The Moon climbs into Capricorn this morning.

And like she has experienced the past few months, when Luna steps towards and into the sign of the Mountain Goat she is met at the doorway by the planets residing around the beginning of the Cardinal signs. While last month (July 23) had her first meeting Saturn, then Uranus, Jupiter, and Pluto, this month it is Uranus (now in the late degree of the mutable sign of Pisces), then Jupiter, Saturn, and Pluto that spells the order of those archetypes with which she meets. Therefore, the early day’s energies may take on the following patterned flow:

Unexpected activities lead to opportunities that are then tested by their realistic coherence, which once they take upon a form may lead to transformative reflections within.

Monday, August 16

The freedom inherent in form.
The growth that comes with persistence.
The understanding that arises with commitment.

These are just a few of the ways that the archetypal energies of Jupiter and Saturn can manifest if they are flowing and integrated. Reflecting upon the dance of these two planets is notably important today since they are in exact opposition (as they were on May 22 and will be on March 28). For more reflections on this planetary pair, see this article that uses the practice of yoga as a metaphor for the insights that can arise when this planetary pair allies.

Tuesday, August 17

With the Moon in exploratory Sagittarius making harmonious aspects to Jupiter, Saturn, Venus, and Mars, today may be a glass-half-full day.

Even if that’s not your normal go-to place, consider giving positivity and optimism a whirl and trying this perspective on for size. Ask yourself such questions as:

• What opportunities do circumstances yield?
• What learnings are presenting themselves?
• How may something that you would otherwise perceive to be a negative actually provide positive value?

Given that Mercury and Mars, via their midpoint, are doing the two-step around the Aries Point, our minds may be especially energized today, providing us with the verve we may need to share our findings with others.

Wednesday, August 18

AstroPoetry for the Day

Express it.
Don’t suppress it.
Confess it.
Even profess it.

Even if it’s not “the” truth,
It’s yours.

Thursday, August 19

The Moon climbs into Capricorn this morning.

And like she has experienced the past few months, when Luna steps towards and into the sign of the Mountain Goat she is met at the doorway by the planets residing around the beginning of the Cardinal signs. While last month (July 23) had her first meeting Saturn, then Uranus, Jupiter, and Pluto, this month it is Uranus (now in the late degree of the mutable sign of Pisces), then Jupiter, Saturn, and Pluto that spells the order of those archetypes with which she meets. Therefore, the early day’s energies may take on the following patterned flow:

Unexpected activities lead to opportunities that are then tested by their realistic coherence, which once they take upon a form may lead to transformative reflections within.

Friday, August 20

With a day highlighted by a Sun/Neptune opposition, a Venus/Mars conjunction, and Mercury going retrograde, I share with you this AstroPoem:

Dream. Love.
Dream of love.
Love your dreams.

Pursue beauty.
Chase her.
Embrace her with courageous ardor.

Entice desire.
Seduce him.
Capture him in your butterfly net.

Go inside,
Within your mindscape,
Where visions of the heart’s art resides.

Saturday, August 21

Some days, like this one, I feel pulled to use few words in describing the energies.

So I offer you this:

Today, a breakdown in our armoring can lead to deep change, notably if we can honestly look to and accept the places within where our personal wounds reside.

The astrological markers: Sun/Chiron opposition and the last of this cycle’s Saturn/Pluto square (for more detail on the latter, see this post).

Sunday, August 22

Today marks the last day this year that the Sun will express itself through Leo (it moves into Virgo at 10:27 pm PDT). When El Sol resides in this sign of the Lion, we are more strongly able to connect in with the energies and lessons of this magnanimous sign.

As such, take some time today, if the spirit moves you, to reflect upon the last month to see how these expressions came forth in your life. Some helpful questions include:

• Did you discover a greater sense of pride and dignity?
• Were you able to connect into a means through which to creatively express facets of who you are?
• Was the capacity to dip into a well of playfulness and joy more accessible?
• Did you fall more in love with love and if so, what insights can you take forward so as to live more in your heart?

While the sticks-and-stone childhood ditty
Told us that words can never harm
Thoughts expressed aloud, on paper, in lyric
Are wondrously powerful
And can tear down form,
Transform structure
So that the new can emerge.
If compassion is held
At all times
Words that destruct old
Can actually construct new.
When the beacon of honesty calls
Don’t forget its trusted companion is love.

