Living the Tarot: Refusing the Ace of Cups

I woke up this morning feeling happy and positive; so I asked the cards how I could keep the feeling going all day. I got the unlikely duo of the Page of Swords and Ace of Cups.

Of course, the Ace of Cups is a very good thing. It promises creativity, inspiration, loving encounters — maybe even unicorns and rainbows! You never know.

But the Page seems cynical and skeptical. He’s set up a barrier with that upright sword tilted slightly toward his head and blocking the ace.  He’s a wise-guy who’s too smart to be taken in by promises from a fat little cherub popping out of an over-decorated urn. In fact, the Page has a short dagger in his belt, ready to stick any cherub, or unicorn, that gets too close.

What does this have to do with my day? I’d love to experience the Ace, but I’m afraid I’m constitutionally more like the Page.

Twenty minutes after drawing these cards, a quote from Socrates popped out from the editorial page of a magazine: “wisdom begins in wonder”.

The Page thinks he’s wise, but actually he’s just a smart-aleck who thinks he knows it all. He needs to let down his guard and experience the wonder of seeing a cherub emerge from an urn bearing gifts of love and inspiration.

This reminds me of the first lines of a poem by Jane Hirschfield:

If the gods bring to you
a strange and frightening creature,
accept the gift
as if it were one you had chosen

In other words, don’t be like the Page and block what the universe is offering because it doesn’t fit your idea of what an Ace of Cups experience should be. That strange and frightening gift just might be a unicorn in disguise.

Deck: Lo Scarabeo’s Ancient Italian Tarot (Avondo  Brothers 1880)