Oh what perfect cards for today! The Hubs took me out for dinner last night to celebrate birthdays, and I have a touch of a hangover. Not enough to debilitate me, but certainly enough to slow me down. Let's dig in.
The image on the True Black VIII of Pentacles shows a worn and heavily-used hammer or metal mallet; the two faces of the hammer are red, as if the metal was super-hot because of excessive use. Floating around the hammer are eight golden coins, each embossed with a part of a star map. This card tells of a person with hard-earned skills who is attentive to details and who has the patience to understand that things of worth are not created immediately. They usually require a sustained effort in order to manifest. This card is not just about physical efforts; it also represents the attainment of knowledge and a higher understanding of that knowledge; hence the star charts on the coins. Crowley named this card Prudence and described it as "intelligence lovingly applied to material matters." The keywords for this card are crafting, work, quality, and diligence.
The X of Wands shows a golden Hercules beetle; on his back is stacked ten sticks. In the midst of those sticks is a smaller Hercules beetle, riding along with the sticks piled high and being carried by the larger beetle. In the Minor Arcana, the number 10 cards represent the completion of a cycle of the entire suit, and since Wands represent the element of Fire, it is easy to understand what this card means: I have only to think about a campfire that has burned itself out. No more flames, no more warmth, just smoke and a few embers. The problem here is that while I feel out of gas (sorry for mixing metaphors), I have not yet reached my destination, so I need to keep moving onward. The keywords for this card are overwhelmed, burdened, struggling, and near goal.
Yeah, I get the message for sure. Today I am having trouble concentrating on even the simplest of tasks. I am pushing forward, doing what needs to be done, but all I want to do is either go back to bed or sit in front of the fire with a book. The day ahead seems eternal, stretching before me. But I am being shown that the correct response is to continue working hard, diligently doing what needs to be done, no matter how overburdened I feel. I am also being told that this day just might be about both progress and education. If I can last through the day and suppress my need to give up and instead, push myself beyond what I believe I can endure, I will learn something: I will learn just how tough I am. What I learn today may be of use to me tomorrow.
No comments:
Post a Comment