The message for this tarot reading is to keep creating change and to take care of ourselves the best we can so we can be there for our community. The three cards that came forward tell us a story of finding our motivation, digging deep and casting away that which is slowly draining us, and healing ourselves so we can fight another day. The readings were telling us to develop our sense of self for quite some time so we could step into our community and share our developing nature. Now, we are being asked to allow ourselves to find a balance so we can keep breathing life into our collective creative spirit with a mind for the community as a whole. Personal development is so important and using it to strengthen the backbone of the world around us is a divine gift, but we can’t do that if we burn out.
Community Reading
The first card that comes to us brings good news. The King of Wands brings us fiery and passionate energy. It motivates us to create and form a life of our own. It is the fuel that moves the innovator, keeps the artist creating, and keeps the heart yearning. It is our very life force, one of the key things that make us feel human. The King of Wands does not care if their approach does not seem logical to others, they know what needs to happen next.
The presence of this card tells us something beautiful about our community. We are driven, compassionate, and full of life. The downside of having this kind of spirit is that it can burn and burn and burn until there's no energy left to keep going. Some of us may be losing our steam and forgetting that we have to take care of ourselves first before continuing to create. It's okay to feel exhausted or to be scared at what would happen if you let things slow down for a moment. Maybe you're afraid that if you drop everything and rest for a moment, it will never gain the momentum you need to keep it alive. The King of Wands is about mastering that fire, when to keep it burning at its brightest and when it needs to be slowed down before it gets unsafe.
The Six of Swords reminds us that this can be an uncomfortable or even outright painful transition in order to find our balance. It involves truly stepping back and making some decisions on what needs to be released. Sometimes during this process, we may even resent having to step back and surrender, but in order to make room for the opportunity to create that the previous card offers us, it is necessary. The good news is that when we make it through this, we are left with so much more room to grow once we have cast away the things in our life that don’t fit anymore. This card did appear in the upright position, meaning that this is a transition we are equipped to handle if we are open to it.
The Ten of Wands completes our reading with another message of caring for ourselves because our community needs us to. For a lot of us, caring for ourselves and taking a break because we know it's good for us just isn’t enough. We still push, we still want to sacrifice more and more because it feels like the right thing to do. The Ten of Wands reminds us that taking care of ourselves so we can keep our efforts up, in the long run, is a very compassionate thing we can do for the greater good as well.
The card often shows a person carrying a heavy load of supplies to their town. The supplies are necessary, so this person can push themselves to keep going. Having that motivation does help them make the journey, so in a way that deep need to contribute helps them keep moving. However, if they did not rest before they started their work, if they don’t take breaks or fuel themselves, they won’t make it back at all, and their community suffers not only the loss of the supplies but a valued individual. We can’t keep valuing exhausting ourselves over nurturing ourselves, everyone suffers for it.
Healing Exercise
For this exercise, we will be connecting with the King of Wands. The first thing we'll do is identify what you need their help with. Do you need motivation? Do you need them to show you where you're a little too motivated? Remember, their skill set is with mastering how to use and direct that fiery passionate energy, both to encourage it and to let it simmer down for consistent progress. Once you have your intent, close your eyes, and take several comfortable and cleansing breaths until you feel centered.
Find yourself in front of a campfire. As you sit near it, allow yourself to keep up your comfortable breaths and just notice your surroundings. Are you near the ocean? Woods? Backyard? Are there animals around? Can you hear sounds or is it rather quiet? Eventually, when it's time, a person will approach the fire and sit near you.
This is the King of Wands. Pay attention to what they have to tell you. They may speak out loud for you to hear in your meditation, or they may show you images or communicate in other ways. You might have thoughts bubble up, and that's okay. Try to be open to what they are showing you. When I do this, they do not speak. Instead, they write runes or draw pictures on my hand to get the point across or point to our surroundings. Don't try to force a conclusion, just let the information come to you with the intent to piece it together when you're done.
Ask the King to show you how they feel you should interact with the fire in front of you. Do they feed it and let it grow large and roaring? Let it die down a little? Pay attention to what they do and look for the messages that are coming through in the way they interact with the fire. If you want, take a turn interacting with it and see how it reacts to you.
When it feels as though the meditation is coming to a close, thank the King (who is an extension of yourself) for the lesson and part ways in a way that feels appropriate. Some people feel the need to embrace the King, others bow, and some just simply leave.
When you are ready, bring your awareness back to the here and now, and take notes on what you saw, felt, or experienced. If you feel like you didn't connect well, or if the King of Wands just didn’t show up or interact with you, don't feel discouraged. You may have picked up more than you realize, and noting what happened is still a good idea in case things click later. The idea is to connect with the part of you from within that knows how to master and tend to your energy. It knows if you need to be expanding, or resting. And of course, if you want to try a different approach, please do it! Your King of Wands is intuitive and knows how you can connect, listen to them and you could very well surprise yourself with how connected you really can be.
Jae Melland is a tarot and rune reader at Lotus of the Moon in Richland. You can schedule readings with Jae by emailing her at jae.melland@gmail.com. Jae also has walk-in hours at Lotus of the Moon Fridays 3–5pm and Saturdays 12–3pm
