This is growth astrology - it's a trick bit of business over the Thanksgiving holiday, but it's here as a little checkpoint before we get into the really good stuff that's on its way even now.

Here's what you're going to do:

1. Have patience.
2. Show up and take responsibility - especially for your emotions.
3. Don't push or force. (The harder you push against this, the more resistance you'll create.)
4. Manage your mind. This is a test of character, so this is your time to dig deep into that rich well of inner authority, integrity, and resilience.

At the time of this full moon, we have Mars on 11/25, then the moon on 11/26 at odds with Saturn. This creates an ego blow and also feeling emotionally isolated. Mercury square Neptune creates distortion of mental perceptions and confused thinking and misunderstandings (exact with the full moon on 11/27) while Mars immediately begins applying a square to Lilith, bringing up feelings of inadequacy, powerlessness, and unwantedness - for us to triumph over once and for all.

Like I said, this is growth astrology. The pressure results in growth, and that growth is necessary for what comes next.  And you WILL be triumphant.

There are a total of three aspects to each because of the nature of the retrograde. 

First, Venus tracks over the retrograde degrees in direct motion, making the first of the three aspects to each - this is the pre-shadow, the initiation and introduction, in this case to each issue represented by each aspect.

Second, after Venus stations retrograde, it begins making the second pass over the retrograde degrees in reverse motion, thus bringing each issue represented by each aspect up for review and deeper consideration, and bringing us to "the heart of the matter."

Lastly, once Venus stations direct, there's one more pass left to be made over the retrograde territory, this time in direct motion, and this is the resolution, when Venus will make each of the aspects to each of the planets for a third and final time, bringing resolution in one way or another to each of the issues.  

As Venus stations direct, we are entering the third and final phase of the retrograde, on until October 7th. 

This is a time of gaining clarity around what you truly love & where you’ve been - up until now - just making do, settling, or fooling yourself. It is now time to take your power back & start living from a more authentic, heart-centered place, whatever that means for you.

• Venus rules attraction and the law of attraction - how we energetically align with our desires to attract and receive them into our lives. 
• As ruler of Taurus, Venus rules money and material resources, and the pleasures of living life through the five senses. 
• As ruler of Libra, Venus rules love, relationships, balance, harmony, cooperation, tact, and diplomacy. 
• Venus also rules beauty, art, creativity, fashion, style, and aesthetics.  Venus rules what you love. 
  
• But at the heart of it all is attraction, and the common denominator is values - specifically your value of yourself, because that determines your ability to align with and attract the things you love into your life.  It all starts with self-love.  

While you may have experienced attention-getting issues around love and money during this retrograde, the heart of this journey is about helping you reclaim your inherent sense of self-value and creative power, and realign your values so that you are living from a more authentic and heart-centered place.  With a sense of pride even - this retrograde occurred in Leo, after all.  

What to Watch Now....

So that's the journey we've been on since early June with Venus in Leo and Venus retrograde.

With Venus direct on September 3rd/4th, we are reaching an important turning point, and things are going to be unfolding all the way through October 7th when Venus clears the retrograde territory once and for all.

The main action here will be between September 23rd and October 7th, as Venus makes the third and final aspects to Uranus, Chiron, Neptune, and Lilith.

Here's the deal, and what you need to be paying attention to now as we move forward:

Venus leaves the post-shadow of this retrograde JUST 1 WEEK BEFORE THE LIBRA SOUTH NODE NEW MOON ECLIPSE on 10/14, and you better believe these things are tied together and a big deal.

The 10/14 Libra eclipse is our first eclipse with north node in Aries and south node in Libra, on from mid-July til January 2025, and as south node represents past, karma, and what we need to release, if there's any relationship junk that needs to be cleared, this eclipse is going to make you very aware of it.

