$2 For Your Future

I met Caius at Canmore’s farmer’s market sitting on a skateboard with a sign next to him that read “2$ for your future.” What a deal, I thought to myself, If only God was that giving, so I borrowed a toonie from a friend and paid for my future. Caius shuffled his tarot deck while eyeing me up and down. The cards he drew were the King of Swords, The Lovers, and the Night of Swords. Each card was meant to represent a period in my life; my past, present, and future. “There is a sword in your past and one in your future… interesting.” Caius said to me. Unlike the Romans, I was never one to believe in star signs and augurs, but true to his Roman name, Caius swayed me by his predictions. He told me, “your past was governed by a tyranny that almost broke you,” – I must tell the reader, Caius is 14 years old – “The card of the lovers, however, is its opposite. Your present will be a time of freedom and passion, and your future, The Night of Swords, will be an emergence from that contradiction, a balance between self-control and self-indulgence.” Again, Caius is 14 years old. His readings froze me in place. It was as if Caius peeked into my mind’s mind and leafed through my subconscious. I asked him if I could sit with him to interview him, he nodded and took his journal out to list the million hobbies he has.