I Want to be Your Friend

From the Somnia Tarot, the Ace of Coins; from the Spirits of Nature Oracle, Rose (Love):

And I said to my body, softly, "I want to be your friend." It took a long breath. And replied, "I have been waiting my whole life for this." —Nayyirah Waheed

Among the fog, several chests sit half-buried, yet only one produces a coin. This display reminds me of all the advertising that constantly tries to sell us their 'chests,' most of which will only supply us with a brief moment of contentment. Yes, we do need income to supply us with necessary shelter, food, clothing and a bit of fun. But wellness of the body is our greatest wealth - a gift that is easy to forget about when there is so much shiny bling to attract our attention. The Rose has long symbolized love, and with the Ace of Coins, it asks us to look at our priorities. What is more important: an accumulation of possessions or the physical care of our bodies?

Advice for Success

From the Gill Tarot, the Ten of Cups; from The Circle, Love:

For it is in giving that we receive;

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;

It is in dying to self that we are born to eternal life.

~St. Francis of Assisi (E. Easwaran trans.)

The success of emotional fulfillment is a paradox, as St. Francis clearly laid out. The bedrock of contentment and joy is not found in self-cherishing, but in a mindset that gives, forgives and has no agenda for either action. These people take life lightly without clinging - as John S. Spong described, they 'love wastefully.' The Love card's symbolism is not so much a romantic fantasy as it is connection, belonging, affection and mutual support. Those are the side effects of taking St. Francis' and Spong's advice.

Enjoying not Worrying

From the Russian Lubok Tarot, the Nine of Cups; from the Marseille Oracle, Love:

Often called the 'wish card,' the Nine of Cups suggests a feeling of satisfaction and gratification in seeing something hoped for come to fruition. But the added element of the angel and devil figures suggest an underlying feeling of unease, a sense of enjoyment while waiting for the other shoe to drop. Of course everything changes and nothing lasts forever, but we still can celebrate and enjoy every minute until it does (rather than spend it worrying). The yellow canary is given the keyword Love - a fitting description for a pet bird that enjoys its relationship with humans. It implies that happiness shared with another can expand our joy. Plus, it can help us stop our fretting and enjoy the pleasures life has brought us.

We're so busy watching out for what's just ahead of us that we don't take time to enjoy where we are.

― Bill Watterson

Bridging the Gulf

From the New Liminal Tarot, the Page of Discs; from the Inward Oracle, Love:

          With her pup by her side, this sweet Page holds a freshly painted shield of the four seasons. This Page is often known as a student, but she does more than just study and learn. She must take what she has learned and apply it in daily life, whether it is practicing artistic skills or taking care of a dog. In the Love card, a woman practices restorative yoga by lying back on a bolster in a heart-opening posture. Another woman uses the energy healing of reiki on her resting companion. Just as the Page knows to apply what she's learned, so too is how love is supposed to be practiced. Understanding love is not the same as showing love to ourselves or another person. Knowledge is not action. 

One of the great tragedies of life is that men seldom bridge the gulf between practice and profession, between doing and saying. ~Martin Luther King, Jr.

Seeing the Blue

From the Golden Tarot, the Three of Swords; from the Yantra Deck, Love:

Love is space. It is developing our own capacity for spaciousness within ourselves to allow others to be as they are. That is love. And that doesn’t mean that we don’t have hopes or wishes that things are changed or shifted, but that to come from a place of love is to be in acceptance of what is, even in the face of moving it towards something that is more whole, more just, more spacious for all of us.

—Rev. Angel Kyodo Williams

          A woman sits with her journal, consulting it to discover the 'why' behind her pain. "Why did she betray me?" "Why did he leave me?" "Why was what I loved taken from me?" She will find no answers that heal, only create more thoughts that hurt her. Instead, she might ask, "What now?" Love means being vulnerable, exposing the soft sides of our hearts. When we are hurt, it is easy to constrict our minds and hearts to only the situation or person that triggered our suffering. But our hearts and minds are much more spacious than that. If given the chance to look at the whole rather than one small part, we might find the blue sky behind the clouds.

