ARIES (March 21-April 19) Would you like to stop pushing and struggling for a while? Is there a clenched attitude you would love to let go of? Do you wish you could take a break from having to give so much and try so hard and be so strong? Then do it! Now would be a good time to take a sabbatical from any situation that feels too demanding or frustrating. You wouldn’t incur the wrath of the gods or the twists of karma if you sneaked away to indulge in some recreational frivolity. For the foreseeable future, “relax” and “surrender” are your words of power.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20) Theologian Karl Barth speculated that when the angels get together to praise and honor God with music, they perform the compositions of Bach. But when they are playing for each other, they are more likely to choose Mozart. I guess that’s because Mozart’s stuff is loose, free and inventive compared to Bach, who’s formal, sober and systematic. Mozart is more for parties, while Bach is for serious occasions. I’m seeing the coming days as a time when you, like the angels, should be especially willing to express yourself in very different ways, depending on the audience.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20) Before E. Annie Proulx became a Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist, she wrote a series of how-to books, including a dairy foods cookbook and an instructional text on making your own hard cider. But the manual of hers that I especially want to call your attention to right now is Plan and Make Your Own Fences & Gates, Walkways, Walls & Drives. It might be inspirational for you to read it. You’re in a phase when it makes perfect sense to create new paths for yourself to travel on. This will allow you to forgo at least some of the paths that others have built and that can’t actually take you where you need to go.
CANCER (June 21-July 22) I’m getting itchy to see you blow your own cover. I would love you to come all the way out of your hiding place, even if just for a while, and see what happens if you make full disclosures and brave displays. My hope is that you will close the gap between the real you and the images that people have of you. Does that sound interesting? Or have you become so fond of being a big riddle that you can’t imagine any other way to be? Maybe I can tempt you to be more self-revelatory if I add this: Taking your disguises off even briefly will enable you to discover intriguing secrets about yourself. And then once you put your disguises back on, you will seem more mysterious than ever.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) A new cycle will begin for you after your birthday. Between now and then you will be wrapping up the current cycle. I invite you to do so with a flourish. Don’t just wait around passively for the themes of the last 11 months to fade away or go to sleep. Instead, set an intention to bring them to a climactic close. Schedule a splashy graduation or a grand finale. Plan a cathartic party or a celebratory rite of passage. Take a playful leap of faith or try that magic trick you’ve been saving for the perfect moment. Or all of the above!
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) “I’m tired of all this nonsense about beauty being only skin deep,” said author Jean Kerr. “That’s deep enough. What do you want, an adorable pancreas?” In accordance with the current astrological omens, Virgo, you should feel free to play around with that impish idea. Just for now, appreciate and enjoy the surfaces of things. Make decisions based on first impressions and instant analyses. Give your attention and energy to what looks appealing to you, and don’t think too hard about stuff that presents a boring appearance.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) Now is a favorable time to wish upon a star. In other words, you can enhance the likelihood that your wish will come true if you choose this phase of your cycle to enlist the assistance of a higher power. It’s your duty to make sure, however, that you wish upon the right star. Pick a higher power that can truly help you with your wish, not necessarily one that has worked for other people’s wishes. Here’s another crucial detail: Be precise in formulating your wish. No foggy thinking or sloppy language allowed!
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) If you are fully committed to being both honest and kind, you will have more power to heal other people than you’ve had in a long time. You will have a resemblance to a magic potion or a wonder drug. Here’s a caveat, however: The therapeutic influence you have to offer might be scary to those who aren’t ready to be cured. The solutions you propose could be disruptive to anyone who is addicted to his or her problems. That’s why I advise you to be discerning about how you share yourself. P.S.: The medicine you are generating is not too potent for your own use. It’s exactly what you need to transform limitation into liberation.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) Each of us has at least one pesky ghost or nagging demon that occupies a dark corner of our psyches. It may have been there for years, or we might have picked it up more recently during a phase of temporary insanity. In any case, most of us can benefit from conducting a periodic banishing ritual. Now would be prime time for you to do just that. Ready? With your imagination, draw a clockwise circle of your favorite-colored light on the floor or ground. Next, identify an image that makes you feel happy and safe, and visualize four versions of it at the four cardinal points, hovering three feet above your circle. Then say this: “I dissolve any hex and banish any pest that has been draining my energy. I purge any wasteful emotions, unsound ideas and trivial desires that I may have grown attached to.” To put the seal on your magic, laugh for two minutes.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) By my estimation, 97 percent of the population is chronically starving for the pleasure of being listened to with deep empathy and focused intelligence. Very few of us enjoy the prolonged and undivided attention of a receptive ally on a regular basis. It’s rare to be in the presence of a person whose sole agenda is to be innocently curious about you. Your assignment, Capricorn, is to go on a quest to remedy this shortfall. Figure out how you can get the skillful listening you’re missing. (P.S.: One way to prime the magic is to offer yourself up as a skillful listener to others.)
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) At this year’s Grammy Awards ceremony, British singer Sam Smith won in four categories. His tune “Stay with Me” was named Song of the Year. In one of his acceptance speeches, Smith expressed appreciation for the difficult muse who inspired the song. “I want to thank the man who this record is about, who I fell in love with last year,” he said. “Thank you so much for breaking my heart, because you got me four Grammys.” I invite you to come up with a comparable expression of gratitude, Aquarius. What experience that seemed like tough luck at the time has actually turned out to be a blessing? Now would be a perfect time to acknowledge and relish and make full use of the unexpected grace.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20) The Bay of Fundy is a branch of the Atlantic Ocean between the Canadian provinces of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. It’s renowned for its tidal range. When high tide comes, the water may be as much as 53 feet higher than what it is at low tide. The shift back and forth happens twice a day. I’m wondering if in the coming weeks your emotional ebb and flow will have a similar variability. According to my reading of the astrological omens, you could experience both very high highs and very deep depths. Please note that when I say “depths,” I don’t mean sadness or despair. Rather, I’m talking about a profound ability to feel your way into the heart of things.
Homework: Test this hypothesis: By giving up a useless “valuable” you don’t really need, you’ll ensure the arrival of a real valuable that you do need.
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