Tarot Tuesday: Six of Swords

Six of Swords

Rider-Waite-Smith Tarot Deck

US Games Systems, Inc. 

Greetings everyone, and welcome to Tarot Tuesday!

Today's card is one of the few in the Swords suit that doesn't truly suck: The six. 

Check out the water on the card! You already can see there's an emotional component...see the rough on the right and the smooth to the left of the boat? The situation that this card describes is improving slowly; the boat will be through the rough waters soon. 

It can also represent feeling a little bit down...one might call it "the blues" as well. 

One of the more common meanings is the idea of travel or movement. When I get this card, often I tell people to take a trip, ideally one that is on or near water, or even overseas. Any type of water will do: Whitewater rafting, deep sea fishing, or a cottage by a river are all good examples. Water helps restore people and it is healing. 

This card is particularly important for me this week as I prepare for a vacation near water! I'm taking my own advice and getting away from my business for a while. I won't be seeing anyone professionally until March 12.

Until next time, good people! Catch you on the flip side. 

Musings from the Moon...and Jupiter!

Moon: Hello everyone...Lady Moon here! Looks like I'll get the opportunity to start off this blog tonight. [Opens Erin Condren planner] So it's been a few weeks since John's been on, and I figured I'd take the opportunity to come aboard and give my two cents. Normally I don't do these sorts of things without a full meeting...too public and all...but I guess I can every once in a while. 

Jupiter: I'm an old hand at this, Lady Moon! Just follow my lead and you'll do just fine. 

Moon: Thanks for the enthusiasm and support, Jove. So let's get down to business. Our esteemed blogger has survived his time without his beloved. She returned and everything is right in his world. Well, mostly, anyway.

Jupiter: Dude, the guy just needs to let loose and have some fun. Saturn has got him by the fucking balls, and I...

Moon: Jupiter, PLEASE. We're not taking the opportunity to disparage other planets.

Jupiter: I'm not disparaging anyone, Lady. It's just who that stubborn bastard IS. And he is John's ruling planet, after all. It's such a shame he wasn't born just a few hours earlier...it would have been ME.

Moon: Well, Jupiter, he wasn't. John has to live with his chart the way it is, and he's been doing that for quite some time. He often writes in his astrology class #ilovemychart for that reason. I mean...Saturn rules John's Moon position, so he's been dealing with that for a while and learning how to work with me better all the time.

Jupiter: Saturn is still a huge dick, even though his own isn't really...

Moon: [SIGH] Jupiter, do I need to do this on my own? Or can you behave yourself?

Jupiter: No, ma'am. I'll try to conduct myself in a matter more befitting my station. Or some shit like that.

Moon: Indeed you will. [PAUSE] Anyway, my point in all this is that our favorite blogger's been a little off lately. He's been struggling a little with me and I'm guessing it's because he's been working too much.

Jupiter: And which planet's fault would that be?

Moon: JOVE! What did I ask you to do?

Jupiter: It was SATURN the prick's fault!  He's always behind that shit. 

Moon: Jupiter, it's time for you to go. 

Jupiter: But, Lady Moon!

Moon: That's your third strike, young man. OUT!

[Jupiter leaves]

Moon: [sadly shakes head] Anyway, our intrepid blogger has been struggling a little lately and I suspect it's because he's been working too much. I believe he's referred to it as burnout. So he is officially on vacation as of tonight. The next time he'll be reading is October 8 at the shop, although he'll be teaching before that. I know he's particularly excited for a new set of tarot students. [Flips through Erin Condren planner]. Oh damn, now I have to do Jupiter's part as well. That's just the part that he never seems to get to about readings and charts being awesome and amazing and a fantastic gift as well as an important part of John's tarot business. 

[Jupiter opens the door]

Jupiter: Lady Moon, can I PLEASE come back in and finish?

Moon: [Glares at Jupiter] Fine. You may. But no more funny business, Mister!

Jupiter: Yes, ma'am. Our blogger is going on vacation to the west coast where he will perform that most solemn of Jupiter duties, a marriage ceremony for two dear friends. And since he's only been to this place once, I'm considering it one of my trips.

