The images of the wands suit appeal to me quite a lot, admittedly this is mostly because of the use of foxes, but overall they have such a glow and warmth that makes me just want to be a part of the picture. And today’s card is no different, the Page of Wands is immersed in a beautiful world, and to top it off she has four fox companions, one of which has sidled his way as close as he can rubbing his back affectionately against her leg :). I have to admit I am quite jealous!! I want fox companions :(. Anyway, moving on from that quick distraction, as you can tell I have once again drawn a Court Card in my daily draw. I feel like they just won’t leave me alone! But I believe this is the first time that I have drawn this Page in any draw let alone a daily draw, so it is a good opportunity to learn more about her.
Today I drew the Knight of Wands. This was actually the first card I ever drew so whenever it comes up I always remember back to the first time I ever shuffled my cards, late on a warm autumn evening, and asked my deck its first question. It’s a nice feeling, thinking back to that time where I was very much like the Knight of Wands, rushing headfirst into this project without really knowing where it was going to take me. And while the reason why I stopped delving into the tarot for that short period of time was more emotional than anything, I think the burnout from this Knight’s energy also had some part to play.
I was quite pleased to see Strength yesterday as my daily draw! When I did my birthday reading, Strength was one of the two cards that came up in position of the energies I should focus on during the year ahead. Having it come up yesterday was a good opportunity to spend some more time contemplating it’s meaning :).
Strength – Shadowscapes Tarot
What I love most about this depiction of Strength, that you may have gathered from my birthday reading, is that there are so many examples of different types of strength. There is the more obvious example of beastial strength of body in the Lion, but there is also the Bamboo’s hidden strength through flexibility. There is the strength of cunning and strategy of the Cats, one of which seems to be tempting those birds below it closer with a bell on a string, and the other has one paw upon one of the Lion’s, possibly suggesting the strength of cooperation or of combining different forms of strength. Then there is the Bridge itself which is beginning to crack, possibly representative of the mortal quality of this man made strength, at some point it will erode and turn to dust, and below it the Acorn, representative of the steady strength of something so small that will one day grow to be gigantic. And then there is the inner strength called forth when protecting those you love, represented by the Swan. The Swan also represents the transformative power of the Woman’s form of strength. The ability to use calm control to soothe a difficult situation, turning something potentially ugly into something more pleasant. And that to me is what this card epitomises, using persuasion and patience to calm the rougher, harder animal instincts that we can sometimes fall prey to. The demonstration of the power of love and compassion, showing that aggression and anger will not solve everything. This is true inner strength, perserverance and composure, the ability to endure any of life’s obstacles with an unparalleled inner calm!
the fox and the otter 