Full Moon in Gemini 2019

©2005 ML Monroe

Aaaah.... Here we are. The last Full Moon of the year ~ many say of the decade. In my personal way of counting, this decade ends with 2020. But that's just nit-picking....

Gemini Full Moon urges us to dive deeper into the power of our Self and use it to work with circumstances around us that are out of our personal control. Each challenging situation encourages us to find and express our deepest, truest Self. Gemini's objectivity and neutrality gives this Full Moon flexibility, perspective and adaptibility as we do that.

Friends and I have jokingly said that 2019 has been the Dickensian best of times (and) worst of times, the epoch of belief (and) the epoch of incredulity. A year of changes, of metamorphoses, of activations, it demanded we shift perspective and shake off what doesn't serve us individually or as members of the collective. And it's led us to the Gates of 2020 and our best future Self.

Being in the sign of the Twins, events and challenges may occur in twos. This energy may follow a similar path or may diverge into opposing ones. Two facets of our life may tug our attention. We may be of two minds on a decision that's before us.

As Saturn and Pluto come closer to their alignment (exact January 12th), they keep us reeling between the visible, concrete Middle World (Saturn's realm) and the hidden, secret Lower World (Pluto's realm). All this while the square of Neptune's influence ~ which can cause us to slip and slide into fantasy and forgetfulness as well as loose our inflexible grip on physicality and connect to intuition ~ obliges us to face our disappointments by surrendering our limiting beliefs, reassessing our priorities, and confronting our difficult truths.

Remember that Full Moon energy is all about releasing what no longer serves us. This Full Moon provides the opportunity to let go of whatever we wish to leave behind as we enter the new year. This includes any issues that arose around the time of the last eclipse on July 16th. Ablsolutely anything on which we need closure. Spend time considering this carefully.

Healing is a strong theme since right now, on this edge of the Full Moon, Chiron ~ the Wounded Healer asteroid ~ goes direct in Aries after being retrograde since July 8th of this year. Assess our physical, mental and emotional health. Schedule a check-up. Follow up on a health issue that's been niggling at us. Boost our immune system. Get a massage or give our Self a bit of extra care. Be kind to our Self. Speak up for our Self. Appraise our spiritual and soul health. Be clear about our motives. Practice self-acceptance.

Rest and breathe before the new year ~ and the coming eclipse season ~ begins. Slow down and listen closely for messages from the Divine. Trust your intuition.

What feels out of place in your life? What habits, behaviors, patterns are you willing to let go of? What habits, behaviors, patterns are you ready to bring into your life? How will you allow space for your own health and healing? How can you more clearly be the person you want to be? What is your opinion of your Self? How can you better accept who you are now?

Teabag Tarot: Constancy

It's been waaay too long since I've written in this blog. Much has happened. Nothing has happened. Everything has happened. The past year has been busy, overfull, quiet, reflective, healing, amazing. Time for another shift.

The trigger for this shift? This Teabag Tarot hangs from my cup of steeping tea. I smile. It touches my endless soul, nudging me back to writing. Yay! Whew! It's about time! Words are important. They have the power to create and to destroy.

The framing of this small statement pointed me toward creation. Not only is our soul constant, continuous and endless. So is the beauty of that soul. The assumption is obvious: belief not only in the existence of the soul, but also in its continuity.

My personal focus is on its constancy. The online Merriam-Webster dictionary defines constancy as steadfastness of mind under duress. That's the point. No matter what is going on. No matter the storms flinging themselves at our door. No matter the beauty or horror or tediousness in our lives. The beauty that lies at the core of our being is constant. *Sigh* What a concept! Something that we can rely on not because it reflects our outer world, but because it simply is that way.

Do you believe in your own soul? If not, what do you believe in? If so, how does it show you its existence? What beauty does your soul bring to the world? How does it provide constancy to and for you?

Scorpio New Moon 2017

Another New Moon ~~ this month, in Scorpio, the sign of hidden truths. We are in the traditional falling aspect of the Moon since the Sun is going deeper into darkness before it resurrects in December. Scorpio is represented by four diverse Beings: the Scorpion, the Snake, the Eagle and the Phoenix ~ all creatures of transmutation. Since Scorpio rules transformation and metamorphosis, we are in a time of edginess and a sort of uncertainty.

