The Minor Arcana Storyline - Part II |
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Now he comes to the lesson of the sevens: the difficulties of choices. With everything in his life going so well, The Fool has become a target of baser individuals that covet what he has. But unlike him, they don't want to work hard for it; they want to take it. The thief watches slyly and with greedy eyes as The Fool fills his warehouse to the brim in preparation for the next day's shipping, taking note of where everything is and what he will need to do to be able to take as much as possible. He carefully plans everything to the last detail. In the dark of night, the thief enters the warehouse unseen and helps himself to all that he can carry. He loads his packs, knowing that he can carry no more but looking around hungrily at all that has been left behind, and then slips away just as the moon disappears beneath the horizon.
In the morning, The Fool realizes that he has been a victim of the negative power of the Swords and someone who has chosen to use that power for ill. Taking stock of what has been taken, The Fool sees that the thief has stolen only the most expensive items; apparently he knew that he could only carry a certain amount and started from the most expensive and began working his way down until he could carry no more. What to do in this situation? The Fool's choices here are limited. He could do nothing, allowing the thief to profit by his endeavors, and try to go ahead from where he has found himself. If he goes to the authorities, he may never get his goods back. The heat of suspicion would only make the thief go into hiding and they would never find him. Or he could just not say anything to anyone about the theft and go underground himself.
This seems like a viable solution. The Fool has many contacts among the pawnbrokers and traders who deal with stolen goods. He has never judged them for how they make a living, but now he feels that it is time to use this to his advantage. Making a careful list of what has been taken, he contacts a friend who also happens to be the Captain of the Guard and tells him what he is planning to do. Deciding to only use the rarest and most expensive item to bait the thief, they begin making the rounds of the pawnbrokers and traders in the area claiming that they are looking to buy such an item if anyone can find one. In short order, a pawnbroker gets him in touch with the very thief that had robbed him of his goods. With the prospect of being able to sell a great deal of his stolen loot, the thief begins to let down his guard and starts unwittingly showing off the items that he has stolen to the very man that he had stolen them from! Using the same guile that the thief used, The Fool has gotten the bulk of his property back and the thief has been arrested. Though this trick worked this time, the Captain of the Guard warns The Fool that stunts like this are not always the best of choices. The Fool takes the warning to heart.
With his goods returned and the shipping done, The Fool's business seems to be growing by leaps and bounds. Opportunities are flying at him from every quarter; some of them legitimate business opportunities while others are merely get rich quick schemes. The Fool must now face the lesson of the Cups; so many choices to pick from, but some of them are only illusions. Careful thought will be needed to determine which choices are real and could become something positive. With so many choices, The Fool begins to worry about his business. Should he try one of these new opportunities, hoping to expand what he has and get more at the risk of losing what he has already, or should he just forget them all and keep what he has as it is? This is the lesson of the Coins. Perhaps he should take some time to consider these new possibilities slowly and carefully and then decide what he wants to do.
The Fool researches his options, plans out what he wants to be the results of each one, and finally narrows his choices down to only two that seem like they might go somewhere. But still, he is afraid of losing all that he has built. What would happen to the people who work here if he loses his business? He decides to take the matter to his employees. Discussing it with them, The Fool learns the lesson of the Wands. They understand that he is afraid, but he'll never know if it will be a good thing for his business unless he has courage and gives it a try. With their support behind him, The Fool uses the fear that he feels as a warning system to move ahead cautiously, working slowly and steadily on this new opportunity. Having the courage to try, using the fear to check his enthusiasm against over-reaching, the steady work he has put in has turned an opportunity into a reality.
After so many choices, so many changes, it is again time to rebalance with the eights; this time the lesson is about self-discovery, balancing himself. The Fool first begins to notice this when his wife begins to complain that he is spending too much time and energy at work and not enough with her. She feels neglected, as though she is in a one-sided relationship that is going nowhere, and she is the only one giving anything. She is hurt by his neglect, but is begging him to change it in the hope that the relationship can be saved. Confronted with the emotional stagnation that is the lesson of the Cups, The Fool decides it is time to rediscover that part of himself and return the balance to his marriage. He owes this not only to her, but also to himself; he needs the emotional fulfillment of the relationship just as much as she does. He realizes that he has focused all of his energy on one thing and neglected everything else, and his own heart is just as damaged by this. He misses the close connection that he once had with his wife, and begins to make the changes necessary to be able to spend as much time with her as he does on his work.
These changes require him to knuckle down and become dedicated to improving his work, his relationship, and himself all at the same time. The hard work and commitment required for this is the lesson of the Coins. The Fool plans things to the last detail, restricting some areas to free up others. In such a hurry is he that he doesn't take into full consideration exactly what he is restricting and what the results of that may be in the future. This self-imposed restriction is the lesson of the Swords; The Fool has now become trapped by his own ideas and ways of thinking. In his haste it seems that everything is about to fall apart just as he is trying to fix it. He takes a deep breath, centers himself, and thinks clearly. He now sees exactly what has caused the imbalances in his life and what he needs to do to fix them. Suddenly, with the power of the Wands, it is as if he has a burst of creative energy: the lines of communication have been opened between himself and his wife, all the obstacles in his path seem to just fall away, and, so long as he thinks clearly and doesn't act rashly, the changes needed seem to be happening rapidly under their own volition. Everything suddenly falls into place.
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