Time Manager

This week I'll be using the Russian Lubok Tarot, created and self-published by Eugene Vinitski and Sergey Savchenko. I'll also be drawing from the Marseille Oracle, a deck created and published by Lo Scarabeo with a little booklet written by Isa Donelli. Today's draws are Death and Friendship:

Life is like stepping onto a boat which is about to sail out to sea and sink. 

― Shunryu Suzuki.

The PDF booklet that came with the Russian Lubok makes an interesting statement about this card: "Death is represented as a time manager." Imagine everyone receiving at birth an hourglass produced to show our allotted time on earth. We might not only learn to become better time managers, but we would likely make sure our time was spent in worthwhile ways. The anchor's meaning of Friendship seems odd at first, yet our meaningful relationships are the ones that keep us anchored when life's waves get choppy. The oracle's booklet states: "It's time to recognize your true friends." How often do we do things for others simply so they will like and accept us? What do we put up with just so we won't lose a relationship with someone? There is no need to be unkind to such folks, but it might be wiser to spend our time with people who accept and care for us unconditionally.

 

Needed: One Bucket of Water

From the Alchemical Renewed Tarot, the Five of Staffs; from the Oracle of the Radiant Sun, "Friendship:"

          This hand has so much creative energy and enthusiasm running through it, all the fingers are on fire. Just as King Midas had the golden touch, this fellow has a fiery one. Without the moderating influence of the water in the background though, he's going to burn everything and everyone with whom he comes in contact. Simple decisions about how and when to do things will become contentious issues. A bucket of water is needed pronto to prevent conflict from taking center stage.
          In the Radiant Sun card, two young people appear to have made a secret hiding place to talk. I can remember making numerous forts as a kid - some outside with scrap pieces of wood and some inside with sheets and blankets thrown over a table. There's just something special about having a cozy retreat for hanging out with a friend. The Moon in Cancer suggests the need for security connecting with a natural sense of nurturing. The two cards paired together suggest an anam cara, or soul friend, who cares deeply enough about the other to tell him when he's gone off the deep end. I'm sure she'll have a bucket handy.