Something Else
“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” Ephesians 6:12
Seventy-eight cards. Depending on how you lay them down and for whom you lay them down, they can mean a variety of things. Each card has its own meaning. “La Mort” – the Death Card, now that sounds like trouble! “Le Chariot”, an attractive card. “Le Soleil”, what can that signify? Maybe it’s most important to learn what each card means? Or is it better to learn how to spread the cards?
She couldn’t sleep, so June dumped the cards from the Rider Waite box onto the bed. Being the nightowl that she was, she thought she would use this time to look at the cards, half listening to the steady, nonsensical babble from infomercials on her 19-inch television on the tv stand across the room.
She always kept the lamp on the nightstand lit. The ceiling lamp was too penetrating and annoying. The bed provided a good surface because it was hard, and the bed was still made from that morning. She wanted to find out something that night. If those cards could tell her that her favorite snack was Dorito’s, that would suffice. Maybe they would tell her more. Would she find new romance before the end of the year? It sure would beat spending Christmas alone again.
She made a design with the cards that resembled a cross having a verticle staff next to it. Ten cards made up the cross and staff. Now it was time to reveal the cards. The present, the past, challenges, hopes, fears, and the final outcome! Being honest with herself, June had to admit that the whole thing just didn’t make much sense at all. She found herself reading into the whole thing too much, and she was giving herself more answers than she was actually getting from the cards. Then she had a strange feeling. It was no different from the feeling she got when approached quietly from behind. There is no sound, but a part of us always senses that presence. She looked around the room, but there was nothing there. The hair on her arms stood up and she noticed that she had goosebumps, and a chill darted through her body. Just then, the door to her room, which was closed and locked, made a thump as if it were pushed from the outside. “Oh, man!”, she grunted. “Why me?” She got up to check the door, knowing that creaking doors and floors are inherent in any older home. Still, it angered her somewhat because at the same time, she felt like someone was playing with her. With the sensation of being watched, she went to the door, opened it, closed it, and pushed on it. There, no more sounds for tonight, she thought.
June went back to her bed, and continued the reading. Getting back to the task was as difficult for her as it is to maintain ones concentration when someone watches you read. It was colder now. She needed to wrap up in some of those blankets on the neatly made bed. She got under the covers and kept looking at her spread, occasionally looking in a reference book to check for meanings. Yes, it is hard to read when being watched. A slight breeze of cold air brushed her cheek. Impossible. The windows are closed, and there are never any drafts inside the house.
Her heart started to beat wildly, for she was scared. Scared, but trying to hide it, as if whatever was causing her fear would go away if she acted tough. The floor creaked outside her door in the hallway. Yes, it is an old house, so that is always to be expected, especially on a cold and windy night. It is just her imagination. Yes, time to go to bed. Lights out.
June got under the covers, wrapped them tighly around her body, and put an extra pillow over her ear to drown out any sounds that might enter, real or imagined. To her surprise, there was a sound which entered. It was a sound of inhaling and exhaling. She held her breath and listened, discovering that the breathing sounds were not her own.
The next day, June boxed up the cards. She took them to her friend Sam and gave them to her. No, she was not about to let anything else enter through that portal again.
