Abstract to Actual

From the Le Veritable Tarot de Marseille, the Ace of Swords; from the Greek Alphabet Runes, Xi:

          Again I've drawn another "seed" card, but this one involves expressing myself through ideas and words. The Swords suit requires boundaries, and in this case necessitates that I indicate clearly what I mean. Having blogging buddies around the world has helped me understand why this is important; yet even Americans from different locations might not comprehend a local colloquialism. The other day a friend (originally from another state) called to ask how I was doing. When I replied that I was "stove up," she had no idea what I meant. The Greek letter Xi reinforces this need. It originated from the Phoenician letter samek, which is thought to be based on the glyph of a tent peg. Tent pegs anchor the structure into the ground, make it stable and keep the sides from collapsing inward. In the same way, I may need to use a grounded, everyday example to explain what I mean. Jesus of Nazareth did this well with his disciples by using parables about ordinary situations and people. Both draws today encourage me not to assume someone will understand what I'm trying to express. Instead I can construct my ideas around a concrete example.