The Great Paradox

December 17, 2004

 

http://cainer.com/ericfrancis/dec17.html

 

Dear Readers:

As the Sun approaches the Galactic Core and the Capricorn Solstice, the news has been moving very fast. Wednesday, a hostage situation developed in Greece, progressed rapidly as the hijackers released one hostage after the next, and resolved itself later the same day with nobody hurt (very interesting charts that clearly said no show-down; the hostages were basically saved by Mercury retrograde); David Blunkett, the embattled home secretary of the UK, has finally resigned, to the relief of many freedom-loving people; the Ohio voting fraud situation is starting to make the front pages in the States; and Donald Rumsfeld has come under fire for his gross mismanagement and overly optimistic predictions involving the Iraq war. Significantly, this involves his inability to 'support our troops' with the right armor and equipment.

 

While none of these developments represents the world turning over, they are all evidence that things can change, that they do change, and that they must change. The 'conservative' ideology that we're going to keep things the same and/or make them like they were yesterday is basically impossible to fulfill. It defies every law of nature. The planets, time, progress and consciousness all work their way forward, as messy as the process may be. 'It' does not change -- people do, and this is energy that nobody can stop.

 

The grand paradox is that the worse things get, the more aware people become, and therefore the more likely it is that people will take action. I think a lot of us are wondering: what gives? At a certain point, something has to, yes? Indeed, something will, as people suddenly find themselves in the present.

 

Something interesting I've noticed is the number of questions that come into this page that have the basic theme, "What should I do with my life?" It seems to be the single most asked question, or at least they stand out of the pile. They are difficult to answer, though I've been mulling over a response that addresses the theme of hearing one's calling, answering that calling, and right livelihood. But I think that through these questions, at least, we have a little field data suggesting that there is a crisis of life purpose brewing in society.

 

I am surprised to see how many of these questions come from people in their late 40s and early 50s who are waking up to the idea that they might actually have a mission in this incarnation, some important work awaiting them, or a purpose they may serve in a planetary awakening.

 

I feel the ground beginning to rumble. I'm getting the idea that the many individuals who are seeking a higher purpose -- which is one form of an identity crisis -- may well add up to the global events that surround Chiron's passage into Aquarius in the spring and through 2005.

 

As for the current sky:

 

The days have pretty much stopped getting shorter at this point (here in the northern part of the globe, opposite Down Under). While the solstice has not technically arrived, practically speaking we are in solstice; the Sun ('sol') is holding at a little over 23 degrees south declination ('-stice', as in stasis or stillness). This is an extreme in every sense of the word; our minds and bodies are wondering 'where the Sun went', even though we have a nifty technical explanation.

 

At the same time, this is the week that the Sun and Earth align with the Galactic Core -- the heart of the Milky Way, our galaxy. This is exact on Saturday, which in my estimation accounts for a large aspect of the intensity of this particular season.

 

Mercury, still retrograde, is slow and powerful in the Sagittarius sky, and returns to direct motion Monday in an exact conjunction to Ixion (a planet that to me suggests 'that which we are all capable of') on Monday, Dec. 20. Beware of the Mercury storm, which surrounds the station by about three days on either side! Don't mess with your computer over the weekend or through late next week, if you can at all avoid it. Just leave it alone. The chances are it will fix itself; and if not, the fix will be a lot, a LOT easier next week. If you must, begin with making two careful backups of your most important files, and getting a couple of opinions.

 

The Sun enters Capricorn the morning of Dec. 21 in the states; afternoon in Europe. This is the official winter solstice -- commencement of winter in the north and summer in the south. It is a meaningful turning point that you can feel in your body; you don't need me, or a book, to feel this shift, if you tune in and notice. Local history, the history of our times, turns a corner, and we turn the corner with it.

 

Safe holiday travels, cousins and friends. Walk lightly in the light.