RECLAIMING WATER

by contemplativeinquiry

The image above is from R. J. Stewart’s The Dreampower Tarot (1,2).  The figure blissfully in water is the Queen of Souls, the water suit in this pack.

Yesterday I encountered a variant version of this image in an enhanced version of everyday life. My wife Elaine has a love of water, immersion in water and swimming. Her mobility challenges have kept her out of swimming pools for over two years. It’s been a source of sadness for her during this time.

Happily we have found an accessible local hydrotherapy pool that supports people with such challenges. We were able to have a session there with me in a recognised caring role. For much of the session we were on our own and  the pool never got crowded.

Elaine’s obvious pleasure in the water lit up the space for me. It is as if she had reclaimed her element. I felt privileged to be her companion in this emancipatory venture. I also had a fleeting internal image of  this card as an archetypal expression of what was happening in front of my eyes.

When leaving the pool, I checked in with my own body. It felt warm and radiant, energised and relaxed at the same time. We will be returning to the pool very soon.

(1) R. J. Stewart The Dreampower Tarot: The Three Realms of  Transformation in the Underworld London: The Aquarian Press, 1993. Illustrated by Stuart Littlejohn.

(2) The illustrations from this pack have strongly impressed themselves over the years on my life and practice, interweaving with other images of my own. See:

‘WHIRLPOOL’: THE POWER OF AN IMAGE

and

MEDITATION: WISDOM’S HOUSE