Six of Shields
Castle of Maidens
listen, people. Really. I keep telling you, this isn’t about the scene with Zoot, Dingo and Sir Galahad in “Monty Python and the Holy Grail.” Sadly.
And although the Arthurian Castle of Maidens story may have led to about the kind of scenes you’d have expected from the Pythons (see above), the real legend − and the meaning of the card − is actually very good, very kind, very positive. [And completely without spandex, not even of any kind.] [Sadly.]
Pretty much any reader will tell you that the Six of Shields betokens generosity, charitable acts and material gain. Some might also indicate that it’s a sign that you will soon reach a position where you feel you can help others. (Always good things.)
In my readings, I’m often intuitively prompted to take the interpretation a bit farther and in a slightly different direction. I’m likely to say something like:
Okay. Yo! Focus for a minute!
Let your inner vision move back and forth in time across your life.
Something that is yours by right
that was lost or taken from you
will be restored to you in full.
So today, right now, this moment let yourself attend to what that might be and how it can most happily be brought into being.
This card can apply to many different aspects of life:
~ the artist who (thinks he) has lost his Muse
~ the investor who (fears she) has lost her basis
~ the manager who (believes he) has lost connection to his artistry
~ the writer who (worries she) has lost her hope of prosperity
It can even imply a return of misappropriated property, a renewal of a sundered relationship, or the reopening of a realm of hopefulness that seemed long gone.
So the important thing to do is − without bludgeoning yourself − scan your life and acknowledge what it is you fear has been lost to you, or what you have in fact lost. Then let yourself understand that TODAY is the day you can renew that connection, revivify that dream, and reconnect with that hope.
By the way, some readers feel that this card tells us to be attentive to the possibility of helpful intervention by/through positive masculine energy. So keep an eye out for that.
Know what you would bring back to your life. Know that this moment is the time when that renewal, that reconnection, that return, can begin. Go from there!
Bright blessings, joy and light!
Thought for the Day: People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; never throw out anyone. ~ Audrey Hepburn
Today’s Weather: Wiffling banjoboinging meta-analtyics. Carry grains of salt.
On This Date: 1620 – Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower sight land at Cape Cod, Massachusetts. [The cost of a summer rental goes up fivefold overnight.]
Four of Swords
Isolt of the White Hands
Goodness. This is the fourth time this card has shown up since October 7. Which one of y’all isn’t getting enough rest, enough recuperation, enough time far from the madding crowd?
[Headline:
Tarot Blogger Blown Out of Window by Draft as Readers Raise Hands Simultaneously.]
Look into this, then, will ya? But don’t just make it another item on an overly long to-do list. Make DIFFERENT choices.
The Four of Swords, then, is a card of respite and recovery. It speaks of moving from a stressful environment to a place of safety, calm and comfort.
Some readers find that this card speaks of solitude or hermit’s repose. Others see it as predicting renewal.
Anna-Marie Ferguson, creator of the Legend deck, finds such things as healing, gentle soul searching, convalescing and regaining strength and direction in this card. [And I've been finding a lot of clients the past couple weeks are expressing a feeling of lack of direction. So Looky Here you guys!]
To me, the Four of Swords says:
“Now! Today! [Especially because it's a Sunday!] Make a mini-retreat! Give yourself time and space to rest, recharge, recuperate. As Anna-Marie Ferguson also says, this card recommends you leave a stressful, chaotic situation in order to clear the mind and reevaluate plans ~ so you can refine your sense of where you actually want to go!
Please be sure to carve out at least an hour, if not most of the day, to just be at peace, take it easy, do what’s comfortable and healing as you let the river (and pretty much everything else) flow by. [Me? Naps. And avoiding rakes and lawnmowers -- in a good cause!]
Bright blessings, peace, calm and healing!
Quote for the Day: We experience moments absolutely free from worry. These brief respites are called panic. ~ Cullen Hightower
Today’s Weather: Cloudbursts of asparagus lemon matzoh crumble. Unrest in the cauliflower zone.
