LIFELIGHT ASTROLOGY UPDATE
10 APRIL 2017
By Michelle McClunan
Hi everybody
I’ve been contemplating over the past few days, whether to even write a newsletter for the full moon on Tuesday 11th April, because to be honest, I’m not sure I have any wise words for anybody at the moment. Having been through the ringer myself over the past few weeks, I’m feeling a little bent and bruised and am still trying to makes sense of it all. So… I’m going to just write this and let what needs to emerge, emerge! This comes from a place of not having the answers…and I guess that’s ok!
As the Sun moves through Aries, joining revolutionary Uranus, we are being called upon to be Bold and one of the boldest things we can do, is to show up 100% for ourselves and to be vulnerable.
Some words from Brene Brown “Courage is a heart word. The root of the word courage is cor – the Latin word for heart. In one of its earliest forms, the word courage meant “To speak one’s mind by telling all one’s heart.” Over time, this definition has changed, and today, we typically associate courage with heroic and brave deeds. But in my opinion, this definition fails to recognize the inner strength and level of commitment required for us to actually speak honestly and openly about who we are and about our experiences — good and bad. Speaking from our hearts is what I think of as “ordinary courage.”
In addition to the political shenanigans in South Africa over the past few weeks, which have wobbled our worlds, many of us have had a whole heap of other challenges to deal with as well. A quick list of some of mine – a dear friend of mine was diagnosed with Cancer and is having chemo as I write this; my beloved 16 year old cat died; I received a shocking and very hurtful accusation from an old and trusted friend; my geyser burst, which lead to me having to vacate my living area for a week; I smacked my head hard on my car door, resulting in a deep gash in my eyebrow; old health challenges have re-presented themselves and I had a car accident on Friday followed by two people getting very aggressive towards me….eish!
A part of me seriously just wanted to curl up, lick my wounds and hopefully protect myself from any further onslaughts. Having given myself the opportunity to do just that yesterday, I am now starting to feel the glimmer of something else arising. I’m not sure what it is exactly, but I know, without any doubt that there’s something much bigger at play here that needs my attention. I do believe that when we feel as though we’re being pummeled, there’s always something more going on.
The way I see it, with FOUR PLANETS RETROGRADE right now, we’re all being encouraged to take responsibility for what’s going on in our lives, to get REAL, reflect, review, and reassess everything!
With all this retrograde energy, it can feel as if we’re taking one step forwards and a few backwards; as if our progress is being blocked, or we’re being physically stopped or slowed down. Some of us might even feel hopeless, unable to “see” the future” and maybe fearful of even contemplating what lies ahead.
All of us have experienced that moment when a computer/tablet/cell phone starts just going haywire. It might freeze or a strange gobblygook language might appear on the screen. It’s almost as if the device is saying “I’m overloaded… too much going on… too much is being demanded of little old me…please give me a break!” Sometime, the only option is to switch the thing OFF… and when we do this, and then turn it back on, it often sort itself out.
It’s the same with us, methinks…There’s never been a better time to re-set…re-boot!
Here’s how I see this Retrograde season.
Mercury Retrograde (until 4th May) – We’re all familiar with this one, which comes with reassessing how we communicate with ourselves and others (including unspoken communication – the raising of eyebrows, body language, the way we turn away or walk away from somebody and in so doing, dismiss them); the amount of time we spend on social media, our phones, our computers or in front of the TV; the way we numb our feelings, by absorbing more and more information, which can result in us really not knowing what is true for us anymore.
Saturn Retrograde (until 26th August) – this can feel as if we’re being severely challenged or disciplined by a strict, finger-wagging celestial authority figure. It might feel like we’re being dealt a series of karmic klaps. Perhaps its a message that its time to be honest about our fears, about our shadow side and in a a kind and loving way, get real about where we are self- sabotaging ourselves, where we keep repeating the same fruitless patterns and where we don’t live up to the promises we make.
Venus Retrograde (until 17th April) – We get to review our relationships with ourselves, friends and partners. Where are they out of balance? Where might we be over-giving? Where are we pleasing others and forsaking ourselves or the other way around? What is truly valuable to us…now? How worthy are we? How much money, love, happiness do we deserve?
Jupiter Retrograde (until 10th June) – where do we inflate things and situations? Where do we exaggerate, blow things out of proportion, over-indulge? Where do we see our own specialness as being more important than anybody else’s? What are the blessings or the learnings hidden within the challenges? How can we grow from them? Perhaps these hardships are softening us? Maybe they’re preparing us for something more? Could it be that we’re being humbled and brought to our knees for a reason?
Some examples in my own life (which I’m still working my way through) – Geyser – Where in my life have I been putting myself under extreme pressure? Where do I bottle up emotions (water) until they have to be released?. Bashing the ol head – what am I not seeing/ where do I keep on doing the same things, expecting things to change? Car Accident – where am I not paying attention? Where am I trying to push something that is stationary, forward? Aggressors – How am I handling my own rage and what is beneath it – Sadness, fear, grief?
The potent full moon tomorrow in Libra calls us to look at where we mask our true selves, in order to please others and where we project our anger or aggression (Aries) onto the people in our lives (Libra). It asks us to find out what, in our lives is out of balance and what needs to die, in order for something new to be reborn. This full moon calls on us to be bold – to face the truth about ourselves, to sit with what’s going on and not run from it. There is huge boldness in vulnerability, in surrender, in taking accountability and responsibility.
It was such a privilege to journey with some special, brave souls this past Saturday on the first of my BORN TO BE BOLD workshops. I still have space on the second workshop on the 22 APRIL 2017.
If you feel the need to RE-SET or RE-BOOT, you might want to consider joining us at ANTBEAR lodge for our AUTUMN RETREAT from 12th 14 May.
Its been a while since I read “The Invitation” but it seems very relevant right now.
In life, light and BOLDNESS
Michelle
Michelle McClunan 