New Moon in Taurus April 21, 2012

The new Moon this month is in Taurus on April 21, 2012 at 3:20 pm EDT. The Sun and Moon are both in Taurus, the second sign of the zodiac, representing our relationship to the physical plane, our bodies, nature, and Mother Earth. It also rules our self-worth, self-esteem and material wealth. Often we equate our self-worth to our material wealth, but true wealth is discovering peace of mind, a connection to our authentic self and to Mother Earth. Connecting to Mother Earth through meditation or walking in nature helps to bring the peace and calmness of Mother Earth into our bodies. Do a daily grounding meditation, where you connect to the Earth. Without this earthly connection, we cannot manifest our goals and inspirations onto the earthly plane. With the warm weather we have been having lately, this is the perfect time to get outside and reconnect with the Earth in some way. Hiking, gardening, tennis anyone ?

Wedding Gift Packages

With the wedding season upon us, I was inspired to create two Astrological Wedding packages to give as a wedding gift to loved ones who are about to embark on the sacred journey of marriage.

Package One

1. Karmic Astrology report for the bride.

2. Karmic Astrology report for the groom.

3. Relationship Report. This report highlights each person's relationship potential: the emotional needs, temperament, hang-ups and issues they bring to the relationship. It then goes on to highlight the compatibility between the two people.

4. Composite Chart Report. This report analyzes romantic relationships by analyzing the composite chart in detail; interpreting the rising sign, house cusp signs, placements, aspects and midpoints. All these astrological techniques will uncover the relationship potential between the couple.

Cost: $100.

Package Two

This package consists of the above four (4) reports PLUS a personal astrology reading by me. This personal reading will look at the two karmic astrology charts of the couple, identifying areas of ease and compatibility and areas where conflict may arise, giving the couple suggestions to overcome and deal with these areas of potential conflict. The astrology chart of the wedding date will also be analyzed providing an indication of the communication and emotional style of the couple.

Cost: $200.

Three Planets Change Direction this Month

Three planets change direction this month, Mercury, Pluto and Mars.

Mercury went retrograde on March 12 in Aries and will turn direct on April 4 in Pisces. We are reminded to use our head and hearts when communicating. With Mercury direct on April 4, we can expect clear communication, less computer glitches and smoother travel.

Pluto will go retrograde on April 10 in Capricorn for five months, highlighting the places where critical change is required in our economic, social and political arenas. On a personal level, we can ask ourselves what structures and routines in our daily lives are out-dated and need to be re-envisioned to achieve our goals.

Mars will turn direct on April 13 in Virgo, where it has been retrograde since January 23. With Mars in Virgo, we have had a chance to review how we assert our will and energy in regards to our diet and exercise programs. I hope you have made some decisions to adopt a healthier lifestyle.

Client Case Study: Pauline

Pauline is a woman in her late fifties who came to see me for a karmic astrology reading to understand why certain unhealthy patterns kept repeating themselves in her life.

Over many past lives, people are shaped by environments from past lives affecting their current emotional state through unconscious memories. The circumstances that surrounded us in a past life is what we expect our world to reflect today, usually in terms of beliefs and limitations. These unconscious memories often cause difficulties in our current life. Therefore, it is very important to uncover what these unconscious memories and beliefs are, in order to deal with them in the present.

With the south node in Virgo in the 7^th house, Pauline knows a lot about being of service and dutiful in relationships, and learning about balance through these partnerships. Her memory of relationships was one of being dutiful to her mate, rather than being in love and compatible with her mate.

Aspects to the south node show up in our current life as friction from other people, and repetitive, unhealthy patterns. Pauline found much conflict and tension when she expressed her desire for recognition of her achievements. She was not able to assert her will or take action to achieve her goals. She was not allowed to follow her beliefs and dreams. She was not able to follow her heart in love and romance, and did not achieve a sense of fairness, harmony and balance in her past life. These patterns continue to show up in her life today when she asserts herself.

