Jonathan Shay

Jonathan Shay disappeared in July of this year from his Missouri home, along with his cousin. His cousin was found a day later, but not Jonathan. So what happened to him and where is he? I will put the question to the cards.

We start with Temperance crossed by the Moon. Temperance is a successful combination or a well planned event, and the Moon, which is read upside right, can either mean psychic awareness, deception, or secret foes. The latter seems to fit the best, here. This basis lends itself to a scenario in which the boys may have been stalked, and the perpetrator knew when to find them unsupervised, and did so. The Moon points to an agenda of some sort, hinting that Jonathan was the victim.

This is preceded by Strength, reversed, which tells a clear tale of abuse; when this card falls reversed, it often indicates abuses of power or authority, and preying on weaker individuals. Next, we have the card of secrets, the High Priestess. Since she is upside right, I will assume that she represents an aspect of this situation that is in Jonathan's favor, somehow. We are still dealing with hidden influences. This is crowned by the World, which speaks of completion of some kind, but as this is in the realm of possibility, not past or present, we shall return to it later.

The card that follows, and shows some tension in Jonathan's situation, is the three of swords, reversed. This card often comes up to describe infighting between family members, custody battles, and ugly political/personal strife within peer groups. In reversal, which is how we find the card, it warns that the subject of the reading has compromised another in some way, and there either is, or has been, a confrontation. This makes me wonder of Jonathan witnessed a crime, or saw and heard something that could have created problems for someone in his environment, had the information become known.

The first card on the staff is the Magician. Here, the Magician is someone who knows his job, and he is in the place of fears. The message is clear: someone connected to Jonathan's disappearance is worried about the presence of an expert who can do his job and find Jonathan. In the place of general environment, we find the four of pentacles, reversed. This is wasted resources and delay. Somehow, it seems almost deliberate. In the place of hopes, we find the Hermit, reversed, which gives us the message that someone has deliberately stalled the investigation by sending searchers in the wrong direction. And finally, the reading ends with the Tower. Jonathan will be found, and someone will be held accountable. Sadly, the Tower does not predict a very happy ending, either for Jonathan or the perpetrator. This is what I read as a very strong possibility that Jonathan has met with foul play---the accountability described by the Tower. I always hope I am wrong about that type of assessment, however. Possible locations appear, via the Moon and the High Priestess, to be places where there is water; enough water to hide evidence. The World suggests that he will be found, possibly outside. Because of its position, we are being warned that the resolution of this case will not be handed to searchers and investigators; it will only come after efforts. The other clue about whereabouts has to do with the situation of a person: the four of pentacles reversed tells us that someone connected to this case has recently suffered a setback or a material loss. This is someone who should be interviewed.

Jacob Wetterling

Jacob Wetterling disappeared in October of 1989 in Minnesota, when he was eleven years old. His parents were visiting friends, and had given Jacob and his brother permission to ride their bicycles. A stranger took Jacob at gunpoint, and that was the last time he was seen by family or friends. Recently, detectives in Minnesota developed a lead on the case, and I will ask the Tarot about what happened to Jacob.

We begin with the eight of wands, reversed, crossed by the five of swords, also read reversed here. Whoa! The arrows of jealousy mixed up with vengeance and rage. This describes the circumstances that somehow led to this crime and warns of a violent personality on the part of the perpetrator. It is based by the Emperor, reversed, telling us a little more about the perpetrator; not only is he given to spurts of violence, he is immature in the ways of the world, and possibly lived with his parents at the time Jacob went missing.

In the past, we see the Page of Cups, who, I believe, is Jacob. This would be an imaginative young person whose nature is kind and helpful. He falls upside right, so he is not part of the problem, here, but either a victim or part of the solution. Pages often indicate children in readings. Next, we encounter the Magician, reversed, and he describes the general lack of direction from which this case has suffered. It seems that leads have been difficult to follow, and no one expected a child to disappear near Jacob's home, therefore; law enforcement did not have much training for such tragedies. But now, in the near future, we have the three of wands, granting local police assistance and practical help from other departments. Perhaps the new lead will shed some light.

In the place of self perception, we find the Queen of Swords, reversed. This is an adult woman who has had information about Jacob and his whereabouts for many years, yet has refused to come forward. She is obstructing justice, and has no empathy for anyone connected to Jacob. The environment is described by the nine of cups, reversed. This card not only speaks of flaws in plans when it falls reversed; it warns of alcoholism and drug addiction. It points to excesses of food and drink. Seeing it in this position tells us that addiction is likely part of the picture in the perpetrator's life. In the place of hopes, we find the four of cups, reversed. From this, we can see that the perpetrator is hoping to "get on with his life", and simply skip any accountability for Jacob's disappearance. Reversed, the four of cups signifies new relationships and new opportunities. But this is only a hope; it is what the guilty party is attempting. The final outcome gives us the four of pentacles reversed. This is a warning of setbacks and material loss. The case is far from solved, and it will take time and commitment.

The only part of the reading that indicates death is the beginning; the reversed eight of wands, crossed by the five of swords. From this, I feel that Jacob probably died at the hands of his kidnapper almost immediately. It also appears that Jacob was taken somewhere by car, and either left or buried somewhere that has posts, possibly three posts (as in, the three of wands) sticking up from the ground. There may be a small cliff, ravine, or ditch that would help hide him. I also believe that the perpetrator's family helped him hide his crime, all these years. I always hope I am wrong when it looks as if someone has been murdered, so I will keep hoping and praying that Jacob is found safe.

