Four of Wands - Blind Trust Project

Jason could never have met the challenges, dangers, and struggles that were overcome during the perilous sea voyage on the Argo, in pursuit of the Golden Fleece, without his fellow friends the Argonauts. They trusted, supported and believed in him, in spite of having no idea what they were going to have to face, or what lie ahead and in many ways they were going on blind trust. Jason also had to trust them.

The Four of Wands indicates a deeper significant lesson to learn. No one is an island and we have a responsibility to love our fellow humans, be they friends, family, those we don't like, and even our enemies. We can tolerate, without having compassion or love in our heart toward others. To me there is nothing virtuous about tolerating another.

It is much easier to offer help and support to those we love. Where the real virtue lies, is often in helping those we don't understand or reject in some way.  It is very easy to sit in judgement of those we fear, based on status, race, colour, gender, or religion, because we don't understand.

Today I heard about an amazing project, a youtube video that went viral with over a million views, which I have posted below.

Four of Wands - Thriving Versus Surviving

Before I drew the Four of Wands today, I felt I was being drawn in the direction of love, loving others, and loving the self. I was also reflecting on the difference between surviving and thriving. This was confirmed when I saw this card.

The Four of Wands reflects the joining of forces in order to support one another. Jason could never have achieved his quest for the Golden Fleece had his companions not supported, believed, and joined him in this bold and dangerous journey. Jason also did the same for his companions, he had their backs, and they all not only survived this journey, but they thrived.

Often we are so ready to help, forgive or recognize the beauty in another, and have difficulty accepting help, forgiving or recognizing the beauty within ourselves. Loving others, but not loving ourselves, is to survive. But when we can love ourselves, is to thrive. Thriving extends beyond to include to every aspect and every area of our lives whether is be personal and professional development.

Friendship and Human Kindness - Four of Wands

 Jason would never have been able to achieve his goal without the kindness, and generousity of his friends who helped him to achieve his goal of obtaining the Golden Fleece.

The same holds true for our own friendships, which is truly a blessing. I know I could never survive without my friends in my life, past, present or future. It is a remarkable, and I think miraculous event, when we meet up with new friends, seeing those we have known all our lives, but are now separated from, for great lengths of time, and when we meet up with them again, it is as if we've never been apart.

I remember meeting certain folks, if only briefly, that I felt an immediate connection with, that I will never forget. My mother would always say that real, true friendships are few, and far between. If you can call those individuals in your life, true friends, you are blessed. I agree with her.

Acquaintances can be many, but these are not deep friendships. However when I reflect on the meaning of friendship, I think of kindnesses shown to me. I think of all the people who picked me up hitch hiking to, and from University when I had no vehicle. I think of days I had to reach out to others who never hesitated to  respond, even when I didn't ask, with no expectation. Many of these people I do not see, or may never see again, but I consider them friends, because of their kindness toward me, when I most needed help, and I will never, ever forget them.

Christmas is a time when we celebrate with our friends and family. But for many it is not so much a time of celebration, but a time of sadness and struggle. It is easy to love your immediate friends and family, not so easy to do for those who are out of sight and out of mind, such as those who are in prison or are experiencing homelessness.

There is not much virtue in loving your friends, but with those who are our enemies or those we do not know, it is when we show human kindness that makes all the difference to another, and to ourselves. Small kindnesses should never be underestimated, they are just as important as the large kindnesses..

I hope this Christmas  and throughout the coming years, I will reach out to others, and impart that human kindness that was so freely given to me, regardless if they are my friends or not.

 I expect to pass through this world but once; any good thing therefore that I can do, or any kindness that I can show to any fellow creature, let me do it now; let me not defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again.
 
Ettiene De Grellet

Four of Wands - Harvest & Reward

 Here we see Jason is celebrating with his sailing buddies, after the building of their great ship, the Argo. The group will set sail, and the ship will carry them on their voyage, in search of the Golden Fleece.

This is a very positive card, in that on a divinatory level, it augers a time for reward, and success. A creative idea has come to fruition, and it implies there is something worth celebrating. That said, this is the beginning of a hopeful journey, and there is still hard work ahead, before the goal is reached.

We never get to harvest and reward without the help of others. We can be very humbled, and often in amazement of how others can be so kind, and generous toward us. I believe these people are doing so, because someone was kind and generous to them, and they are simply paying it forward, as they say.

Having gratitude for the things received, and seemed not to deserve, hopefully will foster a humble attitude, in order to make us want to pass on to others, that, which was so freely given to us.

Four of Wands - Friends

 In this card we see Jason gathered with his friends and shipmates, about to set off for their great adventure to find the Golden Fleece. This adventure of sailing to the ends of the earth is not only daunting, but it is something that cannot be done by Jason alone, and he knows it. This is why Jason gathers his friends around him. Each friend has different strengths, skills and inner resources upon which he can draw.
The Four of Wands like Jason's friends reminds me of the Four Elements, each one bringing it's particular nature.


Drawing the Four of Wands this morning made me wonder, what does this card have to say to me. Then I saw clearly, it speaks about the importance of having friendship with those we can trust. No one is an island, and we all need friends and we need to know how to be a good friend to others, to all God's creatures, and to the earth.


My mother, the very wise woman she was, would say, we can have many acquaintances, but if a person has a few close friends in life, they are very blessed. I have also found this to be very true. We can have long time friends and we can meet new friends that we feel close to, even though we may never meet them face to face, particularly in the age of the internet, meeting people from all over, the world. Many of our old friends we may not see for years but when we are reunited we pick up just where we left off, like we had never been apart, because we are bonded.

As I age I am  more and more grateful for my friends, as they have been and are like family to me, as I would be lost without them, and may never have survived the things I faced.
We have chosen one another. We cannot choose our families, and sometimes we are not as close to our biological family as the friends we choose as family. Friendship is precious.

Four of Wands - Reward & Harvest

Wands are the suit of action, energy, and growth. Often we can feel overwhelmed by daunting challenges and tasks. But, when we achieve these difficult tasks we feel wonderful, and can celebrate what we have achieved.

Not unlike Jason in the Four of Wands, who pursues and eventually captures the Golden Fleece, along with his trusted friends who help him, we can not do it alone, without the direct or even indirect help and support of others. The saying, " It takes a village to raise a child. " comes to my mind.

We need to find strength, creative vision, intelligence, deep feeling, and empathy; all the individual characteristics of each one of Jason's trusted friends. If not from our real friends, we can draw from our inner resources that are available to us in order to reach our goal. When we discipline ourselves, applying hard effort and work, with these resources, we will reap and harvest the rewards and we will find freedom. However, keep in mind that this is just a stage on our journey, and harder challenges lie ahead , before we reach our final goal.

No matter how big or small the challenge facing you, you can achieve it through faith, and having a belief in yourself. Breaking it down into steps helps a great deal, and the task at hand will not be so overwhelming. Try not to worry about the future, nor regret the past, as there is nothing that will drive you more crazy. Live in the present moment, and do what you need to do with concerted effort, and if you need help or even moral support, ask your trusted friends. They are sure to help you. After all, friends help friends.

Demeter is the goddess of the harvest