Look Above Your Shoelaces

From the Victoria Regina Tarot, the Three of Swords; from the Alchemist Oracle, 'Flying High:'

          There appears to be a dead body beneath this cringing woman's divan. Her body language suggests grief that includes the weight of shame - the idea that she could have somehow prevented what happened. I've had a few people close to me commit suicide, so I know how ferocious and persistent such thoughts can be. There is a constant replaying of scenes where words and actions are analyzed to see just where I might have been able to re-balance the tipping point. Yet this kind of thinking doesn't help, but only deepens the thrust of the swords in the heart. No amount of analysis or guilt will rewrite history. The High Flying card suggests it is the quality of our thoughts that determine whether we continue in our misery or rise above it. It takes awareness and persistent effort to rewire our thinking and divert our energy elsewhere. With this effort will come the realization that sometimes all the love in the world just isn't enough to change the way the wheel of life turns.

Shame isn't a quiet grey cloud, shame is a drowning man who claws his way on top of

you, scratching and tearing your skin, pushing you under the surface. ~ Kirsty Eager

Flying or Falling?

This week I'll be using the Tabula Mundi Tarot (Nox et Lux edition) with its companion book Book M: Liber Mundi; both were self-published by M.M. Meleen. I'll pair with it the Alchemist's Oracle, a deck and booklet set self-published by Lauren Aletta. Today's draws are the Prince of Swords (Knight) and "High Flying:"

          Meleen describes this Prince as an "onrush of ideas and innovations," and suggests "the challenge is holding on to them." His ideas are personified in the form of fairies, who look like they have their own notions about what they want to do. (Having had days where concepts and plans bounce around inside my head, I can relate.) From an elemental standpoint, the Prince is Air of Air; with his remarkable intellect and knowledge, the sky is the limit. Yet air is ephemeral and provides nothing firm on which to grasp. He's going to have to land his Chariot of Winds on the ground if he wants to do something more concrete than talk.
          Aletta describes this card as being in the "creative zone." Being inspired with original designs and heady thoughts can feel similar to a drug-induced rush. There's excitement mixed with joy that overflows with enthusiasm. But a butterfly/moth has a short lifespan, much like my ideas. I may get so caught up in the feeling behind them, that I lose track of my purpose. Like Icarus who flew too close to the sun, I might suddenly find myself falling rather than flying.