posted May 02, 2011 06:31 PM            

Forward we go! Yesterday, Mars and Jupiter joined up in the sign of creative, initiating, I AM energy of the starting action oriented fire of Aries. Time to imagine your next 2 or 12 years depending on which format or time frame you prefer. Both types of cycles are actually starting right now but 12 years of forward vision does seem a bit daunting if you are a mutable sign or feeling a bit battered about in your life these days! Those of you who would like to opt out of 12 year plan, can plan for the next two instead. But plan you must!

Imagine that the entire Universe is holding its collective breathe as you reach and make your life decisions at this pivotal crossroads in your life. Pivotal cross roads you ask? Most certainly! Six outer planets have changed signs in less than three years with five of them changing this last year. Change is here ~ ready or not. And we do certainly see oodles of change in the world events around the globe as well as in our own life. Plus there are profound changes in the lives of our family and friends ~ all pointing toward our conscious or maybe less than conscious evolutionary drives.

As a student of the heavens, you understand that even in your hour of greatest anguish, you can cry out to the stars with an expression of your heartfelt feelings to find an answering resonance there. When you cry out, the universe turns towards you in sympathy. The stars explain, echo and describe the situations we find ourselves in on earth. They don’t compel us but they do support our memory and remembering. The stars cradle and nurture us as we crawl forward, growing up, maturing and seeking to understand the reasons and greater purpose of our being alive on earth at this time.

Cycles repeat and echo each other as the planets dance in the heavens. The stars also begin new cycles of life, by startling us with the changes from the old cycle or reminding us of the old as we start a new life. Time is measured by the rotation and orbit of planets through space ~ so the planets ARE literally our clocks or time keepers of our life cycles. It takes a day for the earth to pivot around in space and a year for the earth to orbit the Sun ~ measuring out the days and years of our lives.

Mars joining with Jupiter and both of them joining with Eris last week mark three new cycles beginning. I AM taking action to not be annoyed ~ Mars /Eris ~ or perhaps I am annoyed so I am going to take some new action instead of my old action. Jupiter/Eris ~ I AM creating or expanding my connections, relationships and interaction with society because I have discord that needs to be addressed. Mars/ Jupiter ~ I AM taking action to create my new family, society and relationships for the next big cycle of my life.

Saturn is where he was in 1981. All weekend long, as the wedding of Prince William and Kate filled the news cycle, frequent mentions were made of Prince Charles and Diana’s wedding in 1981. Compare and contrast the different dresses, ages, backgrounds, weddings, family structures and ceremonies.

I am sitting on a shady deck overlooking the Atlantic ocean as I write this column at an 80th birthday party/ family reunion in Florida. Frequent mentions are made of a previous MUCH WILDER party15 years ago, when my dad turned 65. Now we have 4 and 7 year old great-grand children as the entertainment and every body goes to bed around 9 pm. What a change with half a Saturn cycle!

Italo Calvino said “ Memory has to be strong enough to enable us to act without forgetting what we wanted to do, to learn without ceasing to be the same person, but it also as to be weak enough to allow us to keep moving into the future.”

So here we sit as Mars in Aries rules the heavens. Virtually every planet up there in the sky is answering to him or looking to him for the signal to go. Mars is so happy in his ruler, direct and competent. He is helping all the other planets to figure out their I AM energy so they can speak with a clear, crisp heart and vision.

So whether or not we are aware of it, Mars says that each of us are starting a series of new cycles. Hopefully because you read this column you ARE aware of it. And because your friends and family know of your interest in the sky, share the I AM envisioning idea with them too.

Apply your common sense, intelligence, open heart, clear eyes, patience and dreams to help you start the new cycle(s) of your life. All the outer planets in the heavens are starting new cycles. You are too! Listen for the I AM and move towards that. Not a fear based I AM but a clear voiced I AM.

A major crossroads! Choose wisely as the universe holds its breath and waits to see what you decide to do. Act on your heart felt, deepest instinctive I AM.

As we are beginning so many major cycles, a few readers have written to ask how to best initiate the energy. So, going forth, I’m going to include some ideas on how to initiate and evoke the planets consciously in your life. As a Virgo gal, I am a lover of ritual to start things off. So create for yourself a Mars/ Jupiter ritual to celebrate the inauguration of their new cycle. It can be quite simple as those two planets are plain spoken, direct and clear ~ especially when in Aries.