Moon: He desperately needs a vacation, Jupiter, so I hope it's different and exotic. 

Jupiter: It sure will be. I've also encouraged Neptune to help John enjoy the vacation with some tiki libations! That man deserves to party.

Moon: Well, I certainly hope he'll have the opportunity to do so.

Jupiter: Me too! He gets more like Saturn when he doesn't have fun. 

Moon: JUPITER!

Jupiter: Sorry, ma'am...but he does!

Moon: Well, just for that I'm not telling you about John's progress on one of his books. 

Jupiter: Wait...what?

Moon: Sorry, Jupiter. That's all we have time for.

Jupiter: I never realized you could be so cruel, Lady Moon!

Moon: Emotions can get that way sometimes, young man. Perhaps you'll learn your lesson eventually.

Saturn vs. Jupiter: Socializing with the Social Planets

Jupiter: Welcome, old man! Way to be punctual!

Saturn: Hello, Jupiter. Thanks for the invitation. 

Jupiter: Sure. Have a seat. [Saturn sits] Whenever you call me, something's on your mind. Talk to me!

Saturn: Well, Jupiter, I really don't know where to start. 

Jupiter: I'll just hang, Saturn. I'm pretty easygoing. 

[PAUSE]

Saturn: I'm going through kind of a crisis right now, Jupiter. 

Jupiter: Are you kidding me? The great Saturn, having a crisis? Impossible. 

Saturn: I'm really not kidding, I'm afraid. I don't know that I...like who I am right now. 

Jupiter: Saturn, you and I have known each other a long time. What's got you thinking that? 

Saturn: Have you looked at the world these days? I mean, I know I'm much more...well, saturnian than most...but it's downright depressing. 

Jupiter: My old friend, it's BEEN depressing for millennia, if you look at it that way. And without sounding offensive, you would know, right?

Saturn: [chuckles] Yeah, I guess I would at that. But I'm concerned that it's even worse than usual. I mean, take a look around. In many of the areas that I'm responsible for, it's totally out of control. If Mars was here, he'd probably say something like, "Duuuuuuuuuude, that shit is OFF THE HOOK!"

Jupiter: Saturn, I don't think that idiom means what you think it means.

Saturn: What doesn't?

Jupiter: "Off the hook". I think it's supposed to be a good thing. 

Saturn: Well major conflict for him would be a good thing, likely. But I feel like I'm just not doing my job, that I'm out of touch, you know?

Jupiter: [laughs] Maybe just a little. But I'm responsible for all of this, too. Don't forget that. 

Saturn: What do you mean?

Jupiter: You and I have always been a matched pair. You establish the boundaries and I push against them. You ask for people to be conventional, and I encourage them to go overboard. You encourage people to accept, and I want them to question. And it's not always in a good way, you know? People on earth right now are, not to put too fine a point on it, fucking crazy. If you think the government or the police can control it all, you know it's not true. 

Saturn: You're right, I do know that, Jupiter. I get that people get out of control and it's not always something you can deal with. But it seems to me that people care about the things that I stand for less and less. People SAY they want order and boundaries but yet they get angry and go out and burn buildings and try to pass it off as "civil disobedience". I know humans are going to push the boundaries, but right now people on earth are acting like there are none. Hell, an article in a major newspaper this week suggested that dieting, the ultimate form of self-discipline, may not actually do anything! It's MADNESS! 

Jupiter: But there are always boundaries, Saturn, even if you don't see them. People who break the law are being investigated and arrested, and order is being restored. It's just a turbulent time right now. I love for people to have the freedom to do what they want when they want...but there's always a limit, and that's what you're here for. Remember a few years ago when John went on that trip to France. He said that was a Jupiter-ruled trip, not because he didn't want you along, but because he needed the freedom to go and explore and not be tied to a schedule. Sometimes people need that. But we keep each other in check. I don't want people who are depressed and repress their beliefs any more than you want looting and rioting in the streets. To be honest, I feel the same way you do. Freedom is one thing, but acting like an asshole is something we can do without. 

