Heartwings says, “There is sunshine behind the clouds, when you look for it.”

I’ve been reading Tarot Cards since the Seventies, both professionally and for my own edification. The cards can be used to clarify situations. For instance, the five of cups in my Tarot deck refers to disappointment. Generally, it shows three spilled goblets and two full ones. The person on the card is looking at the spilled ones and not at the two full ones on the shelf behind him. The implication is that while there may be something amiss, all is not lost. It is imperative to look at the full ones to see what has been saved or perhaps even gained.

Oddly, as soon as I had chosen the theme for this article, I began experiencing disappointments. They were small, not major ones, yet still had to be dealt with. Something I had been counting on failed to materialize. It was more than anything a slap to my ego, yet it needed to be resolved. I have found that if I let small negative thoughts hang around, they can grow into big resentments.

Another difficulty is that negativity can attract more of the same. It’s like trash and litter. Left on the street, it will grow. Someone sees some and adds his or her contribution just because there is already some there. It’s the same in my home. If I leave something on my arm chair, next thing I know there are several more items there, too. If I keep the chair clear that does not usually happen.

I have several ways to deal with disappointment, and they all begin by acknowledging my feelings. If I try to gloss over my sadness or dismay, I can’t deal with it at all. I can’t pull the weeds in the garden of my life if I don’t or won’t see them. This was a lesson I had to learn the hard way, and there are times I get to repeat it. Being a naturally cheerful person, I had to learn not to trivialize feelings of disappointment and sweep them under the metaphorical rug. 

Once I learned to look directly at the spilled cups, I could look around for the full ones. Once I had dealt with my feelings of loss, I could look to see what I might have gained. That is what the full cups represent. It has been my experience that there is always a benefit—perhaps small but yet significant, that comes from any loss. In my case, one of the losses became an opportunity to avoid additional, unnecessary calories. Another led to several opportunities I would otherwise not have had.

Not every gain is immediately apparent, and they may take time to discover. Nor am I talking about major sorrows, such as a significant loss. I am speaking of disappointments that occur on a daily or weekly basis, small stones, or snares on the pathway of life. When I treat them as bringing me opportunities, that is what they will do.

May you seek the full cups and find them easily.

Blessings and best regards, Tasha Halpert

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