Planet Waves Monthly Horoscope for January 2019 (#1232)
In order for your life not to seem like an ongoing confrontation, you will need to study your environment. Translated, that means learning how to see what everyone else misses, and how to see what’s invisible. This will give you many, many advantages over those who simply don’t pay attention. You’re willing to defend yourself and your brood when you have to, though this is not your preferred way of life. Therefore, you must know people and know yourself. Study the landscape, and get a sense of what strategy others are applying in their dealings with you. You must surround yourself with people you actually trust, which means understanding what trust is, in the strange verging-on-insane world in which we are living right now. Notice who demonstrates their fidelity to you, and stick with them — and return the favor. Your real project this year is not defensive; it’s about setting your mind on tangible, useful and necessary achievement. Chiron is about to enter Aries, and will be there for another eight years. That’s your 10th house, which is about leadership, responsibility, and the authority you wield in the world. After many years of studying this house, the concept that threads the needle is responsibility. More than anything, this means taking charge of your own affairs. That will become a habit and then a pattern, all the while serving as an example for those around you. In many ways, you were born to lead; you are a natural pioneer, and you have the ideas to back it up. Therefore, I’ll say it again: know people, and know yourself.
Planet Waves Monthly Horoscope for February 2019 (#1236)
On Feb. 18, Chiron enters Aries, the 10th house of your solar chart. This is a promotion for you, an elevation of your reach, and a vesting of your authority. Yet because Chiron is involved, the underlying theme is healing, teaching and service. This is not the typical worldly approach to professional affairs. There is no ambition involved. Your life is not a question of power; your life is a matter of what purpose you are able to serve for humanity (as you define it — beginning close to home), and how you can have that work for you as well. You don’t need to make any decisions at this stage. Rather, hang loose for a while, and get a sense of what options are opening up. Conduct an honest assessment of what your responsibilities are, and how you feel about them. Last year, you may have gone through some kind of confidence crisis related to your professional activities, or your standing in the community. Rethink that and find out what it taught you. Evaluate how you handled yourself in a situation where you had to take charge in some way, which most likely translated to taking responsibility. That’s the thing that so few people want to do in our era. You are being called; you are most likely willing to respond; and you will learn a lot about yourself if you do. Focus on solving problems, and gently — very gently — enacting your highest vision for your life and for the world: one step at a time. One day at a time.
Planet Waves Monthly Horoscope for March 2019 (#1237)
Chiron is now transiting your 10th house of reputation and responsibility. Soon, Uranus will enter your 11th house of your social world. These two transits are now part of the landscape of your life, and represent a whole new realm of possibilities for you. It will be helpful to distinguish two kinds of leadership: formal and informal. Formal leadership relates to your documented responsibilities; it’s about direct accountability, including those to whom you are accountable and those accountable to you. That’s the Chiron piece of the equation, where your most fitting role is to lead as a teacher. Your knowledge and experience are the roots of your authority (which is a word I relate to authorship). If you come from that angle, you will get better results with people. Uranus in Taurus is more about informal leadership: for instance, setting the example of being different, in ways that are not usually socially acceptable (face it, not much is). This transit is about your personal freedom, and it’s an invitation to push the edge, and to experiment. That includes hanging out with people you never thought you would, and challenging yourself to have a good time. This will suit you, because as this transit develops, nothing will be more boring than normal. And there’s a lot of normal going around right now, so much you can smell it walking down the street. In all respects, your astrology and your life journey are here to remind you that the only thing you can really be is yourself.
Planet Waves Monthly Horoscope for April 2019 (#1240)
Move forward with your plans no matter what is going on in the world, or in your life; no matter what people say, or what you believe is possible. Many factors are conspiring to enhance your potency and influence, as well as to drive your sense of mission. You know what you want to do, and simply that you must. That is a good place to be, since hesitancy is such a waste of time. Yet as much as you bring determination and creativity, you’re a source of inspiration. This is based on the way in which you have a tap into another level of reality. It’s true that everyone has access to the same things you do. The difference is that you strongly identify with this thing some call the "higher self." You don’t have, or need, a division between who you are every day, and who you are in truth. And as such, you teach, demonstrate and propagate the idea that these seeming level-differences are fictional. You can, therefore, live your truth every day. That means the things you do and create, the choices you make, and the connections you form, are all sourced and nourished by your divine source, which you know is the essence of who you are. Therefore, let no obstacle stand in your way. Let no person intimidate you. Let nothing deter you from your chosen course in life.
