Aries 2021
As the World Turns
March 20 Spring Equinox
Sun enters Aries 5:37 AM EDT
Aries is the sign of the hero, the individual. If this last year has taught us anything it might be that the best results are achievable through collaboration and collective action. There are many examples, of course, of the great feats of individuals but it is somehow clearer to us now that all of their successes were possible because of their interconnectedness with others. The good they accomplished is measured against the benefits to others. Most important might be that the so-called, “strong man”, the dictator-in-the-making was defeated (for now). Gun slingers are actually out of favor save in their own minds. We are not just slouching toward Bethlehem waiting for the rough beasts to be born, we are working hard to see the world with new eyes. To tell ourselves a different story.
For eons it seems, humans have subscribed to the story of the hero’s journey, the assumption that we are born and die alone and that it’s up to us as individuals to take the journey, to make it work. Recently we have seen the effects of dying alone and abandoned in nursing homes. When we die alone we die sadder and sooner. As we awaken from this dream of singularity and witness the lonely deaths of our elders we have come to understand that to die alone is a travesty: unnatural, unkind and horrific. Perhaps the one truly singular and powerful action of a life occurs at the boldness of birth. Truly we are each and every one of us unique beings, not simply data points but this does not mean that we are ‘only’. It is true that we will always need fire fighters and first responders, that each of us is tasked with having to make choices for ourselves alone. We live as individuals, a lot like and yet completely different from one another. We have come to the leg of our journey which requires us to stop the relentless, exhausting striving for ‘best’, ‘first’ and ‘most’ and find a different game than King of the Mountain. Instead we might welcome each other, with our unique gifts, to the dance. Aries can do that.
March 21
Venus enters Aries
Mercury sextile Uranus
Mars trine Saturn
There is a lot (too much) to learn about all the changes coming at us. One thing for certain however is that no matter what stage of life we are at; be it eldering, mid-life, childhood or infancy, even and possibly especially adolescence, this period of our development will be forever marked by a collective sense of social restriction and personal responsibility as well as social chaos and, of course, the threat of disease. Even so, we can only live one day at a time. Let today be: A day of action based on understanding (Mars trine Saturn); A day of fluidity and adaptability in communication as we listen attentively so as to actually hear (Mercury sextile Uranus) and a commitment to evaluate what matters most over the next 3 weeks while Venus travels through Aries, especially where it goes against the grain.
March 23
Mercury square Mars
Good listening goes for naught if we over-react and drown out the exchange of ideas. Be still and touch into your feelings before releasing them. Hesitate before hitting ‘send’ until you know what you’re sending.
March 26
Mars conjunct the North Node (on its way to square Neptune!)
Venus conjunct Sun
Conjunctions are fusions of energies. Conjunctions with the Sun are sort of nuclear in nature although not necessarily portents of events so much as a sense of internal pressure regarding the fundamental principle which the planet represents. It is literally a turning point when a planet, in this case Venus, shifts from morning to evening star. You might say it isn’t really done until the day you see Her in the evening sky after sunset. And that day will vary depending on where you live and what your horizon is like as well as how observant you are of the sky above. Today it’s an inner thing. We are pressured to consider the questions bubbling in the cauldron of our hearts; something like, ‘How have your values changed since Venus was retrograde in May-June of 2020?’ The big event at that time was the murder of George Floyd. How has that changed what you value? Mars seems to be piping up reminding us that we are all part of the so-called arrow of history. Actions aren’t exactly louder than words, these days. It seems the two have become one. Words are actions.
March 28
Full Moon: 08 degrees Libra: 02:48 PM EST
Venus conjunct Chiron
The theme is trauma. It’s a bit of a buzz word these days, for good reason. To be human is, sooner or later, one way or another, to be wounded. And we are coming to understand that we can’t just ‘suck it up’ and that it takes a village to heal. Of course the story of our healing is as unique and specific to each individual as the trauma was to begin with. Truly the wisdom that comes with our healing is a great gift of grace and a powerful aspect of life’s mysteries. Today’s accomplishments arise when we acknowledge this equally for ourselves as well as for others.
March 29
Sun conjunct Chiron
Mercury conjunct Neptune
Tell yourself and anyone who might be listening, a big story, one that comes from a big dream of a constantly healing world. A world of wisdom and beauty and above all, compassion.
March 30
Venus sextile Saturn
Make room for the strong women and girls, the challenging ones, the edgy ones too. “Once again, the world was on the brink of disaster, and only a woman could save the world.”
