What 4 Cards Taught Me About Love, Womanhood, Romance and Life
I’ve been reading tarot cards since I was a kid. My mom remembers the day I discovered them back when my childhood friend, Jennifer was the first to introduce me to all-things “Woo”.
Now, I’m no tarot-wiz-bang… Over the decades, I’ve dabbled here and there, take classes now and then, and use the cards in my personal life (sometimes whipping them out when I’m doubting my intuition regarding a client challenge – just to confirm what I’m sensing inside).
But after a recent discussion with my longtime friend and tarot reader, Linda – my eyes opened up to a whole new level of insights surrounding the cards… specifically the QUEENS of the deck.
Just like playing cards, the tarot comes with 4 suits… and therefore: 4 queen cards.
The Queen of Cups.
The Queen of Swords.
The Queen of Wands.
And the Queen of Pentacles.
Now, being a total MUSH inside – I’m always interested in all-things lovey-dovey… For years I’ve put the Queen of Cups up on a pedestal that no other card could touch.
I wanted to BE her. LOOK like her. LOVE like her. LIVE like her…
(Or so I thought.)
That is, until a conversation with Linda that took me by surprise…
After facing a recent romantic rough-spot, Linda said: “Well, the Queen of Cups is coming up a lot around this situation…”
I smiled inside – knowing that MUST be a great sign for pending passion… “Ooooh, goodie! That’s a good sign… right?”
Linda paused. “Well… not necessarily…”
She proceeded to open my eyes to what the card represented (in her eyes, at least)… She saw her as mushy, and gushy. And head-over-heels, for sure.
BUT…
She also explained that she was the type of woman who would give… and give… and give some more. And then accept bad behavior. Forgive bad behavior. Accept it… forgive it. Accept… Forgive… endlessly.
Yup. She’s the Doormat of the Divine.
Ug.
The next session I had with Linda, we were reviewing an ongoing romantic saga, as it continued to unfold, unwind, and befuddle my love-struck lil’ brain.
“Ah… the Queen of Swords…Of course!”
I sank. (“What in the world does THAT mean?” I wondered –– never having been fond of that quizzical-Queen’s stern distant stare and harsh, snarky stance.)
“That’s what happens when you’re the Queen of Cups for too long…”
She explained that when we stay in super-soft, ultry-squishy, relatively-spineless, unconditionally-lovey-dovy-doormat-mode for too long… it’s just a matter of time until the spiritual shit hits the fan.
Then… VOILA = Queen of Swords, at your service! … there to set things straight. Express her disdain. Speak her mind. And set stern boundaries.
Basically put: Push her too far, and get her knickers in a knot — she can turn into one totally bitchy, barky babe.
So I left our conversation with Linda’s words ringing in my ear — determined to work through my rip-roarin’ inner rage around some recent romantic “bad behavior”. And proceeded to spend the next few weeks burning through lifetimes of karmic angst by healing some deep, old, painful childhood wounds. Woah.
As my love-life soap opera continued to unfold, the next chat with Linda revealed another unknown fact about these cards I THOUGHT I knew so well…
When the Queen of Wands began to appear in my reading, I jumped for joy (having studied up on my Queens over the past few weeks – eager to learn more from Linda about their wise, wonderful worlds…)
I envisioned the Queen of Wands – a passionate woman who holds herself in high regard. A woman who can be flirtatious, playful, sexy and fun… Yet knows exactly what she wants – and allows others to meet those needs, generously.
… Va-Va-VOOM!!!!!
As a fellow fiery girl, I thought that must be the end-all-be-all: To be smart and sassy enough to be able do everything yourself – but finally wise enough to let men serve her grapes on a sensual silver platter…
“Woah… Not so fast, Stephanie…” Linda patiently interjected. “The Queen of Wands is good… but what you need is to become the Queen of PENTACLES!”
She explained that the Queen of Pentacles was truly the ruler of the roost. She was the woman who had it ALL: She was feminine and strong; wise and tender; wealthy and generous; sexy and soft. She had the love, the family, the home, the hubby… and even the moolah, to boot… all wrapped up into one steamy-dreamy package.
And that’s when it hit me: The stages of womanhood – all laid out in 4 seemingly-simple cards… Unassuming. Patient. And just waiting for decades upon decades for their richer, wiser meaning to be revealed to one stubborn lil’ redhead like myself…
I’d spent much of my romantic years playing the patsy to the Queen of Cups – thinking that love was all it took to discover the Prince Charming of all those Disney-esque fairytales…
Endless disappointments later, there arose that inner pissed-off Princess who was slowly smoldering into the stern Queen of Swords… growing a spine, a voice, a power that was fierce!
But as my Soul smoothed out my edges, I softened, reinvented, and revamped myself all over again – reclaiming my sassy, sexy, soulful self, as the quintessential Queen of Wands.
Yet the journey continues… and there is one last horizon to pursue: that distant, sparkling land where all things are possible, and all things come together. Where the hills smooth out… emotions roll like the breath… lovers sink into each other’s Souls… hearts are warmed and welcomed… and everywhere you look, things are dripping with beauty, and opulence, and gold.
We’re all on this journey. Some days we’ve “arrived”… and other days, we think we’re starting from square-one. But there is an ebb and flow. A changing of the seasons… A rhythm and a rhyme. A grand pattern woven invisibly into this painful perfection we call life –– so soft and subtle, it is almost imperceivable. But if you stand still and look long enough… you realize we are all on our way. We are all headed toward Oneness. Our messiness actually makes sense. And maybe, just maybe… we are exactly WHERE we’re meant to be. WHO we’re meant to be. And WHEN we’re meant to be it, too.
So welcome to the wise women of the Tarot… may they reveal their secrets to you along your journey, as they have for me. And may you be inspired into your strength, and grace, and fierce loving heart – side by side with these 4 royal beauties…
Share which life phase YOU are in this week — in the comments section below:
Until next time: Be Unstoppable!!!