On This Date: 1793 – In Paris, the French Revolutionary government opens the Louvre to the public as a museum.
Vortigern’s Fortress
Okay, dears.
Can I assume we were a little busy yesterday and sorta just let this card slide by?
Or maybe we thought, “Aw, it’s Friday. What can I possibly have to worry my brain about on a Friday?”
Or maybe this card is just a bigger deal than even I normally give it credit for, at leats at the moment, and so it came to tweak our karma two days in a row!
‘Cos as I wrote about 24 hours ago, it’s such a valuable card.
So here we go again. I hope. Please.
Even so, this is definitely another one of those OhBugger! kinda cards, at least from its appearance.
It’s one of those cards for which − by my interpretation, which veers a good piece from the norm − I’m supposed to tell you, “Ah, yes, yes, yes. Don’t jump to conclusions. Don’t leap before you look. Really significant opportunities for growth here.”
Remember the teachers (from High School Math types to your skating coach to Ram Dass to Sai Baba to Miss Laura on Romper Room to even Captain Kangeroo) who have said that? It always really means, “Get ready for some work!” Even I admit that.
Well, so, maybe that’s the case here. Maybe. But with this card, it’s also a matter of IMPORTANT work that will be worth your time and attention for sure. Hard work, maybe, but SO VERY meaningful.
Now, The Tower isn’t a dire card, at least not as I’ve been given to understand it – intuitively and through my experience with clients.
But when my clients see it as it’s depicted in the Legend deck − a huge red dragon fighting a ginormous white one, completely destroying a massive royal fortress in the process – it sort of makes them go, “Eeep,” if not “Holy St. Swithin,” suck in their breath, swallow hard and say, “WTF!” [That's Wisconsin Travel Federation.]
So what’s different about my understanding of the card and what it offers? I usually say something like:
“Okay, I know it looks scary, dragons fighting, castles blown to bits. But really, it’s positive.
“No, REALLY!
“The card is asking you examine yourself, your dreams and your being.
“It’s saying, ‘Hey. Stop for a minute. Look at your life. Think about it for a minute.
“If you take your life down to its foundation, down to what’s REALLY important, what’s really essential to the you that is really you, then WHAT IS THAT TRUE FOUNDATION? Who are you? What are you? What is it that you really have to build upon, and wish to build upon, this time around? And, by the way, what will you build upon it?’”
This evaluation should be applied to every area of significance in your life, particularly those in which you’re experiencing some transition. (Or wobble. Or outright caving in.)
What is the true foundation – for YOU:
What is the true foundation of career?
What is the true foundation of family?
What is the true foundation of relationships – of each and every kind, from the most intimate and powerful to minor friendships to the bagger at the grocery store?
What is the true foundation of joy?
What is the true foundation of spiritual connectedness?
What is the true foundation of physical health?
What is the true foundation of emotional health?
What is the true foundation of creativity?
What is the true foundation of home?
What is the true foundation of beauty?
And so on, all through the entire list: everything on your own personal list of areas of your life that are important to you.
What IS the true foundation for YOU?
Once you know what your various true foundations are, then you can determine what you’d like to build upon them, how you want to do it, and what the best way is to go about it.
And it’s perfectly okay if what you wish to build changes. It can be a villa one week, a pagoda the next, a log cabin sometime next month and a fairy castle sometime after that. So long as you know what your foundations are, and honor them, then what you are about building is and will be perfect.
What are your foundations in each area of your being? How can you be mindful of them? How can you stay mindful of them? What do you wish to build upon them? How can you begin today?
Bright blessings and a deep, happy, helpful knowing of yourself!
Quote for the Day:
Today’s Weather: Frequent watercress guacamole followed by intermittent schumpeters. I warned ya. On This Date: 1967 – Carl B. Stokes is elected as Mayor of Cleveland, Ohio, becoming the first African American mayor of a major American city.
And: 1989 – Douglas Wilder wins the governor’s seat in Virginia, becoming the first elected African American governor in the United States.