Let's turn our focus to the positive aspects of Scorpio ~ passion, resourcefulness, deep perception, focus. We have time to work on our own skills of self-reflection and self-mastery. Probe our own depths for moments when we feel out of control. Work on freeing ourselves of those burdensome emotions and tendecies toward self-inflicted woundings.

The Scorpio New Moon provides the environment for us to delve our deepest self and the mysteries of our world, to compassionately feel into others' motivations, to dedicate ourselves to one particular undertaking. Its watery sign has place us in the best current for doing our healing work, particularly in the arena of the emotions if we are willing to dive below the surface to reach them. The deeper we dive, the stronger our abilities to heal others. We have a tremendous opportunity to surface psychological and spiritual insights over the next month as well ~ if we are willing to be vulnerable and take a risk to show our personal power. If we allow it, Scorpio will help us eliminate whatever has held us back so we can heal the past and begin anew.

With its hidden power, the Scorpio New Moon illuminates our connection to the Dark Feminine Divine. Use it to release fear of others taking power over us. Use it to dive deeper into the purifying fires of Pele, the rattling skulls of Kali, the fertile seeds of Persephone, and the intimate sensuality of Lilith. The Dark Feminine Divine does not discriminate against any gender, but empowers each of us in Her Own way.

We are called to bring all that we are to our lives, every aspect and every facet of ourselves. The challenge is to embrace it fully ~ roses with soft petals, enticing scents, thorns and all. Are you ready?

How do you incorporate Scorpio's positive traits into your life? What are you willing to bring to the surface? What healing will you allow into your life? How deep are you willing to dive? What fear/s are you willing to release? What undertaking are you ready to take to a deeper level? What practice will you embrace to keep yourself grounded?

All Souls Day of the Dead

All Souls Night by Loreena McKennitt

All Souls Day. The Day of the Dead. Another day to remember and honor our dead. Another day to recognize the thin veils between the worlds. An electrifying time of year as people feel the energy and pressure of those on the other side of that incorporeal veil.

Loreena McKennitt's song All Souls Night describes today in haunting terms:

Standing on the bridge that crosses
the river that goes out to the sea.
The wind is full of a thousand voices.
They pass by the bridge and me.

We find comfort in our search to know what's happened to our loved ones after death. We long to know they are safe, holding space for us. This day we honor our ancestors ~ as well as reiterate they are on the other side of the veil. It's a time to visit, to acknowledge our continued connection, to express our gratitude, to heal.

After spending most of our year in the solid reality of our daily lives, having a day or two where we feel or hear or see those who have gone before us can strike us as eerie, scary, unnerving. Many of our workaday worlds teach us that death means our loved ones, our ancestors are gone. So when we feel the breeze of their presence or hear a long lost voice or catch a glimpse of someone clothed with familiar clothing, we are shaken and assume we are crazed.

Not today. Not in this brief season from All Hallows Eve to All Souls Day or the Day of the Dead. Now we allow ourselves to be comforted by the watchfulness of our ancestors. We have them momentarily near us again. Watch for them. Thank them and let them go. Today is the perfect day for that.

Which of your ancestors do you most miss? To whom do you feel connected? How does this season show up in your life? How do you sense the passing of the souls on the bridge between the worlds? What rituals do you use to honor them? to let them go?

September Next Steps

Mythical Goddess Tarot ~ Holloway & Skaggs

From the Guide:

The Maiden of Fire is the wild woman who burns through the status quo with her heart of fire. She releases the binds to the old and transmutes the mundane outmoded form into the New Earth. She is unattached to the past, bringing innovation and cutting edge perspective.
This revolutionary Goddess of fire is here to assist you in the fiery release of all that shackles you to the past and outmoded form. You are ready for her pure flame to ignite your passion to ascend in frequency that you may change, heal and express your untamed essence. She brings the revolutionary power of change to you, inviting you to step into your true radiance and shine the light for others!

