The Year 2022 begins with an illuminating New Moon at 12 degrees of Capricorn. The landscape is a mixed bag of what we like and what we may loathe. It’s going to be a year where the dark and light are inescapably linked. Yet there is good news in that. Yes, I said it’s good news that the jumble is a bit of both packed into the first New Moon of the Year.
We are still working that fork in the road with Pluto in Capricorn. The personal choice between the Power of Love or the Love of Power hasn’t finished yet. Venus is still retrograde and cozied up to Pluto, the Deep Transformation planet. So you find this fork in each relationship. No surprise, power struggles keep popping up. Do you want your way, do you want to part ways or do you want to deepen the connection? Creativity along with sensitivity is required. This is no easy task when Chiron is squared off with the New Moon. This makes past wounds more visible. Protection feels necessary and important to stop things from happening again.
back to basics
Here is the rub. Okay let’s go ‘physics lite’ for a moment, bear with me. All kinds of particles, like atoms, make up our physical world. Those particles travel in waves. When you observe a wave it then becomes possible to observe the particles within it. When you focus on the particles they eventually reveal the wave in which they are carried. Imagine your feelings are the waves and thoughts are the particles. When you populate the waves of emotion running through you with enough particles of one type, say Love of Power, then the wave takes a different shape than if you populate it with the Power of Love.
Let’s apply that and see it in action. Recently a client was triggered deeply by a text exchange with a lover. Thanks to a push from Chiron in Aries, she failed to see her power in the situation and instead her mind was a black cloud of gnats. Her inner dialogue went something like this: ‘She was a fool to trust him, she was going to punish him for not communicating better, she deserved to be treated with respect.’ Now here’s the thing, she wasn’t entirely wrong. His behavior had problems.
Until she felt heard to she wasn’t able to communicate her wants and needs in a way that left an invitation. Instead defensive thinking carried a wave of hostility outward. Once she found a neutral witness who heard and saw her particle cloud of helplessness she could more powerfully clear those pesky thoughts and go on to populate her mind with a better batch of thoughts. Guess what, she felt much better too. The wave quality improved when she changed the mix of particles! So what does that have to do with this New Moon, New Year and the next couple of weeks cycle?
Your magic wand
This year you are going to walk into situation that bring up old stories, particles or gnats (maybe even hornets) of thoughts. You can and do have the ability to influence the shape of that wave with the way you define what happens. What interpretation you make adds or subtracts particles (thoughts) and this ultimately redefines the tides of feeling. This year the tide goes out on feeling at the mercy of anything outside of you and comes in own the magic of owning your story. Open up to seeing a bigger expanse of information, rearrange what you do know and give your mind direction on the best mix for you.
That’s why I said it is good news that the best and worst are all mixed through each other. It’s only when you face what you don’t like or want about a situation that you discover how much you can impact the ultimate result. Now some people will explore the Love of Power see saw. Authority over-reach is where we can map out our expanded boundaries. There’s nothing quite like having someone trample a boundary to trigger us. Or conversely, nothing like having some uncomfortable consequences if you trample another’s boundary to get you to redo your approach – if you value quality connections.
That’s the invitation to add magic. I want to share an old poem by Edwin Markham. Particularly if you are new to speaking up for yourself or saying no where you’ve previously been willing to indulge, you may hit resistance. How you respond is your WAVE. Shape it thought by thought. Like this poem, draw a bigger circle around the darkest particles.
2022 theme
“They drew a line that shut me out,
Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout!
But love and I had the wit to win
We drew a circle and brought them in.”
Edwin Markham
Working your magic
It matters that you are kind to yourself first. The client who was triggered needed a good listener to hear her rage, pain and fear. When she had that, magically she arrived at the love that rested underneath it. A whole new range of thoughts had space because she accepted the ways her mind first wanted to defend her feelings of vulnerability to marginal behavior. Creativity bubbled up and so did the warmth of invitation to ask him to do it better in a way that was playful. Who wouldn’t like a ‘do over’ when you know you missed the first swing?
