The Sun entered into the earth sign of Virgo at 2:01am PDT on August 23, kicking off VIRGO SEASON through September 22!

In its most empowered expression, Virgo is deeply oriented to ever-learning, living and guiding with humility. Virgo is a service-oriented sign and is motivated by the joy of being able to show up with practical, tangible wisdom and a skill set to help a situation improve.

Virgo, naturally attuned to details and patterns, understands the minutiae of manifestation, the ways we must organize and strategize to create the changes we wish to see in our lives and in the world.

Step-by-step and with intention toward a vision is quintessential Virgoan wisdom. It’s all about what we practice in our daily lives. The choices we make and how we relate in our day-to-day will create our future.

I have an altar on my desk right now (pictured above) to honor some of the predominant astrological energies being stimulated both personally, in my own birth chart/life, and in the collective. Virgo energy is strong here, represented by the embroidery hoop by Shanalee Hampton revealing a key to some powerful Virgo manifestation magic: “MAKE tiny CHANGES.”

“A slight change in your daily habits can guide your life to a different destination.”
–James Clear, author of Atomic Habits

Virgo Season invites us to get grounded and look through a detailed lens upon our current situation (individual, relationship, community and society). What are the ways in which conditions need to improve? Virgo demands specificity. Devote patient time here. Critically examine.

And, when you’re ready, or perhaps simultaneously, with equal specificity, envision what improvement would look and feel like. What would be ideal? What would be glorious and life-giving? Let your imagination be vast and free. Spend spacious time here. Join with other hearts and minds to dream.

Then, embark upon a process of breaking down into bite-sized, tiny pieces how to get from point A to point B. Outline it. Map it. Whatever your method, make the path and practices as detailed and accessible as possible, knowing you can continuously refine and evolve the plan.  Adaptability is a Virgo superpower due to this earth sign being of the mutable modality.

In the spirit of Virgo Season, I want to honor Andrea Ritchie, who “is a Black lesbian immigrant survivor who has been documenting, organizing, advocating, litigating, and agitating around policing and criminalization of Black women, girls, trans, and gender nonconforming people for the past three decades.“

She has a new book coming out in October (which you can pre-order now) titled, Practicing New Worlds: Abolition and Emergent Strategies. This is the next book in the Emergent Strategy Series started by adrienne maree brown in collaboration with AK Press back in 2017 with amb’s groundbreaking book Emergent Strategy.

My partner, Dan, and I went to hear Andrea Ritchie speak on a panel at San Francisco State University, along with Angela Davis and Ny Nourn, several months ago. The event was in celebration of 25 years of the national grassroots organization, Critical Resistance, working to abolish the Prison Industrial Complex (PIC). It was my first exposure to Andrea Ritchie, and immediately upon returning home that night, I cued up a couple of podcast interviews with her to listen to in the coming days. Here’s one from the Emergent Strategy pod hosted by adrienne maree brown. 

Andrea Ritchie has over 20 years of experience as a researcher, policy analyst and advocate on criminal justice issues. The depth and precision of her knowledge coupled with her capacity to articulate the reality of the current moment and ways we can move into new possibilities was profoundly grounding and igniting. I can’t wait for her new book to arrive. Here’s the synopsis:

“Practicing New Worlds explores how principles of emergence, adaptation, iteration, resilience, transformation, interdependence, decentralization and fractalization can shape organizing toward a world without the violence of surveillance, police, prisons, jails, or cages of any kind, in which we collectively have everything we need to survive and thrive.

Rooted in analysis of current abolitionist practices and interviews with on-the-ground organizers resisting state violence, and nurturing organizations and convergences that can grow transformative cities and movements, Practicing New Worlds takes readers on a journey of learning, unlearning, experimentation, and imagination to dream the worlds we long for into being.”

You can pre-order here!

LEO Season: Hella Feminist

Image above: Recommended reading @ the HELLA FEMINIST exhibit (Oakland Museum of CA)

In the spirit of the fiery, creativity-sparking, passionately expressive, belonging and joy-seeking energy of LEO + (r)evolutionary, breakthrough, warrior-for-new-realities-beyond-systems-of-oppression MARS, URANUS, NORTH NODE CONJUNCTION!!! – I want to share with you some pieces of HELLA FEMINIST, an exhibition at the Oakland Museum of CA, which ignites and fills my soul with collective vision, fuel for action and so much gratitude.

Being physically in this inclusive, truth-telling, visionary space brimming with exacting, penetrating critique of patriarchy (including exorcism of patriarchy – images further below), along with opportunities for embodied experience right here and now of healing choices beyond patriarchy was fortifying, reality-expanding and cleansing in a deeply felt way. 

I found out about this exhibition through Oakland-based astrologer and medium, Jessica Lanyadoo, who has created an interactive portal as part of the exhibition, “where visitors can release their frustrations, anger, despair, exhaustion, and other emotions caused by a world that continues to be inequitable and unjust.”

After experiencing the portal, which was a profound emotional release, I came back later to take a photo. I took several attempting to get a clear image. Not happening. Here’s a look (only blur!):

I have featured Jessica in a couple of my past newsletters, as I immensely value her astrological perspective and critique of dominant culture (hetero-cisgendered-patriarchy, white supremacy, capitalism…). If you are into astrology and haven’t checked out her Ghost of a Podcast ya gotta!! She rocks.

From the HELLA FEMINIST exhibition description:

“Feminism. It’s a loaded word; as empowering to some as it is challenging for others.

Hella Feminist is rooted in the idea that discrimination against all elements of identity (gender, class, race, sexual orientation, physical ability, education, age, etc.) is interlinked and that no element can be addressed in isolation.

Organized around three core themes—mind, body, and spirit—the exhibition features fascinating historical artifacts, provocative contemporary artwork, and interactive elements. Showcasing everyday acts of resistance as well as historical flashpoints, Hella Feminist invites you to experience the concept of feminism in all its struggle, triumph, and hope; to re-think your relationship to the word and the ideas it represents; and to consider how all of us can take action to shape a more just future.”

If you live in the Bay Area or are planning a visit out here, you don’t want to miss this! The exhibit is running through January 8, 2023.

Now, sharing a few images and artists from the exhibit (this is only a tiny, tiny fraction of what is there…a person could spend a whole day…and come back many times to soak it all in).

Image below: MUSEOEXCLUSION EXORCISM by Tanya Aguiñiga

In the grid above: Copal, Prehnite, Selenite, Baking Soda, Washed and dried eggshells, Rock salt, Charcoal

Images below: RESTORATIVE REALM created by Inés Ixierda (Mestizx interdisciplinary visual artist, media maker and curator), sylk (queer trans nonbinary Black herbalist, land steward and artist), Elokin Orton-Cheung (pronouns they/them, community herbalist, acupuncturist, activist and big garden nerd) and Alex de las Mareas (Xicana sex educator, anarchafeminist, cancer sun and interdisciplinary artist).

