The Page and the Snake - Dancing in the Dark

The days are getting short and dark. In the deep valley where I live the sun comes up above the mountains only briefly, and the world is holding its breath, waiting for the turn of the year. It’s dark before four pm now, and the dark begins to feel like it’s forever. What on earth would this be like in the Arctic? Saying goodbye to the sun for weeks. Then that amazing moment when it shows itself above the horizon only for a few minutes. The first sunrise.

At first I like it. I like the way the inner fire is struck to counter the outer cold and darkness. The trick is to find material to feed the fire. I think of the Page of Wands here, the spark that, given fuel, can burn a world. The Kundaline snake just opens one eye a crack, just a red glint of fire. Will She rise this time?

And so I get up at midnight to drink cranberry tea and charm the serpent. I don’t have a flute, but I have words. She’s a bit scary. She’s the polar opposite of the sun, and that’s always a bit frightening, no? You see her with your not-eyes, hear her moving with your not-ears. Maybe a bit easier for me, since my not-eyes are the ones I see with, now I’m mostly blind.

You don’t have to be afraid of the dark. In the old times when we lived without electricity winter was a time for story-telling and dreaming, sleeping and keeping the fire alight. Do those things now. You can’t make the world light, but you can dance around the inner fire and believe me, it will rise to you. If you feel called to go into the dark don’t be afraid of it – don’t go labeling it SADS or something – the fire is burning in the darkness and it will rise to you.

The Pages in the Tarot are messengers of initiation. Let the Page of Wands take you to the fire.