Tag Archives: North Node

Let’s Discuss: the North Node

29 Wednesday Apr 2020

Posted by in Aspect Delineation, aspects and placements, astrology, Astrology of Careers Vocations and Callings, Consciousness Explored, Natal Delineation, Nodal Axis, North Node, Something For You

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If the North Node is the direction we’re headed on the road of life, understanding its meaning is like having a map that can help guide the turns we take and what types of things along the way we should look for; as well, it will help us avoid wandering back toward re-tracing our steps in familiar, South Node territory. ‘Hochalm mit Serles bei Innsbruck’ By Leopold Scheiring 1917 {{PD}}

I want to say thank you to all for such a robust response to the One Aspect invitation! I’ve already gotten far more submissions than I can use, far more than I expected, and the submission period isn’t over yet! So my apologies to the many who won’t have their situation addressed–I send you special thanks, just for being willing to offer your info, and I’m sorry I won’t be able to get to you. That said, I’ll probably be drawing from these for at least a month, so don’t give up hope–you may see yours yet!

Here’s our first aspect/ placement topic, the North Node. A large number of you mentioned the North Node as a point of interest. There seems to be a lot of confusion about what it really means, in the sense that knowing it points you toward the future doesn’t make things any clearer! I hear you. The North Node is an excellent way to illustrate my contention that aspects shouldn’t be delineated in a vacuum, as it isn’t just the sign and House placement that speak to us, it’s an axis of the chart as well as the aspects made to it and the disposition of its ruler that give depth to interpretation–so in order to effectively interpret a North Node placement at a truly individual level, we need that full chart info that allows us to add context, and so much more particular meaning than we’d get just from placement alone.

First a little background: the Nodes aren’t bodies, but points where the Moon’s orbit intersects the ecliptic, which is, in brief, the Sun’s apparent path through the sky as observed from Earth. So these are Lunar-related points that tell us about past (South Node) and future (North Node) personal development, and are generally considered to ‘point the way’, with the SN offering well-developed skills and qualities, and experiences we’ve already had and so don’t necessarily need to undergo again, and the NN describing what we must strive to experience, learn, and incorporate into our lives in order to grow and develop on all levels: physical, spiritual, emotional, mental, with the equation varying widely for each individual. The trick is to find ways to import and exploit that South Node knowledge to support North Node forms. Now our first seeker:

“I’d love to play along! My info: (birth data redacted for privacy). The aspect of my chart I’m interested in is my North Node. I left my South Node high paying job 7 years ago. My entrepreneurial attempt at a small business has been failing since it began. I’m at a loss on how best to navigate to the North. Thanks for your consideration.”

We are given a brief sketch of the current life situation, and we see it illustrated in the Nodal situation within the birth chart: South Node in Capricorn in the 2nd of assets, talents, Self-worth, earnings=this suggests someone who sees hard work, nose-to-the-grindstone, Self-disciplined effort as the way to success. Follow-the-rules careful, serious effort is probably natural to this woman–and with Capricorn the attitude, it may be hard to understand why joining the high-powered status quo isn’t completely fulfilling, as well as why hard work isn’t a complete success formula on its own–it always has been in the past!

Of course, this places the Cancer North Node in the 8th=it’s hinted here that cooperation (rather than the individual, jaw-gritting determination of Cap) or collaboration is needed, maybe even supporters who contribute or invest, or work where you do that for others, as an emotional investment on the part of the NN individual is required; she also must develop a sensitivity to changing circumstances and feelings–an ability to ‘read the room’, so to speak, rather than go blindly with authority and following the rules. The individual must care about what they’re doing, at a level that actually moves them. All these are required to move in the proscribed life direction–and so presumably to create success.

