Today's Tarot: The Star (dreams, plans, self-determination)

I chose the Star back on January 10th so if you want to read that write-up and apply it to your life today, please find it here.

Here is today’s take on the card.

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately about how what we do makes us who we are. If you make movies, you are a filmmaker. If you write, you are a writer or an author. If you trade on the stock market, you’re a trader. And so on.

We tend to self-identify with what we do. Sure, humans love to categorize. We need to pile likes with likes and then we go a step further and we ascribe value to those various piles. Some end up being deemed more valuable than others. A lawyer or doctor might be deemed as more worthwhile than, say, a writer, or a teacher. And being a lawyer or a doctor might be valued more highly than deciding to spend your life teaching third graders. And my question is, why?

Why do we tend to place those value judgments on professions (Is it just salary? Or is there some other reason?)? And furthermore, why do we let ourselves be judged by what we do?

Having asked these questions, I have to wonder at my own reaction. I have chosen a career (or careers, because I have several going on simultaneously) which will keep in the not-so-important category. At one point, I had thought to become a lawyer (and even got into the law school at American University) but music-making lured me away. And for the most part, I have not regretted the decision. However, there have been times, late at night when I’ve navel-gazed and wondered about what could have been. I’ve always come out the other side thinking that I’ve made the right choices for myself, but it hasn’t stopped me from periodically wondering.

The previous has been my own process in thinking about “The Star” card. Generally speaking, I believe the card is about reaching for your dreams while keeping your feet on the ground. So, yes, go for what you want, but be sure you have a solid plan in place to help you get there. In the end, it’s about self-determination. Sure, you might choose the road less traveled. And sure, that might make all the difference. And in fact, I personally encourage you to thrown caution to those particular winds today. However, remember making those choices means taking those chances. And being reckless is great as long as you have some plan in place if you fall. Falling isn’t the problem. We all fall. And in fact, my friend John said it best when he was talking about skiing. “If you don’t fall when you ski, you aren’t skiing hard enough.” The key is to have a plan to help yourself back up if you fall back down to Earth after you’ve reached for the stars.