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November 3, 2020 By Janet Booth

Election Decision: A New Day Dawning or More of the Same?

In October, I entered a “Mundane Challenge” sponsored by a chapter of an international astrology organization of which I’m a member. “Mundane” is used in astrology as a term for worldly matters and events in the news. It wasn’t a “contest” to determine a “winner.” The goal was to predict the election outcome – not necessarily to be right – and to “show your work,” explaining the techniques used to reach conclusions. At an event in early December, five astrologers (myself included) will present their findings. Without going into great detail here, I will share some of what I submitted and then add a little to it.

Both presidential candidates have strong career success indicators in their charts or they wouldn’t have risen to the position of running for the highest office in the land. Born at a lunar eclipse full moon, Trump has had a “larger than life” story. Biden’s more modest beginning set him on a path of building a public presence over time. In 2019, in his personal updated chart, he had a solar eclipse new moon, providing a “late bloomer” boost. At Inauguration Day 2021, the ruling planet of his career area is close to the updated position of his Sun, the leadership planet, boding well for him. Becoming the Presidential candidate, win or lose, is a crowning achievement he’s sought for decades.

The candidates’ history of winning or losing was an important consideration. Both Biden and Harris have won every election in which they’ve run. (Biden lost primaries but never an election in over forty years.) Pence lost in two consecutive attempts before a decade’s break from running and finally making it into Congress. Trump barely eked out an electoral college victory after losing the 2016 popular vote. In 2018, he encouraged people to vote in the mid-terms as if he was on the ballot; that was a resounding defeat. In 2020, Biden and Harris enjoy a repeat of a new or full moon activating their same natal planets that were similarly stimulated around the time of all their winning elections. A full moon at the career point (top) of Trump’s chart heralded his victory in 2016. This year, the new moon nearest the election is at the bottom (home point) of his chart, signaling a possible change in residence. That same new moon highlights Pence’s natal Jupiter but he has lost before with a connection to this usually fortuitous planet. Perhaps it’s time for him to return to broadcasting, ruled by Jupiter. (He gained notoriety doing a radio talk show in Indiana between his failed campaigns and his office tenures.) At the time of the certification of the vote in 2016 and at the 2017 inauguration, Trump had important highlights to his career area and its ruling planet. No such luck this time.

A key technique I used for the “challenge” was examining the chart for the moment each candidate accepted the nomination. This was fascinating! The charts were similar in many ways since both Biden and Trump accepted at nearly the same time of the evening a week apart in cities geographically close. The slower planets were in the same locations in the two charts, which had nearly identical degrees on the four crucial chart directions – degrees that are only two degrees from the same positions in the 2021 inauguration chart! The main differences were in the signs of the quick moving planets and their connections to the slower ones. The slow planets, continually indicating big change, were not aggravated by quick “personal” planets at the Democratic convention. A week later at the Republican convention, a quick planet applied stressful pressure to them. The candidate with the most favorable acceptance chart was the first one nominated for a place on the ballot: Kamala Harris. (Regardless of the election outcome, her career has taken a giant leap forward with this nomination.) There’s more to the charts than this brief synopsis provides, all favoring the Democratic ticket.

In checking the “astrological atmosphere” surrounding the election, I identified prior elections with planetary cycles similar to those happening now. A major one occurred twice in recent years, both times with significant shifts in the balance of power between the parties: the 1992 mid-terms, when Republicans had a resounding victory in the House during Bill Clinton’s first term, and the 2008 “hope and change” election of Obama and Biden. Another repeating feature mimics conditions in 1976, when the Presidency went to the Democrats following the corruption of the Nixon administration. These factors show 2020 “leans blue” and just might color results across the board.

Of course, we can’t ignore how Mercury is at a standstill ending its retrograde on Election Day 2020, exactly as it was in 2000. Al Gore conceded late that night and hours later, retracted his concession. Then recounts and court battles ensued for weeks, ending up at the Supreme Court. There’s likely to be some confusion and hub-bub this time around, too. However, I don’t think the overall results will be as close and therefore the outcome should not end up in the hands of the High Court.

