Final Reading : Wofford's Earthly Home

The tenth and final question pertains to Wofford’s physical body and earthly home.  Geographically, it makes sense to do the reading somewhere between the campus’s soccer and baseball fields, but the train tracks by Marsh are so much more dear to the college.  Sorry, athletes, but think of all the generations of Wofford students who went to sleep hearing trains go by, who sat on that concrete ledge by the rails, who maybe even jumped onto a boxcar and rode off for the weekend.  There’s something about that spot, some feeling fit for a tarot reading.

Scary :o

The cards have a dark message (Why are all these readings so dark? I promise I’m trying to make them as positive as I can!).  Again there’s the Death card (for the fourth time), the symbol of transformation and growth.  Again there’s delay and stagnation.  Again there’s possibility for failure. 

The spread is unique in a way.  Friends and relatives, often a source of support, here see Wofford suffering, being dominated by others.  The Devil shows up in Wofford’s hopes – a card that doesn’t mean evil as much as corruption and revolution.  And what’s this?  The card that usually praises Wofford’s character here talks of disorder, confusion, and possible loss.  Where are these cards coming from?

A part of me wants to say its all about how the average local sees the school.  After all, the reading was done by the train tracks (pretty blue collar) and Spartanburg has been going through some tough economic times (second highest number of foreclosures in the nation).  It’s possible that some less-fortunate residents have a negative opinion of Wofford.

However, I think the reading may be more about Spartanburg itself.  After all, it is the home of Wofford College and has significant influence over the school. 

Instability

Well, just because it's the city doesn’t make the reading any better.  Basically, times are changing and the city’s changing.  Spartanburg’s coming from a fairly good place but those successes were temporary and the opportunities that were once there are no longer present.  In the near future, we can see a lot of positive activity that will benefit the city – though not necessarily economically.  Here, the greatest obstacle to the city is actually a pretty positive card, the three of pentacles.  It represents skill, mastery, construction, and glory.  In this situation, I can only think of Greenville – one of the most progressive and successful cities in South Carolina that’s also just thirty minutes drive outside of Spartanburg.  Spartanburg wants quick fixes to catch up with its neighbor and may even resort to shady means (the Devil card) to attain that goal.  All of this manic activity creates instability, and people see the city as more of a lackey – rather than a leader.

Although this interpretation doesn’t bode well for Spartanburg, it does give a more round picture of the Wofford’s whole Tree of Life.