Tree City Witch: How To Be the Queen of Wands

Tree City Witch: How To Be the Queen of Wands April 21, 2017

I honestly wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to get a blog post up this week. As I was writing on my Facebook this morning (look up MoonPluto Astrology and you’ll find me), all these planetary retrogrades have me feeling disoriented, disjointed. Powerful Pluto went retrograde today, April 20th, joining Mercury and Jupiter and Saturn.

As I sit here typing this, I wonder if I’ve forgotten any, some hidden retrograde planet that has slipped my mind. Venus, hallelujah, has been direct for a few days now but makes a harsh aspect to Saturn on the 21st.

Still from the 1918 film, "Queen of the Sea."
Still from the 1918 film, “Queen of the Sea.”

How does this play out? Maybe just an extra dose of seriousness, somberness, although some of you may feel downright defeated. Or broke. I hope that’s not the case, but if it is, please know that Venus moves relatively quickly and she will leave Saturn’s grasp over the weekend.

The topic of Venus however, the astrological Venus, leads me to the topic of this blog post today and some homework for you. I love homework.

First, let me be honest. No shame. My natal Venus, the Venus of my birth chart, is not the happiest Venus in the galaxy. Years ago, a famous New York astrologer said to me that my Venus was here to learn the agony and the ecstasy of love. It made sense to me back then. Still does.

Fast forward to the other day: there I was, in my on-line classroom, and we’re talking about our recent Venus retrograde experiences and one of my students posted a link to to an article about “attachment styles” and how we all have them.

Here’s an example: someone can have an intense attachment style, “clingy,” versus a more detached or dismissive style. I think it’s logical to assume that the clingy and the dismissive will never be happy together, and yet I also believe they are often drawn to each other to make up for what they lack and, in a perfect world, to heal.

Eventually, we hope, there comes a time when our souls get tired of these “karmic” entanglements (and by karmic I mean LESSONS) and we graduate to something more reliable, more sweet.

I took this information to heart — what attachment style was I? — and I took it to the cards. It’s what I do. Not all Witches do divination. Not all Witches love Tarot. But I do.

I asked my oversize Rider Waite deck that afternoon: how can I attract someone who fits me BETTER, whose attachment style is compatible with mine? How do I need to be? Who do I need to be? And, by extension, WHO AM I? It’s a lot for a ONE CARD DRAW but I’m ambitious like that. Not that I wanted to change my very nature but surely there is something I must tweak or learn. Surely.

I drew the Queen of Wands. Hmm. I do have my Venus in fiery prideful creative Leo but she lives in the solitude-loving Twelfth House, the House of the Mystic.

When I think of the Queen of Wands, even before I reach for any of the books in my occult library, I think of creativity and courage. I think of strength. I think of the color red, which is the root chakra and something else we’ve been talking about in class. When I think of the Queen of Wands, I think of power. She decides what and who she wants. She doesn’t wait to be chosen. She chooses. She is generous, yes, and romantic but she doesn’t blend and she doesn’t bend. She stands out. Perhaps not 100% uncompromising, but she doesn’t suffer fools.

Tarot writers also often point out that she is our sexual queen, and I think her sexuality is integrated, healthy. In the Rider Waite she is the only queen pictured with her knees apart.

The Queen of Swords, by contrast, is sad. I know she is super smart, but she is wise from sorrow. No thanks. The Queen of Cups is a goddess, clearly, but there’s something of Ibsen’s A Doll House about her. She’s a little bird, not so grounded, floating away on a cloud. Then we have self sufficient, money making, bread baking Queen of Pentacles. Good with garden tools. Yay?

The Queen of Wands is happy. The Queen of Wands is alive. With or without you.

It’s the Queen of Wands who opens her heart and opens her legs and when seen in the upright position, loses nothing despite everything she gives. She maintains her center, confident in her root chakra’s ability to regenerate. When drawn reversed, inverted, she will scatter her dynamic energy. She will overdo it and not get paid back for her fire.

Here is your homework, my dear Witches:

I want you to ask your deck the same or similar question because I know some of you reading this have the same or similar question: what energy or spirit or attachment style must you embody to better get what you want in this life? Draw just once. One card. Even if it’s a “bad” card.

What do you see? Is it a familiar face? Are you surprised? What does the card say? Use your words. How does it feel? Touch the card. Look at the details. And then draw again. This second card is your advice. The How. The How-To Get-There.

As of this writing I can confidently say that I haven’t got it all figured out yet. And I may not. Maybe I’m not supposed to. We’ll see. Stay tuned.


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