We turn toward NN ruler the Moon for illumination of the necessary conditions for progress, and what we see is a Moon in Libra in the 11th, just more than one degree past conjunction to the Sun–so, a New Moon baby!–and this again hints that partnership and/ or an ‘audience’ or other supportive public may be required, that aesthetics, Art, or relationships are central, and that the Soul’s purpose and the emotional/ intuitive nature are deeply connected. Too, we might infer that the kind of venture may be entirely new to the individual–something she doesn’t have a lot of experience with (New Moon status), and the House placement implies involvement with or leading of a group could be part of the ‘new’ role, and that the natural tendency is to create goals and then pursue them. We note that the Sun-Moon sit at the midpoint of the Uranus-ASC square, and that they semi-sextile Mars. Both suggest that the Will is strong and likely ‘leads the way’ in creating situations, some of which are surprising or ‘accidents’, that attempt to turn the individual in the direction most beneficial to her development. There is also a sesquiquadrate to Chiron, implying that there may be a lot of situations the individual either tries to accommodate (out of pain) or works to avoid (out of fear of pain), making circumstances more difficult or convoluted than they need to be.

Peripherally we look at the state of Moon/ Sun ruler Venus, which sits in the 12th in Scorpio, conjoined Ceres and sextile Zeus. This tells us that most of what motivates the individual is hidden, or at least working below the conscious level, possibly delivered/ revealed to the conscious mind through dreams or through Collective or spiritual experiences, and that ambitions, desires, and situations of autonomy, personal power, and responsibility are paramount learning experiences throughout life–even though they may not seem to be central to learning. That is, the condition of relationships, values, and finances may carry more info about the individual and the individual evolution than they do about their apparent subjects–and that implies the current financial situation is speaking about personal development needs, more than purely business ones.

Now back to the Nodes. We have three striking aspects/ configurations in which the NN is involved: a Cardinal Grand Cross with the Nodal axis and the Mercury/Pallas-Jupiter opposition; a Water Grand Trine with NN, Neptune, and Chiron; and a quincunx to Saturn. Let’s take these one at a time.

The quincunx to Saturn suggests a continual ‘adjustment’ of the real-world situation to the destined direction. The individual is constantly looking to modify ‘what is’ to take it in the direction they want to go. This shows high adaptability and practicality–they don’t fight the need to respond to circumstances or conform to the expectations (especially of authority) in order to move forward, and that’s good, but they also might be a little too quick to discard what they think isn’t working, or to modify efforts according to feedback–which is reinforced by the heavy Libra emphasis, suggesting a danger of losing one’s own desires by giving too much credence to what others say or do, to what authority or tradition tell us, or to ‘fashions’, as they apply to the individual’s own efforts. There may also be a sense that reality is perpetually unstable, perhaps making for a bit of fear around ‘what ifs’ or unexpected losses, or that there is always something semi-holding one back, anything from actual physical difficulties to a sense of barriers or a ‘glass ceiling’. The very rules and structure that gave a ladder to climb may have come to feel unreasonably inhibiting, along with an idea that things are ‘unfair’ and that the same restrictions don’t apply to others.

The Water Grand Trine speaks of the way feelings are the conduit for healing and creativity, for the spiritual and the most personalized of skills, and again we see the suggestion that these energies are held down deep, in the individual’s ‘deep down’ beliefs about the Self, or manifesting through familial relationships (Chiron in the 4th) or hidden and revealed in glimpses within dreams, spiritual experiences, interacting with large institutions that ‘confine’ the individual (like hospitals or prisons), or Collective events. So, the feelings hold the key to healing, to finding emotional balance, to accessing creativity and spiritual harmony, and so to creating with as much conscious intention as possible the life direction (NN).

But it’s the Cardinal Grand Cross that really lights this up! The thing with a Cross is that, when one arm is stimulated by transit or other contact, the whole thing lights up–and that means it can be very difficult for an individual to sort the energies out, or to handle them. It may feel like a landslide, with so much triggered at once, bringing forward a disconcerting confusion about why so much is happening at the same time, with the initial response often being a, Why me? as so little that goes down makes sense on the surface.

The Nodal axis is ‘crossed’ by the opposition of Mercury/ Pallas in Libra (wisdom and practicality, learned and offered through relationships) and Jupiter in Aries (belief in the Self! Too, always believing one can figure ‘it’ out on one’s own, or can learn ‘it’ by personal effort and availing oneself of the accumulated knowledge of society–that is, through education). That can also read as what the individual feels/ knows, the inner wisdom, is perpetually to some degree at odds with the ‘knowledge’ of the social order, making it hard for the individual to feel they belong.

