Ten of Wands and Four of Swords together
The Ten of Wands with the Four of Swords: the burden beside the rest it needs. The reading is telling you to put the load down, at least for a while.
Ten of Wands
burden, overload, responsibility, carrying too much
The Ten of Wands is success turned into a load. Every staff was picked up for a good reason and together they are too much, and the man is so committed to carrying them all that he cannot see he is nearly there.
Reversed: The bundle comes apart.
Yes or no: No upright, Maybe reversed
Four of Swords
rest, recovery, retreat, a quiet mind
The Four of Swords is the rest that follows the wound. After the rain of the Three, the mind needs quiet, and the knight has taken himself somewhere no one can reach him.
Reversed: The knight sits up before he is ready, or cannot lie still at all.
Yes or no: Maybe upright, Maybe reversed
When one follows the other
The order matters. Read as what is passing and what comes next, as in a past, present and future spread, the pair tells two different stories.
Ten of Wands behind you, Four of Swords ahead
A period of overwork and heavy duty is receding. The town is in sight and the staffs are nearly delivered. The weight is lifting whether you have noticed or not.
A time of rest and withdrawal is coming, perhaps enforced by circumstances. Welcome it as recovery rather than resisting it as interruption.
Four of Swords behind you, Ten of Wands ahead
A period of rest and retreat is receding. The knight is rising from the tomb. The quiet has done its work and the world is asking for you again.
A heavy stretch is ahead, with more responsibility landing on you as something nears completion. Decide now what you will not pick up.
Related pairs
Draw your own cards
If both of these turn up in your reading, the summary points the pair out.