We can feel the need to fix, change, control the emotions of others, particularly when they make us feel uncomfortable. The closer the person’s story is to yours, sometimes the harder it is to hear. Notice that. Practice being a good listener with hearing being the goal, not any advice or direction you give. See if you can do that. Stretch into those places where you want someone to get over it or move on, please. Those are spaces to investigate your own pain points. The harder it is to listen to another, the more you’ve got an inner exploration to do on your own wounds. They need and deserve your attention.
Thought by thought build better waves of emotions. The tide can go out of the Love of Power and come in on the Power of Love. You do it one situation at a time. If you fall short, revisit your story about what is happening. Draw a bigger circle and add more loving kindness. I guarantee Magic happens when you do. The Cards and Stars will help.
Thank you and Happy New Year!
Lisa Greenfield
1/2/2022 King of swords capricorn new moon
My colleague Pam Gregory pointed out this New Moon is midway between the asteroid Ixion and Pluto. It literally sits at the ‘fork in the road’ between the security we place in outside authority and the way things ‘should be’ (Capricorn) and utter lawlessness. There is no doubt an agreed upon way of doing things helps everyone thrive. The trouble is we are redefining that ‘way of doing things’ and it’s proving a tricky business. This New Moon brings it right down to the individual, you.
Thanks to Eris in the mix, the unclaimed or unattractive bits of us can’t be denied. We all have a certain amount of selfish lawlessness in us. This is part of what makes us individual. How you work with that and integrate it into the world around is what matters now. Uranus and Saturn are still in battle range. If you recall that myth, it is the natural cycle of Patriarchal over reach that is overthrown only to become a new kind of Patriarch itself, which will then need to be overthrown.
Like an in breath and out breath, we adjust for more or less control. Pay attention to who and what you want to control around you. Where do you benefit from more ‘command’ of your emotions versus where do you need to give some a little breathing room. Those difficult impulses don’t need to grab the wheel, they just want to be in the car with you. Acknowledging them makes it easier to stop judging others for their version of them.
What a kinder wave that is to travel in, right? Work on that battlefield first and foremost this coming year and you will see far fewer wars show up in your day to day life. We have celestial support to change up what we do and how we do it this Moon cycle. Don’t worry if you don’t get it right the first time, revisit it and do it again better. That’s a good habit to anchor for the coming year. It’s less brittle than trying to get things right. Just keep mapping new expanded space for you to occupy with all those particles and let the wave of love lift all boats.
1/3/22 ten of wands
Oh the triggers are there today, no doubt about it. Can you bring a sense of humor or at least an air of inquiry into it? It may make the day so much more productive and bearable. Whatever happens, go straight to the story you tell yourself. Inspect those particles and if they are stinging critters, surround them with a bigger wave of love to carry the pain. By afternoon you can start to see how you may be better at this than you guessed. Tell a new story, invite your mind to find better particles of fact and detail to fill your wave.
1/4/22 Princess of swords
Ah, the inner critic is definitely on display today. She may be mulling over the stories from yesterday or scooping up any number of reasons to defend yourself. The challenge is you can’t create and defend at the same time. It like standing on the brake while you step on the gas. It’s guaranteed to confuse and exhaust you. But it is a good time to notice where you do that or something like it! Give that hard working critic in your head a job to do instead of indulgence or shame. Have it look for ways it is over reaching to decide what you should or shouldn’t do instead of strategizing on how to do what you know you want to do well. Much better. This is one to practice every chance you get. Redirect those critical thoughts.
1/5/22 The devil
Retrograde Venus is in easy aspect with Neptune today to help us sort out where we need to tell the Truth to ourselves. Any place you want to blame or judge another has a hook in you. No one can betray us without us playing a part. Sometimes it is pure innocence, but not nearly as often as we wish to believe. More often we didn’t want to do our homework or heavy lifting to help get to the real bottom of what is going on in the situation.
