Today’s title is a take-off of a line that Daniel and I sometimes see on the few selective shows we watch. Then we shout across the room at each other “BE DISCRETE!” We never are though. We are as indiscrete as possible. Disturbingly so at times. But I wanted to give fair warning, even e-mailed some family and in-town folks in case they tuned in here without knowing what had transpired since we had last spoken (it all happened pretty fast).
We will be discussing my Empress today, and the gorgeous dichotomy that is my youngest witchling. You’ve recently read about her on the birthday posts. And true, she actually is the kindest young woman imaginable. An Empath, to be exact. She and my brilliant Hurricane are pescaterians, they do not eat meat. Emmy chose that path originally because she couldn’t be at peace with the fact that an animal died in order for her to eat. She doesn’t mind too much that salmons are harvested (not ranched though, those are just bad practices), they aren’t cute. Both of my daughters are extremely careful with the dairy products and eggs they buy as well.
I have written before about how she cared for a sweet, and very wonderful dog, in a hospice foster situation. (In the History Quilt you can find those posts, his name was Harley and he was awesome. As is his care-giver.) But there is another side to the girl who works at the dog wash. A side that might not, at first, fit her amiable and compassionate nature. She has trained, off and on, for the past few (five?) years in Mixed Martial Arts.
That’s right, mild-mannered and tender-hearted Emmy flings around on a gym mat with local cage fighters. And she’s damn good too! In all the time she’s been sparring and jousting and wrestling all over the place, she has sustained very few injuries. Until last night. I got a text late in the evening that said “I might have got a huge cut above my eye at the gym today…”
Let’s compare, shall we? Because it made us both laugh, how she had sneaked that picture onto my camera, just hours before her appearance took a drastic turn.
Yesterday
And now, in a more current shot, but with her phone, and from home, after she had put a bandage on her face.
Today
She kinda looks a little like Rocky doesn’t she? If Rocky was a very pretty young woman and had blue eyes, with a few decorative freckles thrown in for the fun of it.
Pause! Hold the presses. I wrote all of that last night, and today I received some updated pictures. 
The next one isn’t much better, sorry. No bandage, and now it’s starting to bruise brightly. 
We’ll keep you posted on how the healing goes. And how her work-outs are progressing as well, now that she has stepped back into the ring (or octagon or cage or whatever the hell they call that thing).
On to something I saw yesterday, just to keep up with the ick-factor theme. As I was driving by the jogging trail there were two guys standing on the path. One looked directly at me, put his hand up to his face, and snotted out into the street. I know people do this (mostly male people, not always though). But really?! How gross is it to do that so blatantly! Ew and stop!
One last item of business then on to our card. I have FINALLY finished Barbara Samuel O’Neal’s book The Secret to Everything. Holy crap that took longer than it should. And not because it was a bad story, the complete opposite. It’s outstanding! I’m going to blame Mercury, as I am also doing for the confusion of communication that messed with me recently.
We are back to the Robin Wood Tarot, and it’s one of Daniel’s guises, the At Home Dan. 
King of Wands
When a “person” card comes up in a reading, I like to look at it and see if it represents the individual sitting in front of me, or someone in their life. Often it will have an aspect of both, characteristics will jump out, telling me important things, on many levels. Another way I “read” is to use the illustration. What is significant this time? Who is being talked about here? And are there other clues? Like in this one, the heat is evident. It is summer and hot and there is not a scrap of greenery to be seen.
Also, as I glance over right now, the salamander at the bottom wants to make itself known. These are the manifestations of fire, and they speak of cleansing in a fast hot way. They are able to jump in and out of the flames, never getting singed or burnt. The message this little being wants us to know is that of remembering these skills and talents. We may have our eyebrows scorched off when facing dragons, but they will grow back (or we can draw them in later).
The King stands with one hand out, palm up, as if to receive. He is welcoming and open in his manner. He and the accompanying salamander are expressing a forgiveness and a kind acceptance of the heat we are involved with. “Let it burn itself out” they say. It is the proverbial “flash in the pan” and it will soon return to ashes, useful and non-threatening.
(I just realized I keep typing “The Kind” instead of The King… subliminal much?)
The suit of wands is all about inspiration, those brilliant ideas and sparks of creativity we all have. No matter what the venue or direction your imaginings take, drawing Wands reminds us to go with them. New creations, thoughts of a completely fantastic configuration, are what keep us engaged. When we open up to these flashes, and follow where they lead us, we are accepting the gifts that are meant to be ours. We are listening to our Team. We are tuning in to the guidance that is always available to us. We are being welcoming as The King suggests.
Accept the sparks and allow them to grow, knowing that we will not be burnt up in the flames of this brilliance. But we will be lit from within, we will glow. We can use the tricks of the salamander, knowing that if things get too hot, we can always jump out to safety.
