This is the second time I have written this post. The first time my computer crashed without my backup having a chance to save it. This is after I warmed up mini quiches instead of muffins for my kids for breakfast (not fans of quiche), promptly dumped my coffee in (yes IN) my purse, and was informed by a blog reader of a significant Astro error in one of my blogs.
The same day I rolled out of bed with the cold from hell.
It wasn’t even 8:00 am.
Such is the nature of retrograde times.
I have heard from many of you with similar stories.
And to be sure not all retrograde times are ones fraught with challenge and difficulty. Often more “positive” surprises happen in a universal push to level up. I have heard those stories too.
Either way, whatever arises, we are meant to slow down, observe, reassess, renew, and recharge. Forced pauses are not liabilities or punishments, but gifts. They are intended to get us to stop long enough to let some new light in.
No doubt though retrograde times, especially of the scorpionic variety, the only certainty is change itself. (For more, check out Beyond the Veil).
So, if you have been asked to go deep, feel some old stuff, do some karmic housecleaning…
If you have been asked to get really honest,
If the truth has made itself blatantly if not uncomfortably clear.
If you have been asked to do the very things that scare the hell out of you,
If you feel a bit wrung out, exhausted, and soul tired,
If you have faced significant endings, bricks walls of reality, and endpoints,
If you have uttered the words, “Wait, I thought I dealt with this already”
You are right on track.
Enter Taurus.
Always opposite the deep waters of Scorpio, Taurus takes us back to land. On a hero’s journey through the underworld, it is nice to emerge back to solid ground.
And I’m not sure about you, but I could use some terra firma right about now.
The danger of shadow dancing is we can sometimes forget where we are. We can be so pulled back into our story, so lulled by our fear, we begin to identify ourselves by our wounds. Our trauma can start to define us, trapping us like an anchor in another time, in another body, and in another age.
Taurus reminds us of the necessity to keep one foot in the past and one firmly rooted in the present.
Because our underworld is meant to offer us wisdom, but we were never meant to live there. We are meant to take the gemstones we discover back to present time. The healing happens when we arise, out of the cave, in the light of now, integrating more fully into the wholeness of the present. Full moons are celebrations, culminations, and revivals, after all.
Let this Full Moon call you back home.
Who are you now?
Who are you after shedding the skins you no longer need?
Who is the you no longer ruled by past reactions, insecurity, or fear?
Bask in the moonlight of that new reality.
Perhaps, things are starting to become clearer, some resolution, and some aha moments or epiphanies rising.
Enter Vesta.
Vesta stands with this Moon opposite the Sun and retrograde Mercury in Scorpio.
Myth tells of Vetsal Virgins that were tasked with the sole responsibility of keeping the fire in the central temple. Without fire, Rome, and the civilization that depended on it, would perish. Sacred and revered, this task was so important any deviation or distraction from this mission would mean a punishment of death.
Goddess of the hearth Vesta is meant to lead us home. She reminds us of the flame of sovereignty we all hold. The brilliant blaze that makes us uniquely us.
Because after some soul searching, some ego baring, some shadow dancing, and some sailing through stormy seas, the lighthouse is a comforting sight. Vesta is our torch of hope and faith, stoic and dedicated in honor of our most divine selves.
Find that light because it is meant to lead you home.
Vesta in Taurus asks us to make love a devotion- starting with ourselves. Our values carve out the edges of who we are, and our boundaries protect that uniqueness.
Summon both.
Taurus is the sign most connected to the Earth. This Full Moon is a needed reminder to stay grounded no matter how far down we have traveled. It is an essential breath and an antidote to all the intensity of late. It emphasizes the way nature moves at its own speed, the Sun rising after the night, spring following the bleakness of winter. While we may be in the fall of our lives our leaves shedding, our energy inward we can trust in the cycles Gaia offers us. Everything happens just as it is meant to.
Try to find a way to celebrate this in your life. Make a dedication to be present. Touch the Earth. Walk on the beach. Watch a sunset. Do some yoga.
Spend some time simply letting the Earth sing you home.
“To see a World in a Grain of Sand
And a Heaven in a Wild Flower,
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand
And Eternity in an hour.”
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