The Tower
Vortigern’s Fortress
Gracing our presence once again since its last flyby in early September. And it’s such a valuable card.
Even so, this is definitely another one of those OhBugger! kinda cards, at least from its appearance.
It’s one of those cards for which − by my interpretation, which veers a good piece from the norm − I’m supposed to tell you, “Ah, yes, yes, yes. Don’t jump to conclusions. Don’t leap off bridges. Really significant opportunities for growth here.”
Remember the teachers (from High School Math types to your skating coach to Ram Dass to Sai Baba to Prez Obama to even Mickey Mouse) who have said that? It always really means, “Get ready for some work!” Even I admit that.
Well, so, maybe that’s the case here. Maybe. But with this card, it’s also a matter of IMPORTANT work that will be worth your time and attention for sure. Hard work, maybe, but SO VERY meaningful.
Now, The Tower isn’t a dire card, at least not as I’ve been given to understand it – intuitively and through my experience with clients.
But when my clients see it as it’s depicted in the Legend deck − a huge red dragon fighting a ginormous white one, completely destroying a massive royal fortress in the process – it sort of makes them go, “Eeep,” if not “Holy [St. Swithin],” suck in their breath, swallow hard and say, “I give up.”
So what’s different about my understanding of the card and what it offers? I usually say something like:
“Okay, I know it looks scary, dragons fighting, castles blown to bits. But really, it’s positive.
“No, REALLY!
“The card is asking you examine yourself, your dreams and your being.
“It’s saying, ‘Hey. Stop for a minute. Look at your life. Think about it for a minute.
“If you take your life down to its foundation, down to what’s REALLY important, what’s really essential to the you that is really you, then WHAT ISTHAT TRUE FOUNDATION? Who are you? What are you? What is it that you really have to build upon, and wish to build upon, this time around? And, by the way, what will you build upon it?’”
This evaluation should be applied to every area of significance in your life, particularly those in which you’re experiencing some transition. (Or wobble. Or outright caving in.)
What is the true foundation – for YOU:
What is the true foundation of career?
What is the true foundation of family?
What is the true foundation of relationships – of each and every kind, from the most intimate and powerful to minor friendships to the bagger at the grocery store?
What is the true foundation of joy?
What is the true foundation of spiritual connectedness?
What is the true foundation of physical health?
What is the true foundation of emotional health?
What is the true foundation of creativity?
What is the true foundation of home?
What is the true foundation of beauty?
And so on, all through the entire list: everything on your own personal list of areas of your life that are important to you.
What IS the true foundation for YOU?
Once you know what your various true foundations are, then you can determine what you’d like to build upon them, how you want to do it, and what the best way is to go about it.
And it’s perfectly okay if what you wish to build changes. It can be a villa one week, a pagoda the next, a log cabin sometime next month and a fairy castle sometime after that. So long as you know what your foundations are, and honor them, then what you are about building is and will be perfect.
What are your foundations in each area of your being? How can you be mindful of them? How can you stay mindful of them? What do you wish to build upon them? How can you begin today?
Bright blessings and a deep, happy, helpful knowing of yourself!
Quote for the Day: Do you wish to rise? Begin by descending. You plan a tower that will pierce the clouds? Lay first the foundation of humility. ~ St. Augustine
Today’s Weather: Exemplary skyborne bubblenosed Sasquatchi. Wear a tux. Or flipflops. On This Date: 1928 – Sweden begin a tradition of eating Gustavus Adolphus pastries to commemorate the king. [I am SO gonna be good!]
Gustavus Adolphus Day is celebrated in Sweden each year on 6 November. On this day only, a special pastry with a chocolate or marzipan medallion of the king, is sold.
The Lovers
Gareth & Lyones
I believe this card last turned for us in early August. Never a moment too soon, says I!
I always get the biggest kick out of clients who come to me and ask, “How can I find the lover who will be my soul mate?” And I always take more than my fair share of grinchly delight in asking,
“You do realize what that means, right? You do realize that your soul mate is the ONE PERSON who can ‘help you’ learn the most lessons the fastest. Right? As in, the ONE PERSON who can hit every single one of your hot buttons all at one time without even trying at all. RIGHT?”
