Tarot in Real Life: Strength Card has more to Say

So, I’m working. I’m talking to a woman about her relationship, and Strength pops up.

“It’s a strong relationship, long lasting,” confidently rolls out of my mouth. That’s what Strength means, right?

I feel the disconnect, and see it in her face. Uh oh. Evidently, it’s not what Strength means today.

She talked a bit more and I realized, Strength wasn’t showing up as cheerleader, “You can do it!” or testament, “It’s such a strong relationship.” That’s what I was expecting the card to say. Instead, I needed to listen for what it does say, in the context of the other cards and the energy I’m tuning into.

Here, Strength was speaking to the constant effort required to maintain equilibrium. It never ceased! It can be a real chore, a hardship, never letting go of the energy required to maintain.

I knew I was on to something when Strength showed up for somebody else the same way, later in the day. She suffered a great deal, but fought to stay above the water. It was a heavy Strength. I respected her resolve, and tried to give her what I could get to make the load lighter.

And again, for a man that carried an especially weighty burden, Strength showed up. The 3 Times Rule officially triggered, and Strength has a new voice for me. Time to make a note in my Tarot Scrapbook.

Every card has a light and dark vibration, even if one tends to overpower the other. Every gift has a bane and every bane has a gift. It’s the polarity inherent, the yin and yang of the cosmos. I like to focus on the power of Strength, the tenacity. But it’s true, it can also be damned hard work. It’s not easy sometimes. Knowing that, Strength shouldn’t be taken for granted. Either the Tarot kind or the real-life kind.

What do you notice about Strength?