Six of Wands - Creative Growth and Self-Confidence

Six of Wands symbolizes creative growth, self-confidence, progress and some kind of public acclaim. It is seen as the most satisfying of the Minor Arcana cards, because focused action yields results and results yield self-confidence . When we are recognized for our accomplishments it can often come with it's own dilemmas and further challenges, like envy and jealousy from others.

Achieving a creative vision can be a heady moment, and it can be a celebratory occasion, justifiably so, however it's important to remember, this too shall pass and we can look forward to taking on the next challenge.

I can't allow myself to be caught up in what others are thinking, whether it be positive of negative. Growth is progress and process, not a destination of perfection. I know will never graduate from life, but I strive to keep on learning and growing, I learned how to survive my painful and joyful experiences and now am learning how to thrive, through the mystery of creative growth.This is the real journey of life for me.

Nine of Cups - " A Pure Thought Placed Into Your Heart

For the past two days nines of come up in my daily draw. Here the Nine of Cups, referred to as the " Wish Card. "

Children we are full of wishes and expect them to come true. Many children it seems might not have the luxury of hopeful wishes because their lives are full of suffering and heartache in one way or another.
Wishes for me translate into hope and in a world so of strife, there is always hope, we must have hope, if not for ourselves, then for our children. I believe deeply that there is always 'hope for the hopeless'

I can say that wishing for me is a kind of prayer. But many of us are for what ever reason, sometimes disconnected in someway from prayer. We feel will cannot pray, or don't understand it. There is a poverty of the spirit, and a spiritual dryness, or a misconception of what prayer is..

There was a desperate time in my life when I was unable to pray, though I very much wanted to. A spiritual mentor who was trying to comfort me, said that my desire to pray was a prayer. In so many words in his own prayer, the Trappist monk Thomas Merton says that the desire to pray is prayer itself.

Today I read a definition of prayer that I really love. " The definition of prayer is having  is a pure thought placed into your heart for God to find. "

I expect that whether you call it wishing or prayer it is the intention and what we carry in our heart of hearts that is important.
This prayer of Thomas Merton is a prayer of hope, and the desire for trust.

 "My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore will I trust you always, though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone."

Nine of Cups - The Secret of The Wish Card

What do you wish for? I'd love to know. Do you believe in luck?

Wishes for me are more about luck, which I don't really believe in, in a superstitious way. When someone wishes me luck I often ask them, just to say a prayer, because I know that works. The answer may not always be what I want, but it is certainly always, the answer I need, and I can let go of trying to bargain or plead with the Creator to grant me my prayer. All you can do is ask, and we can't do anything to control the outcome. But it is important to ask.

It is however such a joyful and affirming thing of faith, when your prayer, regardless of how small is granted, as mine was today, and it was just as important to me as any prayer.

The prayer is not necessarily the what matters, because many times we can't find it within ourselves to pray, even though we have a desire to prayer. This in and of itself is enough, when we feel this way, because it is a prayer.

All the Creator requires of us is to be willing to be willing, and to have a desire to pray even if we can't find the words, are dry, and poor in spirit.

 “What I wear is pants. What I do is live. How I pray is breathe.”
― Thomas Merton, Thomas Merton: A Life in Letters: The Essential Collection

Six of Wands - Recognition & Humility

" Success has many fathers while failure is an orphan. "
Everyone wants to feel they are responsible for success, but not for failure.

" Success is never final ".
After success you can't afford to become complacent and sit on your laurels. Hard work is still ahead, and is just as important as it ever was.

Proverbs provide words of wisdom and insight, acting as guideposts, giving direction along the spiritual path.

The Six of Wands is a very good reminder to always remain humble regardless of one's success and recognition, though it is a very satisfying card in the Minor Arcana, as it heralds public recognition.
There are always many others that we can attribute to our success, and to be grateful for their help in so many ways. The old adage of what goes around comes around comes to mind, and when we can, we  pay it forward.


Jason has been victorious after his battle with the dragon and retrieved the Golden Fleece with the Argonauts by his side, cheering and showering him with accolades. However Jason must remember, he cannot take credit alone and needs to accept his success with humility and grace. His hero-companions supported him completely, providing him with support and contributed their individual strengths and efforts. Jason could not have done it without them.

I have always loved and deeply appreciated what Thomas Merton wrote about humility in his book New Seeds of Contemplation.

"Pride makes us artificial and humility makes us real."

- Thomas Merton

Knight of Wands - The Explorer

We all need to take risks in life, follow our bliss, and challenge ourselves, as this is what enables us develop our self-confidence. When we challenge ourselves, we can learn what are capacities are, and develop our human potential as human beings, fully engaged in living, and experience personal growth.

When I reflect on taking risks in life, I think of the book I read many years ago by Thomas Merton, Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander. Standing on the sidelines of life,  or simply being a bystander, may seem like a safe and best place to be, but it is not the path to happiness or fulfillment. Having a proactive attitude and being a participator is what leads to living life to the fullest.

 This is the card and sign of the explorer, who is energetic and who yearns for new adventure. A change is as good as a rest it has been said, and the craving for new challenges is indicated. Possibly in the form of a change in residence, or a traveling adventure is likely, due to the feeling of being stifled by one's environment.

A very charming figure is the Knight of Wands, and very attractive to the opposite sex; however don't expect to hold this individual back, when the call of the wild strikes, as they can not be counted on to stay put, and will be moving on. The ability to follow through on ideas and intentions is a weakness. Fickle and hot headed would be adjectives to describe this person, with their head in the clouds instead of reality. This person can be boastful and talk a great story, that people are often ready to believe.

However, the road to hell is paved with good intentions, no matter how loveable, high spirited, naive, and imaginative and well-meaning this individual may be, the ability to follow through on ideas, and intentions are not all actualized into reality.
The Knight of Wands is neither a follower nor a leader.
He or she is self-absorbed, and boredom soon overtakes them, with no interest or desire to be responsible toward another, particularly in a relationship.


Often we can get addicted to excitement and even to crisis, drawn to being in a constant a state of hyper-vigilance. We loose sight of what is important to us, and are carried away by the moment. Then we become bored with our circumstance, and seek another kind of excitement, which can lead to a superficial and rather chaotic lifestyle, that is briefly satisfying, but does not sustain any kind of real happiness.  

Discernment and caution is strongly suggested if you are involved with this person. Although if you are aware and accepting of these character defects, then you are more likely to enjoy them, without having the unrealistic expectations of someone, who either can not, or will not give you what you want. There is nothing that is more crazy making, especially if you are in a love relationship with this kind of person.


The Knight of Wands can signify that these qualities mentioned, are trying to emerge from the self, or the Knight's positive attributes, such as meeting new challenges, need to be developed within one's own personality. The message is get out and explore. Go on a personal pilgrimage and follow your heart. You might unexpectedly find yourself!

“The geographical pilgrimage is the symbolic acting out an inner journey. The inner journey is the interpolation of the meanings and signs of the outer pilgrimage. One can have one without the other. It is best to have both.” - Thomas Merton