Planet Waves Monthly Horoscope for May 2019 (#1244)
Saturn’s station retrograde in Capricorn, your opposite sign, will take some pressure off of you, though it does not change the basic fact that you’re going through a personal restructuring of some kind. What you get, though, is time to plan your moves, and set up certain contingencies such that you’re never backed into a corner. Give yourself space, and time, and take as much of each as you need to handle your own affairs responsibly. And this is about responsibility; meaning your ability to respond in a way that is self-sustaining, in a time when everything in the world seems to be going sideways. At the same time, it’s true that many old and outmoded aspects of life, both your own and in the wider environment, are falling away. That is one process; what they are being replaced by is another, and for you, this is something best not left to chance. Take a fully conscious role in determining what you want from life, making sure your priorities are not being dictated or even shaped by past expectations, experiences or disappointments. This will take a conscious yoga-like practice of monitoring your thoughts, and turning them toward creative ends. Let every day begin with what you want to accomplish, in terms of meeting your responsibilities but more significantly, creating something new for yourself. Be specific, and set tangible goals that are within reach. Have in mind larger goals that may seem out of reach, though set yourself moving in their direction. Ideally this will include at least two very long-range objectives that you’ve been considering for a long time.
Planet Waves Monthly Horoscope for June 2019 (#1248)
Stay a few steps ahead of the many situations that are brewing in your life. Write the Boy Scout motto on your mirror, or put it on the home screen of your phone: Be Prepared. Your primary worldly and spiritual lesson at this time is that you are the leader of your own life. The way to not let anyone usurp or undermine your authority over yourself is not to hand it to them. This means choosing who you respond to, and how. It also means choosing the ways you confront others when that has to happen — and in this world, at this time, such is inevitable. Strategy guides, both ancient and modern, tend to recommend against going blow for blow. This necessitates clear thinking, and working with viable strategies. That, in turn, requires knowing your goal; knowing what you want — and then everything else follows from there. But you must hold your objective in mind. You determine the outcome you want (whether you get there or not), and you establish the steps on the way to getting there. Once you claim these crucial steps in the process of whatever you’re doing, you will find that it’s more difficult for others to hold power or undue influence over you. Therefore, keep making decisions. That is how you navigate through this world; it is your most awesome and sacred power. It is the difference between driving a car and falling asleep at the wheel. If you feel yourself getting drowsy and starting to nod off, or going into denial, stop, take a breath, take a nap, or eat lunch — and go back to making decisions.
Planet Waves Monthly Horoscope for July 2019 (#1252)
Events of the past two months (associated with Mars transiting your sign or rising sign) may have spun you around so many times, you don’t know if you’re dizzy or not. There was a little bit of everything: a trial here, a tribulation there; a confrontation here, a moment of truth there; a challenge here, a breakthrough there. Overall, this was about the quest to be persistent, consistent, true and correct. All in a day’s work for the astrology you’re under. Now comes something new: a total solar eclipse in your birth sign. This happens July 2. The most recent pattern of this nature took place in 2009-2010, and current developments may be reminiscent of that time. Anyway, here’s my theory about this eclipse, and the corresponding one in Capricorn two weeks later. This is a point of realignment for you. You have concentrated power to make adjustments to your innermost being, which will then ripple out into your relationships. Part of this process will be intentional, and an aspect of what you do will be intuitive. It will help from the outset to work with the idea that you want to use what you have learned. Some of what you have learned (in part, from a series of confrontations and also, more creative intimate encounters) is who you are and who you want, and need, to be. Eclipses also relieve pressure, and you’ve been under plenty. Let the momentum carry you; keep your hand on the rudder and your eyes ahead, constantly scanning from side to side.
Planet Waves Monthly Horoscope for August 2019 (#1254)
You need to shake things up where your professional aspirations are concerned. By that, I don’t mean take an exciting trip through the pages of Monster.com or Zip Recruiter. You are having an idea, or about to have one. This is signified by Mercury stationing direct in your birth sign, square Eris in your professional angle (Aries). This is, actually, more than an idea; it’s akin to a mental revolution, and it may grab you passionately, or seek to dismantle some aspect of your world, or seem to upset the known order of your thoughts. Note that, depending on your relationship to your own awareness, this might be annoying, disruptive or downright freaky. That part is subjective; there is something genuine at the core, at your core. Connect with that experience for as long as you can, and learn as much as you can while the aspect is hot, which is approximately through the first week of August; the peak is Aug. 3. From there, you will need to persist every day, under your own power, and develop whatever it is that showed up for you, or burst forth from you, or tweaked you. There will be days when that goes well, days when it’s boring, days when you don’t seem productive, but show up each day and allow. Take the approach of one great writer: write at least one word a day; or of a great artist: draw a circle, if nothing else. Just keep coming back to yourself, and gently, steadily, persist.
