Re-Construction

So much of life is made up of "keeping on" - maintaining whatever your reality is, tweaking it here or there, and slowly building upon what is.

But there are also those defining moments when the fabric of one's life is drastically altered and/or called into question. The stimulus for such an overhaul can be something wonderful - falling in love, being offered the job of your dreams, buying the house of your dreams, - or it could be a hard event - the death of a loved one, being diagnosed with a degenerative or terminal illness, going bankrupt - or it could be a realization of some kind - realizing one is gay or trans, finding out one is adopted, or discovering some family secret that changes your understanding of who you are and what you come from.

We are coming out of such a time, and this month we are given all the support we need to rebuild and reweave our life.

Sun in Virgo: 8/22/17 - 9/22/17

Welcome to harvest season. When the sun travels through Virgo, we encounter the fruits of our labors, as shaped by the environment and "weather" of our lives. It's time to sort things out, decide what stays and what goes, put things away for leaner times, and generally get things in order. It's also time to honor your own wholeness, your sovereignty of self.

If you could believe there was nothing you needed to obtain or do, how would that shift your perception of yourself and your life as it is now?

What are you harvesting in your life (relationships, projects, abundance, lack, health, etc) now?

How will you sort and organize those fruits? What belongs where? What can be used up or tossed out, and what needs to be put away for future use?

Herbs for the Virgo month:

Whatever herbs you use this month, I recommend you augment them with some FENNEL SEEDS to support assimilation of last month's eclipse-induced revelations and upheavals. Fennel also helps us see things more clearly and dispels wind in the guts, which is a common Virgo problem. If you're experiencing inflammation, irritability, and a strongly critical attitude, I recommend Oregon Grape - either micro-doses (1-3 drops at a time, several times a day) of the root in tincture form, or the flower essence. Oregon Grape will support your guts, which is Virgo territory, and connect you with a sense of personal completeness just as you are. That's Virgo at its best.

Saturn stations direct: 8/25/17 at 5:08 AM PDT

Saturn defines the world of form, the world of manifest "reality." It's a force that helps us actualize our dreams, but it also lets us know in no uncertain terms what's just not possible anymore, or perhaps never was possible to begin with. With Saturn in Sagittarius (12/23/14 - 12/19/17), our work is to manifest that which is in alignment with our beliefs - i.e. WALK YOUR TALK.

While Saturn's been retrograding (since the night of 4/5/17 west of the Rocky Mountains, or the wee hours of 4/6/17 east of the Rockies), our restructuring process has been more fruitful on the internal level. Once Saturn shifts to direct motion on 8/25/17, we can start to make more progress in manifesting and shifting outer structures. It's helpful to note any significant events and realizations that occur on the days of and right around those stations (roughly April 3 - 7, 2017 and August 23 - 27, 2017). Such events are good indicators of what's ready for overhauling and developing.

Mercury stations direct: 9/5/17 at 4:29 AM PDT

The trickster influence known as Mercury retrograde (since 8/12/17) is wrapping up on 9/5. The end of a Mercury retrograde is a good time to review what you learned in the past few weeks:

How has your perception of yourself, your skills, your abilities, and your routines shifted in the past few weeks?

How has your perception and experience of joy, playfulness, and heartful engagement shifted?

What did your flexibility teach you?

Mercury stations direct in the 29th degree of Leo - the exact same degree that the 8/21/17 solar eclipse occurred. This particular degree (follow this link to access a list of each zodiacal degree's symbol) has the energetic thrust of harnessing emotional wisdom to turn dreams into manifested reality, adding a heartfelt and emotional flavor to the manifesting potential of Saturn's station.

As always, give Mercury about a week to get back up to full speed, and review this handy Mercury retrograde guide for further suggestions and insights.

