Sunday Supplement ~ TAROT 2010

At the start of 2009 I drew three tarot cards and tried to interpret what they meant in the context of what 2009 held for the USA. (See here). The cards were Queen of Coins, 2 of Coins and Knight of Swords. I didn't do a very good job of interpreting them at that point, except in saying that the year wouldn't be as horrendous as many expected. It was horrendous for many individuals, personally - but there was no outbreak of WW3, cataclysmic environmental events, or serious pandemic. The Queen of Coins, with hindsight might have been a winking reference to Sarah Palin who somehow managed to keep herself in the spotlight all through 2009. Two of Coins - the juggling of economics. Knight of Swords - President Obama as Knight - but really needed to act as King to get things done - "It's good to be King!"

Well... let's see what three cards for 2010 will throw up. I shuffled and concentrated on the question "What do I need to know about 2010 in relation to the USA and Europe?"

2 of Swords
The FOOL
Page of Coins

Sigh of relief - no Lightning-Struck Tower, or Devil, or Moon cards! Those are cards I never like to see.

My first thoughts (which are supposed to be the best) were : A feeling of being at a crossroads, not sure how to proceed, then deciding to go ahead with something which might appear unwise, trusting intuition. This course results in a practical, though rather unexciting solution. No catastrophes then! The Fool card is by far the strongest of the three, being from the Major Arcana of the tarot. I'd guess that a feeling of flying by the seat of our communal pants will be the pervading atmosphere of 2010.


Here's a variety of interpretations of the three cards, for mixing and matching, and fitting to the context of the question I posed. These come from website learntarot.com

2 SWORDS
blocking emotions
denying true feelings
stifling a natural response
keeping another at arm's length
hiding distress
turning a deaf ear
being defensive
maintaining your cool
avoiding the truth
refusing to look at facts
pretending everything's fine
ignoring the warning signs
closing your eyes to what's going on
avoiding an unpleasantness
choosing not to know
being at a stalemate
feeling afraid to act
reaching an impasse
staying stuck
refusing to decide
being unwilling to rock the boat
staying on the fence



FOOL
beginning
entering a new phase
striking out on a new path
expanding horizons
starting something new
beginning an adventure
going on a journey
heading into the unknown
being spontaneous
living in the moment
letting go of expectations
doing the unexpected
acting on impulse
feeling uninhibited
surprising someone
feeling carefree
having faith
trusting the flow
staying open
letting go of worry and fear
feeling protected and loved
living in joy
recapturing innocence
believing
embracing folly
accepting your choices
taking the "foolish" path
pursuing a pipe dream
being true to yourself
taking a "crazy" chance
trusting your heart's desire


PAGE of COINS
Have an Effect
make your plans real
mold the physical world
use your body
experience nature
achieve tangible results
act on your dreams
get events in motion
Be Practical
take a realistic approach
apply the tools at hand
find a solution that works
use common sense
stop daydreaming
work with what you have
concentrate on what's effective
Be Prosperous
draw to you what you need
increase your means
grow and expand
enrich yourself
go out to meet success
seek abundance
become secure
Be Trusting/Trustworthy
accept that the solution is well in hand
have faith in others
accommodate uncertainty
accept others at their word
keep your word
prove yourself dependable
stick by your commitments
establish credibility

Finally - a prediction which is very likely to prove accurate, weather-wise:

The twelve months...
Snowy, Flowy, Blowy,
Showery, Flowery, Bowery,
Hoppy, Croppy, Droppy,
Breeze, Sneezy, Freezy.
(George Ellis)

Tarot 2009

HAPPY NEW YEAR!
I wondered what the tarot would have to say about 2009, so put the question, "What do I need to know about 2009 in the USA?" I made it specific to the USA to avoid confusion, but in the process probably caused some!

I shuffled, cut and drew 3 cards in the following order:


Queen of Coins/Pentacles
2 of Coins/Pentacles
Knight of Swords

I'd hoped to draw one or more cards from the major arcana, but instead two court cards and a 2 of Coins/Pentacles. I resisted the urge to wait a couple of days and do it again. I always think the first draw offers the best answer, even if it's not offering an immediately clear scenario.

So - I think this is a hint about two people who will become extra significant in some way during the year. But who?

Queen of Coins - Coins equate to the Earth element in astrology.
If I hadn't asked specifically about the USA, I'd have thought of Queen Elizabeth (the literal Queen) who is a Taurean, and really a stereotypical Queen of Coins. I'll still bear her in mind because I've known the cards do a bit of a sideways lurch before. Something connected to the Queen of England then - stepping down, illness, bereavement - maybe? If we stick with the USA, Michelle Obama strikes me as a Queen of Coins. Steady, loving mother, down to earth, sensible, businesslike. Perhaps something affecting the new First Lady, something as yet unknown, big development.




The 2 of Coins can be interpreted as continual change and transformation, but it's not a gloomy card. If approached in the right state of mind the changes can be seen as helpful, leading to an all round improvement. Careful handling is needed, and again Coins/Pentacles relate to Earth, and material things, finance too. We already know this is going to happen, it's apt but nothing new. Could the element of change though be connected to the 2 personalities in the two cards on either side of the 2 of Coins? It may be noteworthy that this card is between them. I don't "get" Hillary Clinton as Queen of Coins, otherwise I'd take a stab at idea that something might cause she and Joe Biden to swap jobs. That's probably too outlandish....but who knows? The cards sometimes do relate well to their absolutely literal meanings - so widening it a little - a prominent male swapping jobs, or replacing, a female - or vice versa. Hmmmm - back to Queen Elizabeth stepping down and being replaced by Charles or William.

Knight of Swords: would relate to Princes Charles or William if the cards have indeed lurched across the Atlantic for me. Otherwise, we have seen Knight of Swords before in my set of tarot experiments - he appeared in relation to Joe Biden, and I identified the card as Biden then. Joe Biden will naturally be in the news quite a bit as the new Vice President, but here he'd be drawn to attention in a special way - something he will do or experience over and above regular duties, perhaps something more personal - anyway, a big news story with him as the lead player. Swords relate to the element of Air in astrology, so though the Knight of Swords can relate to a military type, the way the stereotype operates is via mental processes - cutting through murky situations with sharp intellect.

Nothing from those cards seems nearly as dramatic as I'd expected. The spread might well relate to one specific incident, here or abroad, involving the two personalities in the court cards. Alternatively, the spread's apparent mildness could be an indication that 2009 will not be the horrendously dramatic year some people expect.

This is all in the spirit of experiment - I'll be keeping this spread in mind throughout the year, and reporting back!