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The Fool Upright: The Fool is the card of amazing
breakthroughs, often caused by flashes of brilliance so far beyond the norm
that they may seem a little nuts. Think
of Icarus, the mythical figure on our card, who strapped some home-made wings
to his back and stepped off a cliff determined to fly. Or Christopher Columbus, bravely sailing west
with his tiny, leaking fleet. Most
people were confident that Columbus
would either starve, drown or end up as lunch for a sea monster. Luckily for him, he bumped into the West
Indies before his sailors decided that roast Columbus sounded tasty. Was it luck or was it
genius? With the Fool, it's often hard
to tell.
The Fool Reversed:
The Fool Ill-Dignified warns of rash
actions, impulsive behavior, dangerous and unnecessary risk-taking--in
short,
of foolishness. Although genius can
sometimes look like insanity to the less gifted--think Ben Franklin
flying a kite in the middle of a raging thunderstorm--the Fool reminds
us that the reverse is also often true.
The image on this card depicts Icarus about to step off the
cliff, his home-made wings in place, his heart confidant that he is
about to soar like an eagle. It was
doubtless a wonderful feeling, the sun on his face, the wind in his
hair . . .
at least for the few moments it took for the wax he'd used for glue to
melt. Then, of course, there was that
whole plummeting to a messy death thing.
Remember, the Wright Brothers also wanted to fly, but they A) started
on
the ground and B) used nails. |
