Thursday, August 4, 2011

Ten of Wands reversed/Queen of Wands reversed. The Ten of Wands (Saturn, discipline, responsibility, limitations and resistance, in Sagittarius, “I seek,” philosophic, fun-loving, blundering) in an upright position tells of the blocking of the creative power of the suit of Wands, most likely because the Fire of creativity has run out of fuel. Thankfully, the card is reversed, so it is telling me that no matter what, I will be able to divest myself of heavy burdens today. Not a bad reversal, eh? The Queen of Wands (cusp of Pisces, “I believe,” feelings, duality, soul growth, spirituality, and Aries, “I want,” action oriented, assertive, competitive) is energetic, cheerful and assured, she knows what she wants, but she can be stubborn sometimes. Because she is reversed, while I might be able to get rid of my burdens, there might be a lingering tiredness or feeling of emptiness about me today.

My Thoth card is the Nine of Swords reversed. The Nine of Swords (Mars, action, spontaneity, aggression, in Gemini, “I think,” curious, talkative, social, dual) represents brooding and worrying, the cruelty of the mind that takes place in the wee hours of the morning and ends up giving you a headache. Thankfully, my Nine of Swords, which Crowley calls “Cruelty,” is reversed today, and thus it validates the message of the Ten of Wands reversed.

My Legacy card is the Eight of Coins reversed, flavored by the Knight of Coins reversed. Hmmmm . . . all reversed cards today. The Eight of Coins (Sun, the inner core of a person or situation, in Virgo, “I serve,” practical, analytical, sensible, orderly) in an upright position is about being prepared and doing your homework, and because it is reversed, I had better be real careful before I accept anything as true and valid. No matter what, I need to pay attention! The Knight of Pentacles (cusp of Leo, “I am,” passionate, dramatic, egotistical, and Virgo, “I serve,” practical, analytical, work and service oriented), like all Knights, represents extreme manifestations of his suit, Pentacles. He can be persistent, to the point of being stubborn, and cautious to the point of being boring. Sometimes these qualities are good, but for today, his obsessive flavor may not have a good effect on my reversed Eight of Coins. Being too diligent and too focused on individual minutiae might end up being a problem.

Since my cards are all reversed, I threw a clarification card with my Pearls of Wisdom Tarot, and got The Fool. The Fool is an Air card (hot/separates and wet/adapts, and challenges that tend to require the use of the intellect to solve), and it also corresponds with Uranus (technology, science, radical change), Aleph (the head, youthful learning) and the Path between Chokmah (male in the electric sense, dynamic energy and the origin of vital force and polarity) and Kether (the source; limitless possibility). The Fool presents some powerful energies, and the optimism that it looks like I will need, seeing the rest of the cards. He represents a perilous journey that is protected through his innocence and his joy of living; somewhat appropriate, eh? Read on, and see why.

My 6-digit date number is 5, the number of motion which dispels stagnation.

My horoscopes: “Don't miss any opportunities today, Sagittarius. No matter how tired you may be, this isn't the time to rest. This is one of those days in which it's simply easier to be you. There's no need to shy away or hide your true desires. Say what you want and you'll get it. There's no reason to beat around the bush. Keep in mind that unexpected energies will get thrown into the mix.

And: Your insight is valuable, but it's not always completely accurate. No matter how often you look at something (and no matter how many different perspectives you try to take), you're never going to understand the whole truth about something you're not a part of. Right now you can listen to your instinct, but it isn't wise to act on it. Wait until you get some outside confirmation of your hunch. And don't be surprised if you were off base!

Technology: Your intellectual energy is up to solving almost any problem at the moment, so don't worry too much about the issues facing you and your team. It's a great time for brainstorming and strategic thinking. Don't be afraid to revive long-dead proposals.

It has been a strange day. I have been trying to get down to the Dominican Republic to visit my son. A few weeks ago, I booked myself as a standby on a flight this afternoon. Then came tropical storm Emily. Initially, Brian’s friend, Carlos, helped me to move my flight to very early tomorrow morning, but by the time I got to work this morning, all inbound and outbound flights had been cancelled.

Now here is the thing: I spoke to Carlos on the phone last night because Carlos messaged me on FaceBook, telling me not to panic and Brian was okay (and don’t you just hate when an email starts that way!), but earlier in the day yesterday, Brian had received an electrical shock. Carlos had brought him to the hospital just to be safe, and the emergency room personnel had Brian spend the night, again, just to be safe. Okay, I was distracted by the flight stuff. Not an excuse but a reason. I could not figure out what kind of electrical shock would leave someone just fine but still require spending the night in the hospital, but Carlos reassured me during two different phone calls last night that he was okay.

