We end 2020 much like we began it- A Full Moon in Cancer.
From my blog post January 10, 2020.
“This Cancerian lunation is the call for empathy to correct selfish logic.
The need for compassion to rebalance laws and structures.
The requirement for altruism to overshadow greed.
The definition of true leadership…
After all, the feminine genius lives in all of us. Unfortunately, in our established collective conditioning, this force is often shamed, judged, projected, or punished away.
That is changing.
We see that shift happening in our outer world, but it is also happening in our inner worlds. No longer can we afford to live a life devoid of empathy.
Feelings, after all, are our guideposts for all things wondrous in our world. Love, purpose, passion, cooperation, unity- those are not found in the logical mind. We need our emotional intelligence on high alert for that.”
As we enter the divine space between ending and beginning, it is a perfect time to assess how we have lived those lessons.
Have we reignited our ability to hold space for others? Have we fostered the courage to feel ever more deeply? Have we learned to put what is right over what is convenient? Have our hearts been opened (albeit shattered) a little more?
Because we need our hearts to tell truths, our logical minds cannot.
Cancer is represented by the crab, which is seemingly a bit odd. The mothering, nurturing, giving, comforting, and feeling senses associated with a hard and not very snugly crustacean? There is real truth in that symbolism, though. Think of the life cycle of a crab, and you witness the high destiny of Cancer. Crabs are comfortable in their comfort zone, their protective shells carried with them. Should any passing eels sneak upon them, they can simply pull inward, sheltered and safe. To grow though, which is inevitable, requires the crab to temporarily shed its shell, becoming unprotected. A soft-shell crab until a new cover is acquired.
This feeling of safety, then intense vulnerability, then safely again is the quest and evolution of Cancerian times. Shadow traits arise when growing is refused, our shells becoming tight, confining, and ultimately profoundly restrictive until they crack and shatter under the building tension. Likewise, we can stay too long in the soft shell state, never growing a new shell. Here the shadow victim takes hold. Our identity enmeshed with stories of powerlessness, blame, and wounded
entitlement.
We are and have been in a Cancerian growth cycle through the end of 2019 and 2020. Some have shed their shells courageously, opening their hearts despite the uncertainty. Some are refusing to feel or molt, gripping their covers of familiarity ever more tightly, turning up the volume of learning for everyone. Some have attached to the wounded victim attempting to bypass the learning altogether. One way or another, though, we will all need to be soft shell crabs for a while. We will have to feel all the feels reveling in our sensitivity. Because it is only when all our nerve endings are awakened can we be sensitive enough to hear truths lost in the cacophony of our perceived habitual normalcy.
For those that are resisting the shedding and feeling? I suggest taking off the armor already. It’s going to go one way or another.
For those that have been thrust into the waves of grief? Keep breathing- inhale and exhale, moment to moment, day to day. You did not manifest or deserve what has happened. Often life happens without our control or consent. We lose people, jobs, situations, dreams, and experiences that can shatter all illusions otherwise. Grief rips us open as it takes us to the end of all we know, initiating us into a new reality. Reach out and know you are not alone. Let us carry you for a while.
For those that feel like they are soul tired and spent, ready for a new shell to emerge? It’s coming. Hang in there. Remember, if you are swimming in the sea of empathy, the universe turned up your ability to feel for a reason. Honor your way of grounding, recharging, and protecting so you can float downstream rather than be swept away. You are needed at times like this.
Whatever you do, keep the river of feeling flowing because they hold the required wisdom of this time.
Because this is the thing. We cannot numb indiscriminately. We cannot ignore our hurt and not dampen our joy. We cannot turn down the volume of our sensitivity and wonder where our inspiration, intuition, creativity, and passion has gone. We cannot avoid our emotions and then be surprised at the lack of collective and personal empathy, gratitude, altruism, and sacrifice.
We need feelings because they offer a direct link to truths more real and right than any found in the logical mind because they are truths of the heart.
Perhaps we will look back at this time with the eyes of hindsight and note the demarcation line of empathic correction. Where the feminine genius re-balanced masculine toxicity. Where the swelling of our hearts overcame the constriction of conditioning and everything changed.
Hindsight is 2020 after all.
“The best and most beautiful things in the world
cannot be seen or even touched.
They must be felt with the heart”
― Helen Keller
Want to know what this year is offering you? Contact me to schedule a reading.
*Photo credit Isaac Quesada @ Unsplash