The following additional comments are beyond what I submitted in the “challenge.”

Biden has a Scorpio Sun with Sagittarius rising. Thus his ruling planets are Pluto and Jupiter. These two are now traveling together and very powerful. The recent full moon with the Sun in Scorpio and Moon in Taurus echoes Biden’s natal chart signs, likely a positive indication for him. In contrast, Mercury rules Trump’s (and Pence’s) Gemini Sun and it is motionless (going nowhere) on Election Day, as mentioned above. This is an indication of weakness. Trump has Leo rising. That sign’s ruler, the Sun, is opposite Uranus now (nearly exact at the recent full moon). This shakes things up for him personally and for him as the head of state, a position associated with the Sun.

Throughout 2020, the planet of karma and accountability (Saturn) has been traveling across from Trump’s natal Saturn and his Venus, the planet in charge of his career and reputation area. This relationship shows strong opposition from outside oneself. Although his impeachment trial ended in acquittal, that doesn’t erase the charge and he will go down in history as an impeached (and weakened) president.

On a practical political level, in the presidential race, Trump has never polled over 50%, whereas Biden has exceeded that important threshold in multiple polls over the course of many weeks. (Per nbcnews.com, Hillary Clinton touched 50% just twice in 2016, in two-way match-ups, which did not reflect the election’s total choices.) Trump’s approval percentage has been consistently in the 40s since 2015. His base is loyal but he hasn’t been able to expand it to a majority. His “unfavorable” rate has been above 50% for his entire term (per RealClearPolitics.com), a hurdle nearly impossible for an incumbent to overcome in a referendum bid for reelection.

My conclusion and prediction: Biden wins.

July 5, 2020 By Janet Booth Leave a Comment

Holy Uncle-Samoly!

It’s our country’s “birthday” and not very often is there a Full Moon at the anniversary of our independence. It’s even more special if it’s a lunar eclipse! Since eclipses can repeat after nineteen years, this has happened before. A lunar eclipse occurred on July 4 in 1936. Repeats came within a day or two of the fourth, and thus in a 1-2° “orb” (or range of influence) of our “solar return” (the astrological equivalent of a birthday), in 1944, 1963, 1982, 2001 and 2020, which is the last in this series.

With such a big deal as a lunar eclipse on a birthday, we’d expect big events to be associated with it or to occur “around” that time (possibly months before or after). Looking back, we indeed see these years have indeed been very important.

1936

We were in the midst of the New Deal during the Depression and the three-year “dust bowl” was coming to an end. Gone With The Wind was published. African-American athlete Jesse Owens won the 100-meter dash at the Berlin Olympics. The US joined an international brigade to help fight for Spain in the Spanish Civil War.

1944

The tide was turning in the Allies’ favor in WWII with D Day and the liberation of Guam. The gang rape of a black mother by six white men in Alabama, and the failure to indict any of them, provokes nationwide protest and activism among the African-American community. FDR was re-elected for an unprecedented fourth term (which he would not complete). A Supreme Court decision ended “white primaries” in the South in which only whites could vote.

1963

Travel, financial and commercial transactions between the US and Cuba are outlawed. In George Wallace’s inaugural speech as governor of Alabama, he proclaims, “Segregation now, segregation tomorrow, and segregation forever!” amidst a year of major Civil Rights protests. The Supreme Court rules that state courts must provide counsel in criminal cases for defendants who cannot afford their own attorneys, and that Bible-reading in schools in unconstitutional. And of course, the assassination of JFK was the biggest story in 1963.

1982

Amidst a powder keg of anti Asian-American animosity in Michigan, a young Chinese-American was beaten to death in a strip club at his bachelor party by two white auto-workers (a planet supervisor and his laid-off stepson), who thought he was Japanese and the cause of the declining American auto industry. An economic downturn from July 1981 to November 1982 was triggered by tight monetary policy in an attempt to fight inflation. (This was the worst economic downturn to date in the US since the Great Depression.) Democratic Speaker of the House Tip O’Neil and Republican President Ronald Reagan reach a deal to cut spending and raise taxes. After November election, the stock market soars to a new high.

