4 of pentacles vs 9 of Cups

I'm finding I'm explaining these 2 cards,  the 4 of pentacles and the 9 of cups,  again and again to people lately. I really feel we are living in a world exploiting our feelings of not enoughness,  feeding our dissatisfactions, wanting our envy.

I came across this anecdote:  At a party given by a billionaire on Shelter Island, Kurt Vonnegut informs his pal, Joseph Heller, that their host, a hedge fund manager, had made more money in a single day than Heller had earned from his wildly popular novel Catch-22 over its whole history. Heller responds, “Yes, but I have something he will never have … the knowledge that I have enough."

And it seems to me that the super rich right now have no idea what enough looks like.  And the world of instagram and trad wives and holidays abroad are all about needing more, exploiting the feeling of the 4 of pentacles,  where our financial needs and wants hang over us. We feel tight for money,  tight for time,  tight. 

And what we want,  what we should all be striving for is the 9 of cups,  the card I call the fat and happy card,  where you don't have everything,  but you have that most special of all things,  enough.  You are content with what you have.  There may be a cup or two missing,  but you don't let that spoil the cups that you have.  You let yourself have joy with what comes your way,  and let yourself be rich in the ways of Joseph Heller,  and know that you have enough.

That's my blessing to all of us,  may we know the value of what we have,  and let us feel contentment. 

Nine of Cups

Here he sits, with all his cups behind him, so contented. I call this the ‘fat and happy’ card… it’s about getting what you want on the material level – the luxuries you want, the life style you want, the jobs you want. It’s about contentment and a certain smug satisfaction. It’s not about spiritual growth or wisdom, but it is about an easy delight in the here and now. Everyone is relieved when this card is the outcome, especially if there is a new venture afoot.

I like the Hello Kitty version, where not only have you won the trophy, but it’s the biggest one there! That’s a bit how the card feels, happy with that underlying edge of competitiveness. My only warning when getting this card is not to get too complacent or self centered, remember to share nicely, or the universe will find a way to remind you…

The pretty Inner child version is shows that how plentiful the universe is,  with many waterfalls to chose from, to fill the mermaids cup.