This week, we experienced a New Moon Solar Eclipse in Virgo. Whew! Lots of energy opening up there. Lots of opening up energy too ~ patterns that have served us for the past six months slipping out the gateway; new patterns settling in for the next six months. As the saying goes: Be careful what you wish for...... This is a time for setting those wishes in motion. A time to rework and reorganize our belief and value systems. A time to reweave, reconnect and restructure our connection to the web of life around us.

As I focused on the Tarot cards today, I simply asked for the energy that I would need to move forward from here. The Maiden of Fire ~ Revolution Herself ~ showed up. Reading the information from the Guide, I recognized that She is the Next Step for me ~~ precisely what I need to move forward after the New Moon Solar Eclipse. Someone Who will help me release the chains and dedications of the past, stand fully in the present moment, and move cleanly into the future. I want to focus my energy in each place in turn ~ until the form of what I'm calling forth reveals itself.

How is the New Moon Solar Eclipse touching your life? What are you letting go? What are you seeding? What do you want to see more of in your life? Who is showing up to help you? How will you define your next step? Where are you focusing your energy?

Kintsugi Dancing

Kintsugi (金継ぎ^?) (Japanese: golden joinery) or Kintsukuroi (金繕い^?) (Japanese: golden repair) is the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with lacquer dusted or mixed with powdered gold, silver, or platinum  ...  As a philosophy it treats breakage and repair as part of the history of an object, rather than something to disguise. 




I'm currently in the midst of two group expressions and experiences of going into the darkness with the Goddess. This is the time of year for this passage. As any time of groping around in a dark passage, what I find is evidence of brokenness. Evidence that reveals how the broken pieces have healed and rejoined is also tangible in that darkness.

Finding it embedded deep within reminded me of the Japanese art of Kintsugi, joining broken pieces with elements of powdered precious metals to make art out of brokenness. That's what I am: art with visible broken places and shiny scars exposing the unique beauty of how I have healed.... and how much has returned to wholeness.

In the midst of these visions and memories, I am awestruck by the difference in my outlook. It's easier to accept my flaws, to embrace the healing and to let go of the wounding arrows. I'm by no means perfect, inside or out. What I am is reunited. What I am is reformed. What I am is released. It's always my choice as to how I walk in this world, whether I twist and bend to hide the broken places or dance fully revealed and let the scars show that piece of who I am.

What about you? How do you walk in this world? Do you let your brokenness show? What pieces do you keep hidden? Are you aware of your own beauty? How does that awareness define your movement?

Beautiful Dreams

Sacred Rebels by Alana Fairchild

Do you know how sometimes you do something that later you can't explain why you did it? Or you can't fathom how or why it held the effect and power it did?

Less than a week ago, a package arrived. I didn't recall ordering anything so when I opened it, what was inside was a surprise. I enjoy ~ and collect ~ a variety of decks of divination cards. There was one inside that was totally new to me; one I don't recall having seen: Sacred Rebels by Alana Fairchild.

When I opened the deck, I focused on the question: What Rebel do I need to guide me today? I drew the card: Dream a Beautiful Dream.

From the Guidebook:
You are meant to dream of beauty and to create beauty, in its far more holistic and creative definition. ... [Healing] happens when we accept the existence of inner harmony in all of creation, even if it cannot be consciously observed. By expecting there to be beauty within a situation, even if it is hidden, you will be more open to seeing the healing potential, even in your challenges.

I'm in the midst of facing a challenge, however personally large or small it may be. I often think I am on my own in facing it. Then I drew this card and read this information: Seeing the hidden beauty in the situation will carry healing. My own creative expression and vision will heal the disruption of the challenge, if only I look beyond my fear, upset, pain, distress or whatever other emotion arises from the challenge.

How do these things happen? How does a deck that I didn't recall ordering arrive at the precise moment I need it? How do my hands shuffle and draw the exact card carrying the message to soothe my heart?

Do these type of events happen to you? If not a deck, perhaps a person showing up with a message or advice when you need it? To what ~ or whom ~ do you attribute this occurrence? Is it something you attract or draw to you?