It's All in the Cards

It's All in the Cards--A Tarot Mirror

I have been a student of the Tarot for many years. More than just a tool for fortune-tellers they are rich in archetypal imagery and symbolism. The cards are a visual expression of the soul's journey to wholeness.
For this interview I have chosen a spread of 10 randomely selected cards. Each position of the cards represents a specific area for reflection. I have responded to the individual cards with what meaning they have to my life.

I. Ace of Pentacles
The Tarot Aces always indicate beginnings. Pentacles always speak of the material plane. A good place to start.

I entered this particular round of existence on 10/31/1951. I am a Scorpio with a Scorpio rising, and a Halloween birthday to boot! This may help to explain my life-long fascination with the occult and the arcane. My constant quest has been to discover the secrets of the universe. I know a few--don't be afraid to ask!

In the Tarot of the Saints the Ace of Pentacles is represented by a golden monstrance. A monstrance holds the consecated host during a Catholic Mass. I grew up firmly entrenched in Catholicism. Now, I consider myself a gnostic, mystic Christian. I respect and learn from all traditions. I pray daily and ask always for more clarity and more compassion.

This card of beginnings tells me that the entire physical world emanates from the unseen world of the soul. Here we begin...
"Christ's Invitation: A Ghazal" 


II Four of Wands

The second position of the cards speaks to past experience--something you've done to create your current situation.

The realm of wands is the realm of personal energy and creativity. Four is the number of equipoise and balance. In the Haindl Tarot the Four of Wands is pictured as a hand offering a bubble, in the middle of the bubble, an eye. The card speaks of new possibilities, new energy, creativity.

Here I stand at mid-life, once again re-discovering my joy in writing. It all began with an on-line poetry game with friends. I had written during high-school and early adulthood. I thought I would be a writer when I grew up. Those thoughts and dreams lay dormant for years and years. Now, here is a hand offering a bubble of new possibility...all I have to do is accept it.
"The Noon-Day Witch" 



III Three of Pentacles
Do you think that everything you do must be useful? Do you ever allow yourself the sheer joy of watching something come to life between your hands?

In The Herbal Tarot the Three of Pentacles is pictured by a man digging diligently in his garden. This is the arena of work. For over 30 years I have been a nurse. I am also a massage therapist and a Reiki Master and practitioner. I currently work with Alzheimer and dementia patients. These people need all of my knowledge, all of my skills, to allow dignity and kindness to remain in their lives. It is a challenge and a privilege to care for them. My purpose in work is to have been "a healing light in the world". I hope I have succeeded a little.
"A Long Walk" 


IV Four of Swords
The fourth card position is indicative of your life situation as it stands right now.

The Tarot of the Saints shows four swords in the air, and a hermit in meditation. Swords are the element of air, intellect and thought.
My life right now has entered a moment of calm.
I have good, engaging work. I have a happy marriage. My son, daughter-in-law, and my three grandchildren are thriving. God has indeed, been good to me.
"Still Life with Teapots" 


V Judgement
The fifth card selected represents your spiritual history, how you've behaved, and what you've learned.

Traditional Tarot decks depict the Judgement card as the angel Gabriel sounding the final trumpet at the end of days. Its divinatory meaning suggests calling up the past, making decisions based on experience.
I am a survivor. I survived a childhood marked by my mother's mental illness. I survived a terrible marriage marked by my first husband's hidden homosexuality. "Gabriel" means "God is my strength"--with God, past pain has been transformed to present joy. I am "patty ann, full of grace."
"Remembered" 


VI Death
The card of the sixth position represents your spiritual task at this time.


Here we have the Death card. Generally, not indicative of an actual death. It speaks more to one's feelings and beliefs about death. My belief is our soul energy continues to exist and evolve after our physical death. For years, I would catch whiffs of cigarette smoke in my house, even though no one here smokes. A psychic finally told me it was my mother and father, both passed, letting me know they were present. I wear a signature scent, "Tea Rose" so when I have passed my grandkids will catch wisps of me and know I am with them. I know that love, is indeed, stronger than death.
"P 2: If I Were the Painting Picasso Made" 


VII The Lovers
The seventh position is the card of metamorphosis. It speaks of how your life situation will change and the spiritual tasks that will come to you as a result.

The sixth trump of the Tarot, The Lovers, represents the triumph of love. Certainly, romantic love, but for me it speaks of the Buddhist concept of "lovingkindness". How, in my daily life, to express compassion and kindness to all sentient beings? Mother Teresa said,"We can do no great things, only small things, with great love".
" Stories" 


VIII King of Wands
The eighth card drawn will speak to you as "The Helper"--this person gives you total support.

I continue to be amazed at the uncanny accuracy of the cards. The King of Wands traditionally denotes an Aries man, "a calm person, possibly stuffy, with a rooted quality that gives strength".

This is my husband David. We met when I answered his personal ad in our local paper. He was an Aries man looking for a Scorpio woman.

I am the Queen of Cups. He is my King of Wands. We balance each other.

I am messy and disorganized. He is tidy and efficient. He is traditional and orthodox.
I am eclectic and anarchic.
He is Tigger. I am Pooh.
We both had disastrous first marriages.
The universe brought us together to heal each other's hearts.
"Freefalling" 


IX Knight of Wands
The ninth card position will tell you of yourself. This is you, now, expressing the qualities shown in the card.

The suit of wands is energy, creativity, the fire of your passions. In the Children Tarot the Knight of Wands represents a diligent messenger. The message he brings to me today is to continue my journey with self-confidence and enthusiasm. Also, perhaps, to exercise more discipline and self-control. A message to integrate more of the masculine qualities of thinking and power in the physical world.
"Queen of Cherries" 


X King of Swords

The final position of the cards is a representation of "The Teacher"--what are the demands of your current life situation and what is the knowledge you can gain from this situation.


The suit of swords is the realm of our thoughts. In the Tarot of the Saints the King of Swords is represented by St. Paul. It is interesting that fourteen of the epistles in the New Testament are attributed to St. Paul. A message that the pen is mightier than the sword.
Words are more influential than force.
A challenge to me to find a way to express the wisdom inherent in dreams, emotions, and intuition and shape them into clear, coherent writing.
And so we arrive at the end--but as T.S.Eliot has written-----

"What we call the beginning is
often the end
And to make our end is to make a
beginning.
The end is where we start from."