So, this morning, right after I tried to check my flight and found out that all JetBlue flights to the D.R. had been cancelled, I received a phone call from my darling child. Brian proceeded to let me know that he was home from the hospital and was fine, and now that things were back to normal, he could tell me what really happened.

A bit of a side trip (and anyone who knows me also knows that I am prone to them): Most of the houses and apartment buildings in the D.R. are made from cinderblocks and metal and cement. Wood just doesn’t last long enough in the tropics, so it is not customarily used in building materials. So, when Brian strung a wire (a wire???) so that he and his cleaning lady had somewhere to hang his laundry, he thought nothing of attaching it to a tree and then stringing it to his metal window frame. The metal window frame in which he installed an air conditioner, which proceeded to develop a pool of water that short circuited the a.c., and grounded the electricity through the wire attached to the tree.

Thanks to the Gods who look after fools and children, Brian’s cleaning lady and his neighbor were both there when he touched the wire and was electrocuted.

Brian was paralyzed, completely paralyzed, by the electrical current surging through his body. Unfortunately, when he touched the wire, and the electricity knocked him to the ground, the wire broke and fell on top of his body, so he was receiving a continuous jolt. He said he could hear his cleaning lady screaming, and he was certain that he was either dying or already dead, and wondered why it was taking so long for things to fade away. His neighbor was able to cut away the wire; he then closed Brian’s eyes (I shudder each time I visualize this), and began pounding on his chest. Thankfully, Brian was revived, but because he was still paralyzed, they rushed him to the emergency room. After the doctors were certain that Brian was stable, they placed him in the intensive care unit for the night, to keep an eye on his vital signs. He was released this morning, with burns on his arm and his leg (where the electricity grounded itself) and instructions to get a sonogram just to be certain that there were no internal injuries.

This almost was a manifestation of my worst nightmare: that something terrible would happen to Brian while he was in the Dominican Republic, and I would not be able to be there for him. In hind sight, Brian did the right thing (he gave strict orders to Carlos to play the whole thing down because Brian knew that due to the storm, there was no way for me to get to him), because I would have been crazed until I heard from him. This could have very easily turned into a tragedy, for if Brian’s cleaning lady and neighbor were not there, he most likely would have died.

I am blessed with a very good relationship with my son. I have never held him back from being who he is and doing what he believes he is meant to do, and that will not change. Brian has the right to make his own choices in life, and I am extremely proud of who he has been, who he is now, and who he is becoming. He has made me very, very proud. And I would say this even if I didn’t love him; he has done well with what he was given in this life, and managed to make lemonade from whatever lemons were handed to him. I could not ask for more in a son.

Brian, I am ever so grateful that you were not taken from me. I want to grow old having you bust my chops and tease me when I say something stupid. I want to watch you move through your life, and tease you right back as you approach middle age and become more and more like me. I want to continue visiting you in your much-loved Dominican Republic. And I want to finally get you to Cape May, so I can show you all the parts of it that I love. So please, take care of yourself. And next time Juanna tells you something, pay attention!!

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3 comments:

  1. My Dear N ...

    I almost can't believe what I just read here. Even knowing he is alright, you must be beside yourself!

    I'm feeling like a few healing sigils might be in order, physically for him and emotionally for you. I'll be whipping those up later this evening.

    Please tell Brian I am thinking of him, and that he's got to get (and stay) healthy so I can meet him one of these days. As for you, my dear, after such a day, I pray you can have a restful, peaceful evening.

    Hugs & Much Love ... Tara

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  2. Yep, "beside myself" works. Every time I think about this, I freak. How is he still alive? I don't know, but I am grateful to Whoever watches out for him.

    Needless to say, I crashed early yesterday, and slept well, so thank you for whatever you did. I will relay your message to Brian, right after I hug him, which will be right after I beat him up for scaring me like this.

    Hugs and love to you!

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  3. My Dear N, I have been aware of what has been going on through the PBT, and I hope you know that even though I hadn't yet commented, you and Brian have been in my heart and thoughts so very much. Please know that I haven't overlooked you at all. I know that this thing will leave an imprint in many ways for both of you, and healing, love, and recovery are in order. I see already from your next post that such imprints may yield some important insights as well. Love and love again to you.

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