

But I took my fishing pole (fearing your fever),
down to the swimming hole, where there grows a bitter herb
Joanna Newsom, “Only Skin” (Ys, 2006)

Image Description
A woman wearing light blue sits in a small boat with a fishing pole set up behind her. She ties a pink ribbon around a clump of grasses. The water is wavy, resembling braids. The boat is next to a brown wall, on top of which seven gray goblets are stacked: a row of four below a row of three. The lower cups have some small green stems growing up out of them. The upper cups each have a different type of blooming flower. The one on the left holds yarrow, whose blossoms are white with clumps of tiny petals in their centers. The one in the center holds heather, which has tiny purple blossoms. The one on the right holds hollyhock, which has large round red flowers growing in a stack on a tall stem. The outer two cups are decorated with pictures of angels playing violins. The middle cup has a picture of a flying dove surrounded by a crown of laurels.
Interpretation
While the Six of Cups retreats, the Seven of Cups rows out. The boat is at a wall, a border beyond which nothing but cloud is visible. The pots above hold “yarrow, heather, and hollyhock,” all of which have medicinal uses. Heather is also a common material for a besom, a tool for both practical and spiritual cleaning. The overall message of this card is healing, cleansing, and remedies; freedom from illness and from other evil influences.
This card links to the discipline of the Four of Cups.