Four of Pentacles

Guiding words/ideas:

Gracefully handling responsibility for oneself and others; finding a balance of calm and awareness; qualities of good parenting (instilling confidence, holding safe space, allowing room for exploration); if caretakers were not ideal, now you can do that work for yourself; need for good boundaries; love yourself and others with blend of awareness and protection.

Channeled guidance:

The Four of Pentacles is a beautiful reminder of how to gracefully handle responsibility for oneself and other beings.

The duck that is shown in this card has four eggs underneath its breast, four eggs gently laying right outside its chest. The eggs, the creations, the children (however one wants to see these pentacles) are young and do need protection. But they are not smothered by their creator. They have a little bit of room to breathe, and that room to breathe comes with a certain vulnerability. This duck, the creator of the eggs, is required to protect them, to be vigilant; to have an incredible balance of calm and awareness. For if the duck is not calm, a sense of panic may transfer on to its little beings.

How can one be aware while also being calm and grounded? How can one be vigilant and lightly protective without being paranoid or dysregulated? It’s a delicate blend. In fact, it is an elevated skill. Most beings have a hard time doing this. Ones own parents may not have done this well, so that when you were a child, you were either left unprotected or filled with a sense of fear, and in some cases, both.

The ideal parent or creator knows how to balance the reality of the world with the needs of a parent. They know how to instill confidence by trusting and teaching; and they also know how to hold a safe space with enough room for the young creatures to explore and grow.

If these were things that your parent was not able to give to you, it is not too late to do that work for yourself. Notice where weaknesses might occur. Notice if fear is inhibiting growth. Notice if a lack of awareness is leaving you unprotected. An example of the latter is when you have poor boundaries. This might result in you getting hurt in a variety of ways, over and over again.

So love yourself and love others around you with this beautiful blend of awareness and protection. Be grateful for all the beautiful parents in the world, for all the creators on your planet. And be appreciative of how difficult a task this is.

Plant and metal guides:

Wild grape and nut blend (rusty brown of duck’s chest made by hickory nut and early season grapes): We are the bubbly magicians of the edges (of forests, our fields and our minds). We share with you our positivity, creativity and trickster capabilities.

Logwood (dark blue of beak): Our color connects outwardly but its source lies deep within. We help you reach inside yourself to find strength and beauty.

Lac (pink/purple of ground): We gently nudge you towards transformation and change.

Copper oxide (light blue crystalline structure of pentacles, and medium green of duck’s body): I magnify the properties of whatever plants I touch or impact.

Black walnut (dark brown sediment and light brown wash in background): The strength of our magic lies in our ability to clear space and provide opportunities for recharging and resetting.