Please feel free to read more from my August 2022 newsletter: Hella Feminist + Fractals

Cancer Season

We are now solidly in CANCER SEASON (June 21-July 22, 2022), with the SUN moving through the sign of Cancer, one degree per day, and tonight MERCURY also enters this deeply sensitive, primal, feeling, water sign. Mercury represents the Mind (thinking) and Cancer is ruled by the Moon, which represents the Heart (feeling), in Evolutionary Astrology.

For the next couple of weeks (July 4-19), as Mercury embodies this deeply lunar energy, we are supported in consciously merging our thinking minds and our feeling hearts.

Mercury also governs language and communication. During this period while Mercury is in Cancer, which occurs once every year, the door is open to deepen our capacity and skill to articulate what we are feeling in a more nuanced way.

Recently, I was given the book, Atlas of the Heart, by a dear friend, which explores 87 different emotions. Wow – it’s so broadening. And, I have been spending with the emotions/feelings wheel (pictured above).  Being a Cancerian Sun myself, with my natal Mercury in Cancer too, it is a life-giving stream to have access to a more expansive and nuanced vocabulary for feelings and emotions.

“Language is our portal to meaning-making, connection, healing, learning and self-awareness. Having access to the right words can open up entire universes. When we don’t have the language to talk about what we’re experiencing, our ability to make sense of what’s happening and share it with others is severely limited… Language shows us that naming an experience doesn’t give the experience more power, it gives US the power of understanding and meaning.”
–Brené Brown, Atlas of the Heart

Please feel free to read more from my July newsletter: 4th of July Anti-Imperialism Webinar + Mercury in Cancer + RIP Roe v. Wade Resources

Lilith in Astrology

Artwork above by Paula Barkmeier (Thank you for your potent creativity, vision and heart, Paula!!)

“Patriarchy has sought to repress and tame erotic passion precisely because of its power to draw us into greater and greater communion with ourselves, with those we know most intimately, and with the stranger.” –bell hooks

Lilith, in astrology, is the function or drive within all beings that seeks to confront, process through and uproot oppressive conditioning and systems of power (imperialism, colonialism, capitalism, white supremacy, heteronormativity, patriarchy…).

Evolutionary astrology holds the premise that human beings CAN EVOLVE BEYOND OUR CONDITIONING!🔥🔥🔥

Lilith symbolizes our untamed, undomesticated, wild and completely natural life force energy (eros). Our wholeness. Our full aliveness. Lilith’s function within us is to RECLAIM our birthright of our natural, life-affirming energies and the infinite possibilities for our true expression beyond the rigid binaries of gender, sexuality, etc, that are foundational to the operation of patriarchy.

Lilith represents the FIGHT RESPONSE within all beings towards repression, suppression, oppression, inequality, abuse of power and the erosion of agency and critical thinking.

The images I’ve included here are from the co-created altar in the center of our circle at the in-person EMBODIED ASTROLOGICAL LILITH IMMERSION I recently facilitated in Minneapolis, MN at Yoga Sanctuary.

During the dark of the Moon, when Lilith’s elemental power is at its peak, we gathered in circle. We expanded deeply and innately into sacred, wild (natural), remembered PRE-PATRIARCHAL space together. It’s times like these that I absolutely live for. I feel resourced and fulfilled at a depth beyond words. MATRIARCHAL REMEMBRANCE embodied in community. My body recognizes this feeling as home, as taproot, as true origin…back to a time before the “sale of the daughter,” the commodification of female bodies, which marks the beginning of patriarchy (3000 BCE).

Thank you, Sherri Mitchell, for sharing this quote from Heide Goettner-Abendroth (who has devoted her life to studying matriarchal cultures):
 

“Matriarchies are not just a reversal of patriarchies, with women ruling over men – as the usual misinterpretation would have it. Matriarchies are mother-centered societies. They are based on maternal values: care-taking, nurturing, mothering. This holds for everybody: for mothers and those who are not mothers, for women and men (all genders) alike. Matriarchal societies…are, on principle, need-oriented. They aim to meet everyone’s needs with the greatest benefit. So, in matriarchies, mothering…is transformed into a cultural model.”
 

(“all genders” is my addition to the quote above)

Please feel free to read more from my June newsletter: Venus in Taurus / Queer = Splendiferously YOU / Matriarchy

Venus in Taurus

From May 28–June 22, 2022, VENUS, the planet of relationship, attraction, creativity and values will be moving through the primal earth sign of TAURUS.

Taurus is symbolized by the bull…very rarely the charging bull (unless pushed way past its limits), much more so a contented cow in the meadow, peacefully grazing while basking in the pleasurable coolness of a shade tree.

When it comes to values, Taurus is all about naturalness, simplicity, stability, continuity, ease and peace.

When I think of Taurean energy, this quote by poet, Mary Oliver, comes to mind:
“Sometimes I need only stand wherever I am to be blessed.”

And, in the words of Amy Herring, Evolutionary Astrologer and author of Essential Astrology:
“Taurus does not seek to push itself into blazing existence, but to plainly BE – peaceful, calm, at ease with itself and the world.”

Amy goes on to write about Taurus’s core need for peace:

“Peacefulness is not necessarily piousness or transcendent spirituality; for Taurus, peace is often sought through indulgence rather than transcendence. The activities that bring one down to earth in an immediate way are the pathways that Taurus prefers to walk, whether through experiences that refresh and enliven the senses or a familiar routine that calmly reassures the soul that life will continue.”

As Venus moves through Taurus, we are invited to slow ourselves down and settle more deeply into our natural, earthy, sensuous, instinctual selves. To allow our animal bodies to explore indulgence in creature comforts and pleasures that bring us a tangible, felt sense of peace, calm, simplicity, stability and ease.

As we orient to our sensuality and the opening of our senses, we may wish to feel into the embodied pleasures and comforts of certain tastes, types of touch or physical contact, sights, sounds and smells…

And, acknowledging that not all of us have access to each of these senses.

In whatever ways we engage with this transit, may this Venus in Taurus time initiate ever more down-to-earthiness in our bodies, our relationships, in the ways we relate and connect with ourselves, with others (human and more-than-human), with the natural world, with our immediate environments. May we we root deeper into the sensuality of what we naturally feel drawn to experience and express…in pleasure, in beauty, in peace, in connection, in creativity and in embodiment of our values…

Please fee free to read more from my June newsletter: Venus in Taurus / Queer = Splendiferously YOU / Matriarchy

Artwork above by Forever Conscious

Jupiter Neptune Conjunction in Pisces

I’d like to share a prayer with you by Sherri Mitchell (Weh’na Ha’mu’ Kwasset) that feels like it gives words to the infinitely expansive, healing, heart-opening spirit and receptivity to higher consciousness with which the JUPITER NEPTUNE CONJUNCTION in PISCES invites us to align with now and moving forward. This conjunction was exact on April 12, 2022 and will remain very potent through mid-May 2022 with the effects rippling out for years to come.

