CANCER 2020
In our culture, we often think of life as a journey, or our purpose in life as a path. These can be helpful metaphors, especially when the going gets rough because there is this sense that we are heading somewhere else, and that this place we are currently inhabiting is temporary. You are probably feeling the temporary-ness of your current situation all too keenly as our culture shifts and reels in the experience of Covid mixed with great social unrest.
I encourage you to step with care upon your journey now. The terrain we are traversing is full of unknowns, which means we need to be alert for both unforeseen opportunities and also for unpredictable elements that could trip us up.
I also encourage you to think beyond the conception of a linear path with a past, present and future. I encourage you to think instead in the basic framework of nature - a system of cycles and spirals (my online Qigong classes & Yoga classes will help you understand these motions somatically). We think we are in an unprecedented time, but while there are unique elements to this particular disease and the current social movements in this age, this is not the first pandemic or racial justice movement our species/country has faced. Things take their course.
☞ What have been the trajectories of past pandemics and social movements?
☞ What can we learn from those prior experiences, so we can respond to the current loops in these spirals with more care, wisdom... and effectiveness?
As individuals and as a species, we now have an opportunity to heal, and to evolve.
Sun in Cancer: 6/20/20 - 7/22/20
Please visit this post for insights, inquiries and herbs to align you with the nurturing energy of Cancer.
Summer Solstice: 6/20/20 at 2:44p PDT
Please visit this post for insights to align you with the apex energy of summer solstice.
Solar Eclipse in Cancer: 6/20/20 at 11:41p PDT
This is the second of three eclipses in a row this summer. For more on the astronomy of this eclipse, read here. In terms of how this eclipse will feel, and what opportunities it presents in our psyches and in our lives, however, here are some key points:
☞ This eclipse is strongly ruled by the moon, which represents both nurturing and change, so consider how you can nurture the changes you wish to see manifested in your life and in the world.
☞ So often we drive ourselves, and push towards change and accomplishment. Instead, take an approach of support - like improving the soil in your garden to help the plants grow better, and adding mulch to protect them from weeds.
☞ ☞ ☞ How can you "improve the soil" of your life and endeavors?
☞ ☞ ☞ What is the mulch (i.e. boundaries) that will best protect that which you wish to thrive?
Venus Retrograde Completes: 5/12/20 - 6/24/20 at 11:48p PDT
As this retrograde completes, I encourage you to ask yourself:
"What have I learned about my priorities since May?"
"What studies/teachings might support me in living in alignment with my values?"
"What has listening internally to my own needs and longings taught me?"
"What has listening externally to the people and the world around me taught me?
"Sometimes silence is the best answer." - the Dalai Lama
"What is important to communicate, and what is best left unsaid?"
And sometimes silence is not the best answer. I encourage you to take a moment to honor and support the Black Lives Matter movement and the protests taking place in whatever way is meaningful to you. It is time to value the black community, and to prioritize the safety and well-being of these deeply important people.
Learn how to relax: Saturday, June 27th at 1:30p PDT
In the midst of eclipse season, tension can build up, and energy can become blocked in our bodies, and therefore in our lives. Learn simple self-massage techniques in this live-streamed workshop to ease your body, mind, heart, and spirit, so you can better harness the potentials of this time of great change.
Lunar Eclipse in Capricorn: 7/4/20 at 9:44p PDT
This is the last of this summer's three eclipses. For more on its astronomy, please read here, but in terms of its effects on us as individuals and as a collective, here are some key points:
☞ This eclipse is ruled by Saturn, which is strongly placed in its home sign of Capricorn, and influenced all year by empowering, transformative Pluto and expansive, future-thinking Jupiter.
☞ ☞ ☞ What structures are coming to a close in your life now, and how can you complete them in a good way?
☞ ☞ ☞ What new goals are you currently building towards, and how can you best support these aspirations and potentials?
☞ ☞ ☞ Are your new goals empowering?
☞ ☞ ☞ Are there any ways you are stepping into a new authority, both internally and externally?
I encourage you to especially cultivate your internal authority at this time:
☞ Answer to yourself - honor your own wisdom.
☞ Be a good boss to yourself - create structures that help you stay focused, and that also give you time to relax, rejuvenate, and just be.
Mercury Retrograde Completes: 6/17/20 - 7/12/20 at 1:26a PDT
As this retrograde continues and then completes, I encourage you to ask yourself:
What do my emotions teach me about -
☞ where and with whom I belong?
☞ what is truly supportive to me?
☞ how best to nurture myself, and when/how/from-whom to ask for support?
☞ which relationships and situations to nurture, and how best to do so?
Read here for more about Mercury retrograde generally.
Next month...
Uranus stations retrograde, and otherwise we recalibrate and make some care-ful maneuvers in a brief lull between this wild eclipse-and-retrograde bonanza and the Mars and Mercury retrogrades this autumn. Here's wishing you a month of impeccable self-care, and meaningful time with those you love, whether in-person or via the ether.