TWO OF WANDS (reversed) Don’t use planning as an excuse to delay or to be too rigid. Be adaptable. Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Roll with the punches if you have to but stop yearning and start doing.
“There are only four rules you need to remember: Make the plan, execute the plan, expect the plan to go off the rails, throw away the plan.”
“Captain Cold” (DC comics)
Deck: Black Cat Tarot by Maria Kuara copyright 2013 all rights reserved used with permission granted on llwellynpublishing.com
Sage Sips is Tarot for your day in the time it takes to sip your coffee
The two of pentacles is the classic card of “balance.” Of course this echoes the classic Taoist idea of “balance” of opposites, or the harmony of opposites. It takes two to tango as the saying goes, so in a broad, general way, it takes at least two things to strike a balance.
Often that balance is between static and dynamic, stillness and motion.
Balance is an important concept. It has both a major and a minor arcana card to carry its message. Temperance talks about balance from a grand, life-lesson point of view.
The two of pentacles talks about balance from a practical, down-to-earth, an action-to-take-now point of view.
“Life is like riding a bicycle.To keep your balance, you must keep moving.“
Albert Einstein
The two of pentacles is particularly about balance in motion. Life is movement. Life is change. To stay in relative balance – to stay functional, really – we are in a state of constant adaptation.
My favorite example is a unicycle rider who is always making constant small adjustments to stay in balance. If they aren’t moving full-on forward, they move little bits forward and backward in one small spot to stay upright.
Or think of a wrestler or a judo match. Planting your feet and staying still might seem strong and immovable, but staying rigid and not moving makes you susceptible to being tipped over if you are pushed. But if you take a step with the push – roll with the punches if you will – then you are less likely to fall flat on the mat.
One foot up, one foot down. Movement, or at least the ability to adapt and move, gives you greater balance overall and can protect you from a fall – literally and figuratively.
Tune in tomorrow for “Weekend Oracle” with the Alleyway Oracle of Secrets deck. Proceeds from your private readings, memberships and virtual coffees all support this free, no-paywall blog and the free newsletter on Substack.
Sage Sips is Tarot for your day in the time it takes to sip your coffee
“At the innermost core of all loneliness is a deep and powerful yearning for union with one’s lost self.”
Brendan Behan, poet
Though not as extreme as the passion, lust and desire embodied in the major arcana Lovers card, and despite the overlay of watching, waiting, and expecting, there is a wistful, yearning quality to the two of wands.
The Lovers asks what is your passionate flaming desire.
The Two of Wands asks what is your nagging, persistent emptiness? What is your constant yearning? Sometimes this is the greater motivator and the greater suffering by virtue of being a constant companion.
Sage Sips is Tarot for your day in the time it takes to sip your coffee.
Your favorite simple comforts transform into great treasures when you give them your full attention for a minute. – Sage
I’m taking a couple of days off for the Memorial Day weekend here in the US, but private readings and the ko-fi page are still open for orders. Readings will go out next week starting Tuesday 5-27-25. Happy and safe weekend to everyone everywhere!
Sage Sips is Tarot for your day in the time it takes to sip your coffee
The Chariot
All potential emotions, cosmic wisdom, and profound compassion are travel sized for your convenience in the size and shape of a single human being.
That human being is you.
Mood and mindset move with you. You can’t drive away from your sadness. Your happiness always comes along for the ride. The past is inescapably in the Chariot with you, but it doesn’t hold the reins. The past doesn’t control the future, only this present moment can set the cause for future effects. Only this present moment can decide if scars from the past debilitate you or make your stronger.
Only in this present moment can you touch the rest of time.
Touch it gently, and with great kindness.
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Sage Sips is Tarot in the time it takes to sip your coffee
Think of any question that is on your mind, or think of the weekend ahead. This “Weekend Oracle” is the premier of my newest layout, TaoCraft Taijitu.
Inspired by the famous yin yang symbol, this three card layout shows yin (energies you are pulling in) yang (energies you are pushing away) and harmony (a way to be at peace and flow with all of these energies)
As usual, I read the cards right to left. This disrupts the deeply ingrained, logic-driven pattern of reading English left to right. That small cognitive shift helps to improve intuition and keep thought-habits at bay.