2001

The giant game-changing story of 2001 was the terrorist attack on 9/11, so you might not remember other key events. For instance, despite a recession beginning in March, a giant tax cut favoring the wealthy was passed in May and signed into law in early June, two days after Vermont Senator Jim Jeffords left the Republican Party, shifting control of the Senate to Democrats. In April, an unarmed Black teenager was shot in a police pursuit (wanted on misdemeanors like driving without a seat belt), sparking four days of protest and unrest considered the largest urban disturbance in the US since the 1992 Watts uprising. Following 9/11, the Patriot Act gave sweeping surveillance powers to the government, infringing on 4th Amendment privacy rights. The US invaded Afghanistan, President Bush withdrew the US from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, and China was granted permanent normal trade status with the US.

2020

President Trump was impeached by the House of Representatives for attempting to withhold aid to a foreign government in exchange for information he hoped would affect the upcoming election. He was not convicted by Republican Senators, who refused to hear witness testimony. A virus pandemic enveloped the globe and the US has failed in its response, reaching record cases and deaths. Black Lives Matter marches have continued non-stop since the Memorial Day murder of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man suspected of passing a forged $20 bill. Just ahead of our birthday, news emerged of Russian bounties paid to Taliban fighters to kill American soldiers in Afghanistan, where the 19-year-long war continues. The President claimed not to know and now seems disinclined to do anything about it. And we’re only half-way through 2020.

The US was born with Mercury in retrograde and we seem to repeat some of the same situations over and over, not learning our lesson. Get ready for more of that. Mercury was ending a backtrack at the 2000 election and remember that hanging chad debacle? Mercury ends its retrograde this November on Election Day, too; don’t be surprised by unclear results or disputed vote counts.

Mercury is retrograde at our birthday, a time when the influences present extend their sway for the coming year. We should think twice before doing anything major to try to avoid what we might regret. Mercury is in a troublesome “T-square” pattern across from the Moon, both perpendicular to the duo of Mars and Chiron, which are a little over 5° apart. Mercury in Cancer inclines us to be whiny and express our feelings, although the Moon in mature Capricorn counters with a stiff upper lip. The Mars-Chiron combo adds gripes about illness or wounds. These two are in Aries, fomenting heated discussions with hurtful potential.

Mars, Aries’ ruling planet, spends the second half of 2020 in a long visit in its home sign due to a retrograde there beginning mid-September. Arguments and impatience are likely to cause trouble and the possibility of armed conflict or martial law are not out of the question, although not necessarily occurring in America. Hong Kong comes to mind as a hotspot and this lunar eclipse is accentuated on the North/South line there. The Middle East is always precarious, as well. At the summer solstice (providing indications for the summer season), Mars and Chiron lines enclosed Israel, Jordon, Lebanon and Syria. When Mars entered Aries on June 27, one of its lines ran right through the Straits of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s oil travels.

This year, we can’t get away from the Jupiter-Pluto conjunction in Capricorn, which promises big changes in finances, governments, laws and international relations. Pluto also happens to rule viruses and death. The second of three occurrences was on June 29 (the first being April 4 and the last coming November 12). Throughout their alignment, both are square Eris, the dwarf planet of discord and rivalry. Mars joined in the fray around the time of the spring equinox as it passed through Capricorn and will add to the trouble when it joins Eris in Aries three times: August 17, October 3 and December 22. Seeing this coming down the pike and noting the lunar eclipse at our birthday, last fall in my 2020 Highlights, I remarked “Holy Uncle-Samoly!” not knowing what all would develop. Current events are even more dramatic than anything I could imagine, and who knows what’s coming next. Enjoy the fireworks!

July 5, 2020 By Janet Booth

Uncle Sam’s Foreboding Birthday Revisited

With Mercury Retrograde, it’s an appropriate time to revisit something written earlier. So I dug up my post from three years ago and found it’s still interesting reading and rather prescient. See what you think.

