My Mother, Malou, and Myself

So, in the end, I sent off the application for the referral unit. It’s funny how I am with this stuff. The woman from the agency finally returned my mail, so on the last day of being able to apply, I whacked out my proposal for two workshops within five minutes; this, after three or so weeks of deliberating whether I should or shouldn’t. Apparently, there has been an overwhelming amount of interest in the job. Whether they ask me or not, I am glad that I finally put myself in the running.

After sending off my proposal and pictures of my work to my agent, I went into town with my mum yesterday afternoon to buy her present. While there, I had my hair cut. I went to a different place than usual, after the previous stylist didn’t listen to what I had asked for and hacked away at my quiff. When I sat down, the most attractive of all the barbers walked over and asked me what I wanted. Now as you know, I am in a loving relationship, but we can all afford ourselves five minutes of childish fantasy every now and then, can’t we? The guy was Hispanic-looking, with a shaved head and big chocolate brown eyes. His arms were strong, with some tattoos on one; not something I would usually go for, but this guy was something else. I told him that I wanted him to leave the top of my hair alone and cut the remainder down to a number 2. Before he got to the job in hand, he put his hands on my shoulders and I nearly melted beneath them. Half way through the haircut, he remarked ‘See, I remembered what you said’, as he ran his fingers through my fringe and winked. ‘We have good communication’ he continued, as he finished the last bit of his job. I left the salon like a stuttering schoolgirl, telling him he could keep the change. At that point, I am not sure what it was I was tipping him for – the haircut, which he did a very good job on, or the wink that melted me into my chair. I told my boyfriend last night and he laughed.

Today is Mum’s birthday, so I guess it isn’t that surprising for me to receive The Empress in all of her nurturing and abundant glory. I’d say my mother is one of the most selfless people I know, putting her own needs beneath those of others. She has looked after my father and I far more than she has probably needed to, and when two of our now-deceased elderly neighbours were old and not receiving any help from their own children, she attended to their care too. That’s the kind of woman she is, taking them shopping, helping them to get dressed, and providing daily company. When things have been tough for her in the past, you never hear her complain. Today’s card is probably stating that it is my turn to look after her for a change. Don’t get me wrong, we do things for her, but today is a time to celebrate how much we love her.

I have been back from my boyfriend's for an hour or so. I brought Mum some tea in bed and she opened her cards. I am now in my room, thinking about how to tackle today. Having sent off two job applications yesterday and waiting on an email from the School of Doom, I feel as though I can relax a bit today. It's funny how you forget things with age. I have just spent the last ten minutes racking my brain, trying to remember either the name of a song or who it was that sang it. It was a song that two of my old friends appeared in the video of a few years back, since they designed the clothing worn in it. The name finally came to me and I watched it again on YouTube; remembering how much I liked the song, Lipstick, and loved my friends (they are the ones with the dark hair in the background). I have lost touch with Malou (the one with the straight hair), so I sent off a request through a professional website to her and hope she'll get back to me. She lives in her home town of Gothenburg now. We met just before she went back for good, but as things do, contact fizzled out.

The Empress is about reaching out and showing that we care; whether that is to my mother, Malou, or concerns the care of myself. As a card of creation, it might reflect my need to decorate another shoe and make a start on some story boards I have considered doing for another project.




Illustration from The Cosmic Tribe Tarot by Stevie Postman