Enter the Fool
I have a lot of friends who are fools – I mean down to the bone foolish. I love them.There is never a dull moment when the fool comes on the scene! Over the years I have come to cherish the fools and try to emulate them as often as possible. I have learned to not let appearing foolish stop me.
In the tarot the fool card signifies the innocence of mind that allows infinite trust in the universe and one’s God. Through the very energy of trusting we come to engage in life adventures that otherwise wouldn’t have been available. The fool teaches us to risk our normal conservative safe ideas for those a little more daring. He shows us how to traipse merrily towards the edge of reality instead of well back from the edge where most of our mothers would prefer we stay. He shows us how to release our critical judgments in favor of a taste of adventure.
It is the fools that guide us into tomorrow; they are the pioneers, the scientists, the inventors, the visionaries, the poets, the musicians and the artists. They are the dreamers with their faces pointed towards the heavens and their feet lightly dancing on the edge of all known reality. They see things differently and act accordingly.
It is only on the edge that a new reality can be created; it is where our vision and perspective is the clearest. Most people are too afraid to wander to the edge where a wrong step could prove disastrous. But the fool shows us that to dance along the edge of all that is safe, risking all that is dangerous, is where we find our truest essence. Here we will find our greatest capacity to love, to laugh, to trust, to feel compassion and to expand. It is at this edge where we come to understand our magnificent ability to connect with faith to the divine matrix of life. In this foolish place we learn that the landing area for the next step will be provided; is already there, in fact, even though we may not be able to see it.
So often I see people immobilized in fear, afraid to trust another in love and in business; so afraid that opportunities slide by. Too afraid to move out of their mundane lives, they choose instead to sit safely in their controlled predictable lives. When we only engage with what we can control we will continuously recreate the patterns of the past. While the past provides us with great memories and teachings it doesn’t offer us the opportunity to grow. Only stepping out bravely towards a new unknown will breathe new life into a wilting soul. The fool is not, however, about being reckless. It is about learning how to be in complete harmony with ones’ environment and being thus able to take advantage of opportunities as they present without fear of endangering ones self. The fool only appears to be reckless and careless by those who are over-cautious.
It is the inherent nature of the soul to seek expansion through experience. When we limit the possibilities for new experience we cause the soul to wither and fade. The soul is a luminous expression of vitality that yearns for new adventures, regardless of possible pain. Our soul knows that it came to life to live a plethora of experiences not just the safe and easy ones.
As we move through our days we will without doubt encounter a host of fears that threaten to limit our experiences. I challenge you to take stock of what stops you. How often in your day do you take the comfortable route, do the same old same old, and deny a new invitation preferring to sit back on the sidelines laughing at the fools having fun at the edge. Aspire to be the fool, little by little, inch your way towards the edge. Dare to peek at the life you could be having. If this makes no sense to you, make friends with a fool today, see the world through his eyes and see how light the world becomes!
Andrea Thiel Connell 