July 3, 2017

Uncle Sam’s Foreboding Birthday

The USA was born of rebellion and to this day, protesting is in our blood. Somebody’s always fighting about something somewhere – we’re a rowdy bunch. In the nation’s birth chart, we see this signaled by our Moon (one’s emotional nature and what one feeds on or hungers for) in the sign Aquarius. (While the Moon is important in any chart, it’s especially so when the Sun sign is Cancer, ruled by the Moon. Born in early July, the USA has the Sun in Cancer.) Aquarius is the sign ruled by Uranus, the planet of the common man, and is the sign positioned opposite Leo, the royal sign. We united in opposition to the crown and declared all men to be equal, as the most egalitarian sign, Aquarius, would be prone to do! Uranus, said to rule revolution, was discovered in 1781, about midway between the revolutions in America (beginning in 1774) and in France (1789). Some charts for the USA (including the one I usually use) are based on an early morning time when Uranus was rising at the eastern horizon, which is a key position in any chart and indicates what is being manifested. I think this fits well with our national character, but since there is not a definitive, agreed-upon time for the USA’s birth, I will restrict this analysis to apply to July 4, 1776 in general, no matter what time.

A key planet related to fighting is, of course, Mars, named for the god of war. At our inception, it was in Gemini, a sign of communication. “Them’s fighting words,” old Westerns used to say, although sometimes we battle with more than our tongues. Gemini is also a sign of siblings and neighbors. In some instances during our Civil War, brother fought against brother and neighbor against neighbor. Gemini’s ruling planet, Mercury, is named for the messenger of the gods, who also carried a moneybag. Astrology associates Mercury with commerce. In America, business has long been a bone of contention. In fact, our first act of war was heaving the Brits’ tea into Boston harbor. Mars is situated in the USA chart about halfway between Uranus and Venus at their “midpoint” (which blends their influences). Venus shows what one loves; we love to rebel and we do so with our words and wits (Mars in Gemini).

The Sun in a country’s chart represents its leader, even if not a king; there’s a regal or high-ranking implication (the Sun rules Leo). At the USA’s birth, the Sun was in a 90-degree angle (indicating friction) relative to Saturn, the planet of rules and the law. Saturn was in Libra, the sign of equality and justice. Our tenant is no one is above the law, not even our President. This Sun-Saturn abrasion also represents limitations (think of Saturn’s rings) that affect our leader or even our nation as a whole (the Sun in a chart indicates identity, one’s very being).

The USA is blessed to have the two planets most favored by ancient astrologers, Venus and Jupiter, paired only 5 degrees apart at the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Big and bright and the easiest of the planets to spot in the night sky, they were dubbed “benefics” (good do-ers), and indeed their combination often yields positive results. They herald the bounty and riches of our nation. Our “bread basket,” love of country and “family values” are consistent with the sign Cancer, where Venus and Jupiter joined. The iconic American Dream is to achieve abundance, usually thought to include home ownership (Cancer rules real estate).

Three Presidents of the modern era were all born relatively near a solar eclipse in the summer of 1946 at 6°49’ Cancer, only a degree away from Jupiter’s position at the USA’s birth. This solar eclipse was 7 degrees from George W. Bush’s Sun, 2 degrees from Donald Trump’s Mercury, and less than a degree from Bill Clinton’s Midheaven (the important top point of a chart, indicating career and status). All three men present Jupiter’s qualities of hope, humor and homespun philosophy, which America found appealing enough to put them in the White House.

However, also in the summer of 1946, Chiron, an asteroid nicknamed “the Wounded Healer,” was traveling in Libra, teamed up with big Jupiter, which magnifies all that it contacts. Both Jupiter and Chiron came to the USA’s Saturn degree, 90° from the USA’s Sun. This can be interpreted as each of these men, born with their natal Jupiter and Chiron activating the USA’s Saturn-Sun abrasion, present the potential for big harm to the respect (Saturn) of the country’s highest position (Sun). Of these three Presidents, Trump’s Chiron is closest to the USA’s Saturn and thus the injury he can do may exceed the wounds of the other two. Thus far, we have seen Clinton nearly thrown out of office over a lie and Bush taking us into the prolonged and basically unwinnable Iraq war based on a lie (that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, which were never found). Will a lie, or perhaps his many lies, also be the undoing of Trump? Time will tell. And the time may be upon us before long. To add a little spice to this stew, consider that Vladimir Putin’s Sun is in Libra only a degree from the USA Saturn and exactly 90 degrees from the USA Sun. He is not a friend to America and he may well play a role in the unfolding drama.

