I’m spending some time in St. Augustine this week, one of my happy places. Everywhere I look, there are signs of the Seven of Cups that we pulled for our writing prompt this week. Is the blue floating face of serenity a siren off the shore? A young Spaniard, Native, or one of the first free Blacks in the Americas? The shrouded figure rising from the cup could represent one of the many ghost stories floating around this ancient, haunted city. Could the snake represent rebirth, transformation, or immortality? This is a city that had gone through multiple cycles of reinvention. The castle, rising from the chalice could be represented by the famous lighthouse here, or it could be Castillo de San Marcos, the oldest masonry fortification in the continental U.S.? The chalice of treasure seems apt to represent the Treasure Coast, where the legends (and truths) of sunken ships, laden with riches, abound. The crown of laurel rising from a chalice that contains a reflection of a skull seems to represent the death that surrounded every conqueror’s victory in this historical place. And, finally, the dragon. Could it be represented by the St. George Tavern, on St. George Street, touted as the “Oldest Pub in the Oldest City,” on the street that was once the walled city’s main street, the heart of the community?
There is so much to write about here! I’m making it a priority to get a little writing done for you by Saturday.
Till then, let’s make some magic!