Of course, if your native language is Arabic, Hebrew, Chinese or other language that reads right to left, then reading Tarot left to right would make more sense.
With today’s cards we get:
Yin, The World. The World from the major arcana is a very positive, hopeful energy. It points to the big picture, the Gestalt, the everything. This is the energy you are drawing in.
Yang, Seven of Swords. This is energy that is moving away from you, or better still, energy you have been empowered to release and push away. The Seven of Swords card is associated with mischief by others and self-serving deception. In the picture a man is stealing away with swords. I intuitively ‘hear’ the old song “Steal Away” – I forget the artist, it is so old.
But in any case, there is a validating energy. You have been taken, deceived or a general victim of our collective chaotic circumstances just as much as you thought.
Harmony, The Fool. Traditionally the very first card of a RWS Tarot deck, this symbolizes fresh starts and new beginnings.
Taken as a whole, the message seems to be very hopeful: Things have been as bad as you thought, but are getting better holistically even if the changes in any one area of life seem very small. To be at peace and to help this transition along, look for any opportunity to start new .
Sage Sips is Tarot for your day in the time it takes to sip your coffee
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Left (the current situation or energy) Four of Pentacles: Hoarding out of fear vs budgeting, taking care, setting boundaries. Does the real-world part of life triggering fear or does it need a little practical management right now? Diane Morgan read the four of pentacles as “secret treasure” Sometimes our greatest treasure is to ground ourselves, move past fear and work through the fear.
Right (what to do next, a good next step) Nine of Swords. Whenever the right card is a swords card, the reading is in the title. Swords symbolize action (among other things) Avoid toxic positivity. It is ok to not be ok. There will be dark times. Actively manage your stress. To manage stress or worry or anxiety or any problem, the first step is to acknowledge it exists. That acknowledgement may feel hopeless and overwhelming, but it is just the first step in solving the problem.
Here, my mind is drawn to some of the panic and anxiety management techniques I’ve seen on social media lately. Both cards point to that kind of energy and action today. If you are worried or anxious, ground yourself in the present moment and your environment. Send yourself a clear message that you aren’t in life or death danger in this specific present moment.
Dan Harris, one of the most practical, accessible, down-to-earth, meditation advocates I’ve ever read describes mindfulness as the capacity to notice. Those social media anti-anxiety techniques draw on exactly that. Use your ability to notice. Try naming five things that you can see. Try naming a pleasant sensation you can experience right now (a soft shirt, a cool breeze, the feel of your feet on the floor, the smell of your coffee…anything) Think of one thing that is going right that you can be thankful for (my coffee is still warm, a glimpse of blue sky, a song on the radio…anything) Think of someone, anyone, and mentally wish them well. Think of yourself and wish yourself peace and safety. Buddhist meditators call those last two Metta practice.
Noticing is an action, albeit a mental one. That still counts. Action decreases anxiety.
Left, current situation: The House (stability, foundation)
Right, action: The Moon (intuition, creativity, reputation)
Stay true to your “brand” in other words stand strong for your true self. Either stay with the reputation you’ve built or build a reputation that you can stay with.
In dream interpretation, a house is often symbolic of self. In both Lenormand and traditional Marseille, RWS tarot, the moon is connected to cycles, intuition, spirituality or our spiritual journey.
Life may not feel one bit steady now, but this may be a clue that is ok to lay a few foundation stones for the future. It’s an ok time to think about the kind of person you want to be, the kind of presence you want to be in the world.
If you are happy with who you are, it’s ok to think about how to keep that foundation strong, and fold in the moon’s creativity to keep doing what works. More importantly it is OK to be OK and happy with who you are regardless of a world filled with social media and doubts.
What your “true self” is, what your genuine inner home and foundation is -only you can say. That’s also where the Moon comes in.
Mental action, contemplation, deliberate decisions and making a plan to move forward are all actions, albeit internal mental ones. Those all count when it comes to action dissolving anxiety.
Sage Sips / TaoCraft Tarot 
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