LEN: dodalisque reads for chiscotheque

[dodalisque]

Hail and well met. Do you have any character in mind from fiction or history who might benefit from a consultation with the Lenormand? Any character facing a crisis or an important decision or wondering what his/her future holds? It might help if you pretend to come to me as that person. Then it will feel more like a regular reading. I will ask if I think I need more background information.

[chiscotheque]

Mr. Dodalisque,

I am a highly respected schoolmaster, contributing tirelessly to my community. I am 30-something, tall, lean, and handsome in my way. When I see a woman in peril, I am duty-bound to protect her. This is where I need your assistance.

You may not know it to look at me, but my current station was attained by the sweat and toil of my own studiousness and keenness of spirit. The woman of whom I made mention above is from the lowest echelons of society, yet she is a virtuous girl of noble ambitions and I would not see her used and trampled underfoot by any man, let alone the likes of Mr. Eugene Wrayburn. The woman in question is being harassed by this Wrayburn character - a lazy and arrogant barrister of seemingly no fixed intent, other than to take what he can for his own pleasure only to dispose of at whim.

Fearing for the woman's well-being, I have taken to standing vigil outside her residence of an evening, to guard her against the malevolent intentions of that malignant Waryburn. Many nights I have espied him, lurking the black streets around the poor girl's humble dwelling. I sense she lives in mortal dread.

This is where I need your guidance, Mr. Dodalisque. At any moment this Wrayburn may carry out his undoubtedly salacious intentions, thereby ruining the life of this delicate flower. I, for one, refuse to let that happen. I plan on putting a stop to this repugnant Wrayburn before he can do any irreparable damage. I know the righteousness of my intentions, I only ask that you prognosticate on the exact outcome of this fair lady's defense. Although her champion, and willing to take her under my guardianship if fate should decree, I would fain entertain whatsoever foreknowledge you may attain regarding the fortunes of those parties so involved.

With the utmost solemnity, and a sincere request for your discretion,

Bradley Headstone


.

[dodalisque]

Dear Mr. Headstone,

Thank you for entrusting me with your confidence (sic). Unfortunately, I am sorry to say that the cards seem to predict that your current strategy for protecting this young woman, whom you hold in such high regard, may have severe repercussions on your own life and may result in an outcome you neither envisage nor desire. Allow me to explain.

Reading the 7 card line as a single narrative, we see that if you continue to spend your time obsessively standing guard near this lady's poor dwelling, instead of keeping your attention focussed on your own affairs, your social standing (Moon) as a respected schoolteacher will be destroyed (Coffin). The resulting sadness and confusion (Cloud) will precipitate a crisis (Crossroads) which will be a weight you carry (Cross) that will make you a social outcast (Tower + Garden).

This will be a particularly bitter outcome for you personally because, if we examine the two outside cards, the Moon + Garden pair, which both share the same card insert number 8, establishing an even stronger connection between the two cards, we see that the overarching ambition of your life has been to transcend your humble origins and attain an honorable place (Moon) within polite society (Garden).

The next pair, Coffin + Tower, suggests that the self-denial and rejection of bodily pleasures (Coffin) that enabled you put all your energy into your own education, is a source of arrogance and pride (Tower). The hate you feel for the suave barrister Wrayburn may be rooted not just in your concern for the fate of the young lady but also jealousy over the effortless ease with which Wrayburn, no doubt the recipient of inherited wealth, inhabits the society you have worked so hard to ascend to. He had it easy, you had it hard.

To put it bluntly, it is possible that you have a chip on your shoulder. The suspected sexual exploitation of the disadvantaged young woman by Wrayburn perhaps also awakens your resentment of the economic exploitation that people like him continue to inflict on the lower classes. People like Wrayburn were responsible for the grinding poverty of your miserable childhood, and now he seems to be laying claim to your chance of emotional happiness too.

You did not mention in your question that you were in love with the young woman yourself, only that you were concerned for her safety, but the extraordinary devotion you are giving to this task in spite of the inconvenience and suffering it is causing you suggests that this is the case. Perhaps you are not seeing your own emotions clearly (Cloud). The central triplet Cloud + Crossroads + Cross is extremely oppressive. Your gloom and confusion (Clouds) is a burden (Cross) that remains unresolved (Crossroads). Crossroads meet at a fixed point, so your current pattern of behaviour appears to be stubbornly established.

I laid extra cards above and below the central Crossroad card to see what is keeping you so bound and determined to continue your crusade. I also laid another separate row of 3 cards to predict the final outcome of this situation for the other parties involved.

The combination Storks + Bouquet suggests that you are basically a good man who wants to bring about beautiful (Bouquet) changes (Storks). If the Bouquet might be thought of as representing the beautiful young lady herself, perhaps you wish to change (Storks) her feelings towards you by demonstrating your loyalty. A bouquet is also a gift of love that you wish to bring (Storks) to her.

Traditionally storks are characterised as delivering newborn babies to the world, and this includes both your idea of rescuing her from Wrayburn and of flying her to safety to begin a new life with you. The insert cards in the Storks + Crossroads + Bouquet triplet are all Queens, which confirms that it is your obsession with the young lady that is keeping you fixed on this destructive path.

Lady + Snake + Book is rather difficult to interpret. The snake presumably, from your description of his character, is Wrayburn, and he is clearly making a pair with the Lady card. I am sorry to present you with such a horrible prediction. This is exactly what you had hoped not to hear. She is facing the Snake which implies that she is joining this relationship willingly. Perhaps, viewing Lady + Snake as a pair, you will see the lady as a treacherous snake herself and view her choice of Wrayburn as a terrible betrayal.

The Book card often carries the meaning of a secret, so Snake + Book may imply that Wrayburn has secret qualities that you are not aware of, or that he himself is not aware of. Lady + Snake + Book could mean simply that the story of their union is written in the Book of Fate and therefore irrefutable. It is telling you that no matter what you do you will not prevent this.

There may be an even darker implication that their eventual union (Lady + Snake) will be a secret (Book) to you, or hidden from you. This may mean either that you take my advice [- which they never do -] and abandon your hopeless quest entirely, or that you may not be around to see it. The Tower + Garden pair at the end of the original 7 card line may mean that you could end up isolated and alone in prison or, even worse, the book of your life may close.

--- OK, I confess that I did recognise the name Bradley Headstone, and the story as coming from the great novel "Our Mutual Friend " by Charles Dickens. I tried to forget the details of the book and look at the cards objectively but I doubt very much that I would have made some of the interpretations I did if I hadn't known the story. It would definitely have been more fun, if more scary, if I hadn't recognised the book. A prime example is this month's frankly jaw-dropping reading by Joan-Marie for kare. And speaking of our illustrious leader, the deck used for this reading is her freshly- minted, charming and cheeky Friar's Delight Lenormand, currently on sale at all fine stores.

In future I suggest for fictive readings that the names of the characters in the story should be omitted to remove the temptation to track it down on Google. In fact the situation in the question should probably be described in bare outline to give as few hints as possible to the reader. When the person setting the question later reveals the source book, then both parties, and anyone else following the exchange who wants to jump in, can look for coincidences and alternative interpretations hidden in the cards. So each reading would be a two-stage process with lots of collaboration. More fun and educational maybe.