The expressions I get in response are priceless.
Think about it.
Anyway, as I have said before when this card turned up, if you REALLY need to know what The Lovers portends as a daily card, you more ’n likely need greater, deeper and more intensive help than I can provide. Nevertheless…
Some readers see this card as a harbinger of attraction, love, beauty, and trials overcome. Others believe it speaks of fidelity.
Anna-Marie Ferguson, creator of the Legend deck, finds lots of wonderful things in this card, among them the blossoming of a valuable and balanced relationship or a connection on a higher level.
So yes, The Lovers is at the very least the card of a good, solid, balanced, loving relationship − one that is comfortable, open and committed, if not necessarily intimate. Platonic will, in fact, do very nicely. [Don't throw things. I'm just the messenger.]
When I work with clients and this card comes up, I tell them they are being guided to look for perfect partnerships in whatever areas of life they may be asking about.
And I remind them to bear in mind that partnerships are not just about people.
A perfect partnership can be the right romantic partner at the right time, certainly.
But it can also be
~ the right working relationship (boss or assistant) or
~ the right work,
~ the right opportunity,
~ the right client(s),
~ the right doctor,
~ the right book,
~ the right business location,
~ the right prayer,
~ the right meditative practice,
~ the right sacred space,
~ the right Springer spaniel puppy or even
~ the right Tarot reader [This advertisement brought to you by the committee to keep Neal out of debtor’s prison. Ubest Huury Ubet, Secretary.]
So when you have choices to make today, AND in the foreseeable future, look for PERFECT partnership. You deserve it, and you should not settle for less.
Bright and perfect blessings!
Quote for the day: The best artists know what to leave out. ~ Charles de Lint
Today’s Weather: Merovingian flying boomrackahs. The kormboggs will shudder. Ha! Haha!
On This Date: 1872 – Women’s suffrage: In defiance of the law, suffragist Susan B. Anthony votes for the first time, and is later fined $100.
The Questing Beast
Saw this card just a couple weeks ago. We obviously need a reminder. Especially after an election day.
We really need to work on joyfulness in our lives.
So stop reading this, have a coupla mimosas or an Irish coffee or some Fruity Thai pancakes or brownies, or a…
Oh, wait. That’s for a MUCH different kinda blog.
Anyway, we really need to work on joyfulness in our lives.
This is another card where my interpretation may diverge a tidly, tadly [or rather substantial] bit from that of other readers. And I’m pretty joyful about it.
Some see the Seven of Cups as recommending opening to visions through contemplation. [Mustn’t argue with that, ever, unless you’re ready to have the Storm Troopers of Light come after ya. And gold lamé spacesuits with ruby go-go boots first thing in the morning is more than I can handle. Even with pancakes.]
Some readers find the card dictates that the querent (questioner) has a choice to make, and must decide upon one of various options.
Anna-Marie Ferguson, creator of the Legend deck, sees this card as betokening – among other things − fantasy, whims or perhaps a bizarre turn of events. Right up my alley. [I've decided to rename my office The Bizarre Bazaar.]
I see the Seven of Cups as the card of utter, total complete joy and joyful abandon.
There may be some need to stay at least a bit grounded, so you DON’T go completely off into the realm of fantasy in a ” ҉ ҉ ҉ Wow, look at all the pretty colors! ҉ I’ll betcha I can too live on air and rainbows and weird pancakes ҉ ҉ ҉ !” right on down the primrose path” kinda scenario.
But this is also the card of Fairy Favors, creativity and clear vision around attaining true desires. (And, as I said to a client in a recent reading, it really does imply that you’re going to do some meaningful work on defining and owning what your TRUE desires in this life actually are!)
And this is still a great, great time to become reacquainted with the Green Fay Friends down the harvest garden way, and re-earn the Fairy Favors they offer.
