Today is Wednesday, Nov. 23, 2011. We’re in the days of the Mercury storm period, the Sun just arrived in Sagittarius yesterday, and the Moon is in Scorpio all day. Next stop: Mercury retrograde and that ‘surprise’ eclipse Thursday into Friday. How is this transition treating you so far? If you’ve encountered some miscommunication which you took very personally, and then rather reluctantly found yourself admitting that some faulty beliefs or perceptions were at play, well – you’re in tune with one level of the astrology. On the other hand, if you’re feeling lit up by a palpable, electric, totally connected and expressive sense of self – guess what? You’re still in tune with the sky.
Yeah – it’s one of those weeks, folks. It’s a bit of a grab bag, but rather than not knowing what astrology you’re grabbing hold of (or seems to be grabbing you), the question is more about how you choose to respond to it. How flexible can you be? Especially for those traveling or mixing it up with family this week, how loose can you hang when things start looking FUBAR? Some people are well practiced in quick self-reflection and changes of emotional course. Others of us… well, let’s just say that if you have a tendency to get defensive before you even know why and then want the satisfaction of knowing you were justified, this particular Mercury retrograde may ask you to stretch a little.
We’re being asked to peel back and perhaps discard certain old beliefs we have held for a long time. The thing is, it’s generally less like picking off a scab and more like peeling off a Band-Aid you don’t actually need anymore. Rather than re-opening a wound, it’s like those first moments after a bandage you’ve been wearing for days comes off. You know: the skin is pale and soft and feels very vulnerable – as though flesh could fear. All it needs is a little time in the air, however, and before you know it, you’ve forgotten that you ever felt like you needed to put on another Band-Aid. New beliefs are not actually what scare us so much – it’s that sense of vulnerability we feel in the moments of transition between old and new.
That said, Mars has been activating Chiron from across the wheel, and now the Sun is talking to Chiron in a square. So the wound analogy may be rather more literal than figurative at times. Always with Chiron the thing to remember is that the wounds that surface have done so because for whatever reason, the time is right. It may be about your level of self-understanding, your accumulated insights about your family history, the tools you’ve acquired through therapy, your investment in creative energy or your motivation level to heal and grow. Likely, there’s some combination of those putting you in a position to understand and take action in ways you may not have been able to before.
As a little astrological nudge, Mercury is sextile Nessus in Aquarius. Any of these old beliefs stemming from repeated self-sabotaging habits and family history are going to find a way into your consciousness and possibly out of your mouth. But that’s one benefit (however awkward) of the Sagittarian tendency to speak out before thinking: once something’s out, it’s actually easier to process and deal with it. And hey, the innocent bystanders may even be happy to help you with that – especially if you’ve brought pie to the gathering and help them wash the dishes.
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ok, the geek and doctor’s daughter in me feels compelled to pipe up: wounds such as cuts actually heal faster while covered. true, they scab over faster if uncovered, but that’s not quite the same. i think keeping them covered lets all those little cells do what they have to do at the surface, rather than the body having to make its own protective layer (scab) under which all that cell activity can occur. i think. 🙂
anyway, so that’s the thrust of the band-aid metaphor here: that when it comes to letting go of old beliefs, it happens when the wound (if there is/was one) has been covered long enough to heal. it still feels vulnerable, but it is not the same as when it was fresh & we can deal with it in a different way, perhaps more directly.
infections are their own thing — they get the whole ‘coming to the surface to break open and release toxins’ routine.
or minus a ‘wound’, we have a belief that has become more of a security blanket and is no longer something of actual use. it can be released despite the urge to see it as continuing to be of support — when really it’s just becoming a hindrance to freer movement. but there’s still that sense of vulnerability in the decision and transition.
anyhoo…. as you were….
jj: Good for you. Seems as though you are the best friend a person could have. By the way, when somebody tells me that they don’t believe in astrology, i ask them if they need to believe in a hammer to hit a nail.
Fascinating. I have recently confronted a friend about his passive-aggressive behavior, and we are in the midst of discussing it. We are supposed to meet for lunch next week, and are exchanging emails until then. I have explained to him that that kind of behavior usually develops in childhood as a defense mechanism against a controlling parent, and I have, in essence, told him it is time to discard that “coping technique” because it is doing more harm than good (and in fact has nearly destroyed the friendship). To his credit, he is listening and considering the idea.
He does not believe in astrology, but I am tempted to send him this post as food for thought. (I just sent him a quote as he contemplates change: Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.) The concept of the band-aid is a very appropriate image, and exactly what I am asking him to do.
I hope this bodes well for our lunch next week, too.
Thank you. The band-aid metaphor is especially well expressed and unconventional enough to rise above and take us to a broader, less worn, unexpected perspective. An insight to be thankful for.
Good Grief (I mean that literally!) This has been a period of “good” grief – letting myself hear, see and begin to grieve the effects of not having had the foundation for healthy trust.
This week I’ve had the challenge of seeing myself struggling with what felt like “unreasonable” jealousy. In the moment, I could tell it was unfounded and disproportionate to the experience I was having and knew that it was “old” stuff asking to be seen and held. As I spoke that out loud and then began the process of excavation, I realized that it came from fear and trust issues.
As the week has gone on, I’ve seen how this triangle (one side is jealousy, another side is fear, another side is trust – or its absence) just keeps ricocheting me around and around like Karpman’s Triangle.
Digging a little deeper helped me to collect the ancestral pieces beneath feeling unsafe (thanks Eric for a pointer in the Virgo birthday report) and I saw a family pattern playing out. I added to this work a great book called Daring To Trust by David Richo and solicited the support and aid of spouse, friends and a guide to really focus on healing this wound.
The primal trust wound has been covered by the band-aid of fear for so long that I nearly forgot that it’s just a band-aid and that the wound might finish its healing better with a little air 🙂
It has been clear to me for a while that this retrograde period was going to ask me to deal with this triangle of jealousy-fear-trust and now it’s clear what my work for this cycle will be. But, I can see that it’s not about wound care and nursing, it’s about airing out and tenderly stepping forward.
I read a story by Clarissa Pinkola Estes recently about the Scar Clan. She spoke of how the tensile strength of a scar is dozens of times stronger than the surrounding flesh and that it makes us infinitely stronger than had the wound not occurred. And so I am stepping forward with my band-aid off and letting the breeze of new behavior complete this healing.
I love this! —
“New beliefs are not actually what scare us so much – it’s that sense of vulnerability we feel in the moments of transition between old and new.”
What a week! Circumstance are happening quickly and yet, at the same time, it feels like good ol’ mollasses pouring. Up one moment, down the next, oh wait, sludge, up again…. I will be curious to read over my notes and dreams next week to ponder what I learned.
It is my intention to use your posting as a navigational tool in my observations of people over this holiday, rather than just slipping into auto-pilot. I think it will be an interesting study. Thanks for the insight.
This is bang on for me. Just bang on. Regarding this and The Tower in the Weekend Tarot Reading, there is a knowing and a feeling of walls coming down, but in this particular instance I *think* I might have done enough ground work that this is a contained detonation – or at least one that is far more conscious. All about family, relating, history – and choosing something different for a change. Much appreciated!
Just spectacular. Thank you so much. xx