The involved Houses are 2, 5, 8, and 11, and when combined with the Cardinal signs say that one’s own actions then form circumstances where things must be developed, calibrated, assessed. This can give a start-stop feeling that may frustrate that Cappy South Node and leave the Cancer North wondering what there really is to care about here, especially as the individual may be asked repeatedly to care about what others do or have, or to offer some sort of nurture or support, when to the individual it seems like it should be the other way around! And indeed it will be, as soon as the individual has put her energy into the needed, caring form.

Looking back 7 years, to the point when one career ended and the next began, we see something revealing: that between the Chiron Return, the proximity of transiting Pluto to conjunction with the South Node, Zeus’ conjunction to Pallas, and Saturn’s conjunction to Venus, the inclination was to ambition fulfillment through real-world means, but what was aimed for was pure South Node! Pluto’s contact made it feel like complete and utter change, but Pluto rules the 12th, cluing us in that what motivated the changes was at the mercy of the unconscious–which of course will work to stay safe, to profit, to gain power, to establish work that fits the dream (Saturn to Venus, ruler of the 6th and 11th)–and safety may have required a contained and conservative effort, rather than one as adventurous as intended. Her 3rd House Aquarian Saturn (thoughts consumed with creating a bright and progressive future, appreciation of the ‘new age’ of communication) was at this time receiving a longer-term transit of Juno (back and forth across the body), suggesting that the individual felt empowered in a real-world sense, believing her ideas had come of age, that it was her time to shine, that the empowerment picture and her place in it had matured–and that’s not wrong.

But, it seems to me that it was the timing of it all that may have thwarted the new start. My message might be this: Without meaning to, you may have followed the South Node, mistaking it for the change you were seeking. The ambitions felt smart and practical (Zeus to Pallas) and it looked like manifesting a prosperous earning situation was can’t miss, when it really may have been simply an echo of older, familiar ways couched in ‘new’ terms. Saturn natally in the 3rd and ruling the South Node may make it especially hard to break away from the past; the individual may do so on the surface, but the unconscious continues to orchestrate things in such a way that retreat may seem to be the only answer. It’s not, of course; a truly new venture may require amounts of feeling, vulnerability, and cooperation that are genuinely challenging to this individual. Now, transiting Uranus opposes Venus, driving home the unsustainability of it all, the unreliability even of the Self, life, and Purpose itself, and makes emotions feel like wild things (Uranus opp ruler of the Moon and Sun), even as Saturn transits the 3rd and prepares in a short while for the second Saturn Return, making the thoughts stubborn things, and making changing the way of thinking difficult, indeed. Surrender may be a concept to contemplate, with Uranus’ eventual sextile to the North Node in about two years potentially bringing illumination to the ‘which way should I go?’ picture.

And a second seeker interested in her North Node:

‘Virgo constellation from Uranographia’ By Johannes Hevelius 1690 {{PD}}

“My North Node in any aspects it makes, because I feel I didn’t figure out how to be of service/my mission/why I’m here anyways? (birth data redacted for privacy)”

Though normally we make some allowances for larger orbs in a natal chart, I’m going to keep it tight in this instance, as the picture is rather crisp and single-themed. This woman’s North Node is in Virgo in the 6th, conjoined Black Moon Lilith, semi-sextile Mars, ruler of the 1st, and trine Sedna. Interesting that she asks about service and her mission, as that’s definitely how Virgo sees things! The sign of service in one of the Houses of service, connected to the House that rules the Self. Add to this the contact to BML=a life direction one may actually try to avoid or ignore, or it may feel like it will stir up rage, if one addresses the injustices one sees–an attempt, perhaps, to just not open that can of worms that holds the key to one’s purpose–and contact to Sedna=again, easy to put the life’s mission in the ‘blind spot’ and ignore the inner knowing, the instincts and promptings. But why would someone want to avoid what they ostensibly seek?

