black tarot · major arcana XVII
The Star in the Black Tarot
Hope instead of action, the dream as a painkiller.
Portrait of the shadow
The Black Star shines as tenderly as the bright one — that is its danger. Its light is an anaesthetic: while you look up, it doesn't hurt that nothing has been done underfoot. Her dream is not a route map but a spare life: she moves there whenever this one turns uncomfortable. And the more detailed the castle in the air — down to the curtains, down to the children's names — the clearer it becomes that the earthly one will never be started: the earthly one would be worse; the earthly one would be a shame. The card's shadow is hope working against the hopeful: it numbs the very pain that could have moved her. The way out is sacrilegious: be disappointed. Let the dream lose its gloss, bruise it against reality — and discover that a bruised dream, unlike a perfect one, can walk.
The trap
'Someday it will all come' is her mantra and her sleeping pill. The dream is too beautiful to spoil with attempts.
The shadow in love and at work
In love: In love with the future version of the partner; can't see the present one point-blank.
At work: Brilliant plans in the drawer; the first step is forever 'not yet'.
The way out
Turn one dream into one week's task — small, with a deadline.