The Fool, Part 2

You can give away only what you own.  It's a principle at play in "The Story of O" and it is a principle I was reminded of by my mentor this weekend.  You can give away only what you own:  and if you don't own yourself (and know yourself, and understand yourself, and take stock of yourself, and regularly prepare yourself) then you can't submit your true self to a powerful and creative dominating force.

Reading "Fifty Shades of Grey" drives home, really, what it means for a woman to submit to a man: the man (Mr. Grey) wishes to provide for Ana, in every sense of the word.  Provide shelter; provide attention; provide food; provide physical fitness; provide physical maintenance; provide intellectual stimulation; provide for all the basic needs for survival, in short, as well as the luxuries that will maintain and increase her beauty.  (The tension in the novel arises from her need for, rather, love.)  The novel drives home, however, what dangers lurk for a young submissive, inexperienced and unsure.  The greatest danger is in how (and whether) the submissive thinks.
Does the submissive have the nerve to negotiate her own terms?  Does the submissive intend to have all her thinking done for her by the Dominant, or will she continue to formulate her own opinions, ask questions, and explore her world with her own eyes as well as with those of her Dominant?  How she thinks is pretty important: her self-esteem is on the line.  To surrender yourself is to expose your ego to shaping, refinement, an external force molding (and sometimes re-creating) parts of you.  If you have surrendered yourself to someone who does not know how to articulate honesty, complex issues, or even simple issues so that you can understand what is at stake, beware.

A woman sometimes wants to be re-shaped: maybe something was molded badly, before, and maybe there is someone in the world who knows how to fix that.  Over time; with careful mastery.  Over lots of time, after much trust, and with delicate skill.  Maybe there is someone in the world who knows how to remove that jarring shard without leaving nerve-damage in the wake.  That someone is, truly, a Master who can turn something beautiful into something even more beautiful.

When the Fool's card appears in the tarot spread, the seeker must ask oneself if the path has been obscured.  The seeker must understand whether significant change is on the horizon or whether it is simply time to strip down to the heart's core and, now, examine.  The seeker mimics the fool's journey as the spread reveals trial and test; and only at the end of the journey does the fool finally know, reunited with that almighty string-Master who has controlled fortune from the very beginning.  Oh to You, in the future, You who makes me breathe, Oh!  I learn for You, and I strive for You, and my aim is where You look.

May your April Fools be gentle in their mischief!