Here Comes the Sun: Week 19 with Tarot's Fool

The Fool has turned a corner in his journey. A good one! It's about time, I'd say, wouldn't you? True, it has been an amazing journey so far, a fantastic journey. In spite of tremendous challenges (or because of them), he's grown in profound and unexpected ways. 

He's had glimpses of the world's overwhelming power in its secrets and forces and possibilities (exciting and scary); accepted that he's not only made a few mistakes in his quest, but been guilty of and blindsided by self deception (humbling); understood instinctively that although he has faced defeat after defeat, partly because he needed to learn these lessons before he could succeed, what he's doing is important, it's great, and he must never give up (exhausting!); learned how to grow from each experience, good or bad (wow); embraced true humility (no easy feat, double wow), and learned to trust himself to the universe (very difficult, in fact not possible until he learned true humility). He's definitely due for a good turn.

Last time we were with the Fool, he'd taken a leap of faith as the full moon shone down on him and he found himself in a world of genius and madness (Week 18: The Moon). His choice was to either go mad, or trust the powerful river he stood in to help him find himself. He chose the river. He managed to climb into a boat with no oars or rudder before the river's strong current swept him away. At least the boat would take him somewhere, and he wouldn't drown. Exhausted, the Fool passes out in the boat as it carries him toward his destiny.

He wakes up at dawn to find himself still in the boat, but the river has come to an end. He's floating in a tranquil pond, surrounded by a walled garden filled with roses and lilies and gorgeous giant sunflowers. As he gets out of the boat and takes a few steps into the garden on shaky legs, he hears a child laughing somewhere nearby. The sun is rising, huge and golden, and the source of the laughter, a small boy, rides into the garden on a white horse.

The little boy leaps off the horse and runs over to the Fool. "Come see!" he says, taking the Fool's hand. He proceeds to show the Fool all the amazing wonders of the garden: the dewdrops on the rich green blades of grass, the seeds at the center of the sunflowers, the light as it sparkles on the pond. And then he starts asking questions of the Fool, like why is the grass green, why is the air sparkling, why is it so fun to smile?

As if his lips have a will of their own, the Fool discovers himself smiling, and the smile keeps growing, brighter than it has been for a long time. He has been tested and tried, confused and scared, dismayed and amazed since he started this journey, and now he is amazed all over again in a new way. This is the first time, he realizes, that he has been simply happy. He looks at the child who has given him this gift, who has invited him to share in his generosity and open spirit, and he knows that he now sees himself and the world in a fresh, golden light. "Who are you?" he asks the child.

The child smiles at the question and, as the Fool watches, he begins to shine, then grows brighter and brighter until he turns into pure sunlight. "I'm you," the Fool hears him say in a voice that comes from everywhere in the garden. "The new you." The Fool has just met his own inner light.

Now the Fool will move forward renewed, ready to face the final hurdle in his quest. He is filled with strength that comes from all he's been through and from the gifts of the child. There is nothing he can't do.

Renewal. It doesn't come easy. There's a special kind of exhaustion that comes from putting everything we've got into our quest and then having to let it go, trust ourselves to the universe. The alternative is to hold on tightly to our process from fear of losing control, but most of us know from experience that never works out very well. So the best we can do, once we've given the quest all we've got, is climb into our rudderless boat and let the river sweep us to our destiny. Scary. Tarot tells us, though, that if we do that, we will find our inner child once again, the spirit of our voice, and that can lead straight to renewal. Scary morphs into joy. It's not quite the golden fleece, not yet, but it does hold that promise. This particular journey is coming close to completion.

~ Linda
Links to Fool's Journey posts:  0—The Fool; 1—The Magician; 2—The High Priestess; 3—The Empress; 4&5—The Emperor, and The Hierophant; 6—The Lovers; 7—The Chariot; 8—Strength; 9—The Hermit; 10—Wheel of Fortune; 11—Justice; 12—The Hanged Man; 13—Death; 14—Temperance; 15—The Devil; 16—The Tower; 17—The Star; 18—The Moon 

My interpretation of The Fool's Journey as it applies to the writing life is my own, but the journey is long-established from a variety of sources. Those I've relied on most heavily are: TAROT BASICS by Burger & Fiebig, AECLECTIC TAROT by Thirteen, and EVERYDAY TAROT by Fairfield