The poet Toi Derricotte begins her poem from "The Telly Cycle" with the line: "Joy is an act of resistance." In the poem, Derricotte writes about her fish, Telly. She places a postcard-sized painting behind his bowl, wondering whether he notices the beauty she has arranged for him. What follows is a tender meditation on wonder, connection, loss, and the tiny moments that make a life feel meaningful. (Curious? You can read the complete poem here.) Joy is an act of resistance. I find myself thinking about that line a lot lately. In a world overflowing with politics, productivity hacks, algorithms, breaking news, and endless notifications, I've become increasingly interested in finding small pockets of joy. Tiny acts of connection. Unexpected moments of humanity. Which brings me to @Joseph Isosaki. A few weeks ago, Joseph posted something on Skool that may go down as one of the most important contributions to modern civilization: GIF WARS. The instructions were simple: "... only GIFS ... this is the best use of your time right now! ... a loving reminder to keep Skool fun!" Below the post was a GIF of Napoleon Dynamite getting slapped. I immediately felt called and responded with a GIF of Bruce Lee looking impossibly cool, accompanied by a comment about "an outrageous misuse of productivity." Unfortunately, I didn't fully understand the assignment. GIFs only. No commentary. Joseph immediately countered with a cartoon character aggressively shushing me, which made me laugh out loud. Unfortunately for Joseph, my partner and I had recently rewatched all three Austin Powers films, and suddenly all I could hear was Dr. Evil screaming, "Zip it!" from the depths of my delightfully distracted brain. And so began a completely unnecessary, deeply important, and wildly entertaining GIF battle, fueled largely by Austin Powers and his wonderfully ridiculous cast of characters.

I just found myself reading something Lee wrote about the Fool card. And I found myself falling in love with the Fool. Adoring his innocence and zest for life and so much more. Of course, this is probably really a moment of falling in love with the Fool in me. I'd love to know what you all have experienced along these lines.

From a mystic's perspective, it doesn't serve anyone, least of all ourselves, to cling to the riverbanks (and to our beliefs about how things should be, and to the need to be right). Allowing the current to take us to a new place is easier, less fatiguing, and more elevating and freeing. I'm wondering which tarot card might express this message. I'm sensing the Hierophant could, because he tends to be traditional. In an intuitive reading where I'm allowing myself all the freedom in the cosmos, I might say the Hermit is, especially if the picture shows him standing in cold snow, getting stuck in a perspective, for all maps are small. And I'm wondering if the tower is ultimately asking us to let go of the riverbanks. But I've never read in books or had any formal education. I'd be delighted to get other perspectives.

Thank you @Lee Hendricks for hanging out with me today virtually - introductions and readings - nothing wrong with that for a lunch break connect! :) And when we both have the High Priestess pop out - there is something to be said about that!

For me, Arcana is the system, such as the symbols, the structure, the knowledge we can learn. Insight is the feeling, the intuition, the perception, the meaning we sense beneath the surface. Together, they create something deeper. How would you define Arcana and Insight in your own words?