The Strength to Carry On

These are interesting court cards, since each features an animal rather than a person. In this case, the Queen of Arrows is a swan. This particular bird is not looking as happy as the ones which my boyfriend and I photographed at the weekend. I have read in the book that came with this deck that she must swim from this place of darkness and loss to new rivers and break old bonds.

Initially, I thought that it might be difficult to read these courts, but on drawing today's card, I had a pretty strong idea of who this queen is. However, this has more to do with circumstance than personality traits. In this card, the beautiful animal is encouraged to remember how strong she is. She must carve out a new life for herself, away from the difficulties of the past. This is an important lesson for a close friend of mine. She called me this evening and we discussed her moving away from the unfit father of her daughter. The swan does not have many natural predators, which is probably why she can wear her beautiful white feathers and doesn't need camouflage. Like the Queen of Arrows, my friend has been hurt, but does have the strength to carry on alone; even if she doesn't realise it at the moment.

I have been so tired today. It was my chronic fatigue rather than general tiredness. I went to one of my schools early this morning and then travelled from that site to another. In all, I visited nineteen classes, which really took it out of me. By the end of the day, my concentration was waning and all I wanted was to go home. Even though the time spent with the teachers and students was generally inspiring, seeing them all in one go was a bit much. My boyfriend came over this evening and we laid on my bed together. I spent an hour on the phone with my Queen of Arrows, but am now planning to slide into bed and get some sleep. I think that a lay in might be in order for the morning.



Illustration from The Wildwood Tarot by Will Worthington