I use tarot and oracle cards as tools for reflection and contemplation. Rather than divining the future, they are a way for me to look more deeply at the "now."
"The goal isn't to arrive, but to meander, to saunter, to make your life a holy wandering." ~ Rami Shapiro

Saturday, November 7, 2015

Burden of Proof

From the Ellis Deck, the Page of Pentacles; from the Brownies Oracle, "Burdens:"
          Ellis explains that this Page was given a young boar in order to learn responsibility. The story reminds me of a youth organization we have in the States called 4H. Administered by the Dept. of Agriculture, it is well known for the livestock shows it holds for the kids who've raised and cared for animals. The USDA found that adults in the farming community were wary of new technology, but the youth would readily experiment with new agricultural ideas. But what makes this Page a perfect fit for this program is the 4H slogan: "Learn by doing."
          The Burdens card from the Brownies didn't seem to apply to this eager-to-learn Page. But then I thought of the legal phrase, "burden of proof," an obligation to produce evidence of a claim. Now this idea is consistent with her mindset. She's not content to learn, she wants to test things out and see if they hold water. Offer her the latest self-help technique or the newest computer technology, and this Page is going to see if it's worthy of its claims. She takes on the responsibility of physically evaluating information instead of just blindly following it. The only blame she doles out will be for those who swallow the kool-aide without testing it first.

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4 comments:

  1. EllenNovember 7, 2015 at 8:40 AM

    Learning by doing is very good method. It seems children remember so much better what they've learned if they have put their knowledge into practice.
    When I started reading you post I was immediately reminded of how kids at school have to card for an egg to learn responsibility :D

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    1. thesycamoretreeNovember 7, 2015 at 9:08 AM

      I'm still a "learn by doing" kind of gal. :) But the plus side of that is it gives me experience to prove or disprove a way of doing things (at least in the personal sphere).

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  2. Inner WhispersNovember 8, 2015 at 2:29 AM

    I like how you managed to blend those two: not obvious at first glance. I love this Page, who I often associate with "practising" yoga: that reminder that we can always learn, for one thing because our physical state is not exactly the same from day to day. That might be another link to the Page, learning to deal with burdens that physically hamper us :)

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    1. thesycamoretreeNovember 8, 2015 at 5:08 AM

      I really like this Page too. Learning to deal with burdens seems like a heavy lesson for this young lass, though I imagine she'll have to deal with them sooner rather later.

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