The Queens of the Tarot have, in typical gender norm fashion, frequently been chalked up to having emotions, even though everyone of every gender has emotions. Lerning how to work with our emotions is one of the more challenging things about being human, and one of the most powerful things once we know how to do it.—Charlie Claire Burgess, RADICAL TAROT: QUEER THE CARDS, LIBERATE YOUR PRACTICE, AND CREATE THE FUTURE
Deck: THE MODERN WITCH TAROT DECK by Lisa Sterle
For newbies: I’ve been regularly pulling tarot cards for almost two years, but I’m not even close to being able to do a reading without guidance. Learning to trust my intuition and determining how a particular card applies to my own life—either in the moment or historically—is a big part of my tarot process, so while I often rely on “traditional'“ card meanings, I allow myself the freedom to go where the card and my thoughts take me.
What I offer in this newsletter are some general interpretations but also interpretations that are personal to me. I invite you to put your own spin on the cards to gain meaning for yourself.
The purpose of my tarot journaling is to clear my mind of chaos to make room for creativity. I hope you find it useful, as well.
THE QUEENS
Before we delve into the Queen of Swords, let’s discuss the Queens as a group. They embody wisdom, experience, intuition, insight… and so much more. For me, the Queens are aspirational cards. Basically, all the qualities I hope to develop and strengthen through my work with the tarot.
Each in their own way, the Queens signify the point at which our emotional and rational minds meet. This is where true wisdom can flourish.
QUEEN OF SWORDS
Summarizing THE MODERN WITCH TAROT DECK’S guidebook entry on the Queen of Swords: Do not let truth come at the expense of compassion. Understanding comes from the ability to step back and see the entire picture. Set your emotions aside and try to view things with clarity and honesty.
The Queen of Swords is one of my favorite cards, and on my best days, I embody her energy. I can be blunt, and I often call things as I see them, but behind that is genuine compassion and a desire for understanding. A knowledge that whatever a person might be projecting at a given moment isn’t the whole of who they are and that we all contain multitudes.
We touched on this topic in last week’s post. In fact, RADICAL TAROT’S passage on the Queen of Swords includes a quote similar to Chödrön’s “You are the sky. Everything else—it’s just the weather.” Burgess writes: “Whether high or low tide, it’s all the ocean. And it holds depths.”
Understanding this helps me have compassion for others, but also for myself.
In my 20s, I had a boyfriend who often told me I was too emotional. It was not a compliment. I resented him for this criticism, but reflecting on it now, maybe he was right (even if he didn’t know it). The Queen of Swords uses both logical and emotional intelligence to navigate life. When I was younger, my emotional side often took over in times of conflict, and I might have benefited from leaning more into my logical side.
I doubt this boyfriend had this in mind when he issued this complaint. It’s more likely my displays of emotion discomfited him, and instead of examining his own feelings, it was easier for him to label me as the problem and be done with it. I don’t fault him for this—we all do this when we’re reluctant to face our own shit. And for the record, he had lots of it.
BRINGING QUEEN OF SWORDS ENERGY INTO OUR WORK
A few things come to mind when considering the Queen of Swords and our work. First, as writers, we are the Queen of Swords because we must see our story and characters from enough distance to make informed—or balanced—decisions. We are the decision-makers, the wise-minded authors determining each word and action and twist, even if it often feels like our characters are in charge.
The Queen of Swords energy is useful in other ways, too. As creators, we are so close to our work that we sometimes lose the ability to view it objectively. Every critique, every rejection, and every review feels personal. And when we take things personally, it’s often the emotional part of ourselves that reacts. That’s normal, but taking a step back so we can sprinkle some logic on a given situation will help us weather the storm so we can keep creating. If we’re always on the brink of despair because something didn’t go as we’d hoped, it leaves little room for creativity.
Let’s apply my summary of THE MODERN WITCH TAROT DECK’S entry to our work. First, do not let truth come at the expense of compassion. To me, this means that whatever the truth of a given situation is, we must give ourselves grace, kindness, and compassion as we process disappointments and perceived failures. And when things do go our way, we must lean into humility and gratitude while also reminding ourselves we deserve good things.
Second, understanding comes from the ability to step back and see the entire picture. Set your emotions aside and try to view things with clarity and honesty. Having this objectivity will not only help us navigate the ups and downs of the writing life and the publishing industry but also to live better, more satisfying lives outside of our work.
None of this is easy, but the work is worth it. Believe that.
Tuesday Recommendations
E.A. Aymar’s substack is sometimes funny, and as you’ll see in this post, “How to Talk to Your Children About War,” sometimes heartbreaking. But it’s always honest.
I always find something valuable in Jessica Dore’s “Offerings.” “Start Where the Pain Is,” is particularly moving during this time when so many of us want to help but don’t know where to start.