Ritual for Mars/ Jupiter New Two Year Cycle.

Gather your chart, a candle and some paper. Figure out where 22 of Aries falls in your chart. Think about the situation in your life in that area of your chart (or the area where you’ve been experiencing a bit of discord lately if you don‘t know your chart). Look to where Jupiter and Mars live in your natal chart as well as the Aries, Scorpio, Sagittarius and Pisces houses to see where to expand your life ~ or rather where your life will be expanding based on the beginning of the new cycle.

Gather herbs, plants or crystals of Jupiter (tulips, iris, sage, turquoise ) and Mars (garlic, onions, fennel, hot peppers, radish, red stone, ruby, garnet) to help invoke their energy.

Light the candle. Ask Mars and Jupiter for guidance about how to proceed in the next two or 12 years as they begin a new action oriented cycle in your life and that sector of your life. Write down the inspiration and ideas that come to you. Frame them in positive phrases.

Some times it can be hard to know what your I AM is. Some times your I AM is more a I DON’T WANT TO. That is totally fine. Write the POSITIVE version of the I don’t want to make them I want tos. Go for your dream of your best, most conscious life.

Void Moons for the Week

2:51 am EDT All day Tuesday May 3 to 1:09 pm Wednesday afternoon May 4 ~ 34 hour void moon.

4:12 pm EDT Friday May 6 to 10:32 pm EDT.

There is a lovely New Moon in Taurus on Tuesday asking us to put down roots and plan solidly for our futures. Taurus encourages us to settle into a dream of what we want and grow toward it. The solid, reliable energy of fixed earth encourages us to extend our roots deep into her substance for grounding and cleansing.

Mercury continues to travel through his shadow, moving slowly in middle degrees of Aries. Keep paying attention to the conversations and information you are receiving now. Mercury will catch up with Jupiter and Mars and bring them news of his journey retrograde. He always finds out cool stuff and tells the world during retrogrades. Also he’s been working on getting you clear about your I AM energy as he’s been in an argumentative mode. He is not getting along well with Saturn so expect arguments or disagreements with authorities early in the week.

Venus is traveling rapidly through Aries now, and has a bundle of aspects interested in clarifying the dreams and desires in your heart. She doesn’t have a great deal of patience however. Find the area you can agree on. Stand there. Agree to disagree on the things you can’t do now or find consensus on now. Delay decision making on the contentious items until mid-June, when Saturn goes direct. Structural and desired changes made NOW out of haste and irritation will only be revised in mid-June. State your I AM energy about or around the contentious items. Every one is in a very I AM mood so be aware that things can escalate quickly into a fight or disagreement. Use the energy to envision the future instead of fighting. Come up with a plan.

The asteroid Vesta is beyond busy this week. Normally our home and hearth gal STAYS home, alone, tending the fire and quietly stirring the pot. She’s in the mood to clarify, cleanse and release as she rolls around on the equator and aspects a number of planets clustered there by declination. Great week for a liver detox or whole system cleanse. Great week to clear out the junk from your house and let it go to good will. Pitch the papers from your office. Great week to organize and de-clutter using the last bits of Mercury retrograde to power through it. Great week to start an exercise program or diet with the I AM energy of Mars/ Jupiter joining. Plus all that Vesta activity creates a clean place for the Mars Jupiter aspect to launch from. You KNOW you feel great after cleaning out the closet or garage and looking at the new organization there.

Juno stations to move direct on May 2 at 13 Virgo. Partnership energy needs adjusting this week. When she is in Virgo, Juno counts. She counts how much I do versus how much you do. Counting is good for bankers but not so good for love. Juno’s in an adjusting aspect to all the other planets in Aries. She’s in charge of saying “Did you bring your mittens? Do you have the tickets? A coat in case it gets cold?” All the Aries planets want to hit her. Or at least ignore her. People will want to renegotiate relationships this week. Take the requests under advisement as the shifts needed are not actually going to take place until mid-June. But get the vision and conversation going.