The Eight of Cups

As a middle-aged adult, at times I feel I’ve lost touch with the feelings of mystery or intrigue inherent in youth.  Most days I’m lost in the minutiae of the day-to-day, which is a fairly consistent and predictable experience. As a result, searching, finding meaning, or noticing synchronicities has become harder and harder to access. 

It has led to the sense that life has become stagnant and the everyday magic of life seems to disappear. For me, the use of tarot is a way to insert that feeling of magic and intrigue back into my life.

The Eight of Cups contains a figure wearing a red cloak, a color representing passion and vigor, leaving a series of eight upright cups and climbing toward the green hills to higher ground. The moon moves across the sun depicting a lunar eclipse, a symbol of renewal and water surrounds the figure as she moves ahead. Pollack (2019) in her book Seventy-Eight Degrees of Tarot suggests this card represents the search for knowing who we are, both on the conscious and unconscious levels, a journey likely to take a lifetime. 

As I meditate on this card, I am struck with the question of how I continue to prioritize the experience of seeking. This card is a gateway into the unknown. Despite the relative stability and consistency in my life, the unknown is always present. The search, which often doesn’t exist in the outer activities of life (marriage, career, etc) is, as I am learning, always available within.