If you want to get out ahead of this, think about what's been coming up here and there since mid-July around relationship dynamics and especially unhealthy ones that have you sacrificing or abandoning yourself for others all the time - codependent tendencies, enmeshment, attachment issues, enabling, not keeping healthy boundaries, passive-aggressiveness (not being able to be direct about your needs and desires and the resulting fall-out), misdirected anger, low self-value, insecurity, people-pleasing, etc.

The north node in Aries is pulling us towards a healthy sense of self and the self-assertiveness that goes with it - the south node in Libra means we are going to be required to let go of everything keeping us from that, and the 10/14 new moon eclipse is going to be bringing it up.

As the October 14th new moon eclipse in Libra is our opener to the new north node in Aries, south node in Libra cycle, it promises to be an eye-opener.

With the nodes on the Aries-Libra axis of self and other, respectively, this eclipse season will be bringing relationships to the forefront, and in a particular way.

The north node is the point of increase and appetite, destiny and future - it is what we are being pulled towards.  The south node, its opposite point, is in contrast, the point of decrease, release, past, and karma.  In short, the north node is what we are moving towards, and the south node is what we are moving away from, but the way this happens is that our pull towards expressing the north node sign traits requires us to release the south node sign shadow.

In this case, the north node in Aries has us collectively feeling pulled towards more individuality, autonomy, and personal authority. 

This is about self-assertion and charting our own course.  But to do that, the south node in Libra says we are probably going to have to face down our shadows having to do with Libra themes. 

Libra is the Venus-ruled sign of relationships, and it wants harmony, equality, balance, beauty, peace, justice, and cooperation.  But in its value of the relationship and efforts to "not rock the boat," sometimes Libra can lose itself.  This is when we end up in situations like codependency. Passive-aggressiveness and resentment can show up when we for whatever reason we don't feel we can state our needs or desires in a straightforward way, or we don't feel like there's room for us to even have needs or desires because "the relationship" is always taking priority and we are in "pleaser mode" to avoid any upset that might lead to loss of relationship or perceived rejection or abandonment.  

In order to move towards the strong sense of self represented by Aries, we have to let go of that Libra shadow.  Ultimately, the Aries-Libra axis is about healthy relationships, and those don't happen without both parties first having a healthy sense of self.  There's nothing "selfish" about it.  When we come together as two strong, healthy, "wholes," we get a relationship which is a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts.  And that's a truly beautiful thing.

So what's happening between now and then?

A lot!

As I write this on August 20th, we are still in the "deep end" of the Venus retrograde journey in Leo, a "rebirth to self-worth," with Mercury retrograde in Virgo on deck for 8/23 to 9/14.

Our new beginning in Leo is just getting underway - the Leo new moon was just a few days ago on August 16th - but we need to be prepping now for the upcoming Pisces full moon. 

That's because the August 30th Pisces full moon is conjunct Saturn retrograde, and while it very well may be bringing us a hint of a harvest in regards to what we began cultivating at the Pisces new moon six months ago in February, the sun opposite Saturn still retrograde also has the potential to be a reality check, or even an uncomfortable ego hit or pinch.

Don't worry - there IS a way to work in alignment with this energy over the two weeks of waxing moon to make sure we are on the right side of this and even harnessing the energy in our favor.

The Virgo new moon, September 14th, will be in supportive aspect to Uranus in Taurus, helping us fully step into the new.  I've been saying all summer since Venus landed in Leo in June that we would see tangible results from the inner work by late September/October.  That's because Venus retrograde featured several "three hit wonder" aspects - Venus conjunct Lilith, Venus square Uranus, and Venus trine Chiron.  When this happens, the first aspect is the initiation to the issue, the second is the review when we revisit the issue and gain new insight and perspective, and the third and final one, when the planet has returned to direct motion, is the resolution.  The resolution in this case is coming in late September into October, and there's more factors than just Venus direct at play!  This new moon is a time to be proactive about making positive changes in our lives.

