Hermit
Ace of Wands, Strength, Six of Wands

You have to understand crooks to handle and overcome them.
An honest person is one who has overcome his/her own sneakiness.
You have to know what their agenda is in order to oppose it.
You have to know what they are up to if you are going to prevent them from doing harm.
She makes an honest man of a guy who is out to get laid.

The one thing he is out to get involves being devoted to a very dominant female.
He is honest with himself about his one-purpose agenda to get her to make him behave.
To seduce a woman of character, a man must be patient and sincere.
Watch her handle forceful opposition by seeming to be on its side.
The main point is to investigate so as not to let subversives in.

He is patient with other people’s blatant attempts to use him: He makes their attempts harmless.
Being wise to a mooch is the only way to prevent its depredations.
He helps her overcome the main thing she has going against her.
She handles supposed friends who come against her, with the help of a friend.
He advises her to be forceful in her defense against betrayals.

Drama here. In the middle we have preventing an enemy from attacking by taming it, the Strength card. It is often a woman doing that. The point is her character creates the ability to nip opposition in the bud. To the left is the Ace of Wands (He seems to show up for dinner often at our table, doesn’t he?) which suggests a forceful attack. To the right is the Six of Wands which suggests a sneaky subversive attack. Both Strength and Ace of Wands are about winning a conflict. If you take Ace of Wands and Six of Wands, you are talking a sexual seduction with an ulterior purpose, and they appear on either side of the lady of character who disciplines snarky defiance and who puts down force. And then above them all we have the Hermit who is sincerity, honesty, devotion, and observing – or a person (most likely male) who is sincere, helpful, honest, devoted, or who observes.

Advice. We talk about character here with the Strength and the Hermit- both a male and a female who are characterized as having character. And we talk about dealing firmly with someone (or the someones) who don’t, who are subversive, who betray friendship. So advice is to observe, to look for snarky behavior around you, and deal with it firmly, not let it do harm. You may have the help of a friend in this project. It is not going to be any big project, no ordeal involved.

 

Meanings and Illustrations:

Ace of Wands: This Rider Waite Tarot card is crashing the party lately. It means to be firm or forceful, to win or accomplish. So it is living up to its meaning, barging in here. Illustration is a hand with a board in it, which reminds me of a saying my old daddy used to repeat: “Some people, in order to get their attention, you have to hit them in the face with a board.”

Strength: We have already talked at length about her above. Bullies turn into pussycats when they intend to come against her because of who she is. This happens in real life if you just observe. The illustration shows a lady petting the predator lion, holding his mouth closed against the roar, and he is purring instead.

Six of Wands: The false flag, the alleged friend who is out to use you or get you or do you in some way, small or large. Sneaky, snarky, mooch who is gonna embezzle or get his cut behind your back. Yes, the kind of person you watch, which is what the next card after it means, the Hermit. Illustration is of a fella whose horse doesn’t trust him.

Hermit: Here is the monk dedicated to helping travelers who are lost or in distress. He goes out looking for them even at night. He is the kind helpful supportive friend. The phrases he means today are: understand, honest, know, being devoted to, patient and sincere, watch, investigate, patient, being wise to, helps and the help of a friend, advises.

 

Fool
Two of Swords, Three of Wands, Judgment

Assumes it’s not going to be happening again.
Is not going to be coming back, has gone on.
Is not going to be there for the repeat performance that’s upcoming.
Ignoring the big announcement that that’s not going to be happening.
Assume I will never be going back there again.

Am not going to be surprised because I won’t be there.
He/she is not coming – has broken free.
No future with him/her, he/she is starting some new life.
Now that that’s over, there’s going to be a new life of freedom.
Doesn’t know he/she/it isn’t going to recover.

Said he/she is not going to be there/here.
Tells you there’s no way you are going to be free.
Is not ever going to listen to what you say/is said.
Do not disregard continual alarms.
Always going to be no warnings, so you may as well not even listen.

Am not going to repeat it, will be acting as if I never said it.
Will keep repeating until the very end, as long as long as (Person) isn’t paying any attention.
When it is over you don’t go back, just forget about it and enjoy the new phase of life that is coming.
No way to keep ignoring the news.
When it’s over, you are going to be really happy again.

Can’t forget, so you are going back.
When it’s over, you will be free for a whole new life.
It’s going to be over again before you know it.
Not going to let that go on – will be free as a bird again.
You can’t just forget it, reminders keep coming to you.

The only definitive card – as far as a story or action here – is Judgment, and it isn’t much of one. Its main meanings are something happening again, a return, a new life, a recovery, an announcement, news, an alarm.

We begin with a negating card, the Two of Swords, that in Rider Waite means ‘no way’ primarily. (Negating cards create variety in the kind of spread that we have here, the kind that cards can be read in any order and are not assigned a position that means something.) Then the Three of Wands means it is coming – usually a good thing is coming – so that makes it a future card and it also means continuing action or the word ‘continue.’ The last card means to be free, to ignore or disregard or not pay attention, to be oblivious or not know, to assume, to not be present. And somehow I put them together … amazing, isn’t it?

Advice suggests when it is over you don’t go back, just forget about it and enjoy the new phase of life that is coming.

 

Meanings and Illustrations:

Two of Swords: We begin with a negating card, the Two of Swords, that in Rider Waite means ‘no way’ primarily. You can’t. The end: in the end, when it ends, etc. The illustration shows a blindfolded woman who has two heavy swords in crossed arms, seated on a stone bench at the very edge of what looks to be a seawall, and there are rocks in the sea.

Three of Wands: This is a simple and limited card. It means it’s coming – profit or something good, usually. Continuing future tense – it is one of the future cards. Often means the word ‘continue.’ Its illustration in Rider Waite is a merchant standing watching the ships come in that bear his merchandise and/or his profit.

Judgment: Today its meanings are: ‘again,’ to do or to occur again, to come back, a repeat performance, an announcement, surprise, to break into a new phase, new life, recover, to say or announce, alarm or warning, repeat, reminder, news, again, a whole new life. The illustration shows a resurrection, folks newly released from their coffins for a new life.

Fool: This is one of the flexible cards. Not paying attention is a main function of Fool: assumes, ignoring, doesn’t know, not listen, disregard, just forget about it, not let on. Being happy and free are also key to Fool. Not present, not going to be there. And then there are what I call the ‘water off a duck’s back’ or the ‘shrug’ meanings such as ‘may as well,’ and ‘as if I had never’ and ‘not let on that.’

The illustration shows a fellow prancing off a cliff, happy as a clam, oblivious. The person epitomizes the slogan ‘Ignorance is bliss.’