I would assume that inability to pinpoint Purpose centers in a mistaken idea of what serving might ask of the individual, or as we see here, Purpose requiring some time and living to develop–so what kind of service does this chart suggest? Here’s where we see an amazing consistency in the nature of what the NN points toward: service through Virgo and the 6th, with NN ruler Mercury in Scorpio in the 8th of shared resources (opposed Sedna), Merc ruler Pluto conjoined the Sun in Libra–and what is Libra about? Justice! And cooperation/ aiding others, emphasized even further by placement of Sun-Pluto in the 7th of all others. With a NN in Virgo, we see that the Purpose in the largest sense is to serve–and we do that by some form of cooperation (Libra) with others. There’s also a lovely Taurus Moon in the 2nd–nurture as a talent–closely quincunx its own ruler Venus in the 7th in Libra=lifelong adjustment to the feeling nature through relationships–and this may signal that it was necessary for a good part of the life to have already been lived in order to develop a mature, resilient, and empathetic emotional nature, that’s now ready to take on the life’s purpose.

It seems to me this life is about serving either through forms of nurture, or in finding justice for others. This can take many many shapes, from health care or hospice care to forensic accounting to counseling or advocacy for others in court or within government systems to feeding others or finding housing for those without. Research, detective work, medical research or medical practice, tax preparation or administration, court advocacy or law, psychology, couples counseling, probationary officer, helping at-risk youth, nursing, chef, gardener or co-op manager, house mother, writer (concentrating on illuminating human nature, fiction or non-fiction)–I could go on, but the important point is all are in the broadest sense forms of looking for the Truth at the core of life, and in so doing benefiting those with whom one works/ interacts. This can be in formal roles that require training, or in the informal venues of friendship, intimate relationship, or motherhood, but in any case, an ability to think concisely, to follow the facts, to look unflinchingly at darkness but know how to show others the way to the light–that’s what you’ve got going for you–it’s up to you what shape your mission takes, but this service does need to have a public component, to be visible to others, especially others who can affect the fates of those you aid (like judges, doctors, or police, unless that’s the role you take on!) Please don’t feel like you’re getting a late start–you may already have gone in this direction to some degree, and just know that you needed time for what you have to offer to reach it’s full potential.

More to come! Thanks, everyone–

 

 

A Morsel of the Future: Your North Node

20 Thursday Oct 2011

Posted by in aspects and placements, astrology, North Node

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Here’s a re-print from July of 2008-hope you like it! For the current daily Lunar picture, the forecast, articles, commentary, and more, please subscribe–Thanks!

The Future by Rainer Maria Rilke

The future: time’s excuse
to frighten us; too vast
a project, too large a morsel
for the heart’s mouth.

Future, who won’t wait for you?
Everyone is going there.
It suffices you to deepen
the absence that we are.

