Full Moon in Aquarius July 31, 2015

Friday’s Blue Moon in air sign Aquarius calls our attention to balancing our desire for freedom with our need to a part of family and community. All signs are complicated and Aquarius is no exception—on the one hand a savior of humanity and the other hand a free-thinking anarchist!

All the air signs are represented not by animals, but by human-like beings. Aquarius is the water bearer, a being nurturing humanity from an overflowing jug of water.  Aquarius cares about humanity.  On the one hand Aquarius is committed to helping our species evolve so we can share resources and treat each other with kindness.  However, planet Uranus rules Aquarius, and Uranus is about freedom.  Aquarius people need freedom in order to reach their full individuation, in order to create and invent, and in order to be involved in the advancement of humanity. We all have Aquarius somewhere!  There is a place in your horoscope that screams to be free! Be yourself so you can express your soul purpose.  Do it your way. Forget the rules! For most people that need for freedom must find a way to balance with family, career and society’s mores.

This full moon stirs up our conflicts about freedom to do what we want to do and our need to be a part of relationship, family, organization, or corporation (something that requires our commitment on an everyday level).

Planet Saturn is finishing its retrograde phase and will go direct at 28 degrees of Scorpio on August 2.  Saturn repeats the emphasis on commitments and duties.  In fact, Saturn makes a strong connection with Venus and Jupiter, implying that we cannot break away from the ties that bind us, at least not right now.  Venus and Saturn together remind us that we have pragmatic reasons to stay in a job or a relationship.  We are not totally free!  At the same time, full moon in Aquarius fills our hearts with a desire for freedom.  We long to express ourselves.  Maybe you wish you could join the demonstrators in Portland and go hang from the bridge to protest Shell!  That is definitely an Aquarian event going on.  Maybe you are remembering being a kid who wanted to run off and join the circus.

The full moon energy surrounding us stimulates our psyches to come to some balance and/or decision-making about our lives.  This can lead to planning and life changes as the weeks unfold.

July Astro TIps

Venus is retrograde July 25 to September 6 in the sign of Leo

Venus makes extended journey through Leo (July 25 to October 9)

Our passion for love, abundance, creative expression and fun just got bigger. Venus began a retrograde phase today, July 25.  Approximately every two years Venus gives the appearance of moving backward in the sky.  From today until September 6 Venus will be in this retrograde period.  Anytime a planet is retrograde it seems to become stronger and more prominent in our lives. After the retrograde, Venus will continue through Leo until October 9.

There are many meanings associate with Venus: self worth, love, relationship, abundance, and beauty.

The most basic meaning of Venus is VALUE. What do we value?  Do I value myself?  What do I value and NOT value about my relationship(s)?  Do I value my work? Do I value my life style? Do I value my place in society (position, prosperity)? Do I value where I live? Do I value what I possess?  Do I need all this stuff?  Do I value how I am expressing myself?  Is my life force flowing? Do I feel creative?

During a Venus retrograde phase, we will experience the Intensification of some area around what we value.  For some people it may be our property and possessions and finances. For others, issues of relationship may be the focus. For other individuals, creative projects may be the center of attention.

What to Expect:  Deep Examination of our values.  Seeking Corrections. Rectifying what isn’t working.  Resolving where we are off-course.

Between now and September 6 AND into October when Venus moves into the next sign (Virgo),  we have the opportunity to identity where we are struggling with our values.  You might say we cannot avoid the problem and will diagnose what needs our attention, reflection and correction in the areas I have discussed.  It begins with asking if we truly value who we are and where we are in life.  Are we living in a place of integrity? Can we continue with the path we are on?  Is our life force and creative direction in alignment with our soul purpose?

Check in with your Inner Knowing.  Care about yourself.

How can we answer these questions?  First and foremost we have to connect with our inner self (or higher self if you prefer).  If you can’t do that on your own, there are guides, healers, tools, workshops, retreats etc. to help you.

