Strength led the Fool back to the inside of the spit that curled out into the open ocean like a long thin finger. They clambered over the piles of driftwood that littered the middle of the sand bar towards the estuary on the other side. A steady rain fell, making the wood slippery.
The weather opened up on the inside of the spit, with rays of sun spotting the calm body of water before them. The Fool could see orchards of cherry trees on the other side of the estuary and a large snow-capped mountain looming behind them. The trees were heavy with fruit.
It is the day before harvest, Strength said. The dragon flew low above the trees. Today the orchards are calm and alone, but tomorrow there will be people all up and down the lines of trees picking the cherries.
The orchard did seem calm. There was a slight breeze that tickled the leaves of the trees. A disc-shaped cloud was forming above the mountain and it had a yellowish cotton color. The dragon curled crazy-8s above the rows of trees.
The hard part is to know when to begin, Strength said. Why didn’t they start today? Or last week? Why is it tomorrow?
The Fool thought about that for a moment. From his angle, the cherries were all a deep dark burgundy color, and looked ready to pick right now.
Just like anything, Strength continued, you must know when to pivot from thinking to doing. You have to understand when to make that change.
The rain stayed on the ocean side of the spit while the sun shined down on the glistening, dark-red cherries.
I am a beginning, Strength said. Your journey changed after you found me. Your journey hit a fork in the road when you observed the Wheel of Fortune. This is a new journey, but it’s still the old journey.
The Fool was filled with riddles and esoteric clues, but knew nothing of them. All he knew to do was to keep wandering. He knew there were these lessons that these inhabitants of this world kept trying to press on him, but he felt that if he kept going forward, the lessons would be learned.
He kept having the sense that he had been here before. Some of the inhabitants had even said as much. There was a feeling that these lessons had been taught to him before.
To begin with, Strength said, you have to know how you are going to go. You can’t just blow in with the wind. What if there is no wind?
The dark clouds drifted over the estuary and a hand came out of the cloud. It was holding a giant coin. The coin had a flower emblazoned on the golden circle. It was being presented to the Fool like a gift, even though it was high in the sky.
Wealth can mean more than money, Strength said. It just means you have an abundance of something that is fulfilling. We all want to be satisfied and fulfilled. It’s okay to want security and comfort. How you accumulate it is what matters.
The Fool could feel the rain hitting his back while the sun shone in his eyes. The dragon flew around the coin in the sky. Strength put her hand on his shoulder, letting him know it was time to go. They turned and scrambled back over the driftwood pile to the sandy beach that curled out into the wild sea.