it all matters ....

echo of small things by karezoid

"It all matters. That someone turns out the lamp, picks up the windblown wrapper, says hello to the invalid, pays at the unattended lot, listens to the repeated tale, folds the abandoned laundry, plays the game fairly, tells the story honestly, acknowledges help, gives credit, says good night, resists temptation, wipes the counter, waits at the yellow, makes the bed, tips the maid, remembers the illness, congratulates the victor, accepts the consequences, takes a stand, steps up, offers a hand, goes first, goes last, chooses the small portion, teaches the child, tends to the dying, comforts the grieving, removes the splinter, wipes the tear, directs the lost, touches the lonely, is the whole thing. What is most beautiful is least acknowledged. What is worth dying for is barely noticed."
 .... Laurie McBride | We Are Called To Rise

Mercury enters Sagittarius and information speeds up. Opportunities may present themselves now (yes with Saturn here they will come with the price tag of hard work - we get to decide what is worth it or maybe life forces our hand) - communications involving learning or teaching, ethics or travel (all Sagittarius ruled things). Our Sag house wakes up now and with Saturn here we will be made to walk our talk. The stuff Saturn has been sitting on since September gets some movement. Great energy to be "salesy", yes, the "s" word. Others can be convinced if we really believe in what we are saying, writing or peddling. There is also truth to be said/heard now - with Jupiter in Virgo it could sting - be kind and compassionate (Neptune in Pisces). A fact vs. fiction wake up call is here/coming.

The BIG idea can provide the enthusiasm that gets us thinking/moving/dreaming and the small things (and steps) will move us forward. (back up your computer this weekend always a good idea before or after Mercury changes signs). xo all

.... we are still going, you and I

a hopeful transmission by c a martin

"If you're reading this, if there's air in your lungs on this November day, then there is still hope for you. Your story is still going. And maybe some things are true for all of us. Perhaps we all relate to pain. Perhaps we all relate to fear and loss and questions. And perhaps we all deserve to be honest, all deserve whatever help we need. Our stories are all so many things: Heavy and light. Beautiful and difficult. Hopeful and uncertain. But our stories are not finished yet. There is still time, for things to heal and change and grow. There is still time to be surprised. We are still going, you and I. We are stories still going." .... Jamie Tworkowski

The Moon is hanging with Neptune in Pisces today - procrastination and escape will be so easy. Our moon lives in imagination where all our possibilities are kept alive simply because we never choose to live them out. Keep that in mind now as we settle down and get to work. Venus is in a tricky spot. If we do not know what we want, probably better to wait if we can. We've got the Moon squaring Mercury - so logic and emotion are at odds. I dreamed a great idea last night, but this morning it just feels like a whole lot of work. I'll just sit with it and focus on the tasks at hand (Virgo!). First Quarter Moon means challenges to what we started at the New Moon - that's ok, we got this thing- just building bigger muscles, right?

xo all

... our default setting

"Just as many machines reset themselves to their original settings after a power outage, human beings reset themselves to something altruistic, communitarian, resourceful and imaginative after a disaster, we revert to something we already know how to do. The possibility of paradise is already within us as a default setting."

- Rebecca Solnit

LOVE this quote from environmental writer Rebecca Solnit ... Today, Neptune stations direct squaring Saturn and things get a little fuzzy (or fuzzier!). Remember our expansion comes through Virgo - careful - I might even say cautious, small, measured steps, attention to detail - we need to pay attention to how we say things and what we say - words change worlds now folks.

xo all

Saturn in Sagittarius Square Neptune in Pisces for Creatives | the Dreams vs Reality Transit - Part III

OK to recap from Part I and Part II now that Saturn has moved into Sagittarius (and this started loosely when he stuck his head in last winter, but more strongly recently when he unpacked his bags and kicked off his shoes and lasts through the end of 2017) he is squaring Neptune in Pisces (Sagittarius naturally squares Pisces - think pie chart here).

This square will be exact three times over the next 10 months, due to Neptune and Saturn retrogrades  - Nov 26, 2015 at 7 degrees, June 17, 2016 at 12 degrees and Set 10, 2016 at 10 degrees. And remember even when an aspect is not exactly exact it may be still close enough, often for long periods, to be felt.

Squares are tense aspects - they push us into a new action (oppositions push us into a new decision, trines remove obstacles, sextiles show opportunities, etc). Everyone is going to work with this square before Saturn leaves Sagittarius at the end of 2017. Here's a post with info on Saturn in Sagittarius that could be helpful, too.

This is the big deal transit of 2016.

getting comfortable with what is foreign

Foreign is never comfortable. The work of Candance Pert and others tells us that we are literally craving, in our very cells, what is familiar.