Today we get to remember that the wish that something be true means we have a map to what we desire. Now dig in and decide how much effort you will invest in making the wish come true rather than waiting for something outside of us to bring it to us. When you do that instead of rage or blame or self pity you become part of the magic that makes it true. Sometimes we need to do more governing of our impulses, temper them, mature them so they can serve us instead of detract from us. More introspection and less action is called for by nightfall. It’s too easy to misjudge just yet. Patiently persist in getting to know the real you. There is gold there.
1/6/22 seven of wands
Choose your battles today, my friend. This is the whole crux the aspects offer up now. Where are you on higher ground than you realize? Are you swatting flies with cannonballs? Why are you battling or digging in on an issue. Some of it may be an old habit that underestimates you and overestimates the threat. You have support. Find it. That doesn’t mean they agree with you, they may simply help you see the picture more accurately. This way you aren’t the one in over reach, trying to impose your will when co-operation serves you much better.
1/7/22 the sun
There is the sweet promise of dawning understanding today. The Sun is the most positive card in the entire deck and offers optimism to the darkest of moods and thoughts. It helps when we need to face facts. Like the one that in order to expand and grow we have to let go of some of what we have in our lives. Just consider it pruning the deadwood so what’s alive can thrive. Maybe what you need is more a strategic approach about what needs to be reconfigured rather than released. You can turn mental trash into new treasures with a little reworking. Have fun with it. Consider it your art work, if you will.
1/8/22 nine of wands
Nine is the number of mastery and clever Pallas Athene helps us be smart today. It’s easier to pick your battles rather than try to win them all. Remember the first place to win the skirmish is the battlefield between your ears. Be selective in those thoughts. Tell yourself a new story, invite your critical mind to see a broader picture. Don’t let the urge to dominate or defend have you rush past important options available for negotiations where everyone benefits. It’s no different than working out, the more you do it, the stronger you become. Practice and this muscle will be one that makes light work of the heaviest conversations.
1/9/22 the fool
A leap of faith is required today. Don’t worry if you find doubt your ability or the safety of the landing. This is normal it’s going to call up all kinds of buried emotions. If you find yourself in a tug of war or blame game in your mind, this is just prep for the take off. Planes need resistance to lift off the ground, consider the mental chatter your wind resistance and find the right setting for you to fly. You simply cannot plan in advance enough to think of every possible challenge or pain point.
Life includes both of these and you can’t protect your way out of life. Instead take stock of your inner resources, keep them front and center and remember you can learn as you go. Stay more relaxed and loose so you can adapt to changing landscapes. Then drink in the excitement of what else is possible when you go beyond familiar territory. Release fixed expectations of your results. You can’t imagine now all the ways this journey will open up and include more life for you to experience. Take the best and worst and shape whatever comes with your own particular participation.
1/10/22 king of cups
Today offers and easier landscape in the skies to give us a chance to incorporate what we’ve already waded into the first few days of the year. This King echoes the possibilities of magic. Because instead of one plus one making two, this King combines the receptive feminine with the masculine king to remind us that sometimes one plus one can equal three. This is the place where you suddenly draw a bigger circle, first for yourself and then for the world around you and include everything that’s there. Good, bad, ugly have something to offer, even if it is just contrast to teach you what is a match for you and what isn’t.
You don’t have to deny your feelings in order to succeed, you simply have to master them. Feel it and still shape what you do with the wave. Be angry but let it consolidate you and give you resolve. Be sad and let it teach you compassion for others who struggle. Water takes the shape of its container. Give your emotions a container of your choosing. That is your right and your gift.
1/11/22 king of pentacles
This King, second in a row, promises that upright conduct meets with success. Now what is upright conduct to you? That is the question to answer. There is tension between what we know and are familiar with and what else is possible. How do you transition from the old order to a new? You get to decide that. I highly recommend a peaceful transition of power instead of a violent overthrow. The first way preserves energy for building what you want to see in your life. The second leaves all parties exhausted and only sets the stage for another battle down the line. The old order is within you. There’s the way you have always done things and the ways you have yet to explore. Today’s heavenly help and this King say one step at a time and you build something long lasting that suits you well, very well indeed.
