One of the most surreal aspects of closing in on my 67th birthday is realizing that I graduated from high school at the age of 17, meaning that I have (at least theoretically!) been an adult for 50 years! Half a century. I think of the young woman I was in 1973, pale, longish brown hair, glasses, and angst-ridden...and I am still pale, with longer brown hair and glasses. The only difference is that, for the most part, I am no longer angst-ridden. It's tempting to wonder, if my present self could speak to my 17-year-old self, what would she say? And I can certainly think of two or three crucial things that might have potentially changed my path. However, the fact is that, being who I was at that moment, I would never have understood the messages. Our paradigm being what it was and is, I really don't think I could or would have done much differently. Time and many hard "contrasts" were needed to bring clarity.
The other day, I bought the Motherpeace Tarot (and guidebook) at our local used book store. This would be an unusual set of cards if only from the standpoint of being circular; it is also feminist/Goddess oriented and only "dated" in the sense of originating in the 1970's, 80's and 90's. In a world still so male-dominated, the cards seem fresh, bright and alive, and I guess I needed them, needed a breath of fresh air in this frozen landscape.
I picked a card today after having listened to some extremely grim news on the radio. And it was: "Judgement" (major arcana). Yet in a gloriously new paradigm message, there (quite literally) is no judgment. The image shows a rainbow of light, love and life infusing earth from outer space. There is no harsh judgment or blame, only love bathing the world. Deep down, that is my belief system. That's it, in a nutshell. I think that was my belief system at 17 as well, only it took 50 years to realize it, and become OK with it.
If I were to speak to any high school senior right now, it would be to say that figuring out what you believe about life must happen before setting further career, educational, personal, or consumer goals. If those practical goals aren't consistent with your spiritual beliefs, you may never reach them. I guess I have said this before, but in my world, every 17- or 18-year-old would meet with a wise advisor before committing to college, jobs, marriage, or other adult steps. Time would be spent getting to the bottom of the person's core beliefs and passions. The culture at large would honor what each individual learned, and the steps they would need to take to grow into fulfilling adulthood (which, of course, would look different for each individual!) What would our world look like if a core cultural belief was that each human should be given the opportunity to reach their highest potential, in the field they love? What would the world look like if everyone believed that love is all there is?
But in the end, I cannot make anyone believe that. All I can do now is fully embody that belief in myself...and I'm finally old enough to do that!
