Today’s cards are basically saying the exact same thing. Eight of swords is concerned with feeling stuck, feeling blinded and bound. It’s the negative monster from within that keeps you from doing the things you love or keeps you from seeing what you are capable of doing. In the light position here it’s showing a need to move beyond past problems and self-imposed restrictions, and to see what new opportunities may be there that you haven’t let yourself yet see. Six of cups in shadow is being stuck in the past, lamenting decisions. In shadow it’s a reminder to forgive others, but most of all to forgive yourself.
The constant work is letting go of the things from the past that no longer serve a purpose. Nothing can be fully let go until you carve out the good parts to keep and let go of the weight. No blade is sharp enough to get every cut just right, no hand steady enough to attain perfection. So the work continues.