When we are looking for a sense of our future, we should look to the North Node, and particularly to the ruler of the North Node. In studying the energy that rules the North Node, we find an uncanny recurrence of planetary themes within those life events that are path-determining; in other words, the properties of the North Node’s ruler will always be present when one’s fate is taking a turn. Think about the energies of your North Node’s ruler, then think about three or four major turning points in your life. Most likely you will see a definite flavor of the ruling planet, and may even see a variety of energies that reflects facets of the planet’s character. Finding this thread in the past has a definite positive for the future, as it makes it easier to recognize an important or ‘fateful’ point while one is in the midst of it.
We have an excellent example of this principle in Karen Silkwood (19 February 1946, 9:50 PM, Longview TX USA). Ms. Silkwood was an employee of Kerr-McGee Corporation at their plutonium fuel processing facility when she noticed outright falsifications of processing and safety records. She notified corporate and union officials, and continued to gather evidence in spite of being twice deliberately contaminated during her shifts. Ms. Silkwood became a vocal critic of the corporation and the dangers to those living in the area due to Kerr-McGee’s shoddy practices, and many believe she lost her life because of this. On the way to meeting with a major union official and a New York Times reporter, Karen Silkwood was run off the road and killed in the ensuing crash. Autopsy revealed Quaaludes in her blood, an unlikely primer for a meeting of such consequence, and documents she was known to have been carrying with her that were damning for the coporation were never found.
Of note in Ms. Silkwood’s chart is the Gemini North Node, suggesting the importance of information/ communication in her destined direction. We see Pluto in the 10th, linking her reputation quite literally with Plutonium, as well as with issues of death, re-generation, decay, and waste, the latter being one of the issues of lax disposal involved in Ms. Silkwood’s investigation. She has a Pisces Sun at 00, suggesting both a ‘brand new’ phase of identity and a Soul intent attuned to the Collective good. Note also Chiron, Jupiter, and Juno rising, implying strong identification with healing society and Self via Self-empowerment and the initiative of the individual. Mercury, ruler of the North Node, is sited in Pisces in the 5th, with its ruler Neptune posited in the 12th, again connecting Ms. Silkwood to the Collective; it’s quite likely that she was driven by a strong sense of obligation to the Universal welfare, and that perhaps she was not entirely conscious of why she felt she must pursue justice for the common good.

Another ‘What You’re Asking’: 12th House, Trines and Squares, and Metrosexuals Who Can’t Reach the Top Shelf

20 Tuesday Jan 2009

Posted by in 12th House, aspects and placements, astrology, Mercury, natal placement, North Node

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Hello from sunny (but cold!) Seattle, with another installment of ‘What You’re Asking,’ the astrology ‘q and a’ gleaned from some of the many search terms that lead seekers to this site. Let’s get started!

What do I do with a 12th House stellium?

I feel your pain, I really do–the 12th is hard enough to understand without having a gaggle of energies hiding out there from birth. The approach to the 12th, whether one has something posited within or not, is found in the sign on the cusp; the methods used are keyed to the 12th and can be active or passive, but must in any case marry a 12th House form with some facet or attitude of the cusp sign. For instance, Capricorn on the 12th, with Jupiter in Capricorn within, might offer us a way in to the subconscious and to our connection to the divine/ the Collective through disciplined (Cap) practice of meditation (12th)–then we access Jupiter via the matters of the House it rules, in this case likely the 11th, which might bring in goals, friends, group membership, dreams and wishes (of the life or material kind). By practicing the spiritual (12th) discipline (Cap) of meditation (12th) we will help to funnel those trapped Jupiter energies that need to expand, learn, teach, and venture out by attempting those things in 11th House forms, so perhaps teaching a class on meditation and reaching out, in accessing dreams and wishes through the subconscious, or perhaps through the dream life (another 12th House area). There are many many ways potential combinations can play out, so it takes some study and maybe trial-and-error, to find what works best for you.

When there is a stellium here, the logistics may seem insurmountable. Since the point of the 12th is to give us a window both into our own subconscious, and to link us to the Collective in a way that holds no boundaries, we can best hope to reach a stellium by concentrating on an active manifestation of the 12th. This would involve something that is quite conscious, not the passive system of meditation or dream journals, synchronicities or symbolisms, if applicable coupled with attention to the planet ruled by the posited body, that will serve when one has only one or no planets posited there; instead we would observe our involvement with large institutions, perhaps even seeking out a role within them (hospitals, prisons, nursing homes, rehabilitation centers, large conglomerates, international organizations) or in the volunteerism that puts a Collective good before individual interests. We try these things in the tone or style of the cusp sign; so, for example, Virgo here might call us to do some kind of detail work, inventory or accounting (and Pisces on the 6th suggests we might fit nicely into the everyday world of one of those 12th House institutions)–or, with Aquarius on the cusp, we might pursue a form of teaching or study, union or group leadership, innovation in how these institutions function, or in the invention of ‘new, better’ ways of doing things connected to these subjects.