So go after the joy. Seek it, quest after it, demand it! And for pity’s sake, at least be sure you can actually define what it is − or what it would be, if you had your druthers − for you.
Let yourself renew your belief in and commitment to your happiness, and be open to the myriad magical ways the universe may have to bring it to you. Let yourself be open to surprises and miracles in that regard. And open to a little Fairy Magic today!
Joy! Joy! Joy!
And Joy!
Bright blessings!
And don’t forget joy!
Quote for the day: If you think you’re enlightened go spend a week with your family. ~ Ram Dass
Today’s Weather: Strange wymblations of the pelicorns over the open range. Rarebit shielding advisable. Dodge occasional myths.
On This Date: 1922 – In Egypt, British archaeologist Howard Carter and his men find the entrance to King Tutankhamen’s tomb in the Valley of the Kings.
Strength
Percivale’s Vision
Haven’t seen this card since early July. It’s always a fortunate card to turn up. And not a moment too soon!
Obviously, this card betokens its own name: Strength, as well as courage and vitality. Plus magnanimity − both toward you and emanating from you – [so feel free to send your favorite Tarot reader a beautiful and rare Italian silk almost-anything. Thank you]. The card can also indicate perhaps the most perfect light touch of luck.
Really pretty good for a Tuesday! So TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THAT! ALL OF IT!! [Otherwise what are you reading this for?]
Where was I? [Come to that, Who was I? Oh yeh...]
The Strength card is one of the most utterly positive cards in the deck. And it does offer a few useful, specific recommendations.
It is very important that you do not underestimate your physical and emotional strength at this time, or doubt the power and durability of your connection to Universal Life Force – God, Spirit, The Big G, Mr. Dylan, Commissar Cheney or Whatever-You-Name-It.
In other words, don’t down yourself out or assume less of yourself than you may actually be able to handle. If opportunities come, REACH! If challenges come, PUSH BACK! Don’t just crawl under the bed and hide.
Believe in your ability to succeed and to attain that which you most desire, particularly in areas of physical healing and achievement and/or emotional connection and healing.
Draw on your inner strength, which is truly far greater than you give yourself credit for.
Like many of us, you may need to begin investing some ongoing effort toward actually identifying and functionalizing your connection to your inner strength. Our culture ain’t so good about that, unless you have forced yourself to march to the same “inner drummer” as everybody else. Get to know your OWN connection to Source, and work with it.
We have in us the brilliant, beautiful and eternal power of stars. It’s up to us to find and focus it.
Anna-Marie Ferguson, creator of the Legend deck, feels this card indicates having the strength and vitality to realize one’s goals, and also ambition tempered with serenity – a gentle strength. Great energy for an election day!
When I work with clients, I advise them about an additional level of meaning to this card in this particular deck. I find this to be the card of the visionary – the individual who can see higher, farther, and deeper than others can.
Sometimes, even more important, this is the person who can see (distinguish clearly) the trees for the forest and the forest for the trees. So give yourself credit for being able to see things more clearly, and define things more accurately and truly, than the madding crowd around you.
Own your ability to be the visionary who can, as Robert F. Kennedy so beautifully put it, “…dream things as they never were, and say why not?” Or see things as they really are, and say, “Nuh-unh sucker! We don’t play that way NO MORE!”
Trust in your strength and draw on it. Manage it well when you must, but draw on it. Believe in your success. And let your vision of WHAT CAN BE guide you higher and higher beyond the norm of what has been.
Bright blessings, light, clarity and joy!
Please Vote Today!
Quote for The Day:
The IRS decides to audit Grandpa, and summons him to the IRS office.
The IRS auditor was not surprised when Grandpa showed up with his attorney.
The auditor said, ‘Well, sir, you have an extravagant lifestyle and no full-time employment, Which you explain by saying that you win money gambling. I’m not sure the IRS finds that believable.’
I’m a great gambler, and I can prove it,’ says Grandpa. ‘How about a demonstration?’
The auditor thinks for a moment and said, ‘Okay. Go ahead.’
