1- Previously a sheaf, particularly of corn, would signify a harvest or good husbandry. Now it is more likely to suggest old-fashioned ways and methods of operating.
A sheaf of papers would suggest hard work.
2- As a marker of time, the sheaf will suggest Autumn.
It is often seen as a symbol of consolidation and of binding. We perhaps need to look at what needs to be gathered in, made into a coherent whole, and given boundaries.
3- As the symbol of Demeter (See Also: Goddess), the sheaf represents the nurturing mother. In can also suggest a dying world, in that Demeter refused to nurture ‘her’ humans when Persephone (See Also: Goddess) was kidnapped by Pluto.
[1]See Also: introduction
[2]