Card of the Week: Three of Rods

Energy put into important undertakings may sometimes require patience and trust to pay off.  The world wasn’t built in a day, and long-term goals need the same perseverance.

The Three of Rods symbolizes aspiration, the importance of hope and optimism toward bold new endeavors.  In order to achieve the level of reflection and planning necessary to launch a large project or commit to a long-term goal, inner balance and peace are vital, but so is daring and boldness.  It is important to keep the big picture in mind, even while tending to details.

Inverted, this card suggests that something may be blocking your plans.  It may be your own distrust or hesitation, another party with ulterior motives, or simple misfortune.

In “Errand of Mercy” the Enterprise has been sent to protect the population of Organia, a seemingly undeveloped agricultural world on the border of Klingon space.  The Organian Council of Elders are unconcerned with Kirk’s warnings of likely war, even after Klingons apparently seize control of the planet.  Despite the pleas of the Council, Kirk and Spock initially attempt to resist the Klingons by sabotaging a supply storage location, prompting the Klingons to respond with more violence.  As hostilities escalate and full war seems imminent, the Organians finally reveal their true nature, not as the primitive people they seemed, but as highly advanced energy beings.  They use their powers to put an immediate stop to all hostilities and force both sides into a truce, whether they like it or not.  Kirk is chagrined that he had to be forced into peace.