On September 29th, the Aries full moon will be bringing to realization/fruition whatever began in late March/April when we had two Aries new moons in a row, one being an eclipse.  These were powerful new moons that bookended the sign, with the first one at 0° and the second at 29°, the anaretic, or karmic degree of the sign, and an eclipse.  This one will also feature the full moon ruler, Mars, (ruler of Aries) conjunct the south node of karma, past, and release in opposing sign Libra, and squaring Pluto retrograde in Capricorn, really setting the stage for that new moon eclipse in Libra on October 14th.  

This is a year of major transition for all of us.  A major undercurrent of 2023 is Pluto taking all year to shift out of Capricorn where it has been since 2008, and into Aquarius, where it will remain (after it reenters the sign escorted by the sun in late January) until 2044.  Pluto is doing this in T-square to the nodes of future and past, increase and decrease, and destiny and fate for most of this year.  Pluto is the planet of death and rebirth transformation.  When we see it in such a potent aspect to the nodes for such a long period of time, we can know that we are going to be asked to fully release the past in order to step into the future.  This is a "let go or be dragged" situation.  We need to fully shed the old skin or it might get very uncomfortable.  There might be some growing pains along the way.

But, if we are consciously working with these energies (and that's where astrology can help us), then it's more like we are being carried by the current from one point to the next.  Each step prepares us for the next.  It's a process of evolution and growth.

Join us on the journey.

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Starting in late August and going til mid-November, we have something that astrologers call a "kite" forming and dissipating in the heavens several times over several months.  

A kite is an astrological pattern comprised of 4 planets.  It looks like a kite, like two triangles put together, with the bottom one elongated, forming a "tail," or like a bow being drawn (see image below).  

The three planets forming the top of the kite or the bow and tip of the arrow are all in 60° angles to each other, known as sextiles.  Since astrological signs each span 30° this means you'll find these three planets at the same degree (relatively) of three signs, with one sign in between each - so every other sign. 

In this case, we're talking about the three outer planets, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto, being in the final 10° of Taurus, Pisces, and Capricorn, respectively.  (So Aries and Aquarius are the "in-between" signs.)

What happens is, as each of the personal planets, Mars, Mercury, and Venus, and the sun each transit Virgo this summer/fall, they will each move into opposition with Neptune in Pisces, activating this kite in the heavens.

Kites bring dynamic energy that we access by working the tail point planet of the kite - in this case we will go through a series of them as the planets pass through Virgo.  

Outer planets have to do with generational influences and collective consciousness.  We are in a major transition period that began this year and goes until May 2025.  This is because over that time period all three of the outer planets will change signs, ushering us into a new era by 2025.  

This little kite formation we'll be working through with different planets in Virgo is going to be helping us evolve collectively.

Don't let this overwhelm you.  The key to success with this is focusing on working the high side of Virgo energy in your life from late August through mid-November.

We get our first taste of this with the Leo new moon, as Mars trines Uranus August 15th through 18th before opposing Neptune the 21st through 24th, then making a game-changer of a power move with Pluto August 23rd through 26th. 
 
While each planet opposing Neptune activates this larger kite energy, we also want to be conscious of the fact that any time any planet is in opposition to Neptune things get foggy and unclear, and we need to be mindful of energetic boundaries, as well as getting the "wool pulled over our eyes." 

As we work the high side of Virgo, we'll also want to remember to work the high side of Neptune/Pisces on the other side of the axis.  Balancing this tension is what allows us to tap into the support of Uranus and Pluto in sextile and trine aspects, respectively and harness the power of the kite in our lives.

MarThe Virgo vibes started heating up as soon as Mars landed there in July, as Mars is the action planet, initiator, and instigator.  But the kite formation doesn't get going until Mars gets in range of the outer planets, August 21st to 24th.

Then this energetic dynamic kicks up again with the sun 9/15 to 9/20, with Mercury 8/14 to 9/2 (stations retrograde 8/24 and direct 9/16) and again 9/27 to 10/4, and finally with Venus in 10/25 to 11/8. 

The tension point of the kite - the arrow drawing back, will be formed as the planets transiting Virgo late August to mid-November one by one form the release point of this energetic dynamic.  Like I said before, to work the kite, we must work the Virgo-Pisces opposition.

