A Day of Possibilities

From the Tarot of the Crone, the Fool; from the Transforming Dragons deck, Suboc:

A mere spark of awareness

But that is enough

That is where you begin

~E.L-P.

Like the Fool, each morning we wake up to a brand new day. The day ahead has endless potential and possibilities; it can be filled with delight and joy or resentment and irritation. The energy of the spark will follow wherever the mind directs it - conscious awareness can create our experience. Suboc is dragon who enjoys sabotaging the mood and dreams of all around him. He'll try to convince you that the Sun card you pulled is really the headlamp of an oncoming train about to flatten you. He's unhappy, and it gives him a little thrill to dump on anyone he perceives as content. But his gift of misery is a box we don't have to accept and open. Perhaps one day the seed of his own heart will crack open, allowing beauty to bloom. Until then, give him a wave and keep walking.

Power of a Bridge

From the Tarot of the Crone, the Two of Disks; from Transforming Dragons, Suboc:

Two to share the effort.

Two to know a bond.

The power of a bridge. 

          The usual RWS version of the Two of Pentacles shows a person trying to juggle two disks, implying that obligations are on overload and affecting one's time, health, energy and finances. It's one of those situations where what you're doing is working, but you know you can't keep the pace up forever. Enter Suboc, who is the dragon of emotional heaviness and who believes in isolation because "this is no one else's business." His mindset only makes the overload situation worse. Yet in Lorenzi-Prince's card, one hand stretches across a barrier to help. Thank goodness.
          My MIL has been back in the hospital for almost a week with excruciating pain, especially when moved. They've run every test known to man, including scans and x-rays with no results. The hospital is about to kick her out since they feel they've done all they can, but we're terrified of how to take care of her if she's sent back home in such constant pain. A social worker there (a young woman who used to work at our restaurant many years ago as a teen) has gotten involved and is trying to contact nursing homes in the area. We've been on a waiting list for all of them for over a year, yet none have had any openings. She has contacted them all, but only our least favorite is willing to make a space. Yet yesterday, the home's director came up to the hospital to meet my MIL and my husband. That meeting changed everyone's attitude. She will only have 20 days there, and then we will be juggling again. But, it's 20 days that will allow everyone to take a deep breath and relax briefly.

Power of a Bridge

From the Tarot of the Crone, the Two of Disks; from Transforming Dragons, "Suboc:"

The Two of Disks suggests that I need a hand - physically, financially or time-wise - to help me balance out my obligations. Lorenzi-Prince describes this card with the phrase "the power of of bridge." My resources can only reach so far across the chasm; I need to connect to someone else. Help can come from unexpected people and places, but I'll never get it unless I send up an emergency flare.
Suboc is described as being in a "bad humor," but I just think of him as a curmudgeon. If someone says or does something beneficial, he'll grumble that they'll probably stick it to you somewhere down the road. He'll do his best to convince me that if I reach my hand out for assistance, I'll be left hanging. Maybe I'll stick my fingers in my ears and hum instead of listening to his blather.

Pouring Out the Present

From the Tarot of the Crone, the Six of Cups:

Pouring the present

Into the past.

The words above are my own, not those of Lorenzi-Prince; when I saw this image, this thought was what came to me.  Unlike the Temperance card, where the flow goes both ways, here the water from the bowls goes into the larger receptacle.  I can spend many of my present moments living in the past.  Funny thing about when I do this though, I tend to remember the good and never the bad.  Yet in the present I can take a frustrating or painful five minutes and stretch it into a full day.  I think the past can be a useful learning tool, but I don't want to spend my life wishing things were the same as they were "back then."  I need to refill my bowl with the beauty and blessings I have around me now, because that is what will give me the strength to  deal with the struggles and challenges I face today.

From the Transforming Dragons deck comes the dragon "Suboc:"

Trap: Somber or Sarcastic

Treasure: Playful and Open-hearted

Suboc has two sides; either he thinks life is serious and you should act accordingly, or he is a cynic who constantly makes snarky, sarcastic remarks to prove how knowledgeable he is.  While I have my moments as a skeptic and naysayer, I tend to relate more to his stern and somber side.  This dragon reminds me that it is okay to laugh and play (in fact it is healthy) and to remember to make charitable assumptions about others who see things through a different lens than my own.  If I'm going to live in the present moment, it would help to have an attitude that makes me want to stay there.