This Prayer for Healing and Openness is in Sherri Mitchell’s book, Sacred Instructions: Indigenous Wisdom for Living Spirit-Based Change (p.74):

“My fate is twined with the fate of destiny, held in perpetuity with all life, spiraling all the way back to the beginning of time. As I move toward my highest expression, the wisdom of ages is wrapped around me like a cloak; it moves with me, shifting to match my own unique rhythm and then integrating that rhythm into the movement of creation. Let that cloak be a comfort to me in times of trial. Allow me to open myself to this wisdom and let it soften my defenses against it, knowing that any pain that I feel during the process is caused by denying the wise enticement of my own true heart. I seek to become a willing vessel and to open my heart completely to those whom fate has drawn toward me. Allow me to see them, not through the obscured vision of my own wounding, or the defensive shelter created by theirs, but with the clarity of vision that can reveal their soul to me. Give me strength to remain seated in this pursuit beyond the levels of my own discomfort and fear, so that I may become the boundless being that you have created me to be, capable of embracing all life and capable of giving and receiving all of the love that the divine spirit holds for me.

Kci woliwon, n’dilnabamuk.
My heart thanks you, for all of my relations.”

–Sherri Mitchell (Weh’na Ha’mu’ Kwasset)

Artwork above by Abacus Corvus

Greetings at the doorway of this Aries New Moon!

The ARIES NEW MOON is exact at 11 degrees ARIES on Thursday, March 31st at 11:24PM Pacific Time.

This Moon is very personal to me, as I was born under an Aries Moon. The Moon in our birth charts points to what will nourish and center us, leading to contentment and well-being deep within our hearts and souls. The Moon in the birth chart also shines a light on our specific ways of nourishing, nurturing and caring for others.

Aries is the first sign of the zodiac – PRIMAL FIRE.

The SPARK OF LIFE itself.

Aries ignites EMERGENCE. The process of birthing ourselves and our dreams continuously into existence, that we may be more and more PASSIONATELY, FULLY HERE.

EMBODIED and “AVAILABLE TO LIFE!”

Aries stokes the motivation to unceasingly LEARN ABOUT OURSELVES and our DESIRE (Eros), ever intimate with the evolution of what we want and need to whole-heartedly engage with Life moving through us and around us.

Through the Aries process of self-discovery, we have the opportunity to develop our AGENCY, in which we recognize ourselves as conscious CREATORS (co-creators), as beings who have the power to SHAPE CHANGE (as sci-fi writer, Octavia Butler taught).

It’s important to note here that a less conscious (distorted) manifestation of Aries is that of the rugged individualist, which is wildly idealized and promoted in white supremacy culture. The conditioning around individualism is thick. As Tema Okun writes, “white supremacy culture trains us all to internalize attitudes and behaviors that do not serve any of us.”

With ARIES being the WARRIOR of the zodiac, can we channel this FIERCE, LASER-FOCUSED energy to uproot and divest from the characteristics of white supremacy culture?

Aries is just as much about learning what we want to say YES to as what we need to say NO to.

And, when we hold the deepest Aries wisdom at the center, we align with the knowledge that the Aries Warrior is charged with the responsibility to defend and uphold that which is LIFE-GIVING. To act with LIFE-SUSTAINING vision and intention.

The Aries Warrior path is one of relentless commitment to FACE FEARS and BUILD COURAGE so that a willingness to TAKE RISKS and STAND UP in the face of the denial of Life (characteristics of white supremacy culture, for example) is not even a question.

The Aries energy within all of us is deeply enlivened each time we rise to meet this calling.

And, know that when the Moon in the sky transits through the sign of Aries each month, for those 2.5 days, it is a time when the Aries energy within each of us receives a boost, an added stimulation. It is an opportunity for us to explore, experience and integrate Aries energy more deeply into our being.

To read more, please see my newsletter: ARIES FIRE: Emergence + The Warrior Path

The FULL MOON is exact at 27 degrees VIRGO (Sun at 27 degrees Pisces) in the wee hours of the morning (12:17am Pacific Time) on Friday, March 18.

Virgo is an Earth sign, here to cultivate grounded attention to detail, the capacity to have one eye on the reality of the present and one eye on the future, here to continually improve and evolve lifelong, not only self but also surroundings.

HUMILITY

Humility is a core quality associated with the empowered ground of Virgo. This could look like embodying the desire to listen and learn in every moment, understanding that others hold wisdom and experience of deep value. High Virgo recognizes that there are people further down the road, perhaps in one’s particular craft, or in another area of interest/knowledge/skill or life experience, and that we have the opportunity to grow and evolve by learning from them.

Therefore, the Virgo developmental process is associated particularly with mentorship relationships and apprenticeships.

Within the fullness of Virgo’s expression, there is the mentee/student side of things, which requires the humility to ever-learn from others and continuously admit we do not know everything! There is also the mentor/teacher aspect of Virgo’s expression, which requires the confidence to pick up the torch and step into our sharing shoes.

GRATITUDE

As my Evolutionary Astrology mentor/teacher, Steven Forrest would say (paraphrased): Even more than confidence, in the spirit of Virgo, the mentor role emerges out of gratitude for the wisdom our teachers and guides have bestowed to us. To feel a sense of indebtedness to our teachers as impetus to share the teachings is a beautiful thing and part of high Virgo realization.

SERVICE

This leads us right into the heart of Virgo, which is the desire to be of service. In its empowered manifestation, this is the act of offering something of value to others and simultaneously being nourished and fed through our giving. If we can cultivate meaningful responsibilities and work/craft in our day-to-day lives that bring value to others’ lives…wow, this is joie de vivre for Virgo!

DISEMPOWERED TERRITORY

Now, we must acknowledge that the motivation to be of service can go into disempowered territory, which could look like taking on responsibilities out of a sense of duty or obligation and ending up completely burned out and depleted. Martyrdom is one of the deepest disempowered expressions of Virgoan energy.

Let’s explore a bit more where Virgo can go in its disempowered states. We know we are there if humility is being taken too far, into a sense of humiliation, a harsh inner critic taking over, ongoing self-doubt and/or debilitating perfectionism. Basically, “I will never know enough or be good enough to share with others what I’ve learned.”

ANTIDOTE

It is very important, if we find ourselves in this territory, to spend some time steeping in gratitude for our teachers and all the gifts they have offered to us. It is crucial to remember that to live out the fullness of Virgo, we must move into sharing our wisdom too. Gratitude is a doorway.

Pisces, the astrological sign opposite Virgo in the zodiac, can also be tapped into as an antidote to painful, disempowered Virgo states. Pisces is about stepping back from the scrutiny, details and ever-striving, to soften the eyes and surrender into a relaxed gaze of the big picture.

Piscean wisdom reminds us: “Perfect is the enemy of good enough.” 🙂

Pisces also represents the experience of steeping ourselves in states of consciousness such as unconditional compassion, lovingkindness and deep self-acceptance (enoughness). I find that guided meditations can be a great gift when we find ourselves in rockier Virgo terrain, instead of trying to muster compassionate states of being on our own!

