A Little Boy Lost
Dear Maribeth,
My sister just went through a divorce that has been very hard on her young son. I am very worried about his emotional well being as it seems like his parents are too busy being angry and not giving him the attention he needs. Now they are fighting over the visitation schedule. Will they be able to work out a better arrangement for the well being of their son?
Undaunted aunt
Dear UA,
What a shame. He is lucky to have you in his life. Your cards are the Four of Swords, the Four of Cups, and the Three of Swords. The Three of Swords often comes up in situations of divorce with a child because all three of them are heartbroken. The challenge in this situation is for the adults to see past their own pain in order to help their son.
There are swords on either side of this reading. This indicates constant strife and a need for communication in this situation. I’m looking at the figure in the Four of Swords as representing the parents and the person in the middle card as your nephew. While the parents may be wrapped up in their own numb states of mind, they are not taking action to rectify the trauma they are experiencing. Healing does take time. It appears that they don’t know what to do to make it better so they are doing nothing. Divine guidance is available to them once they open their eyes and get up, as indicated by the stained glass window above. They are mourning the death of their marriage and perhaps revisiting beliefs they once had about each other and their commitment.
The Four of Cups, also known as ‘Divine Discontent’, looks like your young nephew is trying to figure out how he can make things better. He looks hurt and confused and not sure how these new circumstances will affect him. He is also somewhat immobile while waiting to see what he will be offered and how his life is changing. His idea of what love and loyalty are is being tested too. He may test their loyalty to him in an effort to form new opinions based on the new state of affairs.
The Three of Cups shows the pain they all feel. It is critically important that your nephew understand that he did not influence the divorce in any way. You can certainly explain this to him. He needs to have as much consistency in his life as possible while his world rocks and rolls. It is a very sad situation, similar to a death. This will no doubt make him stronger, and affect his choices when he is older and ready to have a relationship.
I do believe they will eventually work out a better arrangement for their young son, but it is definitely going to take time. They need to get out of their own heads and realize that their choices are affecting other people. They must stop playing the blame game and continue to express love and support to their child. Right now their hearts are numb and this is hard for them, but with time it will soften. There is no blood coming from this heart, only a passing storm around it. It’s a tough situation but the best way you can help is by continuing to love them and hopefully soon they will be able to love again.