The USA’s 2017 Birthday

The Moon at our birthday is in Scorpio, the sign of transformation and evolution, a water sign signifying deep emotions. The Moon is a key indicator of the people, and as our country’s Sun-sign ruler, it definitely signifies the populace. We are shifting and our feelings are an important part of the process. Women, also related to the Moon, will play a key role in the coming changes.

At our birthday, Jupiter is in Libra, close to the exact degree of the USA’s Saturn and Trump’s Chiron (both 9 degrees from the square to the USA Sun). Jupiter closes in on that degree about a week later, around July 12 (the exact date depends on the unknown USA birth time but it’s within a day or two, at the most, of the 12th). Jupiter is famous for bringing things out into the open. Keep your eyes on Putin’s and Trump’s first face-to-face meeting as world leaders on July 7 or 8 (details to be determined) at the G20 Summit in Hamburg, midway between our July 4 birthday and the July 12-ish Jupiter visit. Whatever these two do or do not discuss may not seem tremendously significant at the time, but I suspect it will set some wheels in motion that will turn out to be very important. It probably won’t be a love-fest since Venus is in a rough relationship with Jupiter at the USA’s 2017 birthday. Although these two had a good relationship at the nation’s birth, the current connection isn’t likely to deliver the wished-for goodies since it activates the difficult link between the natal and birthday Sun with natal Saturn. Venus is the planet of values. Russia’s clash with America’s, but whose will Trump tout? So far, he hasn’t criticized Russia or Putin on any issues. But an altercation may be in the offing. Mercury and Mars are conjunct at our birthday, roughly 6-7 degrees apart, echoing the USA natal Mars in Mercury-ruled Gemini. Lots of heated discussions are in store, as is our wont. We love our fightin’ words, which is where we started this discussion. And oh, by the way, Trump’s Sun is at the degree of the USA Mars. He exemplifies our pugilistic nature. And rather than making American great again, it’s more like he’s at war with the nation he was elected to lead.

June 6, 2020 By Janet Booth

A Trio of Summer of Eclipses

Most of the time when we have eclipses, there’s a pair, one new moon and one full moon, in either order. Not as often, there’s a trio, like we have in 2020. When there are three, none of them is likely to be total, and indeed, none of this trio is. The first eclipse is a lunar eclipse full moon on June 5. Next is a solar eclipse new moon, exactly on the summer solstice – and that combination is very rare and extremely potent. Third is another lunar eclipse full moon, this one on Uncle Sam’s birthday July 4-5 in the overnight wee hours. When there’s a full moon on a birthday, it points to a big year and an important crescendo, even more so when it’s an eclipse!

Eclipses by definition occur near the path of the North and South Nodes (which are an intersection of the Moon-Earth orbit and the Earth-Sun orbit). They form an axis of opposite degrees which slowly moves backward through the zodiac at a pace of about eighteen months per pair of signs. The Nodes have just left Cancer-Capricorn and moved into Gemini-Sagittarius. The North Node shows us the direction for growth even if growing pains are part of the process. The South Node shows what it would be beneficial to shed or put in the past. The South Node also shows what comes easily, which we can fall back on or use as a springboard to go toward the hard things the North Node is calling for.

The new instructions beckon us to bring out the best of Gemini: curiosity, education, communication and community. Using Sagittarius associations in positive ways will help us in that regard, such as higher principles or religious beliefs, freedom, the media and the internet, and international contact. The old slogan “Think Globally, Act Locally” expresses it best. Negative Sagittarius traits might hold us back, such as not being serious enough, being easily sidetracked and pontificating. We’re finishing a period of moving in the direction of Cancer energy: caring concern and a love of home, family and nation. What we should have been leaving behind are negative Capricorn affiliations: judgment, authoritarianism and repression.