If you’d like, check out this 2-3 minute meditation on compassion guided by Lama Rod Owens.

To read more, please see my newsletter: Virgo Full Moon of Humility + Compassion Meditation

As I write to you, VENUS and MARS in the sky are in an exact conjunction, fused together at 16 degrees CAPRICORN. And, the FULL MOON in LEO (exactly opposite the SUN in AQUARIUS) is going to be exact at 27 degrees at 8:56am PST on Wednesday, February 16, 2022.

Big, strong, grounded and flamboyant energy!

LEO + AQUARIUS:

The dynamic fire sign of Leo desires passionate, bold, authentic expression and style, creative sparks flying and a sense of warm-hearted exuberance and belonging in community. Leo is all about the human need for joy, playfulness, self-confidence and acceptance by others (for one’s real and true self-expression). In its lower expression, Leo can compromise authenticity for a sense of false belonging and a facade of sunshine.

Aquarius being the opposite (counterpart) of Leo, can help Leo correct course if needed. If Leo moves into the territory of people-pleasing to belong or performative happiness over authenticity, Aquarius is there to shake things up and bring one back into authentic alignment.

Aquarius IS the quest for radical authenticity and achieves this by critically examining the status quo and all the ways we are conditioned by society…coupled with the process of shedding conditioning that does not align with our authentic values and expression, as well as a big dose of experimentation outside of the box. The Aquarian quest is a commitment to de-conditioning/de-colonizing ourselves – individually and in our collectives.

VENUS + MARS IN CAPRICORN:

Another dimension of this Full Moon is that Venus and Mars in Capricorn are fused together in the spirit of integration. Principles of yin (receptive) and yang (active) conjoin stimulating possibilities of greater balance and wholeness. These two planets are within two degrees of each other from February 7–March 17, 2022. They will make one more exact conjunction on March 3, 2022.

Venus represents the relationship-forming function within us, the desire to build bridges of rapport with others that lead to intimacy, connection and support. Venus is also the function of valuing ourselves and coming with that sense of self-value to relationships, discerning accordingly.

Mars represents the function of eros, passionate engagement with Life. Mars is the part of us that is in touch with our life force energy and knows our desires, wants and needs. Yet, it doesn’t stop there! Mars is also the function of our agency, our capacity to take action in the direction of our desires, wants and needs. To get them met!

To develop our Mars is to develop our internal locus of control, to strengthen our sense of our ability to effect change, to make things happen, to advocate for ourselves and all we care for in this Life. Mars also rules the art of boundary-making, knowing that boundaries are alive and can shift and change.

With these two relational planets merging in Capricorn, it’s important to frame the functions of Venus and Mars in the context of integrity, accountability and an openness to hard work which serves a greater purpose and results in a deepening of wisdom, all of which are high Capricorn manifestations. We are being stimulated by this conjunction to come into deeper alignment with these qualities in our relationship with ourselves, with others (human and other-than-human) and with Life itself.

We must also be aware of Capricorn’s lower manifestations as well, as this energy in its less conscious form can be transactional in its relations, valuing profit/individual gain over people/wider collective well-being, and at worst, can be ruthlessly extractive.

NODES OF THE MOON:

Lastly, This Full Moon is in exact square aspect to the Nodes of the Moon (South Node in Scorpio and North Node in Taurus).

In evolutionary astrology we refer to the Nodes of the Moon as “the karmic axis,” which represents past wounding and distortion (South Node) that is ripe and ready to move into deeper levels of resolution and healing (North Node). 

Collectively, over the next year and a half, while the Nodes of the Moon are transiting through Scorpio and Taurus, we are being stimulated to activate the Taurus North Node evolutionary medicine of moving slowly and deliberately into more of our embodied, instinctual animal body awareness and knowing, operating from a place of utter naturalness, listening to the wisdom of our bodies and the rhythms and intelligence of the natural world to probe into the Scorpio South Node territory: the root of our fears, anxieties, falsities and the myriad of ways we may operate from a place of disempowerment or denial.

This Leo/Aquarius Full Moon time is beaming bright and brilliant light onto the collective karmic axis, illuminating what work there is to be done here, knowing it is all in service to individual and collective liberation, empowerment and transformation.

To read more, please see my newsletter: Promiscuous Love + Leo Full Moon + Hymn to Her

Much has shifted above and below since my last letter to you pre-2022!

One dramatic shift is that JUPITER has now joined NEPTUNE in the infinitely imaginative and empathetic, mystical sign of PISCES, which is the sign that both of these planets rule. Jupiter is the classical ruler of Pisces, and Neptune is the modern ruler. 

When planets are in their home sign, their particular archetypal field has increased potency, both in the high potential possibilities and the potential pitfalls.

Piscean High Potentials:

This amplification of Pisces by both of its planetary rulers traveling through its sign catalyzes the high potential of SURRENDER to more LIFE-GIVING VISIONS, DREAMS and ASPIRATIONS (individually + collectively). This stimulus also invites an opening into a FLOW of HEALING GENEROSITY, both in ourselves as givers and as receivers.

During this ultra-Piscean time, doors of perception are poised to swing open into heightened AWARENESS and INSIGHT, unleashed IMAGINATION and CREATIVITY and intensified SPIRITUAL CONNECTION and GROWTH.

Perhaps this connection and growth is the kind that accompanies an alignment with more of a BIRD’S EYE VIEW of Life – who we truly are (Love) and why we are here…also, perhaps through a deeper embodiment of qualities such as COMPASSION, FORGIVENESS and UNCONDITIONAL LOVE; and a deeper understanding of the INTERCONNECTEDNESS of all beings and the truth of IMPERMANENCE itself.

Piscean Pitfalls:

In terms of Piscean pitfalls, due to natural Piscean sensitivity, deep feeling and empathy, there can be a tendency to become overwhelmed in the face of intensity, uncertainty, pain and suffering. This can lead to an impulse to BYPASS or ESCAPE the intensity, perhaps by DISSOCIATION, getting lost in DELUSION or FANTASY, NUMBING OUT and/or seeking PERPETUAL HIGHS.

I want to pause right here and invite in Piscean empathy, non-judgment and compassion as it makes complete sense that in the midst of overwhelm, we would reach toward that which we imagine would take the edge off and ease the pain.

Piscean Evolutionary Waters:

The Piscean evolutionary waters are largely about learning to understand and work with STATES OF OVERWHELM, in a way that leads to a WIDENING OF SPACE inside of ourselves (and in our collectives) that we may be more expansively and open-heartedly HERE, able to be PRESENT with what IS.

When we plug into the GREAT EXPANSE of Pisces – a felt-sense of a larger reality, a deeper sense of purpose and a remembrance of who we truly are (LOVE) – we may notice that our capacity to be present with Life’s intensity naturally begins to shift and expand. As this happens over time, the possibility to be present for the whole of who we are (individually + collectively) and that which is the full spectrum of Life becomes more available to us.

