“Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.”
This quote from a sermon by Reinhold Niebuhr in the 1940’s was later adopted as the serenity prayer for AA, but will be useful for all of us this week. We’ll feel lots of surface action and some quiet, deep changes brewing and may feel torn between accepting it all passively, resisting it all and feeling torn, or finding the middle road forward and developing discernment between what we can improve (and so bend our will towards it) and what needs our acceptance and release as Neptune leaves Aquarius and enters Pisces.
With all the rip- roaring, action-packed political aspects we’re going through this year; this can seem like a minor subtle shift in lighting on an otherwise dramatic play, but it will change the tone of our spiritual search, sense of aesthetics, and how we use our intuition.
Neptune takes about 14 years in a sign; it arbitrates our belief patterns, our escapist habits, what we idealize and how we connect with the mysteries. We can look back at history and note the Neptunian eras; Neptune in Libra 1942-56 (idealizing peace, beauty, fairness, romance, symmetry). Scorpio 1956-1970 (idealizing transformative experiences, sex, death, mystery and, intense spiritual practice), Sagittarius 1970-84 (idealizing generosity, cruelty free relations with animals, physical fitness, world beat music and art, and exploratory education), Capricorn 1984-1998 (idealizing a returning to old ways, earth-based spirituality, religious fundamentalism, family history, business and money), and Aquarius 1998- 2012 (idealizing communal technology of Facebook, internet, web books, the cloud, religious ideals).
Now it enters transcendental Pisces until 2026. In 1848, the last time Neptune entered Pisces, we saw the start of the Spiritualist movement as the Fox sisters first announced they were communing with the dead; the movement hit a world so hungry for connection with the numinous that it soon had 8 million followers.
Venus is already now in Pisces and warming up our dream world. As it approaches Aries and a conjunction with Uranus towards the end of the week we can feel the stirrings of spring fever, an emotional and creative strength and restlessness that helps us get out of a passive funk and see what we can do to improve our situation.
The idea is to improve, not jettison; take that as the last option and be careful around Uranus’ whisper to try something completely different. Let’s experiment with a new style of clothes, a fresh coat of paint, a change in our artwork or the movies that attract us, but not throw anything out just yet, neither people nor sweaters. We need to watch that the restlessness takes us to good places rather than causes us to back out of our homework and look for something easier. But if it’s truly time to release an old emotional attachment, this aspect can help.
We’ll need to talk a lot as the weekend begins, but the conversation may not go anywhere in particular. Over the weekend it is time to hit some reset button on our nest, get comfortable in our place and with familiar people and traditions. Watch a defensive streak, while it may be great for football players, it won’t make home life easier; diffuse self-protective vibes rather than react and exacerbate.
Early next week technical glitches and temporary lapses in attention can cause major problems, and we can have a melodramatic response as the Sun semi-squares Uranus under a waxing Leo Moon. Expect a nervy, unsettled, self-conscious mood midweek; adjustments need to be made but it’s not easy when people are so touchy. Work around temporarily crazy thinking and frayed edges of the psyche. Let’s be cool but be attentive, and if we’re feeling roiled up, avoid machinery. Try not to throw the computer.
Mid-week our work may hit a pivot point. So may conservative politics and our sense of security. If a practical problem arises, look to bones and teeth, foundation and structural organization first for the root of the problem as Saturn retrogrades at the very tail end of the sign Libra while in a trine with Neptune. It’s time to rethink our resources, look at how we organize and structure our work and see if we want to do it differently. It may be time to review our spiritual practice and see if we want to make adjustments.
Any organization that has to do with Neptune may need some work, like our church or spiritual circle, the oil and gas industry, alcohol and drug imports or rehab, movie production, or our personal vision statements. The work we put in now will begin to show fruit in the fall as Saturn turns direct, enters Scorpio and trines Neptune again, this time in water signs.
Thursday’s Full Moon in Leo can be a lot of fun if we’re in an extroverted or melodramatic mood. Headlines speak in broad sweeps, so have pity on anyone who makes a mistake in the public eye. Women may spearhead interesting political shifts, and all of us may feel creatively restless. But this Full Moon can also bring up tension between our ideals and our desires. It may help us all to mumble the serenity prayer as we bench press discernment between what we can and should change, and what we need to release. Our control issues may be the first to go.
Friday, Feb 3: Critique sharpens and attention frays this morning as the Moon squares Mars; be patient and prioritize. Timing is strange, catch people on the fly but keep the messages short, not the temper. A grand trine between the Moon, Saturn and Neptune tonight brings us into our dream world; do we want to play, escape or explore possibilities? Listen for evidence of what is to come.
Saturday, Feb 4: Reconnect with home and hearth this morning but be cautious around strange eruptions that are less logical, more emotional discharge, reactions to the subtle changes in progress as the Moon enters domestic Cancer, trines Neptune and squares Uranus. Moody clouds roll through late this afternoon as the Moon opposes Pluto, it is hard to feel right with the world; tend to the psychic jet lag and help people adapt. We can do our best and calm concerns that our home, our food, our efforts are not enough. Think comfort tonight.
Sunday, Feb 5: Clear the air and refill the wells today. Let’s not ask people to prove they care, as in doing so, we prove we don’t really care about them. It’s a spacey, self-contained, disjointed, comfortable if defensive day, not great if you’re a super bowl player, but may be just right to space out with familiar people and enjoy rituals of connection, whether meditating together or eating chili while watch the game. A burst of energy around dinnertime as the Moon sextiles Mars brings a window of decidedness; work with the flow or get out of the way.
Monday, Feb 6: Cranky night, some anxiety can make us antsy in the wee hours as the Sun and Mercury challenge Uranus and this can make it hard to shift gears in the morning. Let feathers settle before making demands. Be careful with equipment. Some people’s ego gets prickly in response to unspoken inner doubts, the unsure we are, the more illogical and arrogant we’ll tend to be. This will make for interesting political parading, though most of us will be able to just laugh about our ambiguities. Personal issues can distract us from important news, so keep eyes open for surprise information this afternoon as Mercury semi-squares Mars; check facts and respond carefully.
Tuesday, Feb 7: A day at odds under a stubborn and melodramatic Full Moon in Leo as Saturn retrogrades. People who feel their power slipping away may pull rank and whip their authority around; all of us may feel we need to prove ourselves, but whether to others or to ourselves may be the question. Instead, let’s hold on to our internal mirror, love ourselves and do our best as we see it. Objectivity is so hard to achieve as the Sun and Mercury conjuncts and oppose the Moon tonight. Open the heart, but be humble about what others need.
Wednesday, Feb 8, 2012: Reality runs into our fantasies as the Virgo Moon opposes Neptune, and one of them has to budge. We can let a dream die on the spikes of hard fact, escape into our dreams, or better yet work to bring them more in line with one another. Confusion with impatience stirs this morning. Later, critical analysis is important, but blame only drains momentum, optimism helps us redirect and rewrite. Celebrate little steps in the right direction.
Thursday, Feb 9: The mood is decisive and cranky as the Virgo Moon, and some people are looking for a scapegoat or greener pastures to avoid the anxiety of their own self-criticism (not that they’d ever admit that) as the Moon conjuncts Mars in Virgo and Venus conjuncts Uranus in Aries. But just because we’re cranky doesn’t mean we’re wrong; some mud we sling will stick. Because the mood is so abrupt, consider making short term experimental decisions only. This energy sings where we move out of reaction and into creation. To counter the sharp edges inner voice, make specific odes to gratitude, and pay as much attention to what works as to what does not.
Starcodes 