Weekly Forecast: May 2-8

This is a week of great possibilities - a time of green lights, fresh starts, and smooth sailing. Like many moments of change and reinvention, however, it’s the challenges that have come before that give us the most guidance.

Yes, we have the Nine of Wands in our array once more, pointing us to our struggles. The sore muscles we’re nursing are also a sign of our increased strength, as much as it may seem otherwise. This is a time to appreciate how present we’ve been in our lives, moving forward even when we’ve felt lost and tired. When things fall together, what seemed all-consuming will fall away quickly; let’s just not forget how hard we’ve worked for the ease that’s coming.

Where does your life feel like a dense thicket of branches? Is there a place that’s been wild and tangled, resistant to navigation or change? See where this energy is active and, after taking a deep breath, imagine all of it changing.

This week we have a powerful moment of transformation. What has felt sticky becomes unstuck. We’re able to move again, make headway, and plunge back into the situation refreshed and motivated.

I love the image these cards give us: a divine figure floating above a forest of wands. The World is back, showing a version of ourselves that’s able to transcend the busy, energetic, and energetically taxing world of wands we’ve been traveling through. Like a dolphin leaping above the waves, glistening in the warm sun before diving back below, we’re given a moment to rise above challenging or complex situations, gaining perspective and insight, before returning to busy life.

We’ve been in a particularly wands-y past few months, so I’m wondering why I switched from wood metaphors to water just there. Perhaps, like The World card shows, we’re in need of some harmony. Whatever we’ve been overdosing on in life lately, it’s worth seeking out what’s missing. Too much hustle and bustle? Add some languorous moments of calm. Too much straightforward wheeling-and-dealing? Make space for poetry and romance. Whether it’s water, air, or earth, know we definitely have enough fire to go around.

Major Arcana cards have a powerful impact, and show us the active themes of a moment. Like a planet, they exert their own gravitational pull. While we can certainly work with them, we don’t need to do anything to bring their energies into our lives. Luckily for us, we’re dealing with The World this week. It’s presence always invites us to take a larger perspective, to situate our present moment in the bigger story.

The Nine of Wands has been a frequent visitor in our readings. We’re tired! We get it! And this week starts off feeling like a continuation of the last. Yet this is a different type of exhaustion - instead of being at a point of burnout, we’re at a point of simply needing to edit. After the visit of The World mid-week, where we gain some important rest and insight, we reach the uncluttered shores of the Three of Wands. Here, the clutter is lessened, begging the question: What doesn’t fit? We’ll need a break to determine this, which is where The World comes in. Be alert for opportunities to get out of your usual routine, experiment, and simply feel free. I think this will be completely removed from whatever the wands are representing for you, too. If possible, make time now to do something refreshing that puts you in the center.

So, beyond the refresher represented by The World, we’re due to consider what we can pare down in our lives at the moment. Creative projects, complex situations, routines and workflows may be where this feeling of overload manifests. In the Nine of Wands we can see exhaustion, but the wands are upright; we’ve worked hard and accomplished much. But we’re also itching for some mobility, a chance to move beyond. To get from the Nine to the Three of Wands we must identify what is truly working or worthwhile and jettison the rest. It’s not as if these extra wands were a waste of time, however. They’ve given us useful experience and knowledge. But now is a time to travel light, bring what matters most.

While this reading is tightly woven in that it’s themes are clear and in direct conversation with each other, it’s also quite mysterious and expansive. I can’t help but feel a tingle of anticipation whenever The World comes up, and as I alluded to earlier, this card can signify moments of reinvention and growth. I think here, however, it’s more of an uncovering. If we’re doing all this editing in our mundane, wands-centric lives, what does having some new space reveal about ourselves? Have we been hiding behind busyness, or is part of our true nature unfurling majestically after slowly growing behind the scenes? There’s a huge potential this week for glorious self-expression, blissful freedom, and coming into our own. If it feels easy and also big and even a little threatening to our ideas of what’s possible - good.

The Three of Wands shows a similar feeling of rising excitement, a time when we must step into the unknown and commit to a new endeavor. I’m reminded that we had another three - The Three of Pentacles - concluding our reading last week. That card dealt with themes of planning and collaboration while this week’s three is about movement, creativity, and fiery ambition. Has something you’ve been working on reached a turning point? If you’re feeling at the cusp, the change may arrive at the end of the week. Be sure to open your arms and embrace simplicity, clarity, and the feeling of wind on your face as you finally start moving towards new shores.

This week, embrace:

• Simplicity

• Self-compassion

• Fun for the sake of fun

• Bravery

This week, avoid:

• Loyalty to the status quo

• Pushing through exhaustion

• Complicated > Effective

• Waffling, hemming-and-hawing, shrinking from greatness

Get creative:

• Nine of Wands: Give what no longer works some love. It can be hard to say goodbye to old faithful techniques, ideas, projects, and approaches - I have a feeling this bittersweetness will be present for us this week. So, let’s dive into it. I’m thinking a “in memoriam” slideshow at an awards ceremony: How can we respect and highlight where we’ve been and what we’ve done, while acknowledging we’re going somewhere new? This would be good journaling fodder. Putting things down in writing would be especially powerful. But simple contemplation will do just fine. (And if you make a slideshow, do share ;)

• The World: I’m feeling like this card needs a grand gesture this week. The World is nude, loving life, front and center. And maybe it’s just because it’s hot here, but water keeps coming up for me when I look at this card. Go swimming, take a ritual bath or shower, or spend some time loving your body fully, decadently, and with focus.

• Three of Wands; This is so, so cheesy, but I’m doing it anyways. This is a cinematic card, y’all. What song would be playing in the moment of the biopic of your life where you make a pivotal change? Imagine yourself standing on the cliffside like the figure in the card, about to embark on one of the boats below. The wind is blowing in your hair. You squint your eyes as the setting sun hits them at just the right angle, giving you a determined and formidable glow. I may have said song, but now I’m feeling a whole playlist. Get into it, and play this whenever you need to recenter/rev-up/get going.