Eight of Arrows – Keep Going

Today’s card is the Eight of Arrows (aka the Eight of Swords) from the Wildwood Tarot.  We see a young woman struggling on her journey. Eight broken arrows are lying in the snow. They are of no use to her anymore.  Although her path is challenging, cold and lonely, she keeps going and she doesn’t give up. Her staff and her lantern are symbols of hope and determination. I prefer this depiction over the Rider-Waite version where the woman is blindfolded and not able to leave the imprisonment of her own thoughts.

No, this young woman is painfully aware of the brokenness of her arrows and how she has to rephrase her view of life, her feelings and ideas, her story. Often this is a lonely road to travel. Of course, we can ask for advice but the actual task, the decision to move forward,  is ours. This is, in my opinion, an act of great courage. 

This week we had a family get together to celebrate our wedding anniversary. This day is always filled with many contra dictionary feelings which leave me a bit shattered and down. Outdated expectations and missed opportunities are almost certain to come up on days like this. But although I am not feeling at my best. I do know it is best for me to keep going and to keep busy.

Eight of Arrows – We Struggle Because We Have Hope

 

Today’s card is the Eight of Arrows (Swords) from the Wildwood Tarot. We see a young woman struggling to find her way through the snow and the blizzard. There are eight broken and wasted arrows lying in the snow, with no use to anyone anymore. The woman is carrying a lit lantern, which is a symbol of her hope to eventually find her way again. Everybody knows how it feels to be in a situation like this; to be challenged by choices and dilemmas, which are often calling for harsh and sometimes painful decisions. And we know we are the ones who have to make them. Life can be cruel and difficult but we are fueled with hope that we will prevail. Otherwise we wouldn’t struggle and fight to overcome these challenges. And what will our destination be, once we have survived this storm?

The Six of Arrows. We are heading for the port to set sail on our boat towards calm weather. Now that we have left behind our broken arrows, our old thought patterns, we are energized with new possibilities and ideas. There are boundaries to cross. New reasonings will be tested, and new approaches will be researched. What wonders may lie ahead???

Personally I’ve experienced yesterday a minor struggle of my own.  After reading Bev’s blogpost “indulging the Ego” I was wondering what hidden agenda I myself had for creating art and why my ego is always so hesitant to create since it would probable result in praise.  Or is my ego afraid that I will ruin the drawing and it won’t get it’s quick fix. Some part of me wanted to start drawing again so badly and finally, late at night I succeeded to overcome my inner adversary and I drew a woman’s face. Maybe I should call her Hope.