Monthly Reflection: Queen of Wands & The Star (& Nine of Swords)

In last month’s reflection, we saw hope that things were looking brighter ahead with The Star. Interestingly, The Star has made another appearance this month, and so it appears that September may have been a little more challenging than we hoped it would be.

Challenges aside, these cards remind us not to give up hope, to keep focused on our dreams and that every challenge has a purpose, that will serve us long-term. And so, as we close out another month, with the end of the year rapidly approaching, it’s time to ask ourselves, what can we learn from our experiences in September?

Deck: Somnia Tarot

September Reflection - Queen of Wands

The interesting thing about this Queen of Wands is that she is surrounded by candles - in a rather precarious way. Multiple toppled candelabras sit by her feet, the flames edging dangerously close to the fabric of her robe, and so my first instinct in seeing this card is about how this represents us navigating the month of September. It feels as though we have been navigating a minefield - one wrong step and we risk getting burned. This is likely to interplay with strong personalities, something the Wands certainly represent.

And so, here lies the question, in terms of how we handled the month of September. These strong personalities - did you collapse inward, to avoid the flames, or did you invite the fire?

Essentially, as a collective reading, we have two ways this might have played out…

The more stereotypical interpretation of the Queen of Wands centres around a strong, dominant and confident energy. This is someone who has a really strong sense of who they are and what they want, and they’re not afraid to ask for it. They will take up space. As you can see, in the face of the minefield that September may have presented to you, the Queen of Wands may be referencing your strength of self, to stand against other dominant forces and adverse situations, but not lose your Self in the process.

Or you may have collapsed inward. While the body language of the figure in this card is strong, she is entirely shrouded in a sheet. It’s almost as if she wants to blend in with the wider scenery. If we feel under threat, or if we feel vulnerable or exposed, being seen can feel like a dangerous place to be.

The long and short of it is, either way, it doesn’t feel like it’s been an easy journey - and it’s even possible that we’ve embodied both of these, in different contexts.

If you have embodied the confidence of the Queen of Wands, how did it feel to do so? Is this your natural response in these types of situations, or have you broken some sort of ground within yourself - i.e. have you stood in your own authenticity, where previously you may have failed to do so?

It’s also possible that we have taken this Queen of Wands energy too far. I want to make it very clear, I am not saying that this applies to all of you - especially if this feels like a groundbreaking moment of standing in your own power. That is something to be proud of. But when we are feeling under threat, or if this ownership of our power, authenticity and self is something we aren’t used to, it’s easy to cross a line. After all, impulsivity and fire are also key traits of the Wands suit. If we have crossed a line, perhaps it’s not massively so, but enough to get the tips of our fingers burned. If this is the case, we can use this as a learning experience. Where have we overstepped the mark, where have we gone too far, done too much, reacted to quickly, and what can we take from that, to help us in future?

Likewise, if you have collapsed inward, why have you done so? Was it a default or unconscious reaction - your nervous system responding to something much deeper? These are, inherently, survival mechanisms that we have deployed in the past to protect ourselves. But as the person you are today, do you need that protection anymore? And are you willing to pay the price of stifling your own Self? On the other hand, maybe you needed to collapse inward, in order to protect yourself from the minefield you found yourself in the centre of. But if that’s the case, perhaps we need to evaluate the environment we’re in. Because, yet again, is the cost of sacrificing yourself, worth the benefits you gain from being where you are?

Either way, September appears to be a reflective and enlightening month. Perhaps we’ve learned things about ourselves, about who we truly are, who we want to be and what we stand for. It may have come about the hard way, but it’s important, as we move into October, that we don’t get stuck in the challenges or mistakes. Rather, we focus on what we’ve learned, and how it will benefit us going forward.

October Outlook - The Star & Nine of Swords

The Star appears, yet again, a beacon of hope and an encouragement to have faith. This feels at odds with the card that flew out of the deck with it - the Nine of Swords. This is a card of anxiety and worries.

As we have already covered, it seems that, collectively, things have been rather difficult lately, and no doubt, we all want to see brighter skies on the horizon. And so it’s important that we don’t get too bogged down in the adversity.

Make no mistake, I don’t mean to belittle or undermine the challenges you may be facing - I know many people experiencing very heavy, very real and very difficult things at the moment. The Star doesn’t seek to erase that, it seeks to turn the light on when everything around us feels dark.

The Star appears as that friend who opens the curtains in our bedroom and forces us out of bed, when we’ve been buried in our duvet for far too long. That friend does not mean to question how we got there. In fact, it is because they can see how we got there, that they want to help us let the light back in.

And so, in October, these cards implore us to let the light in, even when everything feels dark. In October, we are called to view hope as an active practice, something that we have to choose, however tempting it might be to fall into negative thinking.

Practice gratitude, try to see the positives in things, be kinder to yourself. You may not be exactly where you want to be yet, but it will come. Hope often doesn’t come easy when we are facing challenging times. It reminds me of the poem that describes hope as a sewer rat - it’s oftentimes not beautiful, rather, it’s the grit and fortitude to keep going, even when things are hard.

So, this October, drag yourself out of the Nine of Swords bed, to the top of The Star’s mountain, because when the sun rises, we’ll have a much better view.

Much love,

N x