Full Moon in Pisces: 9/6/17 at 12:03 AM PDT

The flavor of this full moon is emotional to the point of overwhelm, which means your work is to STAY GROUNDED. Avoid the seduction of escapist and addictive activities, or of viewing yourself as a martyr or victim, and instead CHOOSE LOVE. Choosing love means you are wholly present in a benevolent way, even in moments of pain or fear. Turn up the volume on - or at least maintain - whatever practices steady you, whether that's yoga, meditation, creating art, cooking, spending time in nature, playing with your kids, etc. Call upon your compassion and forgiveness to help you move through this time in a healing and evolutionary way.

This full moon is the culmination of 8/21/17's potent full solar eclipse, so whatever began for you then is hitting an apex now, and - here's the good news - also a point of moving towards resolution.

Here's a potent and healing meditation for this moon. Set a timer for 5-10 minutes, and sit with this visualization:

What emotions and bodily sensations do you experience when you vividly imagine your current challenges in a state of resolution?

Herbs for the Pisces Full Moon:

Before going to bed on the night of 9/5, steep the following herbs (if using fresh herbs, double the amounts given) in a quart mason jar covered with mesh or cheesecloth, placed in the light of the moon (outside, or inside by a window or skylight) overnight. If you're feeling overheated, use room temperature water to make a cold infusion. If you're feeling cold, use boiling water for your infusion. This is an infusion for accessing the dream-time-world in waking life:

2 Tbsp rose

1 Tbsp garden sage

2 tsp passionflower

1 tsp fennel seed

3-5 pinches grated nutmeg

New Moon in Virgo: 9/19/17 at 10:30 PM PDT

The chart for this new moon is exquisite. I should warn you that when I say a chart is exquisite, it's definitely not easy, although it is artful, unusual, integrated, and potent. A Virgo new moon normally indicates putting things in order and establishing healthy routines, but these are not normal times. This moon also carries the energies of Chiron, Uranus, Jupiter and Saturn, so our focus expands to include innovation, healing and altruism in practical action.

Stir up your routines today. Do whatever you can to stimulate new, innovative perspectives - rearrange your furniture, wear your hair differently, put your shirt on backwards, call someone you haven't spoken with in years. If you're the sort of person who doesn't talk much, spill your guts to someone safe and receptive. If you tend to dominate conversations, practice quiet listening.

Above all, shift your perception around that which is painful to you, and gently and humbly offer your assistance to others. Be open to those you wish to help not wanting your help, or wanting something different than what you're offering. See what happens if you take yourself out of the center of the universe. We all put ourselves in that position in our minds - this is what we call EGO, and it's a necessary although finite construct for moving through the world. On this day, however, we benefit from a more universal, transpersonal perspective.

If you move through the world with an awareness that we all carry pain, how does that shift your approach to others and to yourself?

Herbs for the Virgo New Moon:

To both soothe and inspire your inner wounded healer, here's an infusion (1/4 cup dry herbs in 1 quart boiling water, steeped covered 30 minutes or longer) of:

2 Tbsp lemon balm

1 Tbsp self heal

2 tsp yarrow

1 tsp fennel seeds

Concluding Jupiter in Libra: 9/9/16 - 10/10/17

It's time to start wrapping up our year-long (9/9/16 - 10/10/17) experience of Jupiter in Libra. Aim for win-win and mutual aid situations - such as sharing this blog on your social media via the links below :) Consider how uplifting others might benefit you. If you're involved in Libran activities - the arts, social justice, romance, aesthetics and fashion, law - continue to take WISE leaps of faith in your field without overextending yourself. Acknowledge the growth you've experienced in those Libran realms since September of 2016.

Next month...

We'll continue to adjust to our post-eclipse reality, and hopefully bring things more into balance with the help of the Sun's transit through Libra and the autumn equinox. The major cosmic headline for next month is Jupiter begins its year-long transit through Scorpio shortly after Pluto - the ruler of Scorpio - stations direct. As always, feel free to contact me or schedule a private session. Here's wishing you a healing and integrating Virgo month. With a warm heart, Rae