We are fast approaching the Winter Solstice. It is that moment when the night is the longest night, and the day is the shortest day.   As all of you know I enjoy being active and walking to the beach to watch the sunrise.  However, I feel these long nights conspire against the walk.  I remain tucked under the blankets getting more shut eye than I would normally tolerate.  And this is because of yin/yang.  The traditional definition is that yin is the dark side of the mountain and yang is the sunny side of the mountain.

The darkness and Yin requires that we retreat and become quiet and still.  One makes an effort to conserve our energy for the cold nights and short days.  I spoke with a friend in Alaska asking what time the dawn was there.  What I heard was that a little after 9 am, they have light.  I would remain in bed.  It isn’t laziness at all.  It is following something natural that tells us exactly what every moment requires from us.  It is the darkness that allows you to sink into the pillow, forget the to-do lists, and know the peace of the dark.

What are the virtues of darkness?  It is not forgetfulness.  It is stillness.  It is the possibility of reaching the expansive emptiness.  When I studied with Jack Kornfield, he used to speak of one of his teachers saying empty, empty, happy, happy.    I talk about that emptiness when teaching meditation, and it is a natural state of being in this moment of the long nights and in the movement of the earth.

What do we do with this time to make the most of it?  As we celebrate this still point, we are in constant movement.  Allow yourself to sink into it as you do in the pillow.  Ride that wave of stillness.  Explore it.  As within the yin/yang symbol we remember that there is always light within the dark and dark within the light.

In the holiday celebrations, we light candles.  Even in the darkness we will find the light within and see that it actually is constant movement.   In celebration of the solstice, I will be offering an early Qigong class on Saturday the 21^st at 8:30 AM.  Contact me for the registration information.  The actual moment of the Solstice is 4:00 AM on the east coast.  We could of course get up then, but we won’t.

So much is happening right now.  We just had the last of the four Super Full Moons on Friday.  So many people who are Scorpios reported feeling aggravated and out of sorts from this particular full moon as the full moon in Taurus was conjunct Uranus.  What in the world does this mean?  Uranus brings the unexpected, the innovative, the move to outside your comfort zone.  As such it also brings surprise and even losses as you sometimes need to release old ways of doing things.  So yes, for some of you who have the sun, moon, or rising sign in Scorpio or Taurus this might have been difficult.  The hope is that this will be an evolutionary movement to take you on a path that will give you a better sense of yourself and life path.

Saturn went direct on Friday as well, after being retrograde since June.  If you have planets in Pisces or other mutable signs of Virgo, Sagittarius or Gemini you may be going through some learning which requires that you step back and take a good look at what has been going on with the idea of things that need to change.  I have had Saturn on my Mercury and Venus for months now and I’ve been considering things that need to change so that I can live the joyous life that I imagine.  Saturn isn’t all bad, but you do need to pause and come to an inner understanding of how you want things to be when they aren’t working.  I’m hoping that I have done all the work that I have needed to do, and I look forward to the future where I am not just figuring it out.

Let’s not forget the cardinal signs of Libra, Aries, Cancer and Capricorn.  You have had 16 years of feeling Pluto hitting on your door.  Pluto is the master of the underworld and serves up all the things that are beneath the surface.  All you need to do is to read that sentence where you can conjure up dark shadowy images that affect you.  But it can help you realize your essence buried beneath what is usually seen. There is evolution and adventure at play here, but it isn’t just like taking an elevator.  People need to dig deep and afterwards find the treasure of their lives.  Though one of my late degree Capricorn friends is just thrilled to finally imagine this heavy load not being on him.  He can’t wait for Pluto to be in Aquarius.

I have been taking classes on the movement of Pluto into Aquarius for 2 years.  There is so much to say about it.  I will be writing about it in the next few weeks.  Aquarius is innovative and individualist. It is also about the collective.  We will learn lessons on how to be individuals within the goodness of the group and for the greater good of the group.  Aquarius is the water bearer which represents how we provide the group with the essential supply of lifegiving water.   This is of essence to the community.   Our biggest hope is that we learn to hear one another and take care of each other’s needs. And the fixed signs of Aquarius, Leo, Scorpio and Taurus will feel how to do this  most intensely.

If you aren’t sure how all of this affects you, contact me for an astrological reading.  It is really helpful to give perspective and show positive ways forward.

I went to a Qigong Teachers Training with Robert Peng well before the pandemic- maybe 2016.  I don’t know the exact number of people there, but for argument’s sake, let’s call it 100.  After a couple days of training, he gave each student a number and then picked a number out of a jar to see who would teach first.  This way the frequent volunteer wouldn’t stand a chance.  However, I was the person whose number was picked so I was going to be the one in front of the whole group.

Even though by then I was at least in my 60s, with decades of teaching experience, I am not someone who would have enthusiastically raised my hand to be the example of both the good and bad ways to teach.  Though in all honesty, it wouldn’t have even mattered as the instructions were to stay as close to the script that Master Peng used as possible.  Sticking with someone else’s words was a challenge for me.  I hope every person finds their voice especially in teaching something spiritual and physical.  It is so much more interesting to hear from a person’s heart and truth.

