Today’s Tarot: 8 of Cups

It’s always a difficult thing to move on, even when you know you must, and that’s what this card depicts. Meditation on this card makes me think of all the times when I had to leave behind something I had invested in, whether it was a relationship, a job, or a friendship. Permeating this card is the feeling of loss and disappointment. Traditionally, it also represents a spiritual quest.

Many years ago, I was in a bad marriage. I was trying to make it work even though it wasn’t working for me — and I thought foolishly that by faking it I could make it work for both of us. Things went south, and a close friend advised me “When someone is treating you like they want you to go, don’t be the asshole that stays.” That could be one of the taglines for this card. Note how the merman doesn’t have the tail of a fish, but instead the arms of an octopus, used to grasp the cups. He doesn’t face the cups, but instead his future,a moon glows with the sign of Pisces above. There is change coming. It must come. It will always come.

When I think of this card I try not to dwell on the challenge presented by change itself, but on the maturity required to recognize when a situation needs to be changed, and then take on that change — even if it’s difficult.