With an issue clearly in mind, select three Runes, one at a time, and place them, in the order of selection, from right to left. To avoid consciously changing the direction of the stones, especially as you become familiar with their symbols, you may want to place then blank side up, and then turn them over.
Once you have selected the Runes, they will lie before you in this fashion: Reading from the right, the first Rune speaks to the Situation as It is; the second Rune (center) suggests the Course of Action Ca11ed For; and the third Rune (on the left) indicates the New Situation That Will Evolve, after you have successfully met your challenge.
How you happen to turn the stones may still alter the direction of the glyphs to either an Upright or Reversed position, but this, too, is part of the process Since only nine Runes read the same Uplight and Reversed, the readings for the other sixteen will depend on how you turn the stones.
These are the Runes he drew:
The three Runes were interpreted in the following manner: Reading from the right, the first Rune, Algiz, the Rune of Protection Reversed, addresses his sense of being totally vulnerable, unprotected. It is a counsel to be mindful that only right action and correct conduct provide protection at such a time. He must learn and grow from this loss. The second Rune, Kano, is the Rune of Opening. He is encouraged to trust his process and consider what aspects of his old conditioning must change. Third came Nauthiz, the Rune of Constraint and Pain. The new growth will not be free of anguish. And yet his wife's departure may prompt him to undertake serious work on himself; he is reminded that rectification must come before progress.
To sum up, the three Runes are saying that, although he is feeling vulnerable and exposed, with the pain comes the necessary clarity to get on with the work of self-change. As he progresses, he is reminded to consider the positive uses of adversity.