The outer planets (Uranus and Pluto supporting Neptune) are forming the point of the arrow - the direction of the aim and of forward motion. 

This is about a spiritual awakening and the connectedness of all life.  It's about higher consciousness and the evolutionary leap humanity is collectively undergoing.  Pisces is a water sign and a very spiritual sign full of empathy and compassion, and along with modern ruler Neptune, not only rules water as in "we are all one like drops of water in the ocean," but also literal water, water as a resource, and oil too.  Think about this energetic dynamic at play in league with Uranus in Taurus - innovating how we feel secure and our relationship to resources and environment (like the earth itself) - and Pluto in Capricorn - collapsing what is rotten in big systems globally like government and banking - we start to get a better picture of the monumental change that is happening on a global level right now.

The Virgo planets as they move through, the sun, light of consciousness, and each personal planet, Mercury, Venus, and Mars (not in that order), form the tail of the kite, and one-by-one will be the role you play as an individual in this raising of collective consciousness and spiritual awakening.   

This is where we "do the work," and zoom in on embodying the higher qualities of Virgo by itself and as part of the Virgo-Pisces axis.  

The Virgo-Pisces axis balances the mundane and the spiritual - both signs are about healing.

"Working Virgo," in our personal lives to contribute to the evolution of humanity to higher consciousness might look like focusing in on the sacred in the mundane, acts of practical service, and themes like the body as a temple, cleanliness in relationship to godliness, and honoring the sacred in the mundane. 

Our spiritual healing contributes to our physical healing and vice-versa - not just as individuals, but as communities and societies.  There is a cumulative effect - as more individuals heal their own lives, it helps to evolve the collective consciousness.

2023 is a year of major transition as Pluto, the planet of death and rebirth transformation takes the bulk of the year to complete its shift into Aquarius, and at the same time challenges the astrological points of future and past, destiny and karma.  This requires us to fully release any grip on the past in order to freely move towards our destiny now - the increase is fueled by the release. 

Mars initiates the planetary march through this "hot seat" in the heavens as it opposes Neptune August 21st through 24th.

This is when we are going to shift our focus to consciously working the high side of Virgo energy and balancing the Virgo-Pisces axis of healing in our lives, each playing our own unique role contributing to the larger evolutionary leap of humanity. 

Virgo is a sign of organization, tending to details, acts of service, devotion, cleanliness, refining, caution, modesty, routine, health, and diligence.  Keep it simple and practical.  Less is more.  Hard work pays off, and setting up systems and routines around daily life and health that are preventative and streamline will be invaluable "practical magic" as we move through these months.

This is preparing us for something bigger.  We reach one milestone end of January when Pluto returns to Aquarius for good (until 2044), escorted by the sun, but the "new era" being brought on by all three outer planets shifting signs won't be landed until May 2025.

It was a June afternoon in my kitchen. I was alone in my house. I had just put away groceries and was leaning on the dining room table scrolling on social media.

I happened upon an article and read it. The article described a woman whose lover had just come to her and confessed cheating, overcome with guilt over it, and in the story the woman calmly responded, "I see you are in pain, how can I help."

And that's when it hit me. Hard. I felt like I was being pulled around by my hair in my marriage and I didn't like it. It felt like I was always off balance. Like everything was always so big. Like I was quite literally being emotionally "dragged around by my hair."

And I wanted what that woman had in the story.  Bad.

I wanted that calm, centered poise, that objectivity, that "okay-ness" in herself that allowed her to be present for others in her life no matter what was going on - that THRONE. That peace! I wanted it with my whole body, my whole being.

In that moment, I was so moved by all of this that I suddenly heard myself announce to an empty house, "I want to be like that," like the voice didn't even come from me.

Deeper Implications

I didn't realize it at the time - I was still living in so much denial - but that feeling I had about being "dragged around by my hair," and constantly off balance - well, that was because I was in an abusive marriage.

