by Lady Deane
January 9th, New Moon in Capricorn
19 Degrees Capricorn: “A child of about five carrying a huge shopping bag filled with groceries.”
On the surface this indicates the need for people to act maturely and take on adult responsibilities. But at a deeper level, this degree is all about people feeling like they may have gotten themselves in over their heads a bit, or having to deal with something that’s outside of their wheelhouse, beyond their pay grade. It also means that people (both men and women) are having to “man-up” in some important way, or to carry a load that may be too heavy for others to carry. It can, at times, leave us feeling a bit weighted down by responsibilities. But I also see several potential positives here.
Perhaps it is time to stretch yourself, to reach beyond where you have been. Oftentimes when we are trying something new, for the first time, it can feel like we will never be able to learn it or accomplish the goal. A complex new dance step can seem like an impossible task. However, with time and patience (thank you Saturn) we often learn that we are indeed capable of much more than we gave ourselves credit for. And what once seemed like an impossible dance at first, can become second nature with practice. Also, sometimes when people expect more of us, they actually bring out the best in us as we strive to meet higher expectations. And many of us will surprise ourselves now, with a newfound and well-deserved boost in confidence in our growing abilities.
Of course, some will learn another kind of lesson. For a few of us, this time will represent the dance we no longer want to do. And we will begin to see which responsibilities have grown too heavy to carry. Those are the bags we should put down now.
I guess the real lesson of this new moon depends on what type of grownup you have become. If you are one of those people who never, ever stops to notice the roses let alone smell them, your work, work, work mentality will be brought to your attention so that you can correct it and rebalance your life. We all know those “too busy all the time” people; the ones whose lives are running them. The busy-ness is often just a symptom of a deeper problem. Perhaps they are afraid that if they stopped long enough to really think about things, they might realize how unhappy they have become. And then they’d have to do something about it. For those people, rebalancing is in order and this can be accomplished in several ways: resting, going within, adding in a little playtime—these are some of the more obvious methods. Because for these work-a-holics, a slow-down period is in order.
But perhaps you are not exactly out of balance. Perhaps you just need to change up your existing responsibilities, to switch things out, or even to delegate when appropriate. These people will be tweaking their adult lives. Remember, we are all responsible to ourselves, not just to those we care for. We alone can determine if we’re walking the path we’re meant to walk and carrying the right sack of groceries.
And lastly, if you are one of those lucky ones who are in exactly the right place—walking your path faithfully each day, but have not yet felt like you’re been able to reach your peak performance level—then you’re about to be given opportunities to try. Are you up for the challenge? Because you are the ones who will push yourselves to greater accomplishment now. Who knows how far you might go? You might even pull a rabbit out of a hat.
From a health perspective, this degree is associated with joint problems and also with “over-loading” in general. So, take precautions to prevent back or shoulder injury. And don’t overdo it with the shoveling the snow and all that. Or at least take the time to warm up before you exercise. Injuries are certainly one way to force yourself to “put the bag down” but there are easier ways. Let’s all work on finding the right ones for us.
There is a lot more going on this month other than the new moon—for starters Mercury and Jupiter will both be retrograde. For more information about what other dance is going on in the sky above your heads, please see my “Winter Wellspring” article in the online Inner Tapestry Journal. www.heartglow.org
A WORD ABOUT THE ENERGY OF NEW MOONS:
A new moon occurs when the Sun and Moon form a conjunction in the sky, and come together in the same sign of the zodiac. This occurs approximately once per month (about every 28-29 days).
This is a time of new beginnings, and represents a special opportunity each month to begin again and get a fresh perspective on things. The power of the new moon is purely instinctual and people tend to go with their intuition. At the dark of the new moon there is little light yet for illumination, so people must use senses other than their sight. Yet this special time holds all possibilities within it, so we have the ability once a month to set a new course for ourselves. For 2 weeks afterwards the moon will be slowly waxing or increasing in light. Then, at the full moon, the light is once again bright and things become fully illuminated. But before we can “see” with our eyes, we have to activate our “sight” in hopes and dreams. Set your intentions at the new moon and then chart your progress at the full moon.
The sign and the degree of each New Moon represents the theme for that 28 day period and signals a time of “resetting” our collective emotional clock. Although, these themes also play out individually in our personal lives. If you know your own natal chart, you can make each month’s reading even more personal by seeing where the new moon impacts your individual horoscope. And if you don’t know your chart, guess who would be just delighted to help you with that? Call me, we’ll talk.