Appropriate Use

From the Transformational Tarot, the Nine of Wands; from the Celtic Book of the Dead, the 'Island of Recognition:'

          A woman sits by a stream with a graduation cap atop a stack of books. She looks out at the bridge, a symbol of moving from one challenge (the university) to another (becoming a self-sufficient adult). Her education has helped prepare her for finding a job, but she knows the actual experience of being in the workplace will be far different from learning about it through books. Still, she sits resolutely. On the Island of Recognition, the Celtic travelers were attacked by the people who lived there. They recognized impending change with the appearance of these strangers. Instead of using weapons, the islanders pelted them with nuts (a symbol of wisdom). Rather than using them for their purpose (to eat), the hazelnuts were used inappropriately. Our past experiences and knowledge can create a cocoon in which things are certain and predictable. Yet life is not about standing still and being satisfied with what we've learned, but continually moving along with its flow, adding other experiences and new information as we go.

We spend all our energy and waste our lives trying to re-create these zones of safety, which are always falling apart... As long as we believe that there is something that will permanently satisfy our hunger for security, suffering is inevitable. ~ Pema Chodron