the ground on time, they’re starting to sprout! There’s no way he can do it alone. Not without killing himself in the process.

He’s only one guy, so something’s gotta give. There is no choice but to delegate and hand some of those batons to someone else, which is why runners do it. Seriously. Is your back bothering you? Listen to your body. I don’t care how much enthusiasm you have or how ‘fired up’ you get, you’re only 1 human.

This is the card of a workaholic.

“It’s sad, boss. He was so determined to get it done on time we found him on the floor buried under a mountain of files in his office. Apparently he’d been there since Friday night. Janitor found him dead this morning. Guess he’ll never get that promotion.”

“Ah, well. Notify personnel….and what’s that new intern’s name? Call her in here to finish this shit up, we have a deadline.”

 

 

 

,

22 April 18: Page of Coins & Six of Coins Reversed

I’d love to help, but I can’t right now.

This earthy, terrestrial pair of  the Pentacle suit (Virgo/Taurus/Capricorn) under this Taurus sun aren’t here to talk about rainbows, soul-mates or hands coming out of the clouds. Not today.

We’re talking about money and that’s it. The Coin of the Realm, ya’ll.

The Page of Pentacles is practical, respectful and dependable. A regular ‘Boy Scout’.  He’s studious and respectful. An eager apprentice, he will commit and devote himself to the time and work it will take to become the slow and steady Knight and finally, King.

On the Morgan-Greer card he wears a chevron of 3 red stripes on his sleeve matching the red beret of his uniform. He holds a huge bright gold pentacle as he looks off into the distance, facing left. This is a big responsibility, this gold coin which is as big as his head. On the Rider-Waite card, the Page faces right, holding his coin up in front of his face with both hands, gazing into it as if it’s a crystal ball.

The Page, being still only a Page no matter how old he or she is, may be on the receiving end of an offer of an entry-level position that won’t pay shit for a long time and he or she is taking a long, hard look at whether or not they can realistically slog it out…can he/she afford not to? May have no choice.

The Six of Coins upright talks about giving and receiving, ‘having’ and ‘not having’. It’s a charitable card. A noble-looking man stands with a scale in his left hand dispensing coins with his right to two people who bow – or grovel -gratefully at his feet. But this man does not look down on these people. He himself may have been in that position at one time. He sees charity as an investment and a redistribution of wealth.

Reversed, It looks like he’s actually taking the coins from the outstretched hands (Morgan-Greer) or holding it just out of their reach. Beg, bitches. The Scales of Justice he holds in his hand is upside down. This is unfair, or at least you may feel that way.

Pay attention.

This card reversed along with this Page of Earth could mean you receive news that you’re losing or have lost money possibly from your own extravagance and inattention. The Page could be bringing news of a final divorce settlement or the settling of a will or a dissolved or dissolving business relationship, and things are not being fairly distributed. Who is mis-handling your money?

Our Page needs to ‘start all over again’. Under Taurus, the stubborn Bull, he knows it’s a good period for him to invest time, money and earthly energy aka ‘ work’ into something new. He believes in himself, this Page.

I’m down to my last coin, he’s here to say. I wish I could help you, but I’m broke.

You may even have to say this to one of your kids.

You may need to forego a partner who’s spent it all, or nearly. This person may be younger than you.

This could also be someone seeking financing for some entertainment or writing related project. It would be wise to invest in this Page if you are the one holding the money and the Libran scales of justice and fairness. You’ll definitely get it back, and then some. This Page of Earth has a green/gold thumb.

Watch your back, watch your wallet, and keep an eye on whoever is ‘watching’ your money. Not everyone was a ‘Boy Scout’.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

21 April 18: The Empress & 4 of Cups/Water

Maternity. This is one of the pregnancy cards. The Empress is seated by a waterfall in lush green surroundings, serene and strong. She’s the Earth mother, Mother Nature herself,  and as we can see illustrated by the pomegranates embroidered on her voluminous robes , the very Goddess of Fertility (Rider-Waite). She is Number #3 of the Major Arcana of the Tarot, the sacred number of creation. She is sensual and maternal. Her presence assures health and abundance, not just ‘riches’ in the cash sense, but of the spirit as well. Wherever she walks green things spring up in her footprints, but she’s quiet and content on her throne in the open air by the water, a shield on the ground beside her bearing the astrological symbol of Venus, who is all about the ladies. Venus loves artists, singers, actors, nurses, fashion designers, decorators, and basically just people who create beautiful things that make the earth a nicer place to live.

The Four of Cups is an odd pairing with the Empress because it is generally a card of apathy and emotional discontent. A man sits cross legged under a tree, his arms folded across his chest. This is a card of withdrawing and not appreciating – well, anything. There are 3 gold cups on the ground before him, and a 4th is being offered by the infamous Hand in the Sky who has appeared in a puff of cloud as usual, but the man (or woman) is not interested. 4 is the very number of the earth 4-solid walls 4 solid legs-on-a-chair stability, “the four corners of the world.”  But the person on this card has taken ‘stability’ to the extreme that he hasn’t moved for what seems like a very long time in spite of the invitations or ‘cups’ he is offered. In fact he is so self-absorbed and ‘stuck’ that actual vines are starting to grow over him as if he were a fence post.

So here are a few stories this combination could be telling.

The thing I’m noticing on the Morgan- Greer 4 of Cups is that the cups at a glance look empty, but I notice they are not. There are contents, but it looks like milk or water. Someone who is pregnant but maybe a little older may need to literally not move for the last ‘4’ weeks or months of their term and drink a lot of water and/or milk. I don’t even drink milk so it’s weird I should be saying that, but that’s what I’m getting.