The June 5 full moon eclipse is in Sagittarius highlighting the South Node newly into Sagittarius. Laws relate to this sign and there are some old ones that could stand to be changed. A key feature of this eclipse is the Moon and Sun forming a T-square pattern with Mars, the planet of anger and action. We see this shown by the protest marches around the world. Mars in Pisces isn’t usually outwardly angry, but Pisces is the sign of the underdog, so that’s who people are fighting for now. Mercury is in Cancer, indicating emotional communication, and Mercury is riding high in the sky, beyond the Sun’s range that defines the normal planetary path (said to be “out of bounds”). Voices are loud and will not be silenced.

In two weeks, summer begins the afternoon of June 20 and less than nine hours later, the new moon solar eclipse in Cancer kicks off the new season with a bang. What happens at the time a season changes reverberates throughout the following three months. The Moon and Sun at the first degree of Cancer are a little more than a degree away from the North Node at the end of Gemini, emphasizing our new marching orders to look around, listen, learn and speak up. Because Cancer is a water sign, we put feeling into these endeavors.

The eclipse chart set in our nation’s capital has Uranus on the rise, less than three degrees from the horizon (Ascendant). This could bring rebelliousness and surprises. Uranus in Taurus can literally mean sudden movement of the earth, such as earthquakes, not necessarily that one will happen in the DC area (but it’s not unheard of – there was one in 2011). Mars is still in Pisces, close to this sign’s ruling planet, Neptune (adding even more emotion and sympathy). Its square with the Sun, nearly exact on June 5, continues, now about five degrees from exact. This would mean its effects are dissipating somewhat except that this eclipse is at the season change, so the fiery feelings persist throughout the summer season, reinforced by the Moon being exactly square Mars at the solstice.

The most difficult of the trio of eclipses is apt to be the third in early July. By then, Mars is the sign it rules, Aries, having entered on June 27. Mars spends the remainder of 2020 in Aries, a long time in one sign, because it’s retrograde here from September 9 to November 13. This powerful planet at its strongest can bring impatience, decisive action (whether wise or rash), selfishness and war or military involvement. At this eclipse, Mars is approaching Chiron a little more than five degrees away (they join July 14). Chiron can show where a weakness needs to be strengthened or a wound needs to be healed. Mars wants us to take action to cure what ails us. This eclipse is also very near the second of three conjunctions of Jupiter and Pluto (June 29), which portend big changes, extremes in economic matters, and the potential for high death tolls. Covid-19 is not going away any time soon, unfortunately, and the economy is still in serious danger.

This is a precarious time! On the individual level, improving communication and maintaining perspective and humor are in keeping with the Gemini-Sagittarius nodal shift. The robust Mars energy can be utilized for physical activity and competing. Be careful of temper and try to find ways to channel anger into constructive action.

May 22, 2020 By Janet Booth Leave a Comment

New Moon in Gemini 2020

Gemini, the sign of the twins, hosts the New Moon once each spring (between May 21 and June 21, approximately) when the Moon passes by the Sun. This year, their pairing comes early in the sign, at 2°, on May 22. The ruling planet of Gemini, Mercury, is also in this sign, teaming up with Venus at the exact same degree, 20° Gemini. That’s a lot of 2s in 2020!

Two is the archetype of duality: two sides to a story or a question, two poles at either end of a spectrum. It’s also the number of partnering, combining, moving past solo to a twosome, from single to married. When we double the two, as in 2020, we get 4 energy, which is stabilizing and provides structure and guidelines. Four is the number of manifestation and the material world. Thus 2020 is a great year for laying a foundation for cooperation. It’s a little difficult to imagine that something good will come of the current pandemic, but I believe it will set us on a new path of less competition (“1” energy) and more teamwork. We all affect one another and depend on one another.

The Moon-Sun dyad is one-third of the sky away from (“trine”) Saturn, the primary planet of form and matter. This helpful connection keeps us grounded, which is good considering half the planets are now in the Air element (the four in Gemini plus Saturn in Aquarius). Communication is emphasized with a prominent Air influence and Saturn’s participation gives us goals and a focus. We’re not just all talk; we want a purpose.