The ruler of the south node, Mercury, and its aspects are the roles she played in past lives. This is important because these are the roles that feel familiar to her in this life, and she will have expectations of herself to fulfill the same type of role, even if it’s not enjoyable or what she really wants to do. This familiar role is not always what the soul wants to experience this time around either.

Pauline's south node ruler, Mercury, is in Aquarius in the 12th house. She was a person connected to her community, learning and intellectualizing. She was also exploring creating freedom, breaking out of defined roles, being original. She explored mysticism, surrendering and altered states of consciousness. Looking at her south node, we can imagine that she was not able to explore her beliefs and live her life according to her own philosophy in a public way, as she received much friction from others when she did so.

Aspects to the south node ruler indicate that she was suppressed and controlled by people in power (Pluto) or from very powerful people. Her creativity and sexuality were repressed in her day to day life. She had a role as a messenger or communicator, but was unable to fulfill this role in her own way. Her message was controlled by other, more powerful people.

Pluto represents the soul's greatest desires and also the soul's greatest wounds that we have from a past life, with similar wounding also occurring early in this life. Most people create their current life unconsciously to avoid this deep wounding and pain. We become disempowered by doing this because our journey of empowerment begins with fulfilling our soul's mission. True empowerment has everything to do with our relationship to ourselves, not our relationship to others. Pauline's Pluto is in Leo in the 6^th house. Her soul's deepest desire is to be a mentor or of service to others in her own creative, unique, individual way. She must learn to integrate her ego and identity in a healthy way, and communicate to others what she has learned on her own journey. This could manifest in her writing or speaking.

From some of the above information regarding what is familiar to her from a past life, we see that her soul's deepest desire will not be easy for her to achieve.

Pauline's north node is in Pisces in the first house. The north node represents areas of life that the soul wants to learn about and grow and expand into. This is new territory for her, and there may be many fears surrounding this new way of being. Her soul wants to learn about asserting her will, being independent and in a leadership position. She should explore mysticism, surrendering control to a higher power and explore altered states of consciousness. Her north node is conjunct Venus, Mars and Jupiter, so she will also learn about how she relates to others, and her beliefs, faiths and philosophy of life.

After this reading, Pauline was able to see why some of the repeated patterns in her life left her feeling disempowered. With a clear picture of what unconscious memories she was carrying from past lives and what her soul wants to learn and explore in this life, she was able to make conscious choices about her relationships and career, and feel more confident in herself and what she needs to do to achieve her soul's purpose.

What is Joy to an Aries ?

This article is the first article in a series on joy. What is joy? How does each Sun sign experience joy? I hope this series will help you to find more joy in your life. I think we could all use a little more joy in our life.

What is joy? One on-line dictionary definition states, “the emotion of great delight or happiness caused by something exceptionally good or satisfying.” Finding joy, brings us more peace and happiness. What you focus on, is what you get more of. So, focusing on joy each and every day, even if only for ten minutes, will bring you more joy, peace and blessings into your life.

What brings an Aries joy? Aries is the sign of action, courage, initiative and independence. The ruler of Aries is Mars, the planet of desire, will and action. So for Aries, joy is all about action and doing, often alone. With so much internal energy, physical activity is an excellent way for an Aries to find joy. Do you love hiking? running? tennis? golf? April is the first month of Spring where we are able to get outside and enjoy outdoor activities such as golf. Golf brings many people joy !

I hope all of you have a wonderful month of April, finding more joy in your life, whatever that means to you. I invite you to think about what brings you joy, and engage in those activities as often as possible. Next month, I will give you some hints on what brings joy to a Taurus.

Full Moon April 6, 2012

The full moon this month is in Libra on April 6, 2012 at 3:19 pm EDT. The Sun is in Aries, the Moon is in Libra. Aries represents action, initiative, independence and movement. Libra represents partnership, balance, harmony, and cooperation. A full moon reminds us to balance opposite polarities, and this month, we must learn to balance our own needs with the needs of others. A full moon can illuminate the shadow side of situations. If negative feelings and emotions come up in our relationships with others, the answer is to find balance within and without.