Yearly Forecast: 2018!
The new year is a heady and exciting time. We don't have many opportunities for a clear "before and after" and this is the big moment where we can say "that's all said and done, now it's time for something new."
And lordy could we use something new right now. It's no surprise that two of our three cards are in the suit of pentacles, rules of all things earthy and solid and stabilizing. If there's been any theme to the past year it's been one of upheaval and... well, I don't want to sound dramatic and say calamity, but... you know what I'm talking about.
And at the same time the surprising and destabilizing events of 2017 have offered a helpful and deeply contrasted backdrop to all the sweetness and beauty showing up in our lives. There's a gift in being able to see all the goodness with such intense clarity; however, it's too dramatic to sustain in the long run.
2018 is going to be a year when we work to recalibrate this imbalance, directing ourselves towards the concrete, nitty gritty aspects of life. Think our ability to truly cultivate, nurture, and change our surroundings.
Beautifully, we have the Nine of Pentacles giving us a vision of peace and plenty. We have much more than we were able to see amid the wildness of the past year. Now our gifts are emerging and we can see and enjoy the places, people, and practices that enrich our lives.
What's more we've developed an extremely useful skill. Our passion and sense of justice is now reigned inso that it can channel its powerful ability to effect change. Consider the falcon held by the sumptuously dressed figure in the Nine of Pentacles. Once swirling through the clouds, hunting and screeching (I'm thinking about all the time I've spent bemoaning and complaining about political events), it's now been trained to harness its skills, guided by a higher power so that it can achieve important objectives with precision.
What part of ourselves, now that it's had the time to vent its animal needs and frustrations, has returned to us and is ready to help us on our journey?
The Nine of Pentacles directs us to appreciate and tend to our gardens. What do we need to do to make our lives blossom? Having a life that offers both protection and expansion is key. 2018 will be giving us plenty of opportunities to grow ourselves a lush life. Now is not a time to turn away from joy and satisfaction - it's deeper in meaning than we might initially think. This year is a time to plumb the depths of happiness and explore the bravery that comes from caring for oneself.
There's a public role in all this, too. The Four of Pentacles shows us feeling empowered and stable in our lives. While we might not know it, our actions are inspiring others and the way we choose to live our lives is providing new and exciting blueprints for others to follow.
We have just enough to care for our basic needs and a sense of satisfaction for having earned it. At the same time, we may be using this accomplishment to limit ourselves out of fear. While we can all enjoy our state of being content, it's also important to think big. Staying safe limits our contact with the rest of the world and cuts us off from sustaining relationships and our own potential.
We're emerging into a better awareness of our skills and resources. Interestingly, there's a part of us that hasn't come onto our radars, a hidden talent or gift, if you will. What's more, this part of ourselves is clearly visible to those around us. Maybe we just haven't found a name for it yet and maybe we're afraid fo express an integral part of ourselves. Is there something we haven't dared acknowledge yet, a dream, skill, or trait we're somehow convinced we can't embody?
This exciting new aspect will shine through no matter what we do to hide it. Look to friends and family to illuminate this hidden talent. It will be key in our expansion this year and seriously change our self-perception and abilities for the better.
All these pentacles shows us how important feeling stable is right now. Yet this energy can be stodgy and limting on its own. Luckily we have the Seven of Swords to lighten the mood, directing us towards adopting a sense of play and trickery to balance out our earthy selves in 2018.
Pentacles are often motivated by the desire to be safe. Sometimes, however, in erecting boundaries and limits we block out things that can help us grow and that enlarge our worlds helpfully. The Seven of Swords reminds us not to take our desire for safety too seriously. We don't know everything and embracing an intellectual openmindedness along with a somewhat naughty sense of play will jazz up our lives and keep us from becoming too ponderous and conservative in our actions.
This card also ushers in an exciting air of experimentation. Maybe some things can be simpler than they seem and maybe we don't need as many structures and trappings of power as we may think. Shaking up our own established routines and views will bring the verve and energy necessary to push boundaries and expand into places we can't even envision.
So relax, spread out and enjoy your riches, let your light shine outwards so others can see you, and don't take it all too seriously. Expanding into this year will be joyous, profound, and revolutionary. We're replacing reaction with mindfully channeled power, want with fulfilled wishes, and old ideas with playful innovation.
I can't wait to travel this path with all of you - Happy New Years!