To read more, please see my newsletter: Piscean Pitfalls/Potentials + Lilith in Astrology + Pluto Deep Dive

Several days ago I listened to Glennon Doyle’s podcast We Can Do Hard Things for the first time. The episode I listened to was the most recent one and happened to be about self-care. Spot on for this time in the astrological cycles with the Sun moving through the sign of Cancer (June 20 – July 22, 2021) and the New Moon in Cancer almost upon us (July 9, 2021 exact at 6:16pm Pacific Time).

Cancer, at its essence, is about learning the practice of self-care and experiencing the embodied reality of how healing and life-giving care for oneself can be…and how the impact of self-care ripples out and truly ends up being community care. When we care for ourselves, we have energy to care for others. It’s a beautiful thing! (and not always easy)

The sign of Cancer, being of the Water element, is particularly focused upon emotional self-care. To be in touch with one’s own emotional needs and boundaries and practicing living in alignment is the high ground of Cancer. This podcast spoke to exactly that and in a very thought-provoking, counter status quo manner. It wasn’t your typical discussion on self-care. A strong Aquarian/Uranian invitation to question our societal conditioning, to pick apart the ways we’ve been programmed to think, feel and behave permeated this conversation. A breath of fresh air!

I strongly recommend giving this episode a listen if you haven’t already! It will surely offer up some fruitful food for Cancerian introspection and action supported by this New Moon, seed-planting energy.

Also, this New Moon is taking place in the midst of the Mars/Saturn opposition squared by Uranus right now (called a T-Square in astrology). T-Squares are powerful, dynamic configurations often characterized by frustration or tension, which can trigger significant breakthrough and action. The kind of action that comes by way of a breaking point. Finally reaching the point of, “I can’t do it this way anymore!! It’s time to implement a change.” And, then doing it!

With it being the powerful lineup of Mars, Saturn and Uranus involved in this T-Square, there’s a huge amount of energy stimulating potential breakthrough (Uranus), stamina for determination of will (Mars) and increased capacity to commit to making concrete change real (Saturn).  Saturn wants us to take responsibility for ourselves, our choices, and live more deeply from our integrity. Mars in Leo says, “YES! Doing so could actually increase my access to my life force energy, to joy, spontaneity, creativity and authentic self expression.” And, lightning bolt Uranus exclaims, “And, the shifts in consciousness that are possible right now are the kind where there’s no going back. You experience a breakthrough and it sticks.”

This New Moon time is opportune seed our intentions, our actions in this energy.

Here’s a look at the New Moon chart (snapshot of the sky) at the time the New Moon is exact (notice the T-Square of Mars opposite Saturn squared by Uranus…and the Sun and Moon conjunct at 18 degrees Cancer):

(Every ‘moon’th when the Sun and Moon are exactly opposite each other in the Zodiac = the Full Moon.)

This Full Moon has a strong ARIES stellium involved: VENUS and CHIRON are at the exact same degree as the SUN, 8 degrees Aries, and CERES is not that far away at 13 degrees Aries.

This particular Full Moon, which is in a sign already oriented to centering others and relationships (Libra), invites us to be even more deeply attuned to our connections, our beloveds (Venus), with our empathy (Chiron) fully engaged, both for ourselves (Aries) and for others (Libra), while practicing self-care and nourishment (Ceres) that we may show up more fully our best selves with our loved ones (and beyond).

This excerpt from How We Show Up: Reclaiming Family, Friendship and Community by Mia Birdsong really speaks to me of the healthy, high ground integration of the Aries/Libra axis of energy, which is being stimulated in full, clarifying light by this Libra Full Moon:

VENUS has now entered the fire sign of ARIES (Mar 21-April 14), along with the Sun (Mar 20-April 19), Ceres (Feb 20-May 8) and Chiron (2018-2027).

VENUS is all about our connection needs and how we relate. Venus in Aries challenges us to root more deeply into our individual needs/desires and to courageously bring them forward more honestly and directly into our relationships. However, it doesn’t end there. The passage below from Mia Birdsong’s book, How We Show Up speaks to this Venus in Aries high potential very well. But, first, a couple of words about Chiron and Ceres, as the Birdsong passage also integrates these planetary energies.

CHIRON represents the development of empathy/compassion through tending to our own wounding/pain, by engaging in a deep inner healing process. Chiron in Aries invites us back to our origins, perhaps into greater awareness and tending of any wounding/distortion we may carry that is ancestral, passed down through our lineage, and tending with the intention of healing into greater clarity, warrior wisdom and empowerment.

CERES represents self-care and self-nurturance, and also how we offer care/nurturance to others. Ceres in Aries invites us to advocate for and prioritize our own self-care which allows us to show up for others in a better way. Win-Win!

Mia Birdsong writes:

“I’ve come to understand that the things I want to do to be my best self and live my best life are also necessary for me to be in workable relationships with others. That means self-care, self-reflection, healing and evolving. It means tapping into tremendous compassion for others and ourselves as we journey. It means committing to our own evolution, and supporting the evolution of our loved ones as they support us. This work we have to do is also about reorienting ourselves around what it means to be an individual. Our individuality is entwined with our connectedness; so the work of healing and growth happens both alone and in relation to others. We are the only ones who can decide we will heal and grow, but it’s a collective process.”

SATURN in AQUARIUS SQUARE URANUS in TAURUS
 

VENUS enters AQUARIUS today at 6:05am PST!

The essence of the Aquarian process is individuation. Individuating from our conditioning. Sifting through the layers of how we’ve been programmed to think, feel and behave by dominant culture.

Venus represents the function of forming relationships and connections – both human and more-than-human. From Feb 1-25, 2021 transiting Venus is motivated by Aquarian energy, stimulating us to critically examine how we’ve been conditioned to think about relationship, how we’ve been conditioned to be in relationship. How much of this conditioning actually matches who we authentically are and how much creates incongruence, inauthenticity, a box that is too small?

Feeling this Venus in Aquarius energy so strongly, I went back and re-listened to the episode on this very topic of deconditioning around relationships and sex with Dr. Kim TallBear on the All My Relations podcast. I so highly recommend giving that episode (#5) a listen during this Venus in Aquarius time. It is stimulating in exactly a Venus in Aquarius way!

And, as you may know, it’s not just Venus that is in Aquarius right now but also the Sun, Mercury (Retrograde Jan 30-Feb 20), Jupiter, Saturn and the asteroids Lilith, Pallas Athene and Neith! A very, very Aquarian time.

And, know there is more Aquarian energy to come: the New Moon in Aquarius on Feb 11, 2021!

This photo came floating into this LEO FULL MOON day from 7 years ago…here we are, feeling a sweet kind of contentment, the warmth of the morning Sun on our faces.