In fact, I was sustaining every kind of (covert) abuse expect direct physical violence - the mental, emotional, and even sexual abuse was there, just not overtly. It was more like a constant just-beneath-the-surface erosion of my value and power.

At that point, I couldn't admit that to myself. I know now it was because I couldn't come to terms with what that would mean about me, so it wasn't even an option I would allow in to consider.

That June day was the day that there was just enough of a crack of an opening in my resistance for my higher self to jump in and rescue me, set me on a different path.

That story, and that feeling I felt when I read it, and me speaking those 6 little words - that was the beginning of an entirely new me and an entirely new life, because, "to be like that," everything was going to have to change - there was a long distance between where I was then and "being like that."

And change it did - over the course of the next ten or so years, all right on time with Pluto transiting my 7th house of marriage and opposing my first house Venus. A once in a lifetime death and rebirth transit that not even everyone experiences in a lifetime, as Pluto takes 280 years to move all the way around the zodiac, or a natal chart.

The north node represents the direction of spiritual growth.  It's what we want to consciously move towards for our soul's evolution.  The north node represents increase, appetite, the future, and destiny.

The south node, exactly opposite the north node and always moving in sync with it, is what we want to consciously release for our soul's evolution.  It's what is familiar and what we have already mastered in past lifetimes, so it can be the "comfort zone hideout" that gets us in trouble when we are too complacent in life.  It's what we know, and there's no growth for us here.  The south node represents decrease and release, the past, and karma (or lessons).  

In your natal chart, the north node and south node placements are a big part of your life map - what you are moving towards and away from on a soul level in this lifetime. 

​The north node and south node in transit in the current moment is speaking to what we are being pulled toward and asked to release collectively right now, and this shifts zodiacal axes every eighteen months, moving backwards around the zodiac.

North node in Aries and the south node in Libra from mid-July 2023 until mid-January 2025 means we are going to have an appetite and desire to embody Aries energy and as we move towards that, we will simultaneously be called to release the Libran shadow as part of the process, learning the lessons of balancing the Aries-Libra axis along the way.

We'll want to self-assert and individualize.  We might feel more impatient and competitive, with the emphasis being more on "me" and "mine."  We may be more headstrong or even hot-headed too.  This could be a time when we want to strike out on our own - what area of life this is landing in for you depends on what area of life Aries rules in your chart.  For example, if you are Cancer rising, Aries would be your 10th house of career, so this might have to do with blazing a trail in your career and going into business for yourself, but if you're Sagittarius rising, Aries would rule your 5th house of children, the inner child, romance, and creative self-expression.

Remember that Chiron is still in Aries, helping us heal that wound to self that might have us doubting our right to exist.  Maybe, up until now, this has kept us playing small to stay safe.  And maybe, as we learn to take up space and be seen and heard, it's a little like learning to drive a stick shift and we're "all over the place," under-doing it, then over-doing it, trying to refine our ability to shift gears smoothly, and what I mean by that quite literally is refining our ability to balance the Aries-Libra axis of self and other so we don't lose ourselves in relationships or become door mats but also don't run over others and become completely and toxically selfish.  

A healthy sense of self is the foundation for a healthy relationship - one in which the total value equals more than the sum of its parts.  That's the lesson of the Aries-Libra axis.  North node in Aries means we are going to have a year and a half to get right with that relationship to self.

With the south node in Libra, we'll want to be consciously aware of the shadow of Libra energy - the codependency, the passive-aggressiveness, the feeling that we must sacrifice ourselves for the relationship, that there isn't room for our needs or feelings to be expressed and heard and important.  That is not the definition of harmony or cooperation.  Libra wants equality, fairness, and healthy relationships.  That begins with a healthy sense of self and individualism - everything the healthy expression of Aries energy wants.  It's not the either-or; it's the AND - there's room for both, for everyone's truth.  There must be.