Venus is the planet of values and resources, which are both bound to be topics of discussion: what’s most important to do, in what order, with the resources at hand. This is a concern for individuals as well as the collective. Venus is in her backward Retrograde trajectory, so we may be re-visiting prior discussions and reconnecting with people we’ve drifted apart from. Gemini is the sign of siblings, neighbors and school chums, so it’s a good time to be in touch with these folks.

Mercury and Venus traveling together usually is a favorable indicator, aiding in harmonious communication, flattery, negotiations and reaching agreement. They’re having some trouble, though, because they’re in a friction position (90° “square”) relative to Neptune, a planet of cloudiness or confusion, sometimes even of deception. We have to look carefully, and probably twice, at situations to see the truth or to get the whole picture. Neptune is also related to compassion, and these are times that reveal who has it and who doesn’t. Neptune is in Pisces (the sign it “rules” or is most strongly associated with), where we also find Mars only a degree away from Ceres. Mars spurs action and is most tender in Pisces. Ceres offers Great Mother nurturing energy. Their blend calls to us to take steps to help those in need. These two are about a sign behind (in a harmonious “semisextile” with) Chiron, the “repairman,” offering innovation, solutions and improvements. One sign further along in the zodiac (also in a cooperative link with Mars, Ceres and Chiron) is Uranus, which likes to sound the alarm and contributes unpredictability as well as inventiveness. Things get shaken up but could end up in better condition. So much depends on outlook and expectations. Mercury and Neptune are the two most potent planets at this new moon: all the planets’ sign location’s rulers trace back to either Mercury or Neptune. Since Mercury and Neptune are square, getting a clear picture is very difficult, and while the power of positive visualization would be a constructive use of this duo, it’s hard work to bring out their best. It’s a important time to pay attention to symbols and signs; they will speak volumes. So will dreams.

The distribution of the planets around the zodiac is very lopsided now; they’re all occupying only one half of the circle. This usually intensifies a certain sector of a chart. Beyond the edges of the planetary cluster, forming a boundary, are the Moon’s Nodes, the North Node and (always opposite, by definition) the South Node. The Moon travels fully around the circle in a month, but for about three months now, all the other planets have stayed on one side of the Nodal axis. Such a condition is described as presenting “dense” energy, and isn’t it interesting that the virus transmission has been worst in dense population situations? Perhaps we’ll see a decrease in new cases as this condition shifts in the coming weeks when Mercury and then the Sun move into the empty half, on May 28 and June 19, respectively.

The North Node of the Moon is now at 0° Cancer. Since the Nodes move from higher to lower degrees of each sign, the North Node is ending its approximately one-and-a-half-years visit to Cancer, with the South Node ending its time in the opposite sign, Capricorn. They’re heading into Gemini and Sagittarius, respectively, and that’s where eclipses will occur beginning with the June 5 Full Moon Lunar Eclipse in Sagittarius. The Nodes signal trends in how we connect with one another to work out our karma. The Cancer-Capricorn axis oriented us to deal with needs and duties, how we take care of one another or have power over one another. The Gemini-Sagittarius pair puts the spotlight on communication, knowledge, news, truth and transparency, the big picture and the pieces of the puzzle.

The North Node’s 0° Cancer position at this Gemini New Moon is where the next New Moon will be in a month, foreshadowing developments to come. That New Moon is an eclipse on June 21, the Summer Solstice, which is rare and powerful! The Full Moon of that cycle will also be an eclipse. These are the last eclipses in Cancer and Capricorn for seven years. The Full Moon Lunar Eclipse is right at the USA’s birthday – holy-Uncle Sam-moley! A crescendo is building in America and Independence Day will have quite a display of fireworks. More on that next time.

Election Decision: A New Day Dawning or More of the Same?

Holy Uncle-Samoly!

Uncle Sam’s Foreboding Birthday Revisited

A Trio of Summer of Eclipses

New Moon in Gemini 2020

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