I was so nervous about needing to follow the script.  I meditated, sought support, and decided to put some crystals in my bra to hold my energy.  I put in an amethyst and a carnelian.  The amethyst is in the quartz family with the addition of manganese and iron.  I associate its healing power with calming the nerves and helping to develop the upper chakras.  I needed to remain calm and connected to spirit to do the work.  The carnelian which is an orange red color and is in the chalcedony category of stones. It helps with the lungs but doesn’t address phlegm.   It is often associated with the second chakra as well, and I used it this way.  I wanted to stay both grounded and spiritually connected.  Mostly, I needed to feel safe.

I had all my emotional and physical support in place.  Then I started to teach and it initially all went well.  Then one movement required my arms to swing above my head and down.  The crystals fell from my bra and cascaded onto the stage.  Would people notice?  The only thing that I could do in front of all these strangers, was to act as if I was unaware of the shower of crystals coming from my bra.  I couldn’t laugh.  Though it was so funny, it allowed me to separate from my own fears.     After I finished and had a nice round of applause, I nonchalantly picked up the stones and went to my seat.  The crystals orchestrated the whole thing, I am sure.

As you can surmise, I’m deep into the reality of crystals.  I meditate with them.  I study from the books. And I can’t stop making these bracelets. I think everyone should have the opportunity to experience the healing power of these friends who come from the earth.

This week I’m featuring the famous amethyst and carnelian stones, sunstone, red jasper, kyanite with ruby, moonstone, kunzite, and red jade.  Please let me know which ones I must save for you.

Behold an amazing moment around 7:30 in the morning.  It struck me how the light blazed through the layers of grey and white clouds.  While the sky was dark, the light could be seen and felt.  I was mesmerized by the feelings of light.  Different from the sunrise this light managed to penetrate deep within me and bought with it sweetness.  How does light do this?

In some ways that emergence of light is what we all seek.    Despite all the confusion and chaos that clouds our inner essence, we know light is there waiting for discovery.  Sometimes it involves a long road because there are layers of pain, hurt or fear to release.   In-between the light and dark there is a momentary gap where we find our true selves.  It takes work on our part to find it.

It brings to mind the yin/yang symbol.  Obviously being a student of Taoism all these years, it is a symbol I’ve looked at and contemplated.  It carries a bit of the dark within the light and a bit of the light within the dark.  In this particular early morning, it was there.  I was seeing both the light within the dark and the dark within the light.  The yin/yang always involves movement though it looks static. It is meant to depict movement.  It all requires movement.

This has been the greatest discovery in practicing Qigong.  It moves that which is stagnant to create an expansion and contraction in every moment.  And with that allowing you to live within the healthiest version of yourself.  Your life is as remarkable as the light shining through the clouds.

The year of the Wood Dragon is almost upon us. The Chinese New Year begins the second new moon after the winter solstice. This year it lands on February 10th. Each year we mark the rotation to a different element and a different one of the 12 animals. What can we expect as we transition from water to wood and from Rabbit to Dragon?

When we are in the water years as the past 2 years, we can find stillness and take a deep dive into the things that we want and desire to create. Each of us needs time to germinate ideas and projects and realize what are the priorities in our lives. This quality associated with water is will and during these time periods it is best to learn and discover our will.

Now we move with the wood element. Wood is how we experience the energy that rises in the spring. The nature of wood is birth and expansion. Think of the way it must feel now in the cold with the bare trees and you are in anticipation of those first green leaves. When they arrive, it is like a sudden burst of energy. With this energy shift it is an excellent time to vision for the upcoming months. Whenever there is a shift in the animal cycles to wood one thinks of prosperity and future visions. I think of it as an outstanding creative period. We have an expansive time ahead. The spirit associated with this element is benevolence. May the visions be able to benefit all.

With the dragon you have the lucky sign of the 12 animal signs. Dragons in Chinese culture are found in water or in the clouds. For one thing the clouds depict how close to heaven they are and the water within the seas there are 4 dragons for the King of the sea. On an earthly level the dragons bring healing, rain, and dancing; and on the heavenly level they are thought to be benevolent creatures associated with kings and rulers. Within Taoism the dragon represents the centered way. In Chinese Medicine there are dragon treatments necessary to do major energetic resets. The dragon is important in all cultures but especially in Asian cultures.

Those born under the dragon sign are not only lucky but are bold, charismatic, ambitious, and are strong. A wood dragon will be expansive, lucky, and strong. The triad of the animals associated with the Dragon are dragon, monkey, and rat. It also has a special relationship with roosters. So, all those individuals born under these signs will likely be taking advantage of this shift. The rest of us will benefit from it as well, but maybe not as dramatically.

From now until the 10th there is much to do in order to celebrate the New Year. The first thing is to clean the house. This means every cabinet and take the time to release any things that no longer serve you to have a home that truly gets rid of the old making room for the coming blessings. If you need to take time for yourself and get a haircut. Do it now. It’s good to set off fireworks in celebration.

And then there are the making of red lanterns to welcome the new year. I had to attach this lovely photo. https://thewalters.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/lunar-new-year-paper-lanterns.pdf

It’s a time to gather with your family and visit the relatives. You want to share in the excitement for the upcoming change. And last but not least you make prayers to your ancestors or as I like to say the beings around you who protect you.

I just started the cleaning up this week and I have a long way to go, so I want to give you all the opportunity to have at it as well. The more that you do the more that you are in the spirals of time. Through ritual and practices t these moments is how astrology whether western or eastern becomes real.