And, this quote…

“Today, for some reason, I see how short our lives actually are & how I forget to look in your eyes & stop time entirely & say, ‘You have made this life for me.'”
-StoryPeople by Brian Andreas

LEO is at home in the 5th house of the wheel of the zodiac, which is the realm of falling in love…with friends, lovers, children, pets, summer sun, trees, birdsong, stars, ocean waves, flowers, squirrels, falling leaves, book shops, cupcakes, music, dancing, dew drops… Most deeply the 5th house/LEO is about falling in love with Life…

Have you seen the new animated film, “Soul?” Wow…it brings this 5th house/LEO logic alive. The spark of desire to LIVE this earthly life, to engage wholeheartedly in all the spontaneous moments of beauty, pleasure, contentment, bliss, creativity, connection…to shine authentically and feel joy in others’ shine…

May the bright light of this Full Moon phase illuminate our spark for living and all the ways spontaneous moments of pleasure and sweetness show up on this earthly plane. And, may we let our loved ones, human and more-than-human, know…“You have made this life for me.”

Happy Full Moon Phase of this ‘Moon’th! The Full Moon is exact on December 29th at 7:28pm PST at 8 degrees Cancer and will remain in the Full Moon Phase for several more days. Each of the 8 moon phases is about 3.5 days in length. So, we move from 2020 into 2021 with the Moon in the phase of the height of its LIGHT!

The above card is from the NEXT WORLD TAROT deck by Cristy C. Road. 

Cancer is the first water sign of the zodiac, ruled by the Moon, inviting us to feel everything. Primal, raw feeling. From the Cancerian lens, it’s not even necessary to understand all the feelings coursing through us, rather the primary importance is to allow ourselves to FEEL it all. And to especially allow ourselves to soften and feel the most tender, vulnerable feelings. To allow our precious hearts to be more deeply felt and shared. High, holy Cancerian potential is a life, an embodied way of being where emotions can flow like rivers, clearing stagnancy and nourishing the natural movement of LIFE.

The NEW MOON SOLAR ECLIPSE at 23 degrees SAGITTARIUS takes place Monday, December 14, 2020 at 8:16am PST. This eclipse occurs near the South Node of the Moon, which is representative of “karmic past” energy, showing up as shadow expressions of whatever sign it is in.

The sign is Sagittarius, which in its shadows perpetuates an addiction to certainty, clinging to beliefs, refusing to question or examine outside of that belief system or set way of doing things, especially if that way of doing things honors the “god” one (individual/society) worships.

Sagittarius is the sign associated with religion and is driven to make a “god,” a religion, out of something, which in itself is not a shadow. It only becomes shadow if it takes on a fundamentalist, “my way or the highway” mentality. And/or when the worship of said “god” causes harm.

In a capitalist society where money is “god” and material success and the growth industrial complex reign supreme, we worship by accumulating more, more, more. By extracting more, more, more.

The nature of Sagittarius is to say, “Yes!” which again, in itself is not a shadow. The shadow emerges when it becomes greed, entitlement, chronic over-extension. (Lack of boundaries: “yes, yes, yes, more, more more.”) Not being able to recognize when enough is enough.

And, the cost with such a worship is always the exploitation of Life…some in human form and some in more-than-human form.

Saturday, October 31st at 7:49am PDT – FULL BLUE MOON IN TAURUS (Conjunct Uranus EXACT at 8 degrees Taurus):

URANUS has been such a major player in 2020 with its energy touching so many of the New/Full Moons…and now again. This planet of REVOLUTION and INNOVATION is demanding a grand DISRUPTION of the status quo, as the status quo is destructive, exploitative and unjust on so many levels (racist, white supremacist, capitalist, hetero-normative, patriarchal…).

And, as adrienne maree brown writes in truth-telling, Scorpionic fashion, “Remember supremacy is a projection rooted in a hatred of self. Remember racism is a form of insecurity.”

Uranus shakes us, rattles our souls, “Wake up! There is a better way! Let’s come together in all of our vibrancy and difference and get wildly creative.”

Bottom line = Uranus activates the potential for breakthroughs in consciousness which can lead to individual and societal trajectory-altering awareness and change.

adrienne maree brown’s words below resonate so poignantly with the energy of this Uranian Full Moon and all the innovative work that lies before us in creating a future that is better, not just for some, but for ALL.

From her piece, Additional Recommendations for Us Right Now from a Future:

“Task: Be revolutionary.

Need: The changes we are responsible for shaping are profound. When we can see the end of our species on the horizon, we must operate at a scale that extends our life beyond the horizon.

Mantra: We root the work we do and the ways we do it in love, in being an extension of love in the world.

Context: Even if we don’t have a clear sense of the exact solutions to fix the future, we should have a clear sense of how we want to feel in ourselves, in our relationships with each other, in community, and in relationship to the planet. Those feelings aren’t for the far-off future, they are guidance to what we must be seeding and practicing now, right now. 

Practice: If we believe that we are miraculous, we must treat ourselves and each other that way. 

Practice: If we believe in community, then we must get curious about the ways we need to grow and communicate in order to truly be a part of community. Not just one community, but the multitude of communities we intersect with.”

This post is part of one of my newsletters. If you’d like to view the newsletter, please click here.

NEW MOON at 23 degrees LIBRA at 12:31pm PDT today, October 16, 2020 – This Libra New Moon is opposed by Action-Oriented Warrior MARS (in retrograde/reflection and regroup period until Nov 13) and Godexx of Discord ERIS, both in courage-building ARIES + squared by Opportunity for Resiliency JUPITER, Maturation-Time SATURN and Guardian of the Underworld/Initiator into Utter Transformation PLUTO – all three planets in CAPRICORN.

This is an intense, power-packed New Moon…a continuation of the energies of 2020! LIBRAN energy has an innate sensitivity to and desire for fairness, equity, balance, justice and peace. And, Libra knows this work cannot be done alone, it must be done in relationship, in community. Retrograde Mars opposing this Moon sparks energy for deeper reflection and regrouping so that effective action may be taken in the direction of these high Libran potentials. I came across this new song by Ani DiFranco. So spot on for this New Moon!

The FULL MOON in AQUARIUS arrives on Monday, August 3, 2020, exact at 8:59am Pacific Time at 11 degrees Aquarius.

Aquarius is ruled by the planet URANUS, which has the energy of earthquakes and lightning bolts!

Disruption. Honest Confrontation. Protest. Resistance. Revolution. Rebellion. Radical Change. 

Astronomically, Uranus is the only planet to spin on its side! So, if you imagine how a planet’s equator would normally be running horizontally, Uranus has dramatically tilted so its equator is nearly vertical! Shaking the planetary norm up to the core!

At the time of the upcoming Full Moon, Uranus in the sky will be making a dynamic 90-degree angle (a square aspect) to the Leo Sun and Aquarian Moon. Needless to say, this Full Moon is powerfully intensified and electrically charged by its own ruling planet!

Aquarian/Uranian energy functions in its high potential to critically examine and question dominant culture (status quo) and the ways we have been socialized/conditioned/influenced to think, feel and behave by and within this culture.

Definition: Dominant culture in a society is the group who wields more power than other groups.