March 31
Sun sextile Saturn
Offering resistance to monolithic industries that would turn us into data, we make a difference individually as well as collectively. Take all opportunities to shop locally, to actualize your part as an individual engaged in a collective endeavor.
April 2
Mercury sextile Pluto
Memory cannot be extracted from time. Our memories apparently morph along with us as we change through the ages and stages of our lives from infancy to and through old age. Memory is more like art than science, real to the feelings but not always precisely factual; profoundly creative. Today’s opportunity is to dig deep into memory and offer it with wisdom and compassion to the world. No need to infuse it with regret.
April 3
Mercury enters Aries
Sharpen your wits. Wake up from the dream of the past. The future awaits. The future we long for starts here and now. If this isn’t metaphysical, what is?
April 6
Venus sextile Mars
The desire for a new world, one that works for all living beings, not just the fortunate few, is stirring. Like a demiurge it demands our attention and creates dissention in that we don’t necessarily agree with one another regarding what that new world should be. If a door to this room opens for you step over the threshold and see what’s there.
April 09
Mercury conjunct Chiron
Mars square Neptune
Awash in information, misinformation and false as well as true facts we might marvel at how the human mind is like a playful, tricky monkey, jumping from one thing to the next so fast we cannot sort through the noise. Some try to capitalize on chaos, others avoid it and still others take a stand, defending their information of choice. Pundits share perspectives adding to the collective mind salad, shoring up our opinions. This fray can wound the mind when it fosters anxiety and attacks (like a virus) a sense of healthy self-esteem especially in the young. The best approach for today is to practice the wisdom of W.A.I.T. Ask yourself, ‘Why Am I Talking?’
April 10
Venus sextile Jupiter
Mercury sextile Saturn
Learning requires unlearning and the questioning of assumptions. We manufacture our ignorance to protect our identity. As we lean into the possibility of returning to a freer life it might be time to re-define the notion of freedom. What does it means to be free if my freedom is as important as some other guy’s? How does ‘liberty and justice for all’ actually work around here? There is no going back.
April 11
New Moon: 22 degrees of Aries: 10:30 PM EDT
Venus square Pluto
New Moons incline us toward a kind of anticipatory stillness: Anticipatory in that we do well to make intentions and so we think about the world to come. Stillness because our intentions are empowered when we align them with the Universe, the Great Spirit or the Soul of Nature (however you see it). For that alignment to happen we must be still.
Much has been lost. No doubt about it. Grief and outrage also show up today. Letting go is easier said than done and cannot be accomplished by will alone.
April 13
Sun sextile Mars
There are way more possibilities than we can anticipate, scattered like drops of dew, tucked inside the folds of flowers as they open to the morning sun.
April 14
Venus enters Taurus
Unlike Venus in Aries, Venus is at home in Taurus. In her own sign she shows us beauty through our senses. She supports the arts and reminds us to be real. Of course it’s up to us to channel and use this energy especially when she engages with another planet.
April 15
Sun sextile Jupiter
More possibilities today. More to heaven and earth if we listen and learn from the world within and around us. It’s not just humans living on this planet, not simply the ‘family of man’.
April 16
Sun square Pluto
Stop! Just stop right where you are. Look. Listen. What rumbles beneath your feet? How present can you be to what’s real in this moment (even if that is washing the dishes or cleaning the bathroom) without fear of losing agency or missing out? When do we stop seeing life as a pyramid with everyone scrabbling to the top and start seeing it as a garden rich in diversity and nourished by fire, water, air and earth?
April 17
Mars trine Jupiter
Mercury sextile Jupiter and Mars
Mercury square Pluto
Today is a wrap for everything that has happened since the New Moon on the 11th. Six short days and a world of possible futures have paraded past against the backdrop of our best intentions. As we grow toward fullness at the Full Moon consider what remains to be done and how to do it with a sense of possibility that can strengthen our aspirations for the greatest good? All is never lost.
April 18
Mercury conjunct the Sun
It seems sort of natural to see Venus as ‘she’ and Mars as ‘he’ even though there is actually no way to ‘sex’ a planet. The Moon is most definitely Mom, a ‘she’ because only she can give birth. Mercury is the exception. A true ‘they’, the one and only and has been since astrology began. If seen at all it is always close to the horizon flickering in and out of sight. It tricks us into seeing things one way and then another. On the distinct six days a year when it conjuncts the Sun (three times when direct and three when retrograde) we can, only if we choose, tune into this quality, this they-ness that exists in each and every one of us. Today is a ‘they’ day. Not one thing or another. A day for magicians, story tellers and shapeshifters of all sorts, to reflect on the ever-changing dance of energy we call life. One and many; no difference.