It's not because what is familiar is good for us and what is foreign is bad for us. And in fact it often works the other way around. It's just how our bodies work.

It is hard not to be following the news this week, and actually I am not one of those 'pink paint' people who advise turning away from what upsets us. I know so many people who tell me they don't watch the news because they don't want to see any bad news and this is exactly the way of thinking that brings this bad news to our door so we can see it.

We are, as a collective, working through a transit of Saturn (limitations, time, boundaries) in Sagittarius (big picture, foreign travel, people at a distance, immigration) so it is not surprising that the current events in the world are being shown through the lens the media is presenting to us.

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of November 16th - New Pisces Karma Cycle | Going With the Flow |

magical art - the secret garden by emla

Monday's ambitious Capricorn Moon can have us powering through our duties and responsibilities - sign agreements, make sales, decisions. There are really no void moons during working hours this week - YAY! (well, late Monday afternoon) so things ready to launch are pretty good to go - remember we have Jupiter in Virgo, so take care of the details and don't launch anything half-assed.

On the other hand, remember we have Jupiter in Virgo (is there an echo in here?), and we may be too detail oriented and miss the forest for the trees - if you are a maker, well, this is the holiday season, if it's ready to ship, get it somewhere where someone can find it.

We are in a waxing, productive Moon phase. If we have been tired or drained this is a building time of the month with energy returning.

Venus conjunct Black Moon Lilith in Libra could be some kind of competition/comparison with pink paint poured on top of it or someone or something that smiles to our face and then cuts us off at the knees. Or maybe this is some kind of insider/outsider thing with the power to wound us. Watch for it.

NEW MOON in Scorpio 11/11 - This Time PLEASE, PLEASE Actually Write the Damn Intention List!

new birth by jojoesart

Wednesday's New Moon at 19 degrees Scorpio has multiple excellent, positive aspects. This moment in time joins our deepest (Scorpio) emotions (Moon) and our mental ability (Mercury) with our creativity and self (Sun). What cannot be accomplished with everything working together this way?

First we have the Sun and Moon sextile to Jupiter.

Jupiter brings expansion and good luck - even wealth and happiness. Sextiles are positive aspects but require some kind of action on our part - so please, please, even if you have never actually sat yourself down and written out your intention list at the New Moon before, do it this time. Even if month after month you read these posts but just skim over the part where we physically write this stuff down, and I understand, really I do,

but - this month, actually do it ... either Wednesday night or Thursday.

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of November 9th - FRESH starts, OPPORTUNITIES, multiple brakes OFF

oprisco photography

This is a week of fresh starts and opportunities. There may be some blockage in our personal chart (ie a limiting belief met as karma) but in most areas of most of our lives things will be moving full steam ahead now!

First of all - we have a Grand Trine (remember a trine means brakes off, well think of a Grand Trine as removing multiple brakes all at once) involving our Sun, Pluto and Jupiter.

This is about our goals, our reputation and authority figures (Capricorn themes - Pluto is in Capricorn) - sex, death and rebirth, birth, reproduction, divorce, other people's money (Scorpio themes - Sun in Scorpio) and our work, health, co-workers, pets (Virgo themes - Jupiter in Virgo). This is major favorable energy right now.

Astrological Influences - The Big Picture for Creatives Now | Part II

Part I of this overview is HERE.

We talked about the 'outer planets' - this is the collective energy at play.  

Now Saturn and Jupiter are outer planets, too, but they affect us differently so I will call them 'middle planets'. They aren't the astrological inner planets (Mars, Venus, Mercury and the Moon) that affect our day to day happenings and moods - they are kind of the space where we as individuals meet the collective.

Basically, (and that's a loaded word, so we'll flesh it out a little) Saturn is about constriction and Jupiter is about expansion. Jupiter feels good. Saturn feels bad. This isn't really what is happening, but it will often feel like this.

Astrological Influences - The Big Picture for Creatives Now | Part I

I thought I should take a step back from the weekly astrology posts to post about the big picture a bit.

We are living through a period of unprecedented change and uncertainty - we all know this.

We see it in the outer world and we see it in our individual lives.

Every time we get settled in something or someone or someplace that feels like 'safety' ... the rug gets pulled. The walls we thought were made of concrete by that 3rd little pig were actually the fake plastic stuff with the toxic gray paint.

This is not innately a bad thing or a good thing (well, except for the toxic gray paint) - the good/bad part is always up to us - that free will thing and all.

Anyhoo, for an overall look at the planetary energies we look at the 3 outer planets. These guys move slowly and their impacts are more long lasting.

These are the multiple major influences we are, as a collective, living through all at once. Any one of these transits could send us to the madhouse so having them all of once is the reason most people are struggling to stay grounded.