How then, you ask, do we actually get a handle on the stellium? Here we are, volunteering, or getting our degree in prison dynamics, or running a sleep institute, and we’re still not sure how that cluster of, for example, Sun, Mercury, Venus, and Saturn all fit in. The next step is in defining what parts of the life these features rule (by looking at the subjects of the Houses they rule), and then considering what it’s like to keep the identity and Soul Purpose, the communication function, the aesthetic, relationship, and financial values, and the ambitions and fears, all under wraps, with their only outlets those Houses they ‘own,’ or through aspect relationships, where they can as easily mess things up as express due to the unconscious nature of their placements (I didn’t say this would be tidy or easy!)

So, the short answer to your question of what to do with a 12th House stellium is to dig it out however you can, and to do so as consciously as possible; the long answer, where we plot all the tentacles of the stellium as they reach out into the psyche and the daily activities, can take a lifetime.

How do I move forward with a Scorpio North Node?

One very effective way is to adopt the positive qualities of the North Node’s sign when planning goals and looking to the future. With Scorpio, this asks us to open ourselves to what others may prefer to leave hidden, to seek ‘the Truth,’ to be willing to deal with some form of the used, the damaged, and to assist transformation and re-birth. An effective attitude might be to think of oneself as a spiritual midwife of sorts, showing how to bring new life from the ancient and primal within. See Donna Van Toen’s excellent book, THE ASTROLOGER’S NODE BOOK http://www.amazon.com/Astrologers-Node-Book-Donna-Toen/dp/0877285217/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1232465425&sr=1-1 for details for all signs.

What is tertiary progression?

Simply put, it’s a day-for-month symbolic method of natal chart progression, where each ephemeris day from birth on represents one month in the life. Can be an interesting timing mechanism, as elaborated on by Richard Houck in THE ASTROLOGY OF DEATH http://www.amazon.com/Astrology-Death-Richard-Houck/dp/0964161257/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1232465634&sr=1-1  Don’t let the title put you off–this is a fascinating examination of timing methods, particularly about what ‘sets off’ a natal point or eclipse pattern.

What’s a trine, what’s a square?

A trine is an aspect degree as measured in the flat chart of 120 degrees, and generally represents an ease of exchange between the two energies. This can facillitate positive expression, or act to enhance a laziness or out-of-control quality that can make a trine any ‘easy downfall’ aspect. For instance, a trine between Venus and Jupiter can make for an expansive love nature, extreme generosity, easy projection of willingness to partner, a love of learning or teaching, and so on, but it can also make for a spendthrift, exaggeration of the importance of relationship, or for a major capacity for indiscretion, to name a few.

The square is a similarly determined 90 degree aspect that suggests conflict between two energies. It can be very helpful because it insists one deal with the disparities of expression, but can also show a basic dissonance that can be very hard to overcome. So, a square between Mercury and Mars can make for aggressive speech and thoughts that require one pull back and learn to moderate assertion, but can also create a volcanic temper that may be hard pressed to find another outlet for the Martian urge.

Does Mercury in the 8th House mean death?

No.

I have Mercury in the 8th natally and it hasn’t killed me yet. So if you mean, does it indicate death eventually, then, I think we can safely say that of any placement! And if you mean, does transiting Mercury in the 8th mean death, then ‘no’ to that too, as no one would live more than a year if that were the case! Also out are progressed, directed, and Solar Arc Merc as death indicators in the 8th.

metrosexuality little arms

I’m truly speechless at this–I have no idea how this query led to my site, though I suspect it had to do with aspect ‘arms’ that are sometimes mentioned. All I can say is, good luck with whatever you’re looking for!

A few notes: if you’re wondering why sometimes a site will disappear from the blogroll, it’s because I review periodically each one listed–some I’m a regular visitor to, some not so often–and if it’s been a significant amount of time since updating occurred, or if the content has veered sharply from astrology, then I may remove them, sometimes only temporarily, as I see the blogroll as a list of recommendations that can serve a wide variety of tastes and accomplishment levels, and don’t want to leave up links that will feel like dead ends, either by lack of activity or by divergence from subject. As to listings you might expect that are not here, there could be many reasons (though I don’t ‘trade’ links with anyone). It could be that the site is primarily promotional for the astrologer’s services, and so not of informational interest; it could be that I’ve never visited the site, that the site just isn’t to my taste, or that I find the material irrelevant, ego-filled, or incompetent. The links I do list I feel have something unique and of value to at least some of my readers; and I base this solely on my own judgment, with no requirement that they link to me. Hope that answers any questions!