Grandpa says, ‘I’ll bet you a thousand dollars that I can bite my own eye.’
The auditor thinks a moment and says, ‘It’s a bet.’
Grandpa removes his glass eye and bites it. The auditor’s jaw drops.
Grandpa says, ‘Now, I’ll bet you two thousand dollars that I can bite my other eye..’
Now the auditor can tell Grandpa isn’t blind, so he takes the bet..
Grandpa removes his dentures and bites his good eye…. The stunned auditor now realizes he has wagered and lost three grand,with Grandpa’s attorney as a witness. He starts to get nervous.
‘Want to go double or nothing?’ Grandpa asks ‘I’ll bet you six thousand dollars that I can stand on one side of your desk,and pee into that wastebasket on the other side, and never get a drop anywhere in between.’
The auditor, twice burned, is cautious now, but he looks carefully and decides there’s no way this old guy could possibly manage that stunt, so he agrees again.
Grandpa stands beside the desk and unzips his pants, but although he strains mightily, he can’t make the stream reach the wastebasket on the other side, so he pretty much urinates all over the auditor’s desk.
The auditor leaps with joy, realizing that he has just turned a major loss into a huge win.
But Grandpa’s own attorney moans and puts his head in his hands.
‘Are you okay?’ the auditor asks.
‘Not really,’ says the attorney. ‘This morning, when Grandpa told me he’d been summoned for an audit, he bet me twenty-five thousand dollars that he could come in here and pee all over your desk and that you’d be happy about it!’
Moral: Don’t Mess with Old People!!! ~ Thanks, Carrie B.!
Today’s Whether: Gasbags bloviating near and far.
On This Date: 1883 – American Old West: Self-described “Black Bart the po8″ (poet) gets away with his last stagecoach robbery, but leaves an incriminating clue that eventually leads to his capture.
A Sample of his leavings:
“I’ve labored long and hard for bread,
For honor, and for riches,
But on my corns too long you’ve tred,
You fine-haired sons of bitches.“ ~ Black Bart, 1877
Five of Shields
The Wasteland
Some days I feel about as creative as kibbles. Like today. Fortunately, a card that has some things to teach me about that leapt out as the card for the day. So here we go.
Last saw this one back in early June, and as I have said before:
A card for which my reading is based more on my intuitive response to the Anna-Marie Ferguson illustration than on the traditional interpretation.
When I see the Five of Shields in a reading, I usually say something like, “Hey! Good news! If you feel like you’ve been wandering in the wasteland, YOU REALLY HAVE BEEN. You’re not just whining!” [Some of us need to hear that more than others.]
Even more important, this card indicates that it is now possible – and you are now ready – to move from the wasteland to the High Green Land. But you must be conscious and make choices, moment by moment, that will carry you there.
Of course, that would imply you have a pretty good idea WHAT the High Green Land would be for you compared to what you might have now.
“Something at least a touch better” isn’t really sufficient for the Universe to home in on. It just isn’t. And in my case, “something that would make Buckingham Palace look like a trailer park,” while swell, is a bit more nebulous and maybe a tad too much of a jump for the Universe to help me with.
After all, if I can’t believe in it, why should I expect the Universe to bring it as a nice liddla giftee, eh?
Know you can move from The Wasteland. Know the direction to the High Green Land. Make the choices and take the steps, one by one, that will take you there.
Okay, so maybe it’s important that I share some of the more traditional meanings that readers and scholars have given to this card. They are things like exhaustion of resources, temporary hardship, material difficulties, blah, blah, blah, blah, hooey.
That certainly is still in the news all over the place this year. So, as metaphysicians, or at least as people who read a Daily Tarot Card, how do we not give in to such pandemic energy [Ooh! 25 cent word!] and get sucked down the tube?
First of all, we remember that what may be typical, even what may seem absolutely inescapable for the majority, is not necessarily true for any single individual, especially us!
