Fluff vs. Fundamental

From the Tarot of the Crone, the Shadow of Disks (King of Pentacles); from Transforming Dragons, Spedonco:

What is essential? How can I persevere?

          Most Kings of the physical realm of tarot are portrayed as lovers of comfort, beauty and affluence. Lorenzi-Prince suggests the King of Disks is someone who knows the difference between fluff and what is fundamental. In this bare-bones land of sand and stone, there is nevertheless life in the spider and ant. I think all of us find ourselves wandering in such a place at some time in our lives. Can we truly appreciate our comforts and abundance if we don't know how to be content with simplicity? Thoreau wrote, "We are happy in proportion to the things we can do without."

          Spedonco is the dragon of fear; his bug-eyed look is due to the adrenaline of the fight or flight response. He is the other extreme of blind optimism, anticipating only dire circumstances and outcomes. Yet his energy is wasted on such predictions; instead of dealing with what's in front of him as best he can, he's running around screaming about his vision of a dreadful future. I think the King would tell him to slow down and become aware of the resources around him. And above all, keep it simple. 

Two Ends of the Spectrum

From the Tarot of the Crone, the Priestess; from Transforming Dragons, "Spedonco:"

Whenever I draw the High Priestess, I think of stillness and receptive listening - basically tapping into my higher self rather than my ego. But my ego can be louder and more annoying than Gilbert Gottfried, so I have to figure out what noise is coming from it and what wisdom is coming from my higher self. I have a list of qualifiers I go through now as a test. My ego is manipulative (loves to shame) and feeds on cravings and fears. My higher self is compassionate and operates on unconditional love. My ego is completely self-centered and thinks everything is an emergency situation. My higher self is concerned about everyone's welfare and speaks calmly and softly.
The big bulging eyes of Spedonco made me think he's had way too many cups of coffee this morning. He is indeed running on adrenaline, yet not the kind that comes from caffeine but from fear. It seems this is what the ego will use to attempt to drown out any message I might get in that quiet, still place. Maybe earplugs will work.