In the United States, the dominant culture is synonymous with oppressive white supremacy culture, which is the cultural conditioning that white bodies and the ideas, thoughts, beliefs and actions of white bodies are superior to all other bodies and superior to the ideas, thoughts, beliefs and actions of all other bodies (Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ)).

In the birth chart of the USA, based on the date of July 4, 1776, the Sun is at 13 degrees Cancer. (see 1st chart below)

The FULL MOON LUNAR ECLIPSE happening tonight (see 2nd chart below), July 4, 2020, is exact at 13 degrees CAPRICORN, directly opposing the Sun (core identity/values) of the USA (upon which the USA was founded and operates).

Core values of capitalism, white supremacy, colonialism, imperialism and patriarchy are at the heart of the birth and growth of the USA. This country was founded upon the genocide of Indigenous people and the abduction and enslavement of African people. This truth is a glaring wound in this country’s founding and history. An abhorrent abuse of power from the very beginning and still so flagrantly operating in systems today – education, health care, criminal justice, ownership of property, policy/law-making, media, military, etc… (systems and structures in society are the domain of Capricorn.)

With this influx of raw, fiery MARS/ARIES energy over the next 6 months, speaking as one who was born into and steeped in the “Minnesota Nice” flavor of white-body supremacy, what a ripe time to burn through layers of that conditioning, such as the propensity towards “niceness,” politeness, passivity, dissociation and silence…in the face of injustice.

“Your niceness is inadequate.” –Resmaa Menakem (from his On Being interview)

MARS/ARIES energy is visceral and fierce. It invites a greater physical, embodied capacity to stand the heat. To grow one’s amplitude to hold greater discomfort, to move towards that intensity in order to disrupt fear-based, contracted, harming patterns.

MARS represents the function within each of us that longs to be courageous, to be brave. And, one of the most direct ways to build bravery is by truly facing what we fear. As a close friend of mine and Grandmother Against Kroll** puts it, “Do it afraid!”

Do it anyway!

**Grandmothers Against Kroll is a small group of Elder protesters calling for the resignation of Minneapolis Police Union head, Bob Kroll. They meet once a week at the fifth precinct with their signs and voices, engaging police officers in discussion as they come and go. YES!!! Mars in Aries.

The below excerpt is from the book “White Fragility” by Robin DiAngelo:

May we recognize our agency and use it with intention.  Asserting ourselves with ever more forthrightness, clarity and passion. Rising up in empowered voice and action.

AND, part of that warrior wisdom is understanding, particularly as white bodies, what adrienne maree brown talks about in her blog post “a word for white people, in two parts”:

“redistribute resources. not as charity, which is just another way to assuage the conscience of privilege. redistribute money, leadership positions, decision-making power, land, time in meetings, visionary space, relationships with philanthropy, speaking opportunities, press attention, health care benefits – if you can measure it, you can redistribute the resource.”

Those of us in white bodies, MARS in ARIES is a sharp call to come to awareness of our white-bodied advantage, privilege, position and power and use it in all the ways we possibly can in service to justice and the fight for human equality, which includes sharing/redistributing our power and wealth of resources. And, not just for right now, while Mars is moving through Aries, but in a sustained way for the rest of our lives, with our eyes, hearts and integrity centered upon systemic, structural change.

T H E  S U N moved into the mental, changeable air sign of G E M I N I today. The transiting North Node (evolutionary potential for the collective) just shifted into Gemini earlier this month and will be in Gemini until Jan 2022. Mercury and Venus are both in Gemini right now (Venus will be there until August). And, this Friday’s N E W  M O O N is exact at 10:38am Pacific at 2 degrees Gemini.

A BOUNTY OF GEMINI STIMULATION!

To read Ashley Fairbanks’ full post.

May we be devotees to Taurus/Earth wisdom not just during Taurus season or a New Moon, but always. May we honor Earth’s capacity to shock us into higher awareness and evolution (may it be so) and bring us nose to nose with reality (Saturn) that we may activate our capacity to innovate (Uranus) and create systems of sustainability and respect for all creatures of this Earth (Saturn).

We are now in the B A L S A M I C  M O O N  P H A S E, also called the W A N I N G  C R E S C E N T  M O O N  P H A S E, which happens every month for about 3.5 days just before the New Moon.

This last phase of the Moon cycle is a time that deeply supports tuning into our natural impulses especially around surrender and letting go. For example, when exhausted, rather than pushing through and forcing yourself forward, perhaps taking a moment to pause, whether that be a few deeper breaths in stillness…or a nap.

Allowing for more rest and sleep during this Balsamic Moon time is deeply supported. As is time to connect inwardly, to reflect, ruminate, receive, meditate, pray…connecting with Source as Source is for you (for me, I connect with Source through communion with Nature as well as the wisdom of my own body/soul – as I, too, am Nature).

F U L L M O O N in V I R G O exact at 10:47am PDT on Monday (19 degrees Virgo). Earthy, grounded, discerning energy within ourselves is now more readily available to tap into. And, this Moon is opposite N E P T U N E at 18 degrees P I S C E S. Neptune’s high-vibe, ethereal, elevated frequencies are available to attune to simultaneously.

I’m sharing this 528 Hz recording I’ve had playing softly over the last several days. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiT3lCydEFQ

From mindvibrations.com: “The 528 Hz frequency is the most significant of the ancient Solfeggio Frequencies. Known as the “love” frequency, it has a deep-rooted relationship with nature, and is present in everything from Chlorophyll to human DNA…”

Mars moved into the sign of Capricorn at 3:33AM PST and Mercury went retrograde this afternoon at 4:54PM PST. These two shifts present an opportune time to activate our will to action (Mars) and dig into what has been on the back burner, especially creative projects (Pisces).

I have a big creative project that has been awaiting me, yet over the last few weeks I have not felt able to settle into it. I decided not to fight it and just wait until Mars moved into grounded, focused Capricorn. 🙂 With this shift in energies, I feel much much closer to diving in. AND, there’s a persistent knowing in the back of my mind that before I do so, I need a bit more mind space cleared in a very tangible, concrete, practical way = All of the birth charts I have done over the last 5 years need to be put into alphabetical order! Woah. This has definitely been on the back burner.

Well, Capricorn energy helps us do what feels like a mountain!⛰

___________________________________

(A few hours later…)

From December 25, 2019 – January 10, 2020, we are in between eclipses. We are in an eclipse tunnel or portal further activating the Capricorn energies (along with the other cardinal signs: Cancer, Libra and Aries).

Eclipse portals are often experienced as times of increased intensity. Life happenings may seem to speed up or happen faster than usual. Time may seem to bend. Shadow material, repressed energy, memories may rise up from the depths of consciousness to be integrated during this time. We may be able to accomplish feats that had previously felt overwhelming.

An abundance of planets are currently in the earth sign of Capricorn – Jupiter, Mercury, Sun, Ceres, Saturn, Pluto (and the South Node of the Moon) – ushering us out of one decade and into a new one. This energy is highly encouraging of us to commit with discipline and focus to the investment of our time and effort only into projects, paths and visions that are firmly rooted in our INTEGRITY.

