Astro Tips for August 2011

On the morning of July 30th, the day of the New Moon in Leo, I was on my way to the computer to write about August. It was 8:30 am and the power went out. If you live in Texas you know what that means on a hot summer morning: panic. We did not have to evacuate. In fact it only took a little over two hours for the repair. Nonetheless it felt like an omen for the month ahead. Unpredictable interruptions and surprises have continued since the New Moon on Saturday. Surprises fall under Uranus, the planet of the unexpected (and electricity). All I’m saying is I’ve had my share of irritating surprises in the past 48 hours. How about you?

The New Moon in Leo tries to be happy but it’s not easy.

This New Moon at seven degrees of Leo is sitting with the Sun and with Venus (also transiting Leo). This should be a lovely trio. Leo is upbeat and creative, but Leo is also the ruler of our individual egos. Ergo we do not like it when things do not go our way. The Sun, Moon and Venus were all making an irritable aspect with Pluto on the New Moon day. Pluto is also in a tense T-cross with Saturn and Uranus. If you want to understand this aspect, just turn on CNN and watch the show going on in Washington about the debt ceiling. Planet Uranus is also in a tense T-cross with Mars and Pluto. Ah! That is a lot of trouble. Short tempers and unpleasant upsets are sure to prevail all weekend and until the full moon two weeks from now. Mars is getting ready to exactly oppose Pluto and exactly square Uranus. Mars is assertion, aggression and anger. It is the planet of wars and the battlefield. One of our modern battlefields is political ideology. But, you do not have to go to Washington or your State Capitol to experience irritation, frustration and short fuses. I’m sure it is closer to home than that. We are all challenged this month with “short fuse syndrome”!

The Full Moon in Aquarius (August 13) is a struggle among individual egos and collective groups.

This sticky, cranky energy continues right up and through August 13th, the day of the Full Moon in Aquarius. At that time The Sun, Mercury and Venus (all sitting in fire sign Leo) will oppose the Moon and Neptune in Aquarius. Please expect all kinds of lies to be told as we work our way to the Full Moon. Neptune and the Moon connecting with Mercury spells propaganda. People will say whatever they need to say to get whatever they want. People will say whatever they can to bend the truth and to convince others they are right. The final result will be confusion. We will not know the truth until later. Unfortunately this month is a good example of one of our current problems: tell a lie long enough and it becomes the truth.

A better use of this month’s energy is to stay focused on your own backyard. Honest soul searching for your individual truth will pay off. Feeling guided to help humanity or a cause you believe in (animal rights/the environment) is also a fine way to direct this month’s planetary message. The energy is inspiring but challenging. Finding positive outlets for frustration will pay off. Many of us will feel over-amped. Think of yourself as a highly charged ball of energy. How can you direct all that intense stuff? It needs physical, emotional, mental, spiritual, creative, inventive, communal, loving outlets. The strong currents of energy can become toxic in a flash. I cannot help but wonder if this month is yet another turning point as we race into 2012! We are challenged to live in this world but not engage in the toxicity of this world. That is a big challenge.

Too many minefields

Mars is the planet that gets us going. Without Mars there would be no marathons! It is good energy, but this month we can overdo it. Hostility, blaming others, getting triggered, exploding—these unattractive minefields are in the landscape for everyone. What we can do is take as much responsibility as possible to make our explosions short, to the point, and effective. Better yet, we can find positive directions for our anger and discontent.

A little help in the Heavens

Fortunately there is some help in the heavens around the time of the Full Moon. Mercury connects with Pluto in a positive way: Therefore, no matter how big the lies, if you listen closely, you will hear the truth. The Moon fully illuminates Saturn: First of all, this means that patience will pay off. Also, there is no need to throw out everything or completely change your life. Just get rid of what doesn’t make sense. Jupiter and Pluto communicate in an easy fashion: These two brothers are trying to bring some sanity to the big mess that we have made here on our planets. Finally, Mars and Jupiter are sextile each other: We have an opportunity around the Full Moon to direct our energy into wholesome activities.

And remember: this is the dawning of the Age of Aquarius. Really!

Full Moon in Capricorn July 15, 2011

The Full Moon in Capricorn is today, July 15th. Full Moons can help illuminate our current life path. Saturn rules the sign of Capricorn. Therefore, this full moon sheds light on our goals and responsibilities as mature adults. The Sun is in Cancer (the sign of the moon, of dependency, family, nurturing, motherhood and childhood). We see the interactive polarity of Cancer-Capricorn unfolding in our government. As the elected leaders try to resolve the debt ceiling issue, we see the back and forth display of the child and the grown-up. Some leaders behave like children—it’s my way or I won’t play. Some leaders are behaving like grown-ups. They are trying to look at what is best for everyone. How can we have a win-win situation based on maturity rather than an outcome based on emotional attachment to being the center of the universe? What is best for the whole family? I read once that the energy of Capricorn is about doing the right thing because it is the right thing to do. It is not about doing something to gain glory or climb another step on the totem pole. It is simply to be mature enough to discern what is the right thing to do for the situation at hand.

The full moon in Capricorn gives us the opportunity to explore the interaction between what we need and what we can do about it. We don’t want to lose our ability to feel interdependent with other people. We want to continue to feel receptive and to be in touch with our emotional landscape. We need to acknowledge sometimes we are dependent on someone or something and it is all right. At the same time we have to examine our level of maturity and our ability to be a functioning grown-up. This full moon encourages us to connect with our child/grown-up dynamic that is on-going in our feelings and in our behavior.