Respect Runs Both Ways

From the Margarete Petersen Tarot, the Empress; from the Elemental Dice, Earthquake (Darkness + Earth):

Devotion and creativity 

Are born in the center of the heart.

―Margarete Petersen

The Empress, with her split pomegranate and exposed flower's throat, personifies receptivity, deep emotion, and creativity. She brings warmth and beauty, love and acceptance, sensuality and connection to whatever she touches. Nature is her reflection. Unlike the Emperor, she has no filter on her devotion; she willingly breaks open her heart without considering any consequences. Earthquake suggests that energy has been building and will shake our foundations. It asks if we have been complacently disregarding our part in a situation in which we need wake up and be mindfully aware. Boundaries don't just help keep us sane and healthy, they help others become accountable and develop responsibility too. 

If you spend your life sparing people’s feelings and feeding their vanity, you get so you can’t distinguish what should be respected in them.

―F. Scott Fitzgerald

 

Speaking Truth

From the Ship of Fools Tarot, the Knight of Swords; from the Wisdom of the Four Winds, Earthquake:

I'm a faceless man, I'm a trickster

Speaking truth like I'm reading from a scripture

~w1tchlxrd

The traditional Knight of Swords is seen as a daring, impulsive fellow, always ready to save the world from injustice. The fool/jester was a more humbly dressed servant, though he was just as fearless. As Jake Page wrote, "Common belief held that children and fools could speak only the truth. This belief was a kind of protective covering for the jester — after all, who could blame fools for saying whatever came into their heads? Laughter was the oil a jester used to slip inconvenient truths into the royal presence without offending it." He could even mock Church officials, pointing out that they weren't living up to certain standards. Earthquake shows the effect revealing such truths can have. Although chaos may ensue for a time, bringing to light factual information can help reshape things into a healthier whole.

Jesus said, "Let him who seeks continue seeking until he finds. When he finds, he will become troubled. When he becomes troubled, he will be astonished, and he will rule over the All.  

~Gospel of Thomas

The Unforeseen

From the Margarete Petersen Tarot, the Four of Flames (Wands); from the Elemental Dice, Earthquake (Darkness + Earth):

Petersen calls the Four of Flames/Wands the 'fire of shaping.' In my imagination, her description creates an image of a heated blacksmith's forge with tools and raw metal ready to be used. The resources and tools have been gathered and plans are underway. It is a time of excitement, of seeing something that has been longed for finally begin to unfold and take form. Yet Earthquake signals disruption and upheaval rather than a smooth progression. Such challenges often create frustration and a feeling of unfairness, but truthfully, don't most projects have hiccups or unforeseen challenges? Instead of setting myself up with expectations of the finish line, perhaps I could focus on what can be done along each step of the way. That would be a better way to channel any frustration instead of allowing it to erupt into unproductive anger.

Unforeseen surprises are the rule in science, not the exception. Remember: Stuff happens. 

~Leonard Susskind

The Ripples of Grief

From the Margarete Petersen Tarot, the Five of Cups; from the roll of the Elemental Dice, Earthquake (Darkness + Earth):

          Grief ripples out, like the drops of water in the lake. No matter where we are, what we are doing, or who we are with, we are constantly reminded of the person we loved and lost. Those ripples seem to go on infinitely, but eventually, we may notice the good memories outweigh the heaviness of the hurt. Compassion comes when we realize our drops are a part of a huge body of pain shared by all humanity. Earthquake speaks of a shake-up, something that gets our attention. What gets your attention when your heart is heavy? What helps you to see beyond the hurt?

Grief is a sign that we loved something more than ourselves. . . . Grief makes us worthy to suffer with the rest of the world. ~Joan Chittister