The X of Wands Has Too Many Projects

I have way too many things going on. I heard somewhere once that we humans fill up our free time, no matter how much we have. If we have 15 minutes of free time a day, we’ll develop a 15 minute hobby of some sort. If we have 8 hours, we’ll easily fill that time up with 8 hours of this and that. That has definitely been my experience, so I’ll concur with this anecdote. No matter how many hours of time I have in a day to do projects, I will invariable use every single minute of that time.

The X of Wands from the Rider Waite Smith tarot deck.

Actually, I tend to fill up all my time and then create a list of even more things that I didn’t get done but I’d like to when I have more free time. It’s rather exhausting. I feel like the figure on the X of Wands by Pamela Coleman Smith, like I have way too many Wands to carry. In fact, I can’t even stand up straight or see where I’m going since I’m so overwhelmed by the Wands. The Wands here represent my various inspirations, projects, goals, and dreams. I’m trying to do it all but the situation is precarious and draining.

What happened to glorious Saturday mornings when you wake up and wonder, “What should I do today?” What happened to being spontaneous and going with the flow? What even happened to being bored? Can you remember the last time you were bored?!

Instead, I have a project list 3 miles long. I’m always chipping away at something. There are, of course, always more things to write about tarot- every week I write a blog post. I’m also working on editing and revamping all of my Tarot Year Card offerings. Did you know I’m also working on my own tarot deck that will be loosely based on photographs of plants? I’m writing card interpretations for all 78 cards that will hopefully be useful as a guidebook to that deck. Then there are my rather pathetic attempts at advertising and marketing my tarot reading services and the occasional client reading. I’ve got a 2025 edition of The Willow Path Planner coming along just fine too. Oh, and I’m always thinking about my next monthly newsletter!

So yeah, there’s a lot. And that’s just The Willow Path Tarot projects I’ve got going!

The thing is, I don’t have to do any of this stuff. I make all these goals and create all these projects, and no one is making me do any of it! I’m not getting paid. No one is waiting with baited breath for my creations. I could stop doing all of these projects and no one would notice but me. Believe me, I’ve put them all down at one point or another and no one has made a peep of wonder about where I went and when all these projects are coming to fruition.

Here are some adorable photos of my dog Cosmo being overwhelmed by life but showing us all how to relax.

Does everyone do this? Is everyone out there setting goals and trying to make their dreams come true? Do we all have goals that we’re working towards, sometimes with more effort than other times, that just keep piling up? And if we do- why are we doing this to ourselves? Who said we have to be busy creating or doing stuff all the time in order to succeed? And what are we even trying to succeed at? What’s the ultimate end goal?

Actually, I’m going to stop that rant rabbit hole right there. I have my theories and opinions about that, but I don’t feel like getting into the capitalist, patriarchal, consumer-centered, military machine that is Western society. Instead, let’s talk about some things we can do to help alleviate the burden of all those Wands.

First off, when I see the X of Wands in a reading, my first advice is to PUT THEM DOWN. Put all that shit down for a minute girl, and rest your feet. If you can’t even see where you are going, there is no point in keeping yourself in motion. Who knows where you will end up!? Put down all your Wands, first and foremost. Then reflect on your life and figure out where you are trying to get. Then consider how much time and energy you have to get there.

Once you have a destination and know what resources you have to arrive there, then you can examine your Wands. Ask each project or dream if it is supporting you in getting to that destination. Ask yourself if you have the time and energy to work on that project right now. Set priorities. Only pick up what you can feasibly do with your current resources. Don’t do any tangent stuff that doesn’t really light you up. In my opinion, all projects need to either fill you with joy or get you a step closer to a destination that is joyful.

I know all that sounds rather simplistic. The truth is, you’re going to need to be brutal with the cutbacks if you’ve got as much going on as I do. If you’re lucky, you have energy and time to do these things if you cut back on the fluff of life like scrolling through social media or watching TV. I love those things too, but they don’t reaallllly make my life purposeful and get me where I want to go.

(There are definitely times when a TV show is getting me where I want to go. I’m getting inspiration and relevant information and feel pumped up afterwards. And, of course, you need to rest and relax sometimes, and TV can be that time. Just remember that old reruns of Sex and City will still be there when you’re done with these meaningful projects that speak to your soul.)

X of Wands from the Shadowscapes tarot deck.

So anyway, be judicial, but also brutal with the cutbacks. Take some things off the stack. Put them aside. It’s too much. You can’t do all that. It might feel mentally wrong but once you clear up space to do the high priority things well, you won’t feel bad about yourself for not doing the low priority things. You can either do them later, or realize that they aren’t that meaningful to you now that you’re kicking ass at what is really fulfilling to you.

Or you can keep slogging along and see how long you can go before you run yourself into the ground. That too is an option. Honestly, it’s my plan currently. I’m going to keep doing everything on that list above for The Willow Path, and I’m starting a new 40 hours a week job. It doesn’t sound sustainable to me, but I’m going to do my best. I am going to channel the image of the beatiful, strong tree woman from the Shadowscapes tarot deck. She looks like she is holding up the whole world but still maintaining a smile on her face. That could be me, right? Wish me luck.