Check in with self. Check in with intuitive, knowing place. Ask big questions. Be patient. Be loving with yourself. Venus is about love, right?  How am I loving myself?  With sugar? With buying pretty things? With being with friends? With connecting with nature?  With meditation? With making more money?  There are many ways to connect with love.

Venus retrograde gives us

·      Intensification of any issue we are engaged with that falls under the domain of Venus. 

·       Next this period brings inescapable motivation to correct or rectify what isn’t working. 

·       We will seek the right course of action to bring our life into alignment as best we can.

·       We will be asked to keep the focus on the self, not the other person, not our boss or company, not on who is running for president.

Finally this Venus retrograde period is in the sign of Leo.  Leo is associated with the heart, with love, loyalty, joy, vibrancy, and creativity. Creativity doesn’t just mean being on the stage. It is cooking a good meal, fixing an unusual summer salad, singing in the car, being silly and laughing at our own messy lives,

During this retrograde period, each person will experience Venus retrograde in a unique way. The fundamental meaning has to do with value. WHAT DO YOU VALUE AND CAN YOU AFFORD IT?  Some of us will try to get very clear about what we value in a relationship.  If the relationship is not doing an adequate/fulfilling  “relating job,” then some adjustment must be made. What do you value in relationship? 

Do you have enough support and earthy financial flow in your life?  Some people will examine the issue of security and finances.  Maybe we need a different career path.  Maybe we need a different budget.

Remember, this Venus retrograde period is just one moment in our lives. It supports us and motivates us. It does not require that we become perfect between now and October.

  

Summer Solstice June 21, 2015

You know from gazing at the sky that Venus and Jupiter are sitting close (in the sign of Leo).  On the eve of the summer solstice, the Moon joins Venus and Jupiter and that gives us a touch of joy in the midst of life’s ongoing travails. 

Mars is nearing the end of its visit to Gemini (28 degrees of Gemini), so it hangs close to the Sun as the Sun enters Cancer and the solstice day unfolds.  The Sun-Mars  conjunction is great for increased energy and assertion, as well as getting clear about our desires.  The only hitch is a quirky connection with Saturn, the planet that calls for restraint and carefulness. The Summer Solstice is the event that moves the season along and sets the tone for the next few months.  The arrangement of Sun/Mars sitting uncomfortably with Saturn means we want to assert but we feel compelled to wait. There is some frustration because we know what we desire but we might be asked to sacrifice something to get what we want. Furthermore, we might find that it takes a great deal of work to bring our desires into the material world!

The Moon opposes Neptune, and Mercury sits in between them.  We are sensitive, vulnerable, and psychic and having a hard time finding logic to explain it all.  Mercury opposes Saturn and the MOON sits in between them.  If we get too rational, our mental bodies will get depressed.  Time to let go and trust the second brain, “the gut,” as we wade through all the chatter in our own minds and in the collective mind.

Speaking of the collective:  Mercury fiddling with Neptune means you won’t know what to believe when you hear things from the media.   Confusion, half-truths, propaganda, manipulation.  It cannot be said enough!  Neptune is the mass media, the collective fog.  Turn the volume down. Study the body language.  What is that body communication telling you?   Using our refined abilities to observe what is going on in our life and in the bigger collective world is good. Observation is a wonderful tool. Dogmatic thinking will limit our ability to gently bend and be molded into a new species.

The Summer Solstice is beautiful. The Sun returns and we soak in that Sun. Nonetheless, there is much to be done during the next few months. There is clean-up from torrential rains.  There is re-building in Nepal.  In our everyday lives, the solstice chart indicates increased clarity and that’s a gift.  But there is also frustration that we can’t get it fast enough and there is anxiety that so many things keep getting in the way of making our dreams come true.  

Sabien Symbol for 0 degrees of Cancer, the point of the Summer Solstice:  “On a ship the sailors lower an old flag and raise a new one.”   We seek to re-organize, re-stablize and reorient our consciousness as the days of summer unfold.