From the Granny Jones Australian Tarot, the Three of Swords; from the Button Oracle, "Pine Tree:"
The red swords, thundercloud, broken heart and barbed wire all illustrate the pain felt when an unwanted situation happens. Just look at those stick arms on the left reaching out and the legs running away on the right. That's exactly how I feel in those unwelcome situations - either grasping at what has been lost or trying to run from what has appeared. And my thoughts tell me it isn't fair, no one else has to deal with so much; I start singing along with Sam Cooke, "Nobody knows the trouble I've seen, nobody knows my sorrow." Even worse is when I mistakenly assume my spiritual practices were supposed to protect me from such pain. However those mountains in the background are a reminder that my training only prepares me to be a more capable climber; it doesn't eliminate the mountains themselves.
The spiral growth of the pine tree's needles and cone scales are arranged in
Fibonacci number ratios, which leads to the keywords for this button: structure, order, and logic. When the unexpected and unwanted happens, I want to shut down and isolate to escape that feeling of being overwhelmed with fear or heartache. But this button suggests breaking things down into easy steps, making the daily tasks of life simpler and easier to manage. I can concentrate on what's first on that list, giving my mind something to do other than wander off into the future. One task, one minute at a time is all I need to focus on. Getting through the pain instead of attempting to escape it is my solution. Things might never be the same, but it doesn't mean the sun won't ever shine again.
