The Emperor's New Role

This has been quite a busy, hectic and frustrating month and it’s just the 8th day as I write this. What more is to come? That may explain why I’m a bit late in getting to this post about my card for last month. 

Rider Waite Smith Tarot

My card for July was the Emperor Reversed. In thinking of the archetype of an emperor, he is responsible for the running of his empire. As an authority figure, he sets the law and order, sees to appropriate discipline, makes sure people are doing their jobs and delegates his authority where and when appropriate. In the traditional card we see him sitting on his throne, yet still dressed in armor apparently ready to do battle at any moment. The rams’ heads on his throne are connected to Aries, one of the fire signs of the zodiac. Aries is known for impulsive actions. The Emperor is also associated with the number four, a number denoting stability. Even though tripods are somewhat stable with their three legs, chairs are more stable with four.

In an upright position, he would bring any or all of those above energies to a reading suggesting it’s time to take action, get the ball rolling and generally take charge of the situation at hand. In other words, it's time to assume authority. Yet, in a reversed position, he would suggest the opposite might be what’s going on. There might be a lack of direction, a lack of responsibility or accountability in current situation. Or possibly, there could be a great sense of instability with the situation at hand. He could even suggest an energy of someone more dictatorial, abusive of their power.

In the Grimalkin Tarot, by MJ Cullinane, we see a fiery orange cat with a white "beard" staring right at us, almost with a look of “Why aren’t you doing what needs to be done?” Cats can be so demanding and before any haters hate on me, I am definitely a cat person. I think this cat’s determined look adds a bit to this particular Emperor’s energy in calling me out for not getting things done. We also see two rams in this card again reminding us of the connection to Aries’ energy of rushing in perhaps a bit too soon to fully see what the situation fully entailed.

The Grimalkin Tarot,
(c) 2020, MJ Cullinane

Yet, as I look back at July, there was nothing I could do with the situation that predominated the month. I had paid for laminate flooring to be installed in my house. That was back in May when I was tapping into the energy of the 7 of Cups, confronted with many choices or options. There are plethoras of choices when it comes to flooring and other home remodeling options. The materials took almost a month to arrive and then another week just to schedule an installation date and this took place in June under the influence of the King of Wands’ energy which also likes to get things done. He’s more Leo than Aries making him a bit more calculated than impulsive but still a take charge kind of guy. But, the first available installation date was towards the end of July. In the meantime, everything had to be inside my home and not in the garage in order to acclimate to the temperature of my house. As I was placed on a waitlist, I moved it all inside immediately. For nearly a month, I lived with everything from the upstairs rooms in boxes plus four bedrooms, two bathrooms, two closets, one hallway and a stairway’s worth of flooring materials in my living room.

Crikey!

And yet, there was nothing I could do to hurry up time. Yes, there was disorder in my house and life and with this back-to-back fire energies from the King of Wands to the Emperor Reversed, it's no wonder I was losing patience. But, my hands were tied, so to speak. Perhaps the Emperor Reversed was signaling a desire to take charge and get things done, but accepting that I could not. Not a typical meaning for the Emperor Reversed.

My Bedroom

The appointed day arrived and the crew showed up exactly on time. I was anticipating a five day job given all the rooms and a staircase. Yet, this crew of two men and an occasional third finished in three even putting in a twelve hour day on the final one! I was ecstatic. I am very pleased with the results and have finally put things back in their places and made a few small changes as well.

My Office

Now on to the rest of August and a frisky, all-knowing Page of Swords.

The Grimalkin Tarot,
(c) 2020, MJ Cullinane

May the gods help me. Especially, next week.

For information on MJ Cullinane and her tarot decks, click here.