Two of Swords reversed/Page of Cups reversed.  The Two of Swords (Moon, feelings and emotions, illusion, imagination, in Libra, “We are,” partnerships, balance, cooperation) represents a time of not looking or of shutting out the world.  The serenity of this card happens because we are vigilant and on guard, and because we are controlling our thoughts and actions, and because we isolate ourselves from the effects of the world around us.  Today, that might not be an advisable plan; cutting myself off from the world might affect in a bad way my perception of that world.  The Page of Cups corresponds to Libra (“we are,” partnerships, balance, cooperation), Scorpio (“I desire,” intensity compulsion, mystery) and Sagittarius (“I seek,” philosophic, adventurous, blundering); it is a card of soft and tender energies and of getting fulfillment through connections to others and through innocent and simple joys.  My Page is also9 reversed, and perhaps I am being offered an end result of insisting on isolation today: a lack of imagination and simple pleasures.  Things may be a bit more complicated than that, but emotional balance does not come from isolation.

My Thoth card is the Queen of Disks.  The Queen of Disks (cusp of Sagittarius, “I seek,” philosophic, fun-loving, blundering, and Capricorn, “I build,” ambition, caution, cunning, authoritative) is very good at sustaining the physical world, keeping things dry and cozy and safe and orderly.  She might be suggesting that today I need a bit of grounding and maybe some focus on maintaining resources.  These things can be done in an isolated way, but with a focus on making my immediate environment more pleasurable for me and for others.  There is fulfillment to be had from this kind of focus.

My Legacy card is the Ten of Coins, flavored by the Eight of Cups.  The Ten of Coins (Mercury, reason, intelligence, education, communication, in Virgo, “I serve,” practical, analytical, work and service oriented) represents physical world wealth and bounty, usually achieved through the implementation of long-term plans, and the attempt to maintain the status quo.  The interesting thing about this card is that while it represents a nice accumulation of physical-world resources, it also tells us that we need to do something creative with those resources, or they will become a hugely heavy burden.  The Eight of Cups (Saturn, discipline, responsibility, limitation, law and order, in Pisces, “I believe,” feeling, duality, suffering, soul growth) tells of an ending or a decline or a change of direction, often one associated with emotions, and it offers one possible response to that decline or change: moving on. Sometimes things are so broken that we are better off just turning our backs and walking away.  My Eight is flavoring that Ten of Cups, and the message is clear: look at the pile of “stuff,” grab what works, and get going.  Receiving rewards for hard work is great, but I’ve got to decide what does not work for me any more and leave it behind, so I can turn my focus toward more productive and fulfilling endeavors.

My 6-digit date number is 11 (Archangel Uriel), which reduces further to 2, the number of balance, polarity, and the energy of “distance between.”

My horoscopes: “Expect to have to make some adjustments in your love life, Sagittarius. You may be in a different frame of mind than your partner. Why not use the day to step back from the relationship? Spend time apart for a change. After all, there's nothing dramatic about the fact that your needs and desires aren't in sync. It's only temporary.”

And: “The principles you fight for probably have great moral value. You are interested in defending the values of the society you live in. But today, don't you think the people closest to you could use some of your good advice and practical help? It may actually be on this level that you will be the most effective at building a "community of mankind". Shouldn't you use your theories to help the people closest to you first?”

My Shadowscapes Insight is regarding the Nine of Pentacles.  Connecting the physical world with the spiritual realms is not always an easy task.  It often takes sustained effort and lots of practice, heavily salted with frustrating yet in the end, valuable, failures.  Discipline and patience are necessary ingredients in any success, and sometimes this ongoing process takes a lifetime, or more, to perfect.  This does not mean we should give up!!  Jump in the deep end, and enjoy what we’ve accomplished so far, then keep up the good work. 

I submitted Lesson 10 of Third Degree today.  I have only one more Lesson to complete, and I will be done with the Third Degree Lessons.  It is hard to believe that I am finally at this point. 

“We think that the point is to pass the test or overcome the problem, but the truth is that things don't really get solved. They come together and they fall apart. Then they come together again and fall apart again. It's just like that. The healing comes from letting there be room for all of this to happen: room for grief, for relief, for misery, for joy.” – Pema Chödrön.  I love this quote!!  Often, I am asked, “If there is a God, why are so many pains and horrors perpetuated upon certain individuals?”  Here, then, is the answer, embedded in this beautiful quote.  Life and the living of our individual lives needs to contain good and bad.  This is, after all, what living a life entails!  We are given a set of circumstances to deal with, and it is our choice of how we will deal with them that is important.  This applies whether our lives seem to be serene and challenge-free, or filled with pain and suffering.  Who is to say that serenity and a lack of challenges is a good thing??

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