The Work of Making Space

This week I'll be using the Roots of Asia Tarot, created by Amnart Klanprachar with Thaworn Boonyawan and published by AGM Müller. I'll also be using the Mah Jongg Oracle, created by Derek Walters and published by Thunder Bay Press. Today's cards are the Five of Cups and the 'Woodcutter:'

The essence of being human is that one does not seek perfection, and that one is prepared, in the end, to be defeated, and broken up by life, which is the inevitable price of fastening one’s love upon other human individuals. ~  George Orwell

          I know that people are imperfect, yet I still slip into making assumptions and having expectations about them. There was the friend who was so full of enthusiasm for life yet was secretly cheating on his wife. There was the spiritual leader who let slip a racial slur. There was the boss who praised hard work but never gave a raise. Disappointment comes in many guises and may feel like an icy-cold shock or a slow-sinking dread. A feeling of loss and sadness (and perhaps anger as well) permeates everything. In this version of the Five of Cups, the two whole bowls stay anchored in the mind while the other three are cut loose. It reminds me to keep my mind focused on what is good while realizing that everyone (including me) has both positive and negative traits. The Woodcutter from the Mah Jongg deck chops wood that may be used in building or to warm his home. But effort must come before the enjoyment. The same is true of dealing with emotional loss in that I must work to make room to process the hurt while not shutting out the sunlight at the same time.