Speed of Sanity

From the Spiral Tarot, the Two of Pentacles; from the Sacred Journey Cards, Love:

          On one side of this jester, the lake is stirred up and a flower has wilted; on the other side, the lake is calm and and the flower fully open. There are times when life must be lived wide open, and there are times it moves at a snail's pace. But living at either extreme all the time will harm the body. Yesterday I was at Lowes with my husband, and he asked me not to walk so fast as we were shopping. I rush without thinking (even when there's no need). I get in a hurry to finish what I'm doing and move on to the next task. When someone slows me down I feel frustrated, which makes me want to go at an even faster pace. That kind of behavior is just what the Two of Pentacles warns against. I need to be just as mindful of how I spend my energy as I do my money. The Sacred Journey card reminds me what often gets sacrificed when I am moving at top speed. I can get irritated with anyone or anything I think is slowing me down and lose my compassion. But these speed bumps are a chance to pause and ask what I'm sacrificing in the name of a few extra minutes. Love reminds me that there is always time to be kind and patient, not only with others but also myself. I can make progress and move at the speed of sanity.

Awakening to a New Version of Love

From the Norse Tarot, Judgment; from the Wolf Pack, "Love:"

       After Ragnarok ("The Doom of the Gods"), the children of Odin and Thor meet on the plain of Ida. The old gods are gone, and now their offspring will take their place. Unlike Christian mythology where there is a creation and end of creation timeline, Norse mythology moves in cycles like the seasons. Just as the spring comes after a harsh winter, so Judgment implies a reawakening. It is more than a new beginning, it is a chance to change and make things right.
       When I saw the Love card, I instantly heard the Beatles singing All You Need is Love in my head. Could it be that easy? Yesterday I was listening to a talk by Thich Nhat Hanh who described holding a hammer with his right hand while holding a nail in his left as he tried to hang a picture. When the hammer hit the fingers of his left hand, it didn't shout at the right hand "You did that on purpose!" Instead the right hand instantly took care of the left, as if it were itself. Do you think we humans will ever accept such an idea?

Standing on the Shoulders

From the Gill Tarot, the Hermit:

If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants. ~ Isaac Newton

Seeing this image of the Hermit from the back made me make a connection to another major arcana card - the Star.  Is it his lantern I see in the heavens when I am in that place of exhaustion and confusion, and I suddenly find healing and guidance?  I am reminded of how something has "clicked" for me by reading or hearing the words of friends, both in the physical and internet community of which I am a part.  Just a few words have created drastic shifts in my thinking and world.  Thank you my friends for shining your lights and giving me direction and hope.  May I one day stand on your shoulders and hold the lantern for another.

From The Circle deck comes "Love:"

Yesterday I drew the Five of Cups, a card of sorrow and anguish.  That evening I watched a loved one's struggle, bearing witness to her tears and frustration.  I felt my heart ache, yet there was a subtle anger underneath that wanted to say "Pull on your big girl panties and deal with it!"  But because I love her, I kept those thoughts to myself.  Love is a verb, not an emotion.  Sometimes the action of love is not to fix what is broken for another person (often impossible anyway), but to sit patiently, bear witness, and listen.  Knowing someone will stay in the boat while I ride out the rough waves can make all the difference.

 

Lights in the Darkness

From the Swietlistej Drogi Tarot, the Page of Cups:

“It is usually taken for granted that you dream of something that has made a particularly strong impression on you during the day, but it seems to me it´s just the contrary. Often it´s something you paid no attention to at the time -- a vague thought that you didn´t bother to think out to the end, words spoken without feeling and which passed unnoticed -- these are the things that return at night, clothed in flesh and blood, and they become the subjects of dreams, as if to make up for having been ignored during waking hours.” ~ Boris Pasternak

Here's one sensitive young man who not only doesn't ignore his dreams, he actively participates in them.  He knows his dreams, intuition, and imagination are there to help guide him, nudging him along the path.  They're not a waste of time; they are lights in the darkness.

     From the Mirrors of the Heart deck comes "Love:"

“You don't love someone because they're perfect, you love them in spite of the fact that they're not.” ~ Jodi Picoult

The noun "love" is easy to banter about, but the verb "love" is another thing altogether.  Can I love those who don't love me back?  Can I love those whose philosophies are at opposite ends of the spectrum from me?  This kind of love requires tolerance, respect and kindness.  The bird on the girl's head and the heart at her throat remind me that thoughts and words are a part of it.  Not an easy verb to put into action...