Dear Oracle, I started working part-time at a store dealing with vintage clothes while I was in nursing school full time; I ended up falling even further in love with fashion history and vintage clothing! I never thought nursing school would be easy, but as someone who has ADHD, an entirely online school without Zoom meetings is a completely different beast. I took a break this semester because it became too much, and it's just hard because I feel appreciated at my current job and love what I'm doing more than anything in the world, whereas nursing school feels like dragging myself through glass. I know the job security working in the medical field is as good as it gets. I just don't know whether it's worth sacrificing my sanity when I already feel like I've found my calling. Should I go back to school in pursuit of helping others and cushy corporate benefits?—Diehard For Dresses
Stay in school: Queen of Swords, Hanged Man, High Priestess rev.
Fashion: Ace of pentacle rev, The Tower, Lovers rev.
Dear Diehard for Dresses, the first card for staying in school is the Queen of Swords, aka the critical mother. Is your own mother critical of this decision? Are YOU critical of yourself in this decision? While Queen of Swords is playing backup to two major arcana, she's still present.
Send questions for the Oracle of Ybor to comments@cltampa.com (SUBJ: Oracle)
The next card, The Hanged Man, is a card of gravity—of spiritual and physical heaviness. This is a card of sacrifice and working for a greater good but also shows a soul being pulled in two directions. Becoming a nurse during a global pandemic is an instant symbol of helping humankind, of that martyrdom and servitude to the collective. But it is not a job for the light-hearted. It involves sacrifice and can be both rewarding and heavy on the soul.
The Hanged Man is also a card for vocation. Nursing could be your true calling, but your intuition is all cross-wired. (That's The High Priestess reversed.) You're feeling torn. The first step is to start connecting with yourself. Journal, meditate, talk to friends or a therapist, and get in touch with your wants and values. Why did you enroll in nursing school in the first place? Were you doing it to appease someone (Queen of Swords?) or did you want to heal people? Are your frustrations with how the information is being taught (online), or were there red flags before the pandemic? Really dig deep into that.
So what about the fashion career? Well… it's certainly a new plan! The Tower is a card of intense upheaval, which can be exciting but also terrifying. Try to make this decision with as much clarity as possible. You are totally in love with your fashion job, and you want to make a career out of it. Those are the Ace of Pentacle and Lovers cards.
But…those cards are also reversed. Which could mean you loved your job for a long time. Or it could just be an infatuation. Think of it like this: that dude who bought you a corndog after a long night at The Dirty Shame might be incredible. Or he could drunk-yell at your dog and pee in your bed. Every chance has a risk, so try to be as calculating as you can about this one.
I'm afraid the cards don't provide an easy answer. Out of six cards, you have four major arcana. Two are about your calling and your soul, and two are about upending your life for love.
As Americans, we tie a lot of our identity up with our careers, and then conflate the success at those careers with our own personal value. If you wanted to be a nurse for a long time, it could feel like you're closing the door on a part of yourself. But just because you need a break doesn't mean the door to nursing school is closed forever. Breathe deep, clear your head, and trust your gut.
Oracle, this might not interest you, but I want to become a professional dominatrix. I want to have control over other people's bodies and make them beg me while getting paid to do it, but I have never done this before, and I don't know how to act, and I can't really confide in anybody to teach me.—To Dom For
Cards: The Sun, Death, Five of Pentacles.
Dear Dommy, before I get into the cards, I want to let you know that I'm not a dominatrix, but I am friends with one. I asked her for some general advice, so here's what she suggested. First, if you don't know any sex workers IRL, start following some online. Many are on Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and OnlyFans, and by following them, you'll begin to get an idea about the profession, learn different styles, and learn some of the issues that can arise from the job. It's important to remember that sex work is still work, so professionals can teach you both the sexy and unsexy parts of the job. (Like filing your taxes.)
The second thing is that many BDSM dungeons train you on the job. Some even have meet-n-greet lunches where you can talk to people off the clock. You can also reach out to those Tampa Bay Doms you now follow and see if any would be willing to do an apprenticeship. COVID-19 might delay this step, but that gives you plenty of time to educate yourself!
With the Five of Pentacles, you seem lost when it comes to this job, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't do it. We have two major arcana here, The Sun and Death; The Sun is this sense of deep joy while Death sparks transformation with its phoenix-like energy. This could be a really positive transition for you, complete with transformation into your Dom persona. So learn all you can about the job from real sex workers (not characters from TV!) and prepare yourself for your glorious, sultry rebirth!
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This article appears in Feb 11-17, 2021.