After all, during the worst of the Great Depression there were folks calling, “Drive on, Rodolfo!” as they tooled around in limousines from mansion to club to ocean liner. And some of those most famous were NEWLY MINTED millionaires. And some of them were very compassionate people. They simply refused to doubt themselves or give over their dreams to hopelessness and distress – or to the norm.
Second, we affirm to ourselves exactly how much potential there is in us, and there is in life FOR us and for us to share with those we love. Remember that in ultimate truth THERE IS NO LACK, and we have the capacity to experience that!
Third, we stay strongly enough connected to spiritual truth and to Light to remember that whatever may happen to the entire world, we are okay and we will be okay.
[I know. Even I have days where I say to myself, “Man! What if the world goes up in smoke and I have to incarnate on a planet where all humanoid beings have khaki fur, smell of mothballs, sound like W. and accept sniffing gasoline fumes as THE religion?”] See? It could be worse. Right?
So, once again:
Know that you can move from The Wasteland. Know the direction to the High Green Land. Make the choices and take the steps, one by one, that will take you there.
Bright blessings and incredible, miraculous deliriously happy progress!
Quote for the Day: There are many talented people who haven’t fulfilled their dreams because they over thought it, or they were too cautious, and were unwilling to make the leap of faith. ~ James Cameron
Today’s Weather: Frumrious McGuinns. Jangly guitar solos. Beans.
On This Date: 1570 – A tidal wave in the North Sea devastates the coast from Holland to Jutland, killing more than 1,000 people.
~~ All Soul’s Day ~~
Knight of Shields
Bors
This card last showed up way back in May. I’m glad he’s back on a weekend, and at the beginning of the Celtic New Year, when we will perhaps pay a tad more attention.
Right?
I thought so.
Typical readers would find in this card such things as rectitude [which one of my spirit-guides calls “retch-itude,” even on a Sunday], utility, responsibility. So see how that might fit into your day.
Anna-Marie Ferguson, creator of the Legend deck I use, writes of an honest hard-working man, a supporter of tradition and order, and solid, steadfast progress. If any of those describe what you need for the day or the times to come, keep an eye out for them or, better yet, embody them: BE THEM. Don’t get caught up in any whirlwinds blowing through, and fergawdsake, don’t create ’em !
I used to call this “The Card of the Young Republican.” But 8 years of Cheney took all the amusement out of even thinking about those folks.
In this card I see [and you should take as a role model]
one who considers himself just about the most powerful knight in the forest,
with NO doubt whatsoever that he will meet his goal,
no doubt he will achieve his quest,
no doubt he will do whatever he has set out to do.
None!
Therefore, he is calm.
He is in no hurry.
He feels no need to impress anyone for any reason,
no need− ever − to leap over a tall building in a single bound just because somebody else might like it.
He goes slowly, perhaps almost plodding at times, just putting one foot in front of the other to get where he needs to go.
HOWEVER, he is always conscious of his goal,
aware of what will be necessary to get there,
and always in motion toward his target, until his mission is accomplished.
So know your goal,
believe in yourself
and your ability to attain it,
don’t jump through hoops for anyone,
and move at your own pace.
But be sure to move and keep moving.
Bright blessings, slowly but surely!
Quote for the Day: Slow but sure moves the might of the Gods. ~ Euripides
Today’s Weather: Skwirrell-munched punkin chunks.
On This Date: 1512 – The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, painted by Michelangelo, is exhibited to the public for the first time. [No Frisbees or beach balls allowed.]
Sixty days till the end of the year. [Time to look at my February ToDo list.]
Four of Cups
The Fading Fellowship
Not exactly the card I expected for Samhain. Especially after we saw it just this Monday past. But given the upside message of the card, I guess it makes sense for a time that, according to Wikipedia, “from Irish Samhain — summer’s end, marked the end of the harvest, the end of the ‘lighter half’ of the year and beginning of the ‘darker half.’
Many scholars believe that it was the beginning of the Celtic year. It has some elements of a festival of the dead. The Gaels believed that the border between this world and the otherworld became thin on Samhain.“
So:
If the information that generally comes to me when this card turns up holds true, it looks like this Samhain, and therefore the Celtic New Year, may be one of those burnout ~ vs. ~ idealism kinda times. And please note: this IS another one of those BE CAREFUL cards.