Update On The Hoggle Children

It has been over a year since two toddlers, Jacob and Sarah Hoggle, of Montgomery County, Maryland, were last seen in the company of their mother. Their mother is the main suspect in their disappearance, and has been ruled incompetent by the court, and thereby held in a mental hospital. Efforts to find the children have been completely frustrated.

So for an update, I just asked the question, "Where are they?" Here is what I got. For the past in this situation, I drew three cards; the ace of swords, reversed, the Hanged Man, reversed, and the seven of cups, also reversed. The ace of swords is screaming obstacles and abuse, which is already self evident. The Hanged Man is reversed, and he wants us to know that there has been some false information floated into the media and into evidence, in an effort to keep the investigation from going in the right direction. As we can see that the card of imagination and delusion, the seven of cups, has fallen reversed here, it is obvious that the aforementioned false information has been generated deliberately, rather than by accident.

The present has given us the four of cups, reversed, the five of swords, reversed, and the seven of pentacles. The reversed four of cups is usually a good message, of new relationships and pursuits, but here, it is a bot troubling. It speaks of a desire to leave the two missing children "in the past", and "get on with life" without them! Without ever solving the crime. The five of swords is here next, reversed. This is guilty knowledge and trickery. This card often comes up reversed when there is a lot of deception in a matter, especially about violence and violent crime. The seven of pentacles is next, telling us that someone here has only "done his or her job", and the unsolved crime is, indeed, the ripe fruit on the tree that is being reaped.

In the future, we see the ten of swords, the Empress, reversed, and the five of pentacles. The ten of swords is often a card of violence, but I believe the message here is that the future will actually bring closure, perhaps an unwelcome closure, to this case. The one who has sown deceit and non-resolution will have to work with those who want to find Sarah and Jacob. The Empress reversed is a mother who does not behave like a mother, and whose "love", if it may be called that, is shallow. The last card is the five of cups. This card, as a location, would, at face value, suggest a church. Other ideas, especially interpreted in relation to the presence of the reversed Empress, suggest a place that is sacred, in traditional ways, to the person indicated by the Empress.....or......the "mother" figure, here. We have bits of water symbolism here and there, in the Hanged Man and the cards from the suit of cups. The type of scene indicated by these cards gives a collective picture of a stream fed or river fed pond, one that is not terribly big, but big enough to hide something. Yet the earth symbolism is also compelling, as in the seven of pentacles and the five of pentacles. Based on this reading, answers or evidence would appear to start somewhere between five or seven miles away from where the Empress was last seen with either child, moving north or northeast, as indicated by swords. No cameras and enough privacy to remain hidden. The reversed Hanged Man seems to point us not only to a place, but to a motive; this card speaks of selfishness and refusal to make any necessary sacrifice when we see it reversed.

Where Is Lisa Stone?

 

Lisa Stone, of Dallas, Texas, disappeared in June of 2010. She was last seen at her home, and then simply vanished, with no explanation. So what happened to her and where is she?

This reading begins with the Star, reversed, crossed by the two of pentacles. This is a message of finality of one matter, in the wake of the launch of another. It is also a hint that two or more people may know what happened to Lisa. We find the seven of cups beneath this, which tells us that there has been a lot of speculation, and misinformation, but the right door has not yet been knocked on. We also get the six of pentacles, reversed, in the past; informing us that there was some jealousy or some unfair advantage taken prior to Lisa's disappearance. This had to do with material possessions, money, and income. This card sometimes comes up to describe a situation in which one party decides not to enable another financially. So it appears that disenfranchisement of an "enablee" may serve as a motive. 

The Wheel of Fortune rules, at the moment, and it is upside right. The perpetrator has, so far, evaded justice. The eight of swords appears as a current description of the case, and things are at a standstill, right now. Lack of direction is the reason for this; investigators do not know how to prove any of their suspicions. If the eight of swords were to describe a place, it would be a mucky place with shallow water, where something or someone could be trapped, indefinitely. 

On the staff, we begin with the Devil, reversed. This is a good sign, because upright, the Devil speaks of bondage. This tells us that the perpetrator is worried about the eventual release of information and the emergence of the truth. The general environment is described by the two of swords, which gives us, in this case, a similar message as the eight of swords.....stalemate. Also, many decks have references to water on both the eight of swords and the two of swords; still water and no movement. The hopes of the perpetrator are described by the seven of pentacles, reversed. This is a pretty obvious idea, here. Someone does not want Lisa found. The seven of pentacles reversed gives a picture of efforts to find Lisa never reaching fruition. The last card we have, the final outcome, is the Magician. Someone, somewhere, who knows how to manage a criminal case involving a missing victim, will put the case together and solve it. It will happen as a result of expertise in technology and in detective work. 

For locations, swords often point us east, but in this case, I do not think Lisa is far away. Both of the cards that spoke to me of environment, the eight and two of swords, seemed to be suggesting no movement. The Star, also, suggests water; perhaps water being drained or poured from one source to another. I hope Lisa is found soon. I wish the reading had been more positive.