Shake-up That's a Wake-up

From the Art of Life Tarot, the Page of Swords (detail of Paul Writing by Camille Pissarro):

When the student is ready, the master will appear. ~ Often attributed to Buddha but actually a Theosophical saying.

This kid is probably writing down everything he heard and saw during his day, and I can guarantee it was a lot. He's like a sponge soaking in everything, even stuff that most people would never notice. But does he make any connections in his outer world to his inner one? In a way, I can relate to this Page; I'm always stashing bits of trivia about random things in my brain. But every now and then, some of what I hear or see is like getting doused with a bucket of icy, cold water. It changes from something trivial to something important, because I see its relevance in my life. The "master" can appear in all sorts of guises - human and otherwise - and hopefully I'll recognize its worth when it does. 

From the Tao Oracle comes the card "The Arousing:"

Padma calls this image "a shake-up that's a wake-up." It made me remember an incident when I first started driving on my own as a teenager. I was on a curvy, country road going too fast when I ran slightly off the road. I instinctively jerked the wheel to get back on the pavement, and the car tried to flip. I was in a heavy, old Chevy Impala, so instead of flipping, I rode on two wheels a ways before the car eventually rolled down on all four wheels. I was so scared, I don't think I took a breath the whole time. But the experience did teach me a valuable driving lesson. Like the Page above, I need to pay attention and apply what I've been taught so I don't have to learn all my lessons the hard way.