1/12/22 ace of swords
The first half of the day offers a slow consolidation of the gains you already made this New Year. This Ace is mental clarity and precision thinking. Why not turn your minds eye on choices made, ground gained and start refining what feels good and what may benefit from editing or expansion. You will gain steam on that by nightfall when the Moon moves into Gemini. This quick thinking Moon placement offers no shortage of options to add. Which is why a bit of editing may help make room for new additions. Think about what good editing can do for you. It’s been the making of more than one movie. Why not apply it well to the story of your life?
1/13/22 eight of swords
Oh do strap on your helmet with a headlight, the dark wound is up for exploring today. Properly outfitted you can look deeply at where those old particles hang like smog that poisons the air you breathe. In order to shift it you have to go to the source. What’s the story? Unlovable, betrayed, helpless, hopeless? Any version of those of similar feelings need your attention. It does not help you to focus on who made you feel that way now! This is an inside job.
When you do your work, the air clears, sometimes with the help of a big rainstorm. It can be incredibly uncomfortable to sit with these feelings, especially when shame is involved. Find a good listener. Be selective and get someone who can just hear without adding their sound track. Don’t be afraid to ask for that, because it matters. Check and see if they need the same from you. The better you are at sitting with your own unlovely emotions, the more you can tolerate it others without demanding the get over it because their feelings make YOU so uncomfortable. This is a pivotal piece of expansion. Start here and now and go slowly. You can do it and it does matter.
1/14/22 five of pentacles
There are no quick or easy answers today. Rather it is a process of locating and owning a full range of thoughts and feelings that have hidden in the shadows. You can’t rush their appearance, you can invite them to show their true colors. Acceptance is key. Just accept they exist and had a part to play. This is not allowance. For example you don’t give your angry, entitled 13 year old self the wheel. Just acknowledge their grudges or complaints. Tears are waves, so by all means invite them to roll. Why not also invite your emotions to explain what their story is.
Don’t rush to fix it. Or, don’t dismiss or belittle it. Don’t blow it up out of proportion. Get to know the feelings. Explore where they have been part of decisions, viewpoints and conclusions you drew in the past. Give yourself a chance to really see how and where they’ve been operating in your life. When you own those shadow feelings they no longer own you, nibbling away at happiness, love and connection with their fears and grudges. Patience helps a lot. You are going to spend the year helping these emotions mature. It starts by not demanding they do that and also by not giving them a pass to do as they wish. Progress not perfection is the guide.
1/15/22 Ace of pentacles
Ah, the second Ace in a cycle. This means union! You are becoming whole. What a wonderful way to walk into a new world waiting for you. We move from tension into resolution today and this Ace reminds us to take it one step at a time. We get some help making productive changes in what we do. Don’t worry if you catch yourself rushing to act only to find it doesn’t land well. It’s a perfect chance for a ‘do over’. Learn how to see adjustments like fine tuning the engine of you. Sometimes you you’ll want to step on the gas and sometimes you need more brakes. Feel your way. Let it be an unfolding instead of a chore.
1/16/22 Magician
The Sun is conjunct Pluto today, so keep a watchful eye on ego struggles. Always, always, always, go within first as much as you can. When something or someone sets you off, ask what do you feel and what does that feeling need? The more you get in the habit of doing that the less you are at the mercy of the changing emotional climate around you. The more you can use your anger to help you hold a firm, yet flexible, boundary the more empowered and less fearful you become. The less fearful you are, the more opportunities feel inviting instead of threatening. People become allies or at least resources rather than suspected dangers. That simple two part question can go everywhere with you and unlock a world of potential, even in a turbulent year. Now that’s Magic.