When this card turns up for a client, I usually say something like:
Look. There are a couple of possibilities you need to watch out for here.”
One is that you’re nearing a point of disillusionment in your life
(so maybe go to my blog and look at the Card for January 1, 2009!),
or real burnout, or both.
So you really need to look hard at how you’re living so you will start taking much better care of yourself on that score.
“The second possibility is that words like
imaginary vexations (watch out for THAT one!),
drunk,
sloppy,
disorderly,
foolish,
blind,
ego-driven blowhard
may apply with real impact somewhere in your life − although they may not necessarily be about you personally.”
So what do you do in response to a card like this?
In the Legend deck I use, the image on this card gives a suggestion. It shows the Knights of the Round Table during the period when they had conquered their initial passels of bad guys and had nothing much to do but sit around drinking, thumping their chests and generally being swine.
But…
In the picture, there is one upright and stalwart fellow looking out a palace window. What he is seeing is The Holy Grail, floating in over the castle walls.
He sounds the call, the knights all run down to the great hall, The Grail casts its holy and magical spell over all present, and the lot of them clean up their act, pull themselves together and go on one of the great spiritual quests of all time.
[And, I’ll tell ya: The world could really use a great spiritual quest right now. We might even be able to have it, if we didn’t automatically start by spending most of our time and energy hacking each other to bits about who knows God/Goddess by the right name {George Clooney? Pazuzu? Hello Kitty?} in the right color {Black leather? Blue pinstripe? Striped djellaba?} with the right kind of feet {One eagle claw? One old Nike Air Huarache? One Electric blue Manolo Blahnik? One a furry koala paw?}.]
What this card implies is that, for your benefit and happiness, YOU CAN (and would do well to) be that one knight looking out onto a greater vista and being open to great miracles. [Pray, let ye not become a one who throweth rockes at ye peasantes or ye skwirrells.]
Stay grounded. Hold to your ideals. Refuse to demean yourself or anyone else by succumbing to a get-along by going-along philosophy. Don’t even agree with me if you don’t feel like it. [But have another cuppa and think it over at least, willya?]
If you perceive that this card talks about the quality of your personal life:
!!!!!!!!!!!!!STOP!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Spend at least a little time taking stock of what is really important. REALLY important. Figure out how you can pursue that!!!
If this is a card about your workplace or a relationship − and you find it’s a situation worth working on − let yourself say:
“Hold on. IS this the right direction? I think we need to look at changing. What are the ways we can do so and move together, toward the highest and best?”
Be honest with yourself about elements of disillusionment or burnout in life. Be even more honest about any places where your ego or your fears may be overriding your truer, better nature.
Look toward YOUR Holy Grail, whatever that means to you. Then begin to do what you need to stay grounded and true to your higher ideals. And move toward them today.
Bright Blessings, joy, renewal and a spiritual quest!
Quote for the Day: I’ve decided that we need a wee goofy Samhain [more or less pronounced SAW-win, by the way] song. And I’m just the goof to goof it. Doof it. Aw friggit!
So here’s the abbreviated version. You should be able to figure out the whole thing for yourself. It’s based on another twelve day holiday song you may recognize.
On the twelfth day of Samhain,
My True Love gave to me
12 mummies humming,
11 Igors writing,
10 doors a-creaking,
9 crazies ranting,
8 owls a-winking,
7 cauldrons brimming,
6 Reapers slaying
5 moldy Things,
4 cawing birds,
3 deadends
2 monkey paws
And a funny flying Thing called Batly. ~ NS [Surely you can do better!]
Today’s Weather: Daemon skwirrells wreaking muckle havoc upon les Bonnes Jack O’Lanterns en chaumiere du bocage! Merde, hein?
And on this date: 1517 – Protestant Reformation: Martin Luther posts his 95 theses on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg.
The link about Samhain: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samhain
Blessed Samhain!
