Lemonade for February

Planet Waves by Eric Francis
For LEMONADE Magazine, February 2006

Aries (March 20-April 19)
Now that you know the effects of not feeling good about yourself on your environment, I trust that you will do your part to make the world safe for self-respect. The rather amazing strides you’ve made in this direction, though, need to be preserved carefully. In your next phase of experience, you may become so certain of your position that you start to scare people or come off like you don’t have room for any other viewpoints. I suggest that for the next couple of months you invest in the most precious leadership skill — listening. And when you want to express yourself, do it in writing first.

Taurus (April 19-May 20)
Not everything is a matter of will power. But many things come down to knowing what you want. I recognize that many Taureans don’t quite stand on the rock-solid ground that descriptions of your astrological sign often promise; hence the famous legends of stubbornness. Yet the complex story of your life over the past two or three seasons has compelled you to sort out your whims and wishes from what is necessary for your happiness and peace of mind. The dealer at the cosmic gambling table has just handed you three aces and a king. You’ve got what it takes. Please don’t make any excuses.

Gemini (May 20-June 21)
Distant horizons are calling you. As a Gemini, you always live in a relationship to the greater, wider world. But too often this other world exists as an abstraction, or as something you tend to see is available to others and not to you. At the moment, some of your deepest desires, hopes and aspirations are actually available. You’re likely to be feeling a strong pull to go beyond what you know, far past anything you’ve ever experienced. The only catch is, you must not limit your thinking to your own town or your own country. And please don’t let anyone else’s limited ideas stop you.

Cancer (June 21-July 22)
Financial success for one born under the sign of the Crab is usually the result of group cooperation. Now, you could say that anytime someone does well, a group is involved, but you bring a level of vision, charm and warmth to the equation that is not exactly what most people associate with capitalism. You may think you’re young, and it’s true. However, you’re never too young to experiment with being an enterprising person, and it does take a while to pull your team together. But this is a grand moment on both subjects and I want to encourage you to experiment, explore and dare. Success tip one: clear agreements are the foundation.

Leo (July 22-Aug. 23)
If this feels like a moment of reckoning, I reckon you’ll do quite well. If a key situation seems to be calling on you to be at your best, all you need is to have faith in yourself, be true to your values and speak your mind. The people in your life respect nothing if not your individuality. But out of all the benefits the stars are offering at the moment, the best of them is a feeling of safety and stability that is rare indeed. Progress will come in unusual forms and success will have the feeling of an invention or innovation. Look for that sense of the future calling. Listen to everyone’s strange ideas. Genius takes leadership, and you have it.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22)
Have you thought much about the importance of community in your life? I’m going to guess that you have. You’re someone who is naturally gifted as one who heals divisions and discord in households, organizations or any community in which you find yourself. You may wonder why it is that you notice the divisions, problems and situations that nobody else seems to care about. The reason is that your awareness is the first step in the process. There’s a fine line between getting involved in what’s not your business, and noticing how what’s going on around you really does call for your participation. Trust your instincts.

Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23)
You seem to have grown more involved, not less involved, in a past situation you thought you could escape. The involvement is purely internal; you seem to be obsessed or trapped by your own emotions. I suggest you need to go deeper, because things aren’t quite what they seem; this situation has roots that go straight back to childhood, not, for example, last month or last year. There is no need for drama, no need for intensity, just a need for a calm awareness of what you’ve been through and how it shaped your ideas of what it means to be safe.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22)
It may seem like the circumstances of your life are going to pick you up and move you somewhere you’re not expecting. But I suggest you keep sight of one particularly important goal that’s been developing since last July, and make sure that you use the favorable winds of change to your greatest advantage. What you have going for you is the ability to adapt quickly to change and make the most of any situation. These skills will come in handy because by the end of the month you really could find yourself in a very different — and truly advantageous — situation. Just don’t cling to the past if you want the future to be real.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22)
What can you do with so many ideas? It must be getting ridiculous: it looks like you have ideas for everything from abolishing poverty to scientific technologies that will stop pollution. I suggest you not doubt any of them for half a moment. I realize this is a horoscope column, not generally considered the best source of highly personal information, but you have nothing to lose by trusting this word of insight: your ideas are good, they are valuable, and you’re right in the flow of a brilliant moment. Take yourself seriously and you’ll get serious results.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20)
This is the very month to see an investment advisor and plan your financial fortunes. Start modestly; start with $25 if that’s all you have. But definitely start, and stick to it. However, the real investment you would be wise to make is one of having faith in yourself and in the gifts you bring into this world. But note carefully if you find yourself in deep doubt, or any form of doubt that somehow leads you to not trust your own judgment or desires. Help is available, it’s available to you, and you will help safeguard your future by learning to believe in yourself now.

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19)
By now you’re feeling the vibrations of awakening stream through your life. You may be suddenly awakening to the fact that you really are alive, and that you’ve come to the Earth in a truly strange and awesome moment of history. You may have the sense that you “know things you have no way of knowing.” It’s all true, and it’s all happening right now. Listen to what that knowledge is saying to you; look at the world, and count every difference you see between you and it as an asset that can and will help everyone, including yourself.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20)
Pisces is one of the most visionary signs. But it’s also one of the most fearful, hesitating and indecisive. The question you need to be asking yourself is: what do you have to lose by giving up fear? I would say you have very little to lose and a great deal to gain, in particular, peace of mind. Pay attention to what you’re afraid of, and consider the possibility that every fear is based on a mistaken belief about yourself. Mistakes can be corrected and the truth can be discovered. But being positive is a habit, not an accident.

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