in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, we on Long Island (and around coastal NYC) are doing our best to get life back to normal. the hardest part is that normal life isn't possible for many people who have had major or total damage to their homes. i can't imagine being told that you can't return home for weeks or months or, even worse, ever. i know a few people, like Becca, who are in this similar situation. the only silver lining is that many of the areas hit by the storm are middle to affluent neighborhoods; they will rebuild and most will return. i can't help thinking about just how devastating Katrina must have been to the lower income areas of Louisiana and to those who couldn't afford to rebuild. i also can't help but think about all that is going on as i witness the forced transformations happening all around me, especially as i am dealing with personal transformation. a few things came to mind as i pondered it all:
- death and transformation - many are afraid of the idea of death, me included. i think that fear comes from not understanding the powerful message of death. when the death card, like the image above from the Motherpeace tarot deck (my favorite deck), shows up in a reading, it doesn't always mean literal death. everything in nature goes through a death and dying cycle. things have to die to make way for new things just like the leaves fall of the tree each autumn. while that doesn't mean death for the tree, it does mean a stage has ended for that tree symbolized by the dying of its leaves. many of us are in a stage of transformation. some were forced into the stage by Sandy. others, like the earth, are in this stage because this is the time of year that our part of the planet goes dormant.
- scorpionic energy - this time of year, in astrology, is ruled by scorpio. scorpio is associated with endings and beginnings, death and dying, and transformation. it rules the time of year when the days are more dark than light, plants are literally dying and animals are stashing food - all in preparation for the cold of winter. it makes utter sense (at least to this layman astrologer) that we would be dealing with all that is happening now while we are in scorpio and right as saturn entered the sign of scorpio.
- saturn in scorpio - as i mentioned, i am a just an astrology aficionado. i tend to believe that this science truly affects or maybe dictates what is happening on earth. when things are hectic in my personal life or there are major occurrences (i.e. eclipses, full/new moons), i literally look to the heavens for answers. i am a libra so i was fully aware that saturn was in my sign recently. i was also fully aware that at the beginning of the month, it moved out of libra and into scorpio. i wanted to do a dance of joy! saturn is known as the taskmaster and forces us to experience hard lessons based on where it falls in our astrological charts and also what sign it is in. so basically, scorpios are going through it right now. the things is, you don't have to be a scorpio to feel the pressure of saturn. if scorpio plays an important part in your birth chart (which i recommend you have done at least once in your life), it can also be stressful for you. well, needless to say, my dance of joy has quickly stopped. scorpio plays a major role in my birth chart. Dang it! so basically, i thought the hard lessons were over and they seem to be just getting started. while in my search for understanding, i came across this cool astrology blog. please see the links below to see how saturn's placement can affect you - scorpio or not. hopefully you'll find some interesting and enlightening info like i did:
it seems like both Becca and i are in the middle of transformation. life is forcing us to say good-bye to things and concepts that no longer fit into the plan. just like the snake in the pic above, we are shedding layers so that we can make way for the new, wonderful, bigger and better (have to stay positive) things waiting for us on the other side. Becca is shedding layers of her house and i am shedding concepts and behaviors. that doesn't mean that there won't be tears or resistance or downright kicking and screaming throughout this change. (i think i've done it all and i'm sure Becca has too lol.) ...but i am just trying to keep my eye on the prize and trust that as i peel away the dead layers that no longer serve me, i am making way for a happier, self-satisfied me. #fingerscrossed lol xo sesheta