Saturn: I'm sure you're right, Jupiter. 

Jupiter: And remember what St. Augustine said about us: "The stars may impel, but they do not compel." In other words, humans have free will. If they choose to break society's laws, well...they face your judgment. And as much as you and I have disagreed in the past, I need you to be there to rein them in. Just like you need me to nudge people away from feeling dour and depressed sometimes and go out and have a good time. Too much of a good thing can be...fatal. 

Saturn: As much as we disagree, Jupiter, I tend to agree with you. Can I ask you for something, without worrying that I'm going to be called out for it later?

Jupiter: Think of me as your confessor, Old Man. What happens with Jupiter stays with Jupiter...unless it involves Neptune, in which case he's going to make drunken Facebook posts about it anyway. But I promise to keep your secret. What is it?

Saturn: It's been a truly rough week, and I need a drink. Just a small one...of something nice and old. What do you have?

Jupiter: A Dom Perignon 1959, Old Man. I've got that and some 25-year-old scotch. Which would you like?

Saturn: The Dom, if you please. That was an excellent year. 

[Jupiter pours two glasses of Dom, and hands one to Saturn.]

Jupiter: [Holds up glass] I propose a toast. To Saturn, the old man who is the glue that holds the fabric of this fragile universe together. [clinks glasses]. 

Saturn: [tastes Dom] Wow, this is lovely. One good toast deserves another. [Raises glass] To Jupiter, my dutiful partner, who never hesitates to tell me when I am wrong, and encourages all people to seek freedom and justice. [clinks glasses]

Jupiter: Very well said, Old Man. After these past few weeks, I think we all could use a drink. 

Saturn: Indeed. So even if I could use a second one I can't ask for it. Boundaries, you know. 

Jupiter: Well I already refilled your glass. Sorry for not asking you first, Old Man. 

Saturn: Oh well. I can't waste this stuff, so...

Starting off with a...break??

Hi there everyone, and welcome to my blog! I hope you'll find that it's not 10 minutes of your life that you'll never get back. :)

I stopped doing newsletters a few years ago--to be honest, they were a LOT of work and I just don't have that kind of time anymore. That's actually a good problem to have, but it means I don't have a medium to get my special message out to you. So inspired by my beloved wife, Jennifer Wells (her blog is at jennifer-wells.blogspot.com, if you're asking, or even if you're not), I decided to take the plunge and start one myself.

What this blog will be remains to be seen. All I can say is that I'll do my best to keep your attention from wandering and...hey, would you mind closing a few of those windows while I talk to you? I sincerely appreciate it. Don't give me that look; it's good to close Facebook for a while!

Speaking of closing for a while, I did my last professional readings today for a whole week. I'm headed down to New Orleans for a much-needed vacation on Tuesday, and I plan to live it up and generally chill out. Yes, I'll have tarot cards with me--I never go anywhere without them--but really only for sentimental reasons. All work and no play makes John a very sorry boy. So as they say down there, "Laissez rouler les bon temps!" [Let the good times roll!]

Anyway, it's important for all of us to get away every once in a while to avoid burnout. I try to take at least a few weeks a year--usually between Christmas and New Years and one or two other weeks or so--where I don't read, just to recharge. Don't get me wrong; I enjoy what I do immensely. But after a while you can lose perspective, no matter what you do, and while I haven't reached that point yet, I'm happy for the break.

Jen and I were supposed to go away last fall for our 15th anniversary, but her book Magick Charm came out, so we sort of had to stick around. Now we have an even longer time away and it's going to be a blast. I just bought a new video camera, so keep a close eye on Facebook and Twitter to see what mischief I can get into.

I'll be reading again starting on Wednesday, June 8, at 13 Magickal Moons of Occoquan, VA (www.13magickalmoons.com), and continue teaching Intermediate Tarot at the Tradition of the Witches Circle on Thursday nights through mid-July.

Brightest blessings to you, and I hope to see you across my tarot table soon!

John