Stepping Down

From the Classic Tarot, the Ten of Cups; from the Constellation Cards, Hydrus:

There's no passion for being found in playing small, in settling for a life that is less than you are capable of living. ~Nelson Mandela

The three by three arrangement of cups overseen by the larger chalice suggests contentment and harmony among a group that is solid. There are leaders - whether of a family, business or social organization - who have the ability to make each person feel heard and appreciated, connecting everyone with a mainstay of kindness. Yet the turned over large chalice also implies that the head feels it is time to step down and let someone else hold the reins so that they can pursue other interests and passions. It may be a manager who retires and spends time doing volunteer work or a matriarch who decides to travel the world. Hydrus lies in the southern hemisphere, and its name refers to a water snake. Water snakes spend time on the ground and in trees as well as in water. They tend to be aggressive and bite if threatened. Breaking out of a peapod may leave those left behind feeling vulnerable, and they may attempt to convince their guiding star to stay. But decisively stepping away from such a position can help us find our own joy while allowing others to develop confidence in learning new skills.

Mimic Water's Movement

From The Classic Tarot, the Fool; from the Constellations Deck, Hydrus:

Unlike the RWS, this Fool is not a jester but a homeless wanderer. With his strange clothes (and missing a shoe), people were afraid of his eccentricity - enough to send a dog to chase him off. But on another level they envied his ability to travel life lightly, both in terms of material possessions and emotional contentment. He doesn't grasp at outer things to create his happiness; his wonder and enjoyment of life does that for him. The Fool's card is without a number, suggesting freedom and unlimited potential. Hydrus is named for a water snake, a group of snakes that spend a significant time in or near fresh water. I recently had an encounter with a red-bellied juvenile on my backporch (likely washed up from the storm drain); I used a pine cone gripper to relocate him elsewhere. Whether on land or in water, the snake's undulating movements mimic the movement of water. Both these cards offer the advice that we can glide through life happily if we don't get stuck by our demands for life to be a certain way.

Most emotions do not arise out of the immediate moment, but are generated by our self-centered demands that life be the way we want it to be. 

— Charlotte Joko Beck