[Free Flight]

Hi All

thought I would start a thread on this card, I hope this is OK. I just adore my druidcraft and am keen to look into them deeper.

I am not sure who each person is in this card. In other decks usually you have a husband/wife and children surrounding them. However here I have differing idea on who we have in the card...Mostly IMHO I feel there is an old man (grandfather), a wife/husband a little girl and a dog. However sometimes I think there is the old man with 3 children...I guess this does not matter so who each is meant to represent though.

But does anyone else think the old man looks bored. To be he doesnt look cotent nor happy. He looks sad and bored?

Anyone else?

[WalesWoman]

This card is such a good one... there is so much there... so many stories in it.

I think the old man is the patriarch of the family... the one they all lean on for advice and support... yet since he is on that couch, that he has retired and needs them to take care of him. So I think that the young man and the woman inside the house, hanging up the pentacle are his children, the young girl shaking her finger at the old dog, his grandchild.

He looks tired, reflective and yes... bored. I think of him as feeling... more of the same old thing or that something is getting old and worn out... tiresome.

I can't do a better study on this card at the moment... but will be back with more thoughts this evening. This card inspires many different ways to percieve it.

Here is an image:

[Cascade]

There is a sense of family here. The young girl sits reading out loud to grampa. Daddy stands behind them, coaching on the hard words. He has already been passed the 'baton' in the form of the "Pentacle Pouch", that he wears proudly over his shoulder.

The woman in the back made me sadly think that she was 'marking time'. Sort of like when you'd measure your heighth on the wall. Here they are glad to put another mark up, means he is still with them.

And lots of blue. Even the dog. Which looks as mangy as the old one. I bet neither would last long without the other. I would call this card Nostalgia.

[cyan]

in this final card of the Pentacles suite i see an elderly gentleman who has achieved material comfort but hasn't found it as forfilling as he expected it to be. perhaps he needs something more.. different? he watches the young girl playing with the wolfhound but his mind clearly isn't on her. the younger man with the magical dispatch pouch has just arrived, he looks exausted, the hair on his forehead damp and dark with sweat. his eyes are circled with wearyness and he leans on the old man's chair for support. but they pay him no attention. who is he, where has he come from, and what does he carry that he has worn himself out to bring it to them in a timely fashion?

the younger man's tunic is a practical, workingman's brown and is either worn, or was badly dyed because the color isn't uniform. the other's in the picture wear the brilliant colors only the rich could afford.

[VoodooGyal]

Personally, I see that the old man is weary from all the hard work he put into giving his family the material support. There is wealth flowing from the old man to his family, as indicated by his rich blue garment. Perhaps his concern was making sure that his family will live in comfort and maintaining stability. His work is done and he is taking the time to sit down and reflect (hand on his forehead) on his long term achievements. The weariness as an indication of his long term sacrification.

Just a thought, maybe the sadness in his eyes could be because he knows he won't live too long?

[WalesWoman]

These are some very interesting ideas so far, I like the way everyone here is getting almost personally involved with the images in this card.


Every picture tells a story and this one is sure to tell a new story to everyone who looks at it, every time I find something more and another way to look at this.

Sometimes I think the woman is not only "putting up" with stuff, but putting things back to store... keeping the valuables hidden or out of sight, sort of like a savings account sort of thing. In another way she is almost entering a High Priestess area, going within the darkness of the doorway to find or perserve some treasure. The two pentacles on the door posts... balance in the house... balancing frugality with pleasure... what can come with the balancing of earth with emotions... things built from the beginnings. The feminine force of creation and procreation... the 2 and 1 become three. Perhaps instead of hanging up the Pentacle, she is taking it down... that something new and growing is hidden within her in the darkness... to emerge as something or someone young, with much to learn and grow from. As in a pregnancy.

I also find it very interesting the way the placement of the pentacles adds to the story here. The couch with the patriarch has 4 Pentacles on one side... the conservation and foundation. He has one as a fastening pin on his shoulder, that what he has is fastened to him, also pointing to him as the beginning, that everything hangs from. Then there is another pentacle for the other side of this couch... fortelling the future loss, as the lesson of life... that death and loss are part of the cycle and must come and be accepted. So it might not only be sadness or boredom in his eyes, but resolution to accept his fate, that his purpose has been surved. Does he have regrets for things he didn't do or accomplish?

All the pentacles associated with the old man, add to 6... the balance of giving with getting... he needs them for what they can give him, they need him for what he has yet to offer. Also there is the balance of power, the balance of everything here, as central to it all.
Because I still feel that the girl is admonishing that grizzly old dog... as if he still can learn a few new tricks and remedy anything left undone or changes in attitudes and behavior.

The pouch the younger man carries is also a 1... the seeds for the future... in one sense... it takes $ to make $... and also the passing of the purse/inheritance from one generation to the next. Or even a Trust, relying on the past to build for the future. It could very well be he is a messenger, telling the old man it's time for a change, that transformation is coming soon, but it makes me feel more he is holding on to the support and wisdom the old man has to offer him. That he is now the one to carry on the practical tasks of continuation of this legacy... the actual work that goes with keeping all in order and on task. The combination of the old man and young man... adds to 7... the waiting that come with this... the young man cannot fully assume the mantle of authority of the patriarch until his passing.

Down in the corner are snowdrops, the first sign of spring... that whatever has gotten old and tiresome is going to be renewed with fresh growth and the promise of summer to come... winter is over, to hold with hope and not give up. Something new is on it's way.

The sky looks more like a sunset... the end of the day, the end of an era, the change of order is here.

[WolfSpirit]

Great insights so far
I think the face of the old man is priceless. He seems to say to me: I wish they would all go away for now and let me take my nap in peace. It reminds me of those family gatherings where you are happy to see your relatives but eat too much, drink too much and just get tired at some point and you feel like having a rest while everyone is shouting and being busy (or is that just me ) So I guess it says to me, it is great to have family but it is also a warning to take time for yourself sometimes.

I love the dog, it looks like he walked over from the Druid Animal Oracle where there is a dog just like this one.
The snowdrops - signify new beginnings. Also, snowdrops don't grow in single bulbs on their own, the bulbs grow in masses, like a family together, but from each bulb grows a flower of its own.

[coyoteblack]

I get the impression this man worked hard to provide for his family and even though he is tired he is happy

I think after workig his entire life he comes to the conclusion that his family being taken care of is the utmost in hapiness and he would do it all over again

[Arania]

I somewhat believe this is the King of Pentacles after retirement. Yet, he's not left alone, the young man coming to him with a request for advice from the new king, his son - that's why there is this "leave me alone" feeling to it. It's good to be appreciated, but family can also be a pain.

[Fallen Angel]

I was just looking for some more insight into this card, happy to see there was already a thread on it.

I pulled this as the outcome for a spread I did relating to me and my partner. I was wondering if it could be taken as meaning "family" as in view of us gowing old together and having a family?

Or am I just being a complete romantic??? I mean the spread was pretty positive, mainly cups orientated.

FA.x

You can see the reading here...http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread...822#post988822