Planet Waves Monthly Horoscope for September 2019 (#1259)
You have plenty on your mind. Most of it is irrelevant, and you would be wise not to talk about it, act on it, or let it burden you. Yet in the mix of it all, there would seem to be something you want and need to express, to learn, or to master. Keep this a private matter for now. Yes, in the age of spewing everything out of one’s pocket computer/camera/phone, it’s arguable that there is no such thing as private. Find your way back to that space, or perhaps get there for the first time. It feels a little like you’re sitting in a room and nobody else but you exists. And as much as you might seek someone else for validation or even verification of your existence, you do not. Instead, using the strength of your mind and your ability to control your physical spaces, you compel your frame of reference to be internal. Older people will remember this, and it will feel good. Younger people need to learn, or be taught, or discover, what this is — and it may feel daunting, frightening, uncertain. It’s the feeling of “nobody knows I’m here but me.” There may be a kind of uncomfortable silence that you think needs to be filled. Note, I am not talking about sitting upright on a wooden floor in total silence for two weeks. You can go to a remote location in your city where nobody will find you, and write or draw in a paper notebook. You can play an instrument. You can sit in the back of a library and read a physical book. For this to work, leave all devices elsewhere.
Planet Waves Monthly Horoscope for October 2019 (#1262)
The planetary currents are drawing you deeper into your creative side, which for you includes lust and passion. Try to keep it light. Give yourself options. Emphasize feeling good, taking care of yourself, and exploring the aspects of your nature that can easily get sidelined in our busy world. You probably know what those things are. Dust off your paints or pastels, and dig out your sketchbook. Put new strings on your guitar or violin, or clear all extraneous material away from the piano. Take this as metaphor: make room for what makes you feel good, by which I mean space, time and emotional bandwidth. Reconnect with the part of yourself who is that sensual, creative person for whom the whole world has the flair of the erotic. Be alive and act like it, feel all the beauty, and allow yourself to be turned on for its own sake. In our current version of the world, this is considered a dangerous kind of vulnerability. So you will want to beware of any zombies roaming about, and casually walk the other way. Don’t make the mistake of trying to convert them into joining the living. Rather, observe who picks up on your vibe. Notice who comes over to play. Listen carefully for people who have their own relationship to “the rules,” and who have already determined that freedom is preferable to tyranny. With that as a standard, you will not exactly be overwhelmed with suitors or potential collaborators, though you’re certain to make one, two or a few friends you can groove with.
Planet Waves Monthly Horoscope for November 2019 (#1266)
Sexual exploration for its own sake is still considered taboo. It almost always is, except for brief intervals, in specific times and places. And in our era, there is always the potential for some political concept to worm its way in and spoil the fun. The Sun combined with Mercury retrograde in Scorpio — your 5th solar house of art, sex, creativity and play — will have a way of taking you into this territory. Part of the intrigue involves Pallas, the asteroid of strategy, law and politics, who is noted for her asexual qualities. Notice how inhibition sets in the moment the discussion moves to people’s rights and other legal issues. If you want to avoid, evade and elude the emotional-erotic elements of life, the easiest way to do that is to place them into a political context. Then, no fun is possible, because people are waiting for the state legislature or state police to burst in. What you want is basic consideration, mutual respect and the sense that everyone involved in an erotic situation wants to be there — and that’s about all you need. There’s a delightful indignity to much erotic activity. It’s a little chaotic and people are naked and there is submission involved. Your hair gets messed up and stuff gets thrown all over your room and with any luck everyone has fun. Even assuming that what you’re doing is perfectly legal, it still defies the law of puritanical conduct. You can make no claims of being pure or exempt from natural desire. That is virtue.
Planet Waves Monthly Horoscope for December 2019 (#1270)
Your world is changing. For a long while, change seems to have meant everything but improvement, due to many challenging aspects influencing your sign. The immediately forthcoming astrology, among the most significant in a generation, is going to level out the ground you stand on. If you’re in tune with your ethics and willing to grow and make adjustments, this will work out well for you. If you are someone who resists progress and constantly prioritizes yourself over others, you will find yourself in circumstances where you will need to be more generous. The question to ask is: what is the purpose of your life? The answer by the standards of society will usually be some form of “every man for himself” or the need to survive. This is often lubricated by some version of, “If I win the lottery, then I will help people.” Please — forget it. You have work to do now, not in the future. Work means a purpose to serve, and people in your life who need you to invest in them. Most of all, work means that you are being called to lead by example. You can have no ideals except for the ones you personally embody. Nothing else counts now except what you demonstrate to be true by your actions and your choices. You’re being called to step up to the challenge of living, with your full sensitivity, even here in our era of duck and cover. In a phrase, it’s time to get real.