Even though this shows a Full Harvest Moon, I think it captures the spirit of the day, especially as we’ll have just had an event of ‘darkness in daytime’ ‘The Harvest Moon’ – George Hemming Mason 1920 {{PD}}

The Sun enters Virgo, pulling our attention to the details, to following the trail of information or assets for what it can tell us, to health matters, to service and where we land on the spectrum from Self-centered to Selfless (hint: nobody is at either extreme), and to ‘the Harvest’–that is, what we will soon reap. It’s the time of year when we account for what we have, prepare for the potential of not having, and assess what we need to do, chiefly through what we think/ know, which of course has its own drawbacks. Do your best to notice nuance, which is not easy during a Mercury retrograde in Virgo, and focus on real-world action that takes matters previously ignored or denied, or that enrage or address injustice, into account. The natural world will not support your ambitions, and neither will authorities; it’s up to the individual alone (Mars in Leo) to be Self-responsible for all chosen or acted upon. A little scary for those used to waiting for permission or the cooperation of others (Libra, I’m lookin’ at you), but taking steps now, in spite of the potential for incomplete info (Merc retro) is the thing to do, at least in part because real-world effects will be so freakin’ obvious.

Today’s word image is: an individual standing in the event shadow, but not looking directly at the eclipse. This is what I plan to do in just a couple of hours. I’m much more interested in how birds and other wildlife react, in the way the appearance of the world changes, so briefly, in the unusual light–for me it’s all about what’s happening here on Earth, rather than the apparent blocking of one body with another, millions of miles away. Of course, what we prioritize, that is, look at, dictates what we interact with, what fills our world, and how we see things; I’m choosing to focus on the light. What about you?