Saturn likes us to do our homework. Since it’s currently stationing (it goes direct tomorrow) and the Moon moves into the Saturn-ruled sign of Capricorn mid-day, in honor of the planetary taskmaster, I thought I’d offer the following weekend assignment:

• Don’t judge yourself.
• Tame your inner critic.
• Honor the processes that you’ve come to rely upon but don’t be so attached to them. This way if the universe conspires to expand your horizons you can readily rebound to gracefully reach your destination.

Time is often an under-appreciated solution to a problem. I often wonder whether we overlook its superhero powers because it just seems like too simple a fix. Or maybe we shy away from electing it as our strategy because we know that when we give something time, it means we have to sit with our emotions, letting them take us on a journey that may lead to uncharted territories. Yet, it’s within this voyage, through the conscious and unconscious feelings that arise, where the jewels of realization and healing usually lay.

Today, embrace time. Sit still. Stay in your feelings. It may be amazing to see just where it takes you and how much less time it actually takes to move through challenging situations if we give ourselves permission to take the time to do so.

Today would have been Alistair Cooke’s 101^st birthday. The British-born, American-naturalized-citizen Cooke—well known as the voice for Masterpiece Theater—was a highly regarded journalist and broadcaster. He is also a beacon of longevity, not only personally (he passed away at the age of 95) but also for the long runs of the programs in which he was involved. For example, his radio show Letters from America, originally commissioned as a 13-week program ran for 58 years, becoming the longest-running speech radio show.

I share this with you today not only to take the opportunity to remember one whose words and voice inspired many, but also because there’s something about endurance captured in Cooke’s career that reflects the astrological energy of the day. With the Sun in its last days of resilient Scorpio and the Moon in long-lasting Capricorn (making a harmonious aspect to values-driven Venus), it’s a good time to reflect upon the idea of longevity and legacy, considering what it takes if we want to create things that last.

PHOTO © ALEX CARRILLO

Resources is a term often associated with Capricorn, the sign in which the Moon resides today. Capricorn is productive, ambitious, and very hard working. It is focused upon shoring up supplies and is not averse to the status that material accumulation may bring.

Resources is also a term associated with Scorpio, the sign in which the Sun resides. Scorpio has a deep well of emotional reserve it can call upon when needing to be self-reliant or outlast an antagonist. Like Capricorn, Scorpio is also attracted to financial wealth; for Scorpio the allure is the transformative power perceived to be inherent in money.

With the Moon aspecting both Pluto (Scorpio’s planetary ruler) and Saturn (Capricorn’s), a reflection on our attitude towards and relationship to resources—both internal and external—may be a potent theme of the day. As we’re still in the strong glow of Sunday’s Pluto/Saturn square, seeing how we can reestablish a more balanced relationship towards the sources that sustain us while being a regenerative resource for others can also be of great benefit.

Looking for a way to responsibly, efficiently, and enjoyably accomplish any tasks, errands or obligations that may be on your Saturday to-do list?

Listen. To yourself, that is.

With Mercury harmoniously aspecting Neptune today, our ability to access a guiding knowingness is heightened. Tuning into the quiet space that dwells within, where the grace of our intuition and compassion resides, can help inform us as to how to sail through and navigate our day in a graceful and compassionate way.

Welcome to the first day of Scorpio! And what a first day it is as the Moon makes a very early conjunction to Scorpio’s planetary ruler, Pluto, intensifying the shift into a day filled with undercurrents and emotions that may bubble up from below.

Loyalty may be a theme of the day. Situations may arise that inspire us to reflect upon our allegiances, helping us to define the qualities that we find essential when we grant or expect fidelity.

PHOTO © ALEX CARRILLO

Today is a great day to take inventory.

It can be of anything: your pantry, your finances, your relationships, or–notably if you’re celebrating *Yom Kippur, which begins this evening—the last year of your life.

Choose the area of your life that you think is in need of some pragmatic reflection. Look to it and see which aspects provide you with true value and which do not. Measure and weigh the contents within to see which truly contribute to your lasting happiness and which are just taking up space, time, and emotions. With the Moon in hardworking Capricorn making aspects to assertive Mars, communicative Mercury, energetic Uranus, and constructive Saturn, today’s planetary alignments certainly support such a thoughtful review.

* To those observing Yom Kippur, I wish you an easy fast and a Happy New Year.