New Moon, New World, New Opportunities.
The Summer Solstice is here; five planets and the north node are currently retrograde. There is a Solar Annular eclipse today, and a Penumbral Lunar eclipse just around the corner. We are navigating a global pandemic and major economic changes. The stellium involving Saturn, Jupiter and Pluto has us awakening to our deepest wounds: as individuals, as families and as a nation. Combined, these give you an opportunity to create a whole new understanding and definition of the family and the country to which you belong.
Are you ready for that?
Not sure?
I can help.
It starts with your dreams and visions
and then you chart a course from there.
Here are some helpful insights...
The Spirit of Cancer
Welcome to the Cancer new moon, the Summer Solstice, a whole lot of retrogrades, two more eclipses, and the biggest cultural shift in consciousness we've had in generations. The brave new world we we’ve simultaneously been praying for and terrified of is now here: it’s time to wizard-up in order to behave more appropriately, keep momentum, and do the fine tuning. It can be a little overwhelming, but don’t panic. All new moons represent opportunities for fresh starts and new beginnings, the key is knowing which ones to take. And then making peace with them. Sometimes you have more options and opportunities than others. This time you don’t have a lot of them - you have a really narrow focus - but the ones you have are mission-critical, and they revolve around the signs of Cancer and Gemini.
Cancer’s constellation is the crab, which is a female, cardinal, water sign. Ruled by the Moon, Cancer is caring and protective, intuitive, creative and spiritual. Cancer governs the vast and fluid realms of love: the way it flows divinely from spirit to and through humans, the way love expressed and experienced by families, and especially by and in the mother-child dyad.
This time of year, there is always an emphasis on families. But this year we are in the midst of an historic moment, one that requires us to take both a micro and a macro approach. In its most expansive, macro application, Cancer rules countries and nations. When there is a lot of emphasis in the sign of Cancer, as there is now, you absolutely must return to your home and your roots – literally and figuratively, micro and macro. The tricky part is it is easier said than done. Especially now. As always, start at the beginning, with you and your family or origin.
No matter how much you were wanted as a child, no matter how much you were loved and appropriately attended to, there will always be a wound of some sort that was created in the ways and places where you and your parents simply did not understand each other and could not connect. Homecomings always force you to revisit what clinical psychologists refer to as “the inevitable parental wound.” This is the habituated struggles and repetition compulsions that come from your upbringing. As your home is the source of your greatest wound, going home asks you to face it, transform and transmute it in a new way.
By the same token, countries and nations have their own birth and childhood traumas, their own psychological and societal shadows, and the same responsibilities to address them. But you cannot make good decisions about those shadows if you don’t have good information. Which brings us back to all those lovely eclipses, retrogrades, and stelliums: they are so revelatory. We have a much greater ability now to sort and sift through raw data, to do our due diligence and forensics, to find exactly what has happened, what is happening now, what is really important, and what needs to happen next. So let’s use it, and wisely. Judiciously. And then figure out how to have calm, rational, adult conversations about the issues and resolve them.
And this is where your intention comes into play: it’s important to be very clear on yours, and on the things to which you are truly committed. There is a difference between drama and thorough analysis. There is a difference between drama and due diligence. There is a difference between drama and communicating. There is a difference between drama and caring. There is a difference between drama and public policy. There is a difference between drama and politics. There is a difference between drama and legislating. And there is a difference between drama and news coverage. It gets confusing at times, but as a general rule, drama tends to cost more, take longer, and be more upsetting to more people.
That is where the love and compassion, insight and intuition, caring and commitment - all the higher octaves of Cancer must be applied: to yourself, your family, your country and your fellow citizens. Remember the parallels between good mothers and good leaders, good families and good countries: they listen as much as they speak, learn as much as they teach. They are balanced, work democratically and are committed to finding a way for everyone to get their needs met. Now and in the coming days, use only the best of Gemini's magic and Cancer’s powerful love to hold a higher vibration, stay flexible and positive and committed to only that which is for the highest good of all involved (don't assume you know that that is). And if you get stuck, call me. We'll figure it out.
