Oh, dear readers, what a spread we have today! For the first time in ages, all three cards are from the same suit, the action-oriented, vivacious, and striving wands. Once again, I’m brought back to our reading for the month where we had all the suits except for the wands. Pentacles, swords, and cups told us a story of hard work, the struggle to break through limiting thought patterns, and a call to practice full-hearted gratitude. It’s a tender mix, but missing action, movement, and zest. Until now.
This reading invites us to see the next few days as a time of breakthrough. First, however, we’ll be tempted to run in the opposite direction, whether we know it or not, with the charismatic Knight of Wands. I see this as a manifestation of impatience. As much as we want to, it’s not a time to strike out for something new. We’re not quite done here and good things are on the way.
So good, in fact, that they might be intimidating. The Knight of Wands is, just like our central card, sitting astride a horse. But unlike the Six of Wands, they’re suited up in armor and their horse is rearing up over a barren desert and riding to the left, the direction of the past. I can see this manifesting in our week in several ways, through:
A desire to run away from healthy progress masked as a call to arms
Looking for adventure instead of continuing our current work and projects (very much in line with our monthly forecast)
Getting distracted by emotionally intoxicating or even upsetting discussions, causes, or plans
Being drawn to ambition as a way to protect our soft underbellies from hurt, exposure, or risk
Focusing on the past instead of the present and future
Our challenge this week will be to take off our armor (or not put it on in the first place) and stay grounded. What’s really happening is a lovely moment of victory as shown in the parade in the Six of Wands. I’ll be honest - is there anything more terrifying than simply sitting in the niceness of the moment? Acknowledging your successes? Being seen for them??
There’s an endearing tenderness in these cards. That we might be trying to act tough - getting lost in busyness, quests, and causes - when in reality we’re running scared from our own homecoming. This aligns almost perfectly with our monthly reading, where our central tension is in resisting the call to self-exile and instead finding emotional fulfillment in the richness of our lives as they are right now. But all the wandsy-ness of this week shows us operating in the sphere of public life, the external world. And even though we have some tension, the conclusion is resolutely forward-moving and in the direction of growth.
Our final card, the Eight of Wands, is clear and sings with motion. All eight wands aligned precisely and pointed towards the ground. The conflict (and mild chaos) of our opposed riders is a part of a bigger shift. This is the time to embrace the energy of the wands and simply do something. I suggest returning to the monthly forecast to see how you’ve been preparing for this mentally, emotionally, and practically. Working with cups, pentacles, and swords throughout the month so far has set us up wonderfully for this moment.
Once we’ve acknowledged, understood, and calmed our inner Knight of Wands, our task is to simply let things be nice. Let people see you for who you are and what you’ve done; welcome and accept praise, love, and support; celebrate your agency, willpower, and capacity to effect change. And then, in the spirit of the Eight of Wands, let your arrows fly and move forward.
This can manifest in a flurry of action that can sometimes feel overwhelming or even out of control. But look at the even spacing of the wands and the clear blue sky behind them. When things move quickly but maintain their organization you can be sure that hard work and preparation are behind them. Trusting that we can act in the moment and lean into forward momentum will be key this week.
And there’s also a welcome, if not initially exhilarating or intimidating, move away from concerns of the self. Both the Knight of Wands and the Six of Wands show human figures. We’ve been dealing with how we show up in the world which is important but can sometimes verge on self-consciousness and self-obsession. After all the court cards in our recent readings, I’m excited to have a shift! So lean into movement that takes you away from conscious self-analysis, let yourself get lost in doing, and see what happens when you ground yourself in the experience of something rather than your thoughts about it. Doing so is bringing us into a new future we’re not quite in control of (as if we ever are!) and it’s beautiful to behold.
This week embrace:
All things wands! Movement, being in your body, adventure, doing > planning, strategizing, or being emo
Leaning into the vulnerability of being seen, uplifted, respected, and valued
Things working out
Agency, follow-through, charting your own path
Accepting & enjoying when things take off or start moving of their own accord
Not knowing how things will settle just yet
This week avoid:
Self-doubt
Sneaky self-sabotage masquerading as thoughtless ambition, launching new plans, the armor of busyness/drive/being different, testiness with others
Running away from the spotlight
Overcomplicating things
Fear of success, things working out, abundance, happinesss
Measuring what’s happening against stale ideas of what you wanted for your future - it’s a good sign if it looks and feels differently than you expected!