Wednesday, July 10, 2013

7/11/13—Going Your Own Way

Today's Draw: Tower, Garden, Anchor and Tree from the Magpie Oracle by Carrie Paris. Is your way the best way? Is it the only way? And if you've closed your mind to other ways, how do you grow and learn?

The Magpie Oracle is a brand new charm-based oracle from Carrie Paris. She chose the 36 charms in the oracle to align with Lenormand card symbology. And she also devised a casting chart to go with it, but I haven't printed mine out yet. So you'll probably see me use this oracle again soon. 

When I first looked at these four (I just reached inside the sack o'charms and pulled out a pinchful), the first thoughts I had were "Obamacare" and "the economy is returning back to health". I say that because Tower stands for independence or large institutions, like government; Garden suggests the public or parties, Anchor suggests strength and stability and Tree suggests health or growth. So you could read it as "government brings health stability to the public"—Obamacare. Or "public government is healthy and stable". 

Or, of course, you could read it a million different ways, using a million different nuances of the meanings of each symbol. You could even interpret it as indicating a particularly sturdy tree in the garden of a tall building. It's all in the eyes of the reader. Personally, to me, it looks like the symbols are spelling something out, but I can't quite grasp what that might be. 

Often in life, it's easy to forget that what we see, think and feel is really just a matter of interpretation. You can find things that many people agree upon—the sky is blue, for example—but it's still just a matter of perception. Science will tell you the sky only appears blue because of how light interacts with molecules in our atmosphere and the way our eyes perceive light.  A person with synesthesia might claim the letter "S" is blue and the sky is crunchy. Both you and the synesthete would be right because that is YOUR truth. And you'd both also be wrong, because it's not THE truth. It's just perception. 

I bring all this up because whether we do it as an individual or as part of a group (like Christians, Democrats, Cancer Survivors, etc.) we tend to attach ourselves to truths and "proper ways" that are really just a matter of perception/opinion. A majority may agree upon the truth or the way, but that doesn't make any more valid or viable than anyone else's way...not to them it doesn't. Even science says atoms act differently when they're being observed than they act when they're not being observed. So they actually change just by the fact they're being observed—their truth changes based on the fact that you're aware that it exists! It's all in the eye of the beholder. 

We see, believe, think and feel what we want to. And everyone else gets to do the same. So consider that we need to make room for others to have their way, too. 

I remember years ago I was helping my boss stuff some envelopes for a mailing. You had to collate some pages, staple them, fold them and put them into the envelope with a card. So the boss says "stuff these envelopes" and walks off. He comes back in an hour when I've got a really groove going on with my method of stuffing and he stops me and says "you know, it will go a lot faster if you do it this way". Then he shows me his way. Which feels really awkward to me. But he's standing over me, so I do it his way. And it does not go faster. It goes slower. And awkwardly. 

My way was best for me and my productivity. His way was best for keeping my job, though, so I did it. As I get older, however, I'm growing increasingly impatient with people trying to convince me that their truth is the only truth and therefore should be mine. They look to me like that boss...ego-driven and a poor leader. Even if I happen to agree with their truth, people who try to convince you that theirs is the only path to Propertude look desperate to me. They're trying to force something instead of inspire it. Which makes me question the validity of their way even more. 

When I teach classes, I don't teach "my way" or the way I generally practice. Instead, I usually say to my students, "I'm going to teach you this way because I think it will give you the best foundation moving forward. But once you have a grasp of the information, I fully expect you to offroad, explore and do your own thang, because that's what I do." If they come back around to thinking my way is the best way, that's great. But if they find something better for themselves, I hope they show it to me so I can learn. I might not like what they do, but I don't really matter in the equation, do I? Their thing is their thang. 

So while I hope the economy is growing healthier and Obamacare saves lives...haha...the charms can also be interpreted as "Whether you go your own way (Tower) or the way of the masses (Garden) your way is stable, strong (Anchor), healthy and the way that leads to your own growth (Tree). Someone else may have a different truth than that, but it's one of the best truths I have to share.

5 comments:

  1. Ah, perception, truth, and the delightful Magpie Oracle which Carrie won't ship to the UK. An insightful if teasing post :)

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  2. Are you sure she won't ship to the UK. I know she said it at first, but then was entertaining the idea. She wanted them to be trackable, though, and that costs a lot of money.

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    1. Well, I was thinking of asking if she'd bring some along to the UK Tarot Conference - might be worth her while... :)

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    2. You should contact her because a) she might have changed her mind and b) she might be able to be talked into what you said or a group order for Europe or something. If she's coming to the UK Tarot Conference, then she HAS to bring some copies. She just HAS TO!!! :)

      They're really cute.

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    3. I've written to Carrie, so fingers crossed :)

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