As within, so without.  When we become more allowing with ourselves, we become more allowing, period, and that means we become more allowing with others.  There's more permission all the way around, because we also have developed our ability to allow, acknowledge, and communicate our own wants and needs more effectively and tactfully, and in the process developed better boundaries.  And better boundaries means we're safe to allow both ourselves and others to have our own stories and our own truths and beliefs, and suddenly there's more harmony, more cooperation, more...relationship.  That means more of the Aries courage, strength, leadership, and healthy individualism can emerge, and we'll feel the need to spend less time in the warrior sign's combativeness, protectiveness, and defensiveness.  That means more energy for inspiration and creativity.

The north node lands in Aries after eighteen months (since January 19th, 2022) in Taurus. 

The north node represents appetite, desire, increase - what we are being pulled toward, and the south node, respectively, represents what we must release in the process of that evolution we're being pulled along the path to. The two work together. 

For the past eighteen months, we've been moving through north node in Taurus, south node in Scorpio.  We've collectively had an appetite for all things Taurus - the Venus-ruled earth sign of indulging the five senses and earthly abundance.  Taurus wants security through material things, to enjoy life through the five senses, to be well-resourced and well-appointed.  And why wouldn't we all be craving that after a few years of pandemic?  But our appetite for the embodiment of the Taurean north node in our lives comes hand in hand with us collectively needing to face and release that Scorpio shadow - the counterpoint on the other end of the Taurus-Scorpio zodiacal axis.

If Taurus is security through material possessions and resources, Scorpio, the deep-diving water sign of the shadowlands, teaches us the lesson that true power and security will never be found through the tangible, it can only found within, and the more we release, the more we will actually receive.  And one of the things we need to release is the need for control.  Scorpio is about the natural cycle of destruction and creation, the cycle of elimination and regeneration, the transference of energy from one form to another.  In short, holding on to rotting food isn't going to get you the luxe abundance you were imagining - and I mean that as a metaphor for many, many things in life.  It's important to know when to let go, and how to let go.  Scorpio teaches about transitions and regeneration.

We're finishing that cycle up now.  How are you feeling with your progress in learning to balance the Taurus-Scorpio axis over the past year and a half?

With the north node now moving into Aries, and the south node into Libra, the soul growth focus is now shifting for us collectively to being about relationships - specifically the relationship of self and other.

The north node will be pulling us towards embodiment of Aries energy - we're going to want to assert ourselves and individualize and go out and conquer on our own and feel strong and capable.  But the south node will simultaneously be reminding us that we cannot forget about the other end of the axis - other.  

We need relationships.  We need others.  We need cooperation.  We want it too!

Healthy relationships only come from a healthy sense of self.  

When we learn to be the healthy embodiment of Aries energy - self-reliant, confident, interdependent (as opposed to independent or codependent), self-assertive (not aggressive),  and authentic - a funny thing happens - all of our relationships start to become more healthy too.  

This is about self-value, self-expression, the ability to have a healthy sense of self and to communicate healthy boundaries with others, and also the capacity to show up as leader (not a dictator).  

Remember the stick shift analogy - this is a learning process for us as a collective over the next year and a half.  There's likely to be some sputtering, accidental kills, and gear grinding along the way.  

Imagine everyone (on varying levels) suddenly having the urge to be more self-assertive but not necessarily being good at it, or conscious of this energetic dynamic at play for the collective (like you are now).  

Beyond what comes up in our personal lives, the north node transiting Aries is associated with an upsurge in things like military operations, and even higher global temperatures, fires, and seismic activity.  

Aries as the first sign of the zodiac is an initiator.  It's energy activates.  So it may seem that suddenly everyone is "hot to trot."  

Things are changing, clearly.  

Pluto is the planet of power, yes, and "Lord of the Underworld."  But Pluto is ultimately a planet of regeneration - of the process of energy changing from one form to another.  It's all energy, and energy doesn't go away, it only changes form.

It's not so much "release," as it is "transmute," and you're the alchemist of your life.  You're the one with the power.

Pluto rules the cycle of destruction and creation, death and rebirth.