"Balance is not something you find, it's something you create." Jana Kingsford
TAROT: Son of Coins / LENORMAND: Stork, Key, Book / ADINKRA: Asase Ye Duru
Of late, my dreams have been full of freneticism: I am late catching a plane; my belongings are hopelessly scattered; I am somewhere where I cannot speak the language; there are so many people speaking that I cannot focus on what any one of them is saying. Invariably, I wake up in a sweat, and then stay awake for hours. Where is all this coming from, and what should I do about it?
The where is easy: I definitely watch and read far too much news of the day, and we all know what kinds of messages the news these days provides. I like being informed, of course, but there really does seem to be a law of diminishing returns: it seems that it is not the case that the more you know, the more you know, but rather, the more you know, the more you worry. The answer, for me, would never be to turn a blind eye and a deaf ear to every bombarding thing. That would feel as irresponsible as it would actually be. But there is something to be said about getting the gist of things and then moving on to balance the bitter with the sweet, to gracefully ground and center so that sleep can consist of refreshment rather than rehashing. The cards this week concur:
The Son of Coins, or Page of Pentacles is our Tarot card today, from Nyasha Williams’ Black Tarot. I love this version, possibly because it reminds me of my brothers, who, just like the two boys in the card, are both practitioners of the Brazilian art of Capoeira. It is a martial art which is as much play as work, as much dance as fight. If you are unfamiliar with it, check it out. It is movement poetry. As is true of any martial art, it is a study in judgement and balance; it is a negotiation between one’s body and gravity, while always taking into account one’s opponent and the negotiation they too are engaged in. Balance is required: not the standing on one leg kind, but rather the juggling variety, where time, space, earth, air, and one’s place in the midst of all of that are simultaneously navigated. There is a rhythm required. Occasionally, of course, a combatant will misjudge an element, and land on their ass. That is part of the dance as well, because one has the chance to learn from such falls to become more respectful of the process, and therefore, a more skillful practitioner.
I am no martial artist. All of my back’s titanium precludes it. What I have done instead is to ride my stationary bike hard and fast, and for an hour most days of the week. That results, as you might imagine, in a tight (for my age) set of thighs and a river of sweat, but it is hardly a practice which ushers in balance. If anything, my bike riding resembles my hectic dream life.
And so, I am resolved to do something about it: I am cutting 15 minutes off my ride. I am taking up a yoga practice through a video program that takes into account my bionic back. And after all that, I lie on my Pranamat (which is nothing if not a bed of nails, and which I cannot recommend enough) for as long as it takes my body to say, “Now THIS is what balance feels like!” Then, I will knit and read and write as I am called, and my mind will join my body in my old lady version of Capoeira.
Lenormand’s Stork assures me that this will cause an improvement in my stress level. The Key’s redundancy is welcome, as its presence confirms that this is a fine answer. The Book would wink its eye, if it had one, because it hints that less news, more yoga, more knitting, more writing will deliver rewards I cannot possibly yet imagine, as the Book is the card of secrets as yet unrevealed. I am open to all of this possibility.
Adinkra’s Asase Ye Duru is the symbol for the divinity of Mother Earth. It is the slow, heavy, soft, dark energy of Yin, which sustains life. We each have our own ways of finding balance in unbalancing times. May you find and keep your own.
Amen and Ase
Although yoga and knitting aren’t quite my path, I applaud the turn. Inspiring ❤️