Maybe she’s pregnant and it’s more of a “I can’t drink for a while guys, go without me,  kind of thing.

This man may not be real happy about another addition to the family, and feels tied down.

“Do we really need another kid?”

The other thing is that The Empress could represent an elderly woman, mother or grandmother, who may be depressed and shut in and isn’t taking their medication. As a matter of fact, this could be any wife or mother who is depressed, possibly even postpartum depression, and is not taking their meds or they’re simply not working.

“Why should I take these anymore?”

The artist is ‘pregnant’ with a new ‘baby’ and isn’t interested in anything else right now. They haven’t been out in a while, so they must be working on something epic.The invitations and offers keep coming in, but he’s not interested.

 

“What’s he building in there?” -Tom Waits

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

20 April 18: The Moon & The Hanged Man

There’s a fine line between genius and madness. 

“The moon is a chin of gold.” – Emily Dickenson

No it’s not. It’s rocky, cold, dusty and weird. That’s the thing about the moon, which I do believe is dissected earlier in the archives. La Luna (‘the moon’ in Latin) inspires the very word ‘lunatic”.  This mysterious little satellite has a huge effect on the Earth and on us, whether we are conscious of it or not. On this card, under the huge full moon a crawfish is creeping up out of a still pond on to a bank, but never crawls all the way up out of it. This is a very psychic card, but we can’t be sure what is real and what isn’t. The crawfish is half in this world and half submerged, like being half-awake. What the hell were those crazy dreams last night? The Moon is a Major Arcana card associated with the watery, emotional astrological sign of Pisces and warns us we don’t know everything, something is hidden. We can’t see to the bottom of the pond, and even if we’re looking, all we see is our own distorted reflection on the surface.

The Hanged Man is also of the Major Arcana of the Tarot. His planet is Neptune, Lord of the Sea. Also explored in detail in the archives somewhere, this is a card of suspension before transition. The man on the card has voluntarily hung himself by one foot from a tree to surrender himself to a period of meditation. The Hanged man has seen life from a whole new perspective from this unusual angle. Not everyone has seen things from his point of view, this visionary.

The moon was just a cold gray rock until the poet showed us his point of view, until we saw it through the artists’ eyes, until we heard the singer sing about it.

So the martyr suffers for his art, but the world is a more beautiful place for it. This is a combination of a serious creative genius for sure, extreme as he or she may seem.  There is serious potential for escapism through drugs, legal or illegal, or ‘oceans’ of alcohol. Someone may be into very kinky and dangerious sex scenes under the cover of darkness.

I know! He’s transitioning into a werewolf under the full moon! That’s it. Or he’s totally tripping and thinks he’s a damn werewolf.  He’s not ‘coming down’ for awhile.

The Moon being all things female could indicate a couple weeks you’ve been pregnant, or a couple weeks to delivery, or your cycle is here for a couple weeks, more or less. I don’t miss that, that’s for sure.

 

“We are going to the moon that is not very far. Man has so much farther to go within himself.” -Anais Nin

 

 

 

19 April 18: King of Clubs/Fire,The Sun reversed

The King brought the Spring now he’s off to do his thing. Or at least he’s trying to, but as that happy bright Sun card is reversed, it may come a little late in some places..what Aries couldn’t do maybe Taurus can.

The King of Clubs (Aries, Leo, Sagittarius) of the Morgan-Greer deck is obviously a relative of the great Emperor of the Major Arcana, as the dark-bearded face of the King is the same as the Emperor who is also associated with Aries but whose beard is white. Or he himself may one day be Emperor.

He’s an amazing man or woman, this King, but both of these cards have a lot of male energy – to say the least.  The King holds a stout stave in his left hand in this deck, where in older decks he holds it in his right. This is the King of intuition, and his wand points up to receive and bring down divine guidance. His left hand indicates his receptivity.

He has both a sense of humor and a temper. He’s a good negotiator, and I think that’s what may be going on here.

The Sun of the Major Arcana and associated with the fire sign Leo is love, joy, happiness, life, marriage and eathly  fulfillment. The traditional cards usually show a naked child riding a white horse in a beautiful garden surrounded by sunflowers or two children playing in the sun, blissed out. Reversed, it means basically the same thing but the energy is blocked or delayed for some reason, but it’s there.

Here’s the thing though. There’s a lot of fire here, and if this King is involved in some sort of negotiation, settlement or financial agreement, he’s gotta dial it down a little or the whole thing could go up in flames. The Sun reversed is pretty close to perfection (19,  9+1 =10=1 + 0 =1). Reversed, it’s 19. Pretty close, right?

So this King may need to compromise a bit. But he’s a fair man, and a successful man, and smart enough to know that what this card promises when upright is well worth the compromise.

He’s a natural and enthusiastic leader with a lot of stories to tell. It seems like he may have turned his back on some aspects of his own personal life or needs because he’s been busy with all the stuff he has to do to be King. His back is to this joyful Sun card, so he may be seeking perfection in people or situations – or in life itself –  that is unrealistic or simply doesn’t exist.  He could be walking away from accomplishments or a marriage that didn’t fulfill him. This usually honest and trustworthy King would certainly have no shortage of willing mistresses if that were the case.

But he is the King, and a King puts his Kingdom before his own earthly happiness. That’s the gig.

Maybe he just needs some sun. Or he’s had too much.