Calendar
Following are some of the dates where your opportunities for wizardry, magic and alchemy will be the greatest, and some generic wisdom about them:
June 18 - Mercury retrogrades in Cancer
June 19-21 - Summer Solstice celebration in Santa Barbara
June 20 - Summer Solstice; Sun enters Cancer
June 21 - New Moon in Gemini; Annular Solar Eclipse; Father’s Day
June 23 - Neptune retrogrades in Pisces
June 25 - Venus goes direct in Gemini
June 27 - Mars moves into Aries
July 1 - Saturn moves into Capricorn
July 4 - Independence Day
July 5 - Penumbral Lunar Eclipse; Full Moon in Capricorn, also known as the Full Buck Moon, the Thunder Moon, the Hay Moon, the Wort Moon
July 12 - Mercury goes direct in Cancer
July 20 - New Moon in Cancer
July 22 - Sun enters Leo
August 2 - Lammas
August 3 - Lunar Lammas; Full Moon in Aquarius also known as the Sturgeon Moon, the Green Corn Moon, the Grain Moon, the Red moon, and the Barley Moon
Everybody’s natal (birth) chart is different. These differences reflect our individual souls: their journeys and evolution, their triumphs and their tragic flaws. As such, the specific impact of each of the following dates will hit each person differently. But there are some general themes.
Holy days, holidays, and astrological transits are opportunities for us to experience grace. But remember how grace happens: sometimes it comes through discomfort. The gifts aren’t always immediately apparent. All of the days on this list ask you to be more compassionate with yourself and others, to try and be more awake, and to be more open to synchronicity and messages from Spirit. On days when more than one astrological event, holiday or holy day occurs, know that the power of that day will be even more profound. The more events in a day, the more powerful that day is, and the more intentional you should be.
Again, in general, Full Moons are a good time for ending things, wrapping things up, conclusions and closure. New Moons are opportune times for new beginnings: starting a new chapter of some aspect of your life, tackling a new project, or launching something new. Retrogrades are always about slowing down and paying more attention to aspects of your creative, spiritual, and social lives. The eclipses always reveal: sometimes it is something others have hidden from you, sometimes it is things you have hidden from yourself, usually it is a little bit of both. To go a level deeper, look to the planetary signs, the houses they fall in, and, of course, to your natal chart. Or give me a call. I can help you with that.
Retreats, rituals, services, ceremonies and journeys: As always, choosing the best day or days is a very personal thing. You have to feel your way into it. But there are some generic rules that can help you in your decision-making process. Full moons and new moons are considered the best. Holidays and holy days are as well. Full moons and new moons that occur during or over a period of holidays and holy days are extraordinarily powerful.
Factor in a retrograde or two and you pretty much cannot avoid leveling up and becoming a much more masterful magician. Especially around anything that has to do with your faith, your trust in it, your ability to serve your faith and serve with it. Seriously.
With that in mind, in the next month, the best days for deep, transformational experiences are these: June 20th, June 22nd, June 24th, June 27th, July 1st, July 4th, July 11th - 12th, July 20th, and July 22nd.
The Mystery School Guidebooks
For as long as humans have traveled the earth, we have turned to the cycles and movements of the natural world and celestial bodies to guide us. Over time and across cultures, the art and science of navigation has provided powerful tools to ensure safe passage through the mysterious currents of life's more difficult moments. Now, by combining ancient practices with modern modalities, you can chart smooth and successful routes through the most important journeys of all: the integration of your internal landscapes, your relationships, your spiritual and professional paths.
The Mystery School Guidebooks are the culmination of my 30 years of dedicated research and practice as a business consultant, astrologer and intuitive. There are currently four, with more in the works: each one is a magical combination of information and experiential exercises. They provide you with an extraordinary method and set of tools that can mean the difference between falling prey to your innermost demons - fears, outdated behaviors and belief systems, and long-buried traumas - and discovering, perhaps for the first time, greater joy in relationships, success in career, and increased self-confidence, access and flow in your personal and spiritual life.