That which is not must be released, or we will begin to feel like we are trying to fill a bucket, full of holes, with water as the water is flowing out faster than we can pour it in. Without integrity, our energy leaks out and drains and eventually depletes.

If you’d like to read more about the astrological energy of 2020, including the ECLIPSE PORTAL we are currently in (Dec 25-Jan 10) and much more, please see my January 2020 Newsletter.

🌑NEW MOON SOLAR ECLIPSE in CAPRICORN✨

Exact @ 9:13pm Pacific Time – Dec 25, 2019

This New Moon Solar Eclipse (4 degrees Capricorn) is fused with the optimistic, resilient, visionary energy of Jupiter (5 degrees Capricorn) and in harmonious trine aspect with Uranus (2 degrees Taurus), Deity of Earthquakes and Lightning ⚡️ Bolts, whose flashes of breakthrough insight and energy help us awaken (as if out of a stupor) to see more clearly, to question and disrupt problematic patterns of conditioning (cultural, societal, familial, religious, etc).

✨Winter Solstice✨The Sun enters into Capricorn at 8:19pm Pacific Time✨December 21, 2019✨We are of this earth…life and death are old friends✨

The Sun in Sagittarius and the soon to be FULL MOON in Gemini (exact on 12/11 at 9:12pm PT) invite walks down new trails with new horizons for the eyes to see sparking new understandings and realizations.

Venus and Saturn are also fused together at 18 degrees Capricorn at this time with Pluto very nearby. This conjunction gives weight and intensity to this Sag/Gemini expansiveness. There’s a pull into our depths right now with potential for more honest, revealing inner-exploration and conversation with serious reality checking within ourselves in relation to our relationships.

The following question wants to accompany us on our walks down new trails: How am I showing up in my relationships? ✨How we show up wants to deepen and expand.

JUPITER ENTERS CAPRICORN
Some significant astrological events are unfolding that I want to share with you, starting with today – Jupiter entered Capricorn this morning at 10:19am PT. It’s quite an energy shift when a planet changes sign, especially a slower moving planet. Jupiter takes 12 years to make its full orbit around the Sun, so it changes sign about every year, give or take.

The last time Jupiter was in Capricorn was Dec 2007-January 2009. Thinking back to that time period, what was unfolding in your life? Where were you? What were you up to?

If you have your birth chart handy and are familiar with it, it can be insightful to see where the sign of Capricorn lies in your chart. This is the area Jupiter was stimulating back then and is stimulating now through December 2020. 

SATURN & PLUTO CONJUNCT IN CAPRICORN
Not to mention the fact that both Saturn (Ruler of Linear Time, Convention, Structures and the Maturation Process, the Taskmaster, Authority Figure, Wise Elder) and Pluto (Ruler of Death/Rebirth Processes…Cycles of Creation/Destruction/Regeneration, the Ultimate Transformer, Shaman, Phoenix, Guardian of the Underworld) are also currently in Capricorn and will be coming together for an exact conjunction on January 12, 2020 at 22 degrees Capricorn. Can you feel the intensity just thinking about it!?

JUPITER & PLUTO CONJUNCT IN CAPRICORN
Annnnd, Jupiter (the Great Amplifier, Visionary, Seeker of Infinite Possibilities, Ruler of Resiliency, Expansion and Faith) and Pluto will come together in Capricorn three times in 2020 on April 4, June 30 and November 12.

Whew! It is always powerful, catalytic energy when Pluto is involved, which in Evolutionary Astrology translates as rich growth potential to open ourselves to individually and collectively. We certainly have before us ripe opportunities for significant change on both sides of the coin in 2020 – deconstructing/dying and new creation/birth.

MORE ON JUPITER MOVING INTO CAPRICORN
Like that giant, rooted tree pictured above, the sign of Capricorn is of the Earth element and is ruled by the planet Saturn. It wants to make things tangible and real through focused intention, discipline, hard work and integrity. Capricorn is associated with mastery, with excellence, wanting to dedicate itself to something of substance, built upon a foundation that will flourish over time.

When Jupiter, the Boundless Visionary, enters Capricorn, it’s time to come down to earth with our big dreams and ideas. Capricorn ushers in a practical, grounding energy which impacts Jupiter’s default leaning towards limitless expansion, risk-taking and sometimes the preference to stay in the visioning stages.

Capricorn looks Jupiter in the eyes and says, “Jupiter, it’s time to choose one of your aspirations and make it real. There are only so many hours in the day, and who knows how many moments to a life, SO with all of your broad-reaching sense of possibility, it’s time to focus in and:

1. Define a goal that is grounded in greater purpose and integrity.
2. Commit to it with wholehearted discipline.
3. Climb that mountain to the top – or it may be a journey to the depths – no matter what, one step at a time with optimism in your heart like the sun shining through the branches of that giant, rooted tree.”

And, if that weren’t enough astrological info in one email, I must add just one more thing because it feels important.

ECLIPSE SEASON:
We have an upcoming eclipse on December 25, 2019 in guess which sign?!

Yup, you’ve got it, Capricorn!

This current 2-year Cancer/Capricorn eclipse cycle we are in began in July 2018, bringing Cancerian/Capricornian themes to the forefront. Cancer and Capricorn are opposite signs in the zodiac, therefore they make a whole, like yin and yang.

Just a wee bit about the energies of this duo:

Cancer is ruled by the Moon and in its high ground is concerned with matters of heart, home, sense of place, family (both given and chosen), nourishment needs and how to nurture growth and healing within and with others. Cancer is also a highly imaginative, creative energy.

Capricorn, ruled by Saturn, is, in its high ground, concerned with matters of responsibility and commitment, both of which benefit greatly if aligned with integrity. Capricorn needs purpose; purpose larger than one’s own self. Capricorn rules the realm of Great Work – the gifts we bring forth and offer to others.

These Cancer/Capricorn themes (and more) are activated to varying degrees in all of our lives through the last Capricorn eclipse on July 4, 2020 at 13 degrees Capricorn, which will bring this current 2-year eclipse cycle to completion.

The New Moon in LIBRA is exact at 11:26am Pacific, today, Saturday, Sept 28 (at 5 degrees Libra). Chiron is in opposition to this New Moon at 3 degrees Aries.

This relational, justice-oriented, Chironic moon cycle is an opportunity to see the past more clearly and consciously address old, repetitive, destructive patterns of relating with other human beings that have been passed down through the generations.

Libra, in its high potential expression, deeply cares about equality and the correction of injustice. There is a new audio program that I am currently listening to again and again, “The 1619 Project:”

The 1619 Project is a major initiative from The New York Times observing the 400th anniversary of the beginning of American slavery. It aims to reframe the country’s history, understanding 1619 as our true founding, and placing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of black Americans at the very center of the story we tell ourselves about who we are.

You can start listening here.

July 16, 2019: PERSONAL NOTES FROM THE ECLIPSE TUNNEL