Full Moon, New Moon, and the passing of Mercury Retrograde

I decided to let the last two weeks of Mercury retrograde slide by without comment.  I was traveling and too preoccupied with the present moment to consider sharing anything noteworthy.  Now that we are fully past mercury retrograde and living out the magic of the last full moon, I am feeling the intentions of this recent new moon. 

All of my recent intentions combine with this past years intentions.  My intentions for greater Peace and Kindness  started with a serendipitous meeting.  Last July I left a place I love for yet another astrological experiment.  As I traveled east, I was in constant prayer with universal intelligence to guide me.  I felt defeated and depressed at the time.  I needed to see a greater purpose for myself and humanity in order to heal the pettiness I had experienced in myself and others.  I rolled into a small New England town just in time to attend a speaking engagement at the local Yoga Barn.  The speaker was author Michael Chase.  Michael and his wife Cara opened the Kindness Center in Biddeford, Maine.  He is the Author of "Am I Being Kind?" and "The Radical Practice of Loving Everyone".   I was so touched by Michael's simple yet profound message, as I left the event I said a thank you to Spirit for guiding me.  I was filled with gratefulness.  I needed a simple guidance system to help me heal a very toxic period in my life.  The message of kindness to myself and others was a great place to start.

I spoke with Michael a few weeks later when I was trying to make a big decision.  He gave me an assignment to do a loving kindness meditation while holding my hand on my heart.  He said " to follow my heart", it would lead me to the best decision.  I did this and made my decision.  A month later I found myself in a challenging situation that pushed me back into old ways of reacting.  I reread Michael's book and decided that the only person I could control and change was myself.  I decided to completely let go of other peoples beliefs and behaviors and fully concentrate on my own.  This was the beginning of a process that led to other teachers and an inner transformation that will last the rest of my life.

Michael continued to coach me periodically when I felt stuck.  Our conversations have kept me on track and have helped me stick close to my heart.  I have grown in acceptance, inner strength, and a stronger sense of identity.  Having been a bit of a chameleon and people pleaser, it is an extraordinary change for me to simply ask two questions when dealing with any situation, "what is kind to me?" and "what is kind to humanity?". 
It is that simple, there is never a conflict.  If a conflict seems to be present, then the answer is patience. 

With Mars, Mercury, Sun conjunct in my natal chart, patience does not come easily to me.  The last seven years of my life have been a lesson in patience with friendships, community, my own body, etc.  We all have darkness, when I embrace my own, I am able to be understanding of others darkness.  It's taken four years of intense struggle to say truthfully, I am grateful for who I am today and all I have learned.

I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to Michael Chase and The Kindness Center for the beginning of a year of true healing.  The anniversary of our meeting is not for another month, yet this seemed the appropriate time to share this powerful message of Kindness, Peace, and Gratitude.  The contact information for the Kindness Center is:  www.michaeljchase.com 

In future blogs I will return to astrological commentary in more detail.  I will focus on planetary interaction and alignment.  I like tools that are consistent and useful.  I will try to simplify what I have learned in order for it to be useful to astrology novices.  I will give you websites to look at your own chart and teach you how to read it bit by bit.  This is my giving back what I truly believe is the best use for astrology.  It should be a jumping off point for self knowledge but should never replace intuition.  You are here to learn to navigate the energies you were born with and not to allow them to limit you.

Have a wonderful Summer Solstice and may it be the beginning of the peace we all desire.

As I was finishing this post, I got a call from my daughter.  Her dog, our Mariposa, is dying.  I have taken a break to commune with her in spirit.  I am now honoring her with these photographs.  Her beauty and spirit will be greatly missed.  She's been well loved.   She will leave us in peace.

This a great video.  It is long but worth it.  You can also fast forward to the song if you want to.  Peace!

We love you Mari