(Un)blocked

I was waiting on a station platform with ‘cello when I started chatting with a young man with a guitar on his back. We talked music to start with – not that there was much overlap in our experience, but conversation flowed anyway. (He thought I might’ve heard of John Martyn, since he was ‘more from your era’. I’d never realised I had an era. Would that be the geological kind?) Presently, he asked whether the ‘cello was my job, and then found out what was. This is the point where most casual public transport conversations end in politeness and old-fashioned looks, but he was interested and wanted to learn more.

So we sat together on the train, found a notebook and pencil between us, and I drew lines and trigrams. He asked how you cast a hexagram; I pulled out three coins and started to show him. ‘What am I asking?’ I wondered, belatedly, as I cast line 1. ‘I suppose this is just a “hello”…’

The ‘hello’ Yi gave us was Hexagram 12, of all things, changing at lines 3 and 4 to 53. Blocked, shifting a little with Gradual Progress. I said this was what I got for casting a reading without having the good manners to think of a clear question, and then we talked about questions. I mentioned recently casting a reading for my year ahead, and he asked if we could do the same for him, so we did.

It was – of course – only after I’d got off the train and was walking along the platform that the 12-53 reading fully landed with me.

Blocked – casting coins without first opening the way to communication. Great goes, small comes. Not your finest moment, Hilary.

Gradual Progress – but there might just be something more going on, a journey beginning, a relationship taking shape…

12 line 3:

‘Embracing shame.’

Well, yes, quite.

12 line 4:

‘There is a mandate, no mistake.
Work with clarity, fulfilment.’

There was Yi, one step ahead of me as usual, pointing out that there was a real question to be asked and reading to be done.

(And for the young guitarist, if you happen to read this, do get in touch so we can talk more about your year!)

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