Remember that when you’re searching, long phrases or questions will be cut off, so keep it short and to the point.

Here’s a site for Stargazers who have questions about the current night sky: http://hubblesite.org/explore_astronomy/tonights_sky/

And have a great inauguration Tuesday (here in the states) or regular Tuesday (everywhere else!)

A Heat Wave, Ants Invade, Progress is Made

16 Friday May 2008

Posted by in aspects and placements, astrology, current events in the sky

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It’s not supposed to be 93 in May in Oregon, but it is; why does reality constantly contradict what’s ‘supposed to be’? That’s so irritating. For once curious about the weather, I looked at the current aspects, just to see what I could see (or imagine, or make up). At first I had no idea what to look for; should I concentrate on elements, certain ‘weather-y’ planet characteristics, hard aspects? (And I’ll apologize right now to those who are more knowledgeable about mundane astrology than am I–I’m making this up as I go along!) Then it jumped out at me: Chiron/ Neptune/ the North Node conjunct in Aquarius, trine Mercury/ Ceres in Gemini, Mercury semi-square Mars in Leo. Debilitating (or perhaps wounding) weather, very humid (fog formed yesterday morning, with temps in the high 70s), a sign of climate change? (NN), contacting changeability and the seasons/ Mother Nature, all in Air, heated up by hard contact to Mars in Fire. Hot air. That describes so much!

Have you heard about the ants that crawled off a cargo ship in Houston two years ago and have now taken over five Texas counties? Dubbed ‘Raspberry Ants’ for the exterminator who first identified them, they are blanketing Pearland, and moving northwest. The good news: they eat Fire Ants, and their own bite is very mild; the bad news: they are unaffected by existing pesiticides. We see a possible indicator of their arrival two years ago with the Ceres/ Neptune conjunction–Mother Nature sneaks in under Neptunian obscuring cover. So why are we hearing about it now? I’m going back to that same well, with the Ceres/ Mercury conjunction in Gemini trine Neptune/ Chiron/ NN, communication, nature, the obscured facet revealed, the skills we need to develop (or is it Neptune, the poison we’ll create?) to deal with this; and today the Moon briefly creates a Grand Trine, perhaps making the importance of this obvious to all. The involvement of the North Node at this point suggests to me that we’re just recognizing that this may be ‘where we’re headed,’ and that it won’t just peter out, but needs to be addressed.

Two days ago my husband received an offer for a new job–it means a promotion, and also a move. The Universe truly does work in mysterious ways. The time when he was offered the job put transiting Sun conjunct exact N Jupiter, and the T Ascendant exact conjunct his MC. But what am I to make of the four horaries that all pointed toward this coming Tuesday, the 20th, as the day of resolution? I’m very curious to see what next week brings–he’s accepted the job, but no paperwork has been signed–in fact, it won’t be until June 16th. I do not like the looks of this day, and am going to ask him to change it to the 23rd (his other option to start). Among the problems: Mercury is retrograde, Pluto is back in Sag, Jupiter is quincunx the South Node, Chiron is conjunct the North Node, and the Sun is sextile Vesta (these latter three are exact). Some of this doesn’t change in just a week, but at least Merc would be direct, with paperwork on that date initiated before the Moon goes Void of Course. Though not an ideal situation (he’ll have to drive one and a half hours each way until we can move), we are grateful and in many ways, it’s a vast improvement over the current, soon-to-end situation. Many thanks to all who offered their kind words and support during yet another personal crisis! I hope that means I’m done with those for a while. UPDATE: The horaries were right! He received a second job offer, for even more money, in an even better situation. Now, I almost delight in bad news, for like Jung I immediately think, “What good will come of this?” I’ve got so much proof that that’s true!