Taking Up the Right Sword

We had the Ten of Swords start our reading last week, and oof, did that card come through for me! Not in an altogether upsetting way, however. Experiencing discomfort and anger felt like the antidote to the predicament the main character in the card finds themselves in: face-down on a beach impaled by ten swords. Maybe they got there because they ignored the pain - “oh, that old thing? It’s just one sword. It hardly hurts!” Fast forward nine swords later, and look at yourself now! This is absolutely a thing I do and it was absolutely not working for me.

Feeling the swords as they come, it turns out, is important.

So, this morning, I found myself in an agitated mood. After having identified many of the pesky swords poking holes in my life, I was seething. A friend in a similar situation texted to set up a coffee date. “Fair warning,” she said, “I’m very grumpy.” Perfect.

We bundled into a corner of our local coffee shop. Like any normal person, I like to frequent my neighborhood cafe on the off-chance that someone falls in love with me while I pretend to work. But this morning my friend and I leaned in to talk, oblivious to anyone around us. My hair was greasy and piled in a nest on top of my head. I tore into a croissant like a feral animal, not caring that crumbs were flying onto the table and my jacket. I made accidental eye contact with a man sporting a pair of elegantly sculpted eyebrows and felt a tinge of pride when I watched him recoil slightly. Good. We’re not here to impress, we’re here to grump.

What followed was a delightful, cathartic conversation. I was gesticulating wildly, feeling free and galvanized. We debriefed on our ten of swords experiences, noting irritations that were minor - failed plans, annoying experiences at the doctor’s office - and others that had cut deeper than we’d initially thought. The more we talked, the lighter we felt. Enough was enough! We could both laugh at the things that were silly and decide which things were serious, but would be silly to keep in our lives knowing they were exacting such a high price. Where we were, in other words, bleeding out energy, time, and resources.

I’m getting a similar feel from our reading this week. That in sifting through the detritus of last week’s annoyances, hurt, and frustration, we’re entering into a new era of clarity. And, oh, does that have a wonderful ring to it! New era of clarity! I love it and the card that’s capturing the theme here, the Ace of Swords. Aces can sometimes appear as a response to a call you’ve been making. Yes, they’re also the beginning of a new chapter (and oh could we used one after ending, painfully and definitively, with the Ten of Swords), but they also come from outside ourselves.

No other group in tarot shows the pain that comes from overthinking than the swords, and no other card shows how you can reason your way into suffering like the Ten of Swords. This ace, then, is beautiful in that it shows us emerging from suffering and receiving clarity, direction, and newness from another source. Maybe it’s a conversation with a friend like my cafe grump-fest, or maybe it’s a new idea or opportunity. If you’ve been asking for something, a response is on the way, and maybe this past week’s struggle (or highlighting of our struggles in general) has served as a way to identify what’s really not working so that you can accept what’s really meant for you and you alone.

So let newness in this week. New people, new ideas, new conversations, new ways of seeing the world. Move away from over-thinking and treating your life like a puzzle that needs to be solved. Like our Monthly Forecast, there’s a theme here of being wise enough to not figure everything out. This can sometimes feel risky, like you’re moving ahead without doing your due-diligence. But what if your’e moving ahead with a light load, agile and unburdened, and therefore ready to respond to whatever comes your way with grace? Creativity? Presence?

Having the Page of Cups appear next supports all of this with their characteristic gentle cheekiness. It’s as if our intuition and creativity are saying “ah, you, you finally made it out of that shitty beach!” Our mind can join the party. It’s time to grow and play and prioritize authenticity and enjoyment. We know what it feels like to be burdened by worry and upset and how easy it is to accumulate both. This week, we’re able to choose to move forward. Grant yourself permission to walk away and invest in a life that’s centered around ease, connection, and innovation.

I typed the word “invest” and immediately chuckled because we end our reading with the ultimate investor of tarot, the King of Pentacles. They add the perfect amount of practicality, gravitas (and decadence) to our spread for the week. In fact, we might all be surprised at how treating our ideas (and acting on them ) via the Ace of Swords while valuing love, creativity, and experimentation through the Page of Cups is, in fact, one of the most practical things we can do.

I sometimes look at the court cards as an invitation to take a way of being in the world and integrate it with your personality. So this reading invites us to ask: What is your version of the King of Pentacles? What does wealth, plenty, and comfort mean to you? What do you look like when you put those “clothes” on? Do they wear you or do you wear them? If it feels awkward and inauthentic, maybe you’re putting on a costume when you could be making something for yourself, and this week’s reading really encourages the latter.

What I’m saying (in a very long-winded way) is that we have a big opportunity this week to do things our way, and that these “things” actually have to do with prosperity and taking up space in your life with pride. I love it. It’s absolutely the opposite of the Ten of Sword’s vibe, so don’t be put-off if things feel risky, fast-moving, and strange. That’s a huge transition! Simultaneously, and essentially, do not talk yourself out of having nice things, arriving at a well-earned position of respect, and allowing your inspiration (Ace of Swords) and creativity (Page of Cups) to work for you. A “King of Pentacles” experience created and supported by these two cards would be delightful, so authentic, and so nice that it would be a shame to push it away. It could just be your new normal.