
Wood Mother Metal Father
Wood and Metal are the two suits that make Sacred Earth Seven Element Tarot different from every other Tarot deck. Wood and Metal have been incorporated from an Asian Elemental system that recognizes our existence in the world somewhat differently than the more European Elemental system that likely gave birth to the Tarot. The world was a smaller place then and a very different place than it is now. The idea of personal empowerment has existed in Asian traditions for far longer than it has in the West. The suits of Wood and Metal, reflecting their Asian roots in this deck, speak to a world where the individual matters more than it ever has.
In a world where we now recognize that what we think about our own lives matters, the elements of Wood and Metal have much to bring to Tarot which is now used not so much for divination as a guidance tool for more informed decision making, showing the intelligent querent exactly what he or she is creating at any given moment, illustrating how that might be changed.
Wood, tree energy, is the essence of vegetative life, perfectly illustrating the cycles of life from seed to rot. Translated into Tarot terms this becomes about nurturing and personal growth, without which human life is perverted and trivialized. Wood is a feminine suit as it is women whose function is the physical nurturing of life and who have traditionally been the first influence on the character of their children. Character development, personal growth, demands more than nurturing and support. A big part of learning how to be in the world is learning how not to be in the world.
Wood Mother, as the matriarch of the suit, illustrates this. She is pruning, cutting away that which will not be useful to the ultimate yield of the tree. Wood is not an 'easy' suit. It can be more comfortable at some spots than at others, but wood is always, at some level, demanding.Change, with wood, is almost inevitable. Blossoms must fall as must ripened fruit. It is up to us to make the best of it, to learn from it, to grow.
Wood Daughter has perhaps the easiest time of it, at home with so much constant change as a young woman that she focuses outside of herself, interacting with others or occupying herself pleasantly to distract from the inevitable. The men of the suit have found ways to be helpful. Father works to provide a sense of structure which is useful, though he may not feel entirely comfortable in his role. Son is so wrapped up in his own changes as a young man that he, like the Daughter, works to distract himself from his discomfort by 'helping,' although in his case his real interests - himself - tend to override the help he tries to provide.

Personal growth is a challenge and must be supported by nurturing from somewhere.
Metal, the result of the massive compression of minerals within the body of the Earth, is the essence of the Will. It is a masculine suit because the foundation of ultimate will power is the mind, the intellect and that purview has been previously designated as male by the originators of Tarot. Metal is the essence of persistence. Metal is far less subtle than Wood. Growth is a natural process; persistence, by its nature, means that you are pushing at something, insisting that something be or go a given way. Growth is a happening; persistence makes things happen.
Metal Father is at the forge, heating metal so that he may bend it to his will. He is a simple but strong figure and illustrates what a clear and well-directed intention can do. Metal, like Wood, is not an 'easy' suit. Nobody ever said that building character was easy and both these elements feed into strong character. His Son carries a very similar energy; he carries it with a little more ease though because he functions under someone else's direction. Metal energy falls easier to men.

Metal Mother and Metal Daughter work harder to pull off the energy of the sort of single-minded focus that this level of will power requires. As women they are biologically constructed to take in many things at once, to have a far wider field of focus. Metal daughter concentrates fiercely on her task and she...will...get there..She will look good doing it, too. Metal Mother has learned to disguise her ability to exercise her will power as she has learned that she may be perceived as a bitch if she does not. This effort can however, take a toll at a feeling level.