Page of Swords - Reason - Curious and Energetic

My thoughts lately and especially today, have been like the Page of Swords in that my thoughts are quickly darting around in my sometimes befuddled mind.

What I especially love about this Page is the message of being curious and energetic. These two characteristics reflect some of what creativity means to me.
Right now I am full of thoughts and ideas about the things I need and want to do, along with all those objectives and goals I have set for myself within the next six months or so.

 When I think about all the things I have to do, it can suddenly feel a little daunting and overwhelming, having so many items on my list. Which reminds me I need to make a list!

I once had one of those bookmark/fridge magnet thingy(s) with very helpful and practical wisdom about how to get yourself together, unstuck, uncluttered and organized. I wished I could find that thingy. This wisdom is specifically in reference to all aspects of life, mind, body and spirit.

One way I can keep this simple is in knowing and reminding myself that, if one area of my life is out of sync with the other parts, I'm out of balance. I can know this on an intellectual level, but to truly know it, I have to make that connection, often it's the longest journey that lies between the head and heart.

Now with the internet, bookmarks and fridge magnets that have such pearls of wisdom on them, might not be in such demand, or have gone the way of the dodo, but I still like them. There is however a copious amount of such helpful information available to the person who is searching for a way to get things done, when life feels overwhelming.

Dan Waldschmidt has one such great list called of 12 ways to get things done when life feels overwhelming.

Two of Swords - The Supernatural Mind

I haven't a supernatural mind, although in the past I've deluded myself into thinking I could be a superwoman. But that sure didn't work out right.

I thought Supernatural Mind would be a good title for my post after drawing the Two of Swords. This card was not menacing or threatening like some in the suit of Swords I have drawn over the past two days.

Here we see Orestes in between his mother, Queen Clytemnestra (now there's a handle) and his father, King Agamemnon, another wild one.This pair are more than troublesome on so many levels. Both are murderers and have their own selfish agenda reflecting their destructive, grandiose egos. Orestes does not want to listen, or engage with either of them, though he does need to make a decision to act which is indicated in the Two of Swords, in order to find some kind of peace and serenity within this horrendous storm. This may mean walking away, finding a healthy balance between his mind and his heart, or between reason and faith.

These two symbolic Greek figures cause me to reflect on the balance between the mind (reason) and the supernatural (faith). Agamemnon's downfall was to put his ego and pride before anything, which eventually resulted in his death at the hands of Artemis, the best Huntress and by his own vengeful wife, Clytemnestra, who wants revenge on her husband for sacrificing their daughter.

Reason and faith may seem diametrically opposed, but they are not. They work best in conjunction with one another, and balanced. I cannot solely rely on my own reason,or  mind to provide all the answers to my questions. I also need to hold my ego in check and remember to practice humility.

I've learned that I cannot blindly follow any doctrine without question, but at some point I needed and continue to need faith and trust in a power greater than myself, were reason can no longer provide explanation. I need to trust and have confidence in myself as well.

The path of least resistance is not always the best way to make a decision in order to avoid the fall out, or to keep the status quo, as there are going to be repercussions regardless. It is better to fish or cut bait.

The Queen of Swords - Atalanta

There are no mistakes. Really? Well I think I can agree with this statement, though it does sound like a ridiculous statement on one level, it does not mean perfection, and that we never stop making mistakes. This is far from being true. Our so called mistakes I do believe, are wake up calls, all part of our life journey, and they can serve us well, to enable a change in our behaviour for the better.

In spite of the mistakes, I don't need to panic. I do need to try to relax. I know this is much easier said than done, because of my human fight or flight reaction, but it doesn't mean I stop trying to do some serious introspective homework, to figure out what the next step is. I cannot fear my mistakes, but I do need to embrace them, in order to make the changes necessary in order to avoid a repeat.

We don't always purposely make mistakes, but regardless we can avoid many of them if we can let go of our demand for perfection, often creating our own problems.

The Queen is the perfect card to draw today, as she lifts up the individual struggling to overcome a panic attack ( namely me). This Queen uses her intelligence, and her intuitive passion to solve her problems.

 Atalanta is embodied in the Queen, and when she was born, her father King Iasus, who wanted a male child, cruely abandoned her on a mountainside to die.  Atalanta was then helped by Artemis-Hecate, the moon-goddess, who sent a she-bear to suckle the child, and so, she is well acquainted with animal instinct. Later she was found and raised by a clan of hunters who found her. She learned to fight, and was a fierce hunter along side of men, and was always happy. Atalanta became the 'swiftest mortal alive' and was full of prowess. She greatly identified with the masculine world, and strove for perfection.

 It is said that she was the only woman who joined the Jason and the Argonauts on the great ship Argo, in search of the Golden Fleece.

Crescent Moon Bear - Catherine Meyers