Kitchen Table Tarot

The Tower, 2 of Wands, 8 of Swords (and special guest, The Devil)

Hello friend, and welcome to my kitchen table. I hope that if this message resonates with you, it might give you some solace and insight. If it doesn’t sound familiar, please don’t force it to fit—but you are welcome to take from it what might help you, if anything. In either case, I’m glad you’re here; let’s jump in.

The Tower might seem like a scary card of disaster, but often it’s not telling you about anything you don’t already see coming. It is a shaky, damaged structure that must come down eventually—if not now, then later, and it is best to be in some way prepared for it than to pretend it will never happen. This could signify the end of a relationship, a particular job, or a journey of some kind in your life that may never have been yours to take in the first place. You might be wrestling with inevitability, unwilling to let go of something that no longer serves you simply because it is familiar or others have urged you to “stick it out.” The only person who can make that call is you. Though it is certainly a sign of strength to persevere through difficulties, there can be a point at which carrying on is just foolish. Staying at the top of the tower when you can feel its foundations shake will only hurt you—and perhaps others around you—when it comes crashing down.

With this in mind, the 2 of Wands indicates that it is a good idea to take stock and be cognizant of outcomes attached to this tower fall. It is a time to look toward the future and take the reins on your path. Though you may not be able to take immediate action on whatever your Tower is, you have the ability to collect yourself and envision your life beyond this moment. This backs up the sense I get that you can see the imminent crash, so look within and make some bold choices about your own path. Pack a metaphorical emergency bag and keep it by the door, so to speak. If your Tower moment is connected to someone or something you have been attached to for a good long while, you may feel lacking in the confidence it would take to strike out on your own. Know that you are never alone; there will always be someone outside of your situation to lend the perspective and wisdom you might need to see that everything you need is right there inside you.

However, the 8 of Swords represents some fair amount of difficulty in getting past the Tower and coming into your own self-sufficiency. This is a card that often speaks to victimization of the self—have you been convinced of your own powerlessness by people who, if truly on your side, would be doing more to shore up your confidence and remind you of how capable you are? It is time to stop listening to naysayers and come to your own rescue. When I was considering these cards I remembered an old Looney Tunes cartoon called A Hound for Trouble, where a cheeky American dog named Charlie, having snuck onto a ship that arrives in Italy, is convinced by the end of the cartoon that he must hold up the Leaning Tower of Pisa or it will fall down. Connecting this card to the Tower, you might feel in some way responsible for keeping it from falling over. If you get too in your own head about the situation you may forgo your Two of Wands planning for some kind of cockamamie scheme aimed at preventing life from going on as it should. You might think that you have no choice in a matter, or that something here really depends on you to keep it afloat. An attachment to a relationship, an identity, or an iteration of self either past or desired could keep you imprisoned in a state that no longer serves; this card urges you to recognize your own strengths and to look closer at obstacles that may turn out to be completely illusory.

As for the Devil—not pictured—this one didn’t come out but it flipped face up in the deck as I was shuffling, which tells me it wanted to be seen and acknowledged as contributing to the overall energy, but not necessarily as a major player. In this case it feels to me as though the Devil wants to see you free yourself, and believes in your self-sufficiency and ability to slip out of your own shackles. Like the Tower, the Devil isn’t always a terrible or “evil” card; it can actually speak to playfulness and honoring the human spirit. Here it describes you regaining some semblance of your strength or a past self, the one that would never have consented to the binding that has you in an 8 of Swords. Overall: the Tower moment is coming, but you have time to look for it (if you’re not already aware of its presence) and time to prepare—just be careful not to keep yourself trapped up in the top, and remember that it’s okay to prioritize yourself and what you want rather than remaining in a crumbling structure for the sake of others.

If any of this was for you, I hope you found it helpful—a little guiding light on the path. Though my wording may occasionally sound absolute, the truth here is that only you can decide for yourself what is relevant and what is possible. I do my best to describe what options are available to you, and give you the encouragement to believe in yourself. But sometimes leaving a relationship or quitting a terrible job, to name two situations that might apply, isn’t always immediately possible. Rent must be paid and personal obligations fulfilled. If anything here strikes you as true but impossible to act upon, take heed of the Two of Wands. Thinking about and planning for different paths and dreams are things you can do whether or not material action is possible for you right now. If anything, know that I believe in your humanity and your right to personal liberty. You are worth the life you want to have, and nothing is truly impossible with enough preparation. Go with peace and love, dear one, and do come back to see me at my kitchen table. -KTT 🌻💛