ARIES
A few nights ago, I came home from a very long day and collapsed on the edge of the bathtub to brush my teeth instead of standing like I normally do. Because I wasn’t distracted by looking in the mirror, I noticed a spider who had made its web in a corner. The threads of the web were so fine, I couldn’t make it out. The creature itself was hovering upside-down in mid-air like a an action movie poster. A stray hair that must have fallen from my comb was also caught in the web, so that it too looked like it was frozen in time, stopped on its way to the floor. The spider and my hair didn’t interact, they just hung motionless next to one another. I felt like the spider was teaching me something, like it was showing me how to surrender, how to hang out with the mystery of life. “See, your hair can do it,” was the message this moment seemed to convey.
Aries, this year your birthday season kicks off just following a powerful Solar Eclipse and as usual your season heralds spring! In addition to all that, the astrological attention has been turned on you as the host of Uranus over the last few years and for the next few. Change is never easy, but as we move into your season, Aries, you may find yourself occupying this place of transition more easily. You may even be able to offer a sense of hope to others with your positive light or just by being you.
(Son of Wands/ Ladies Night- Lil Kim feat. Left Eye, Da Brat, Missy Elliott, Angie Martinez)
TAURUS
The other day a friend was over, we had been discussing music and how it seems to be more fun to play when you don’t know how. “It’s like when you are a kid, you can draw perfectly and then as soon as you really learn how to draw, you can’t anymore,” she observed. I drew a picture of a circle with lines protruding from it like a wilted flower, “This was a hand when I was a kid,” I said. “I knew it didn’t look exactly like a hand. But because I didn’t know how, drawing was more like a language and this was a symbol for ‘hand.’” “Once you learn all the rules then you can give yourself permission to break them again,” was our consensus.
Taurus, this week you may feel caught between the beginning, when you didn’t know any better, and a level of proficiency where you feel confident enough to break the rules again. In order to break out of the rut, consider creating your own symbolic language that allows you to still maintain a connection between what you know concretely and the freedom to which you aspire.
(0 Fool Rev/ How Little We Know- Carmen McRae)
GEMINI
The other day I was thinking about how we humans have a tendency to replay events over and over in our minds, to tell and retell a story to ourselves or to others. Scientific studies have shown that this retelling actually causes our memory of a story or situation to change. On a recent dog walk, my friend and I stopped in a bead shop so she could buy a piece of leather string to fix some lacing that had worn away on her shoe. Remembering the original color of the string when she had first bought the shoes she pointed to a rich brown-colored leather, “What do you think? That one?” “Hmm,” I said considering. “You may want something else to match the way the color of has faded on the rest of the shoe.” It was difficult to forget the original color of the shoe in order to find a match in its present state of evolution.
Gemini, it may be important to consider events this week as they are, not as they were or not as you wish they were. Often we retell stories in order to change our feelings about them or to relive the feeling if it was a pleasant one, but keep in mind that the re-telling alters the original memory. Our distance from a situation in time may naturally change our feeling of it and good feelings will come again with the courage to let go of previous versions.
(XV Devil/ What’s Fair- Free Kitten)
CANCER
In the commercial I was in when I was ten in China, which was later dubbed into Chinese (since I didn’t speak the language) there was a scene towards the beginning where the directors son (who was translating for his father) explained, “In this scene, you are mad, because you don’t want your birthday cake, you want peanuts.” I did my best to follow his direction, even though I thought it was ridiculous, “what kid would want peanuts over cake?” Later my mom reported, “I just talked to the director. He said you are really good at pouting, I guess you’ve had a lot of practice.”
Cancer, this week you may find yourself wishing you had peanuts instead of cake or cake instead of peanuts. Perhaps you have been trained to chose peanuts over cake and now you are realizing this is either no longer true for you or maybe never was. The solution to your current difficulty may be to acknowledge your true feelings, get to know them well. From there you can make your next decision.
(5 of Cups/ It’s My Party- Leslie Gore)
LEO
“Why do people have to have so many opinions?” My brother once asked me. It was a rhetorical question, but I found myself thinking about it long after he said it, even though he had asked in a fit of frustration about something having to do with work. The first definition of the word “opinion” according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary online is, “a view, judgement, or appraisal formed in the mind about a particular matter.” Another definition is, “The formal expression of judgment or advice by an expert.” My observation of the first definition was that it made an opinion sound similar to an oyster, or actually its pearl. My observation of the second definition was that an opinion seems to grant a person some sort of authority, the way a title does, like Prof. or Dr. even if you hold neither of those titles.
Leo, this week, I urge you to steer clear of forming opinions. There will be plenty of time for opinions after the eclipses and after Jupiter goes direct in your sign. For now stick to observations.
(2 of Swords/ I Don’t Know- Jill Scott)
VIRGO
Recently, at the beach with my friends we ventured into the water as the waves were rolling in at heights of what appeared to be 7 or 8 feet. When I expressed concern, my friend said, “Don’t worry its going to quiet down in a few minutes.” “How do you know?” I asked. “Because I’ve been watching the water,” she replied. Sure enough within minutes the water became placid, almost still, like a silk sheet rolling over the sand.
Virgo, this week it would be a good idea to follow your feelings where they lead. Even a very powerful emotion will likely smooth out to a few gurgling bumps if you are willing to stick with it.
(6 of Cups/ Down Where the Valleys Are Low- Judee Sill)
LIBRA
There is a certain song, which will remain unnamed (its between me and the song), and whenever I hear it on the radio I feel like it is a sign that I’m on the right path, that I’m making sound decisions. It is even more significant because I usually hear it when I’m in the car so I’m literally on a road. It often seems to come as an answer to my silent questions: “is this the right decision?”, “is this the best use of my time?” or “Am I on the right track?”
Libra, this week you may begin to notice signs that you are either already on the right track or signs pointing out the best path to you. If you are feeling uncertain keep your senses open for various forms of confirmation.
(8 of Discs/ I’m the Sky- Norma Tanega)
SCORPIO
The other day I caught myself scouring the news in search of plane crashes and a scene from the movie “When Harry Met Sally,” popped into my head. Sally argues with Harry who accuses her of not having a dark side. “I have just as much of a dark side as the next person,” she says. Harry tells her that when he sits down to read a book he always reads the last page in case he dies before he finishes. “Now, that is a dark side,” He says triumphantly. “Geez,” I thought to myself. “Can’t you just wait for bad news to come to you? Why do you go out looking for it?” I realized that the answer to these questions was something like Harry’s response to Sally. I wanted to know what was going to happen before it happened or at least before someone says, “Did you hear about that plane crash?” Since I had a few friends flying that day my investment was somewhat personal.
Scorpio, this week you may find yourself engaging creative ways of “reading the last page” so to speak. While others may accuse you of being morbid, this may actually help alleviate some of the anxiety you feel over things you cannot control.
(5 of Discs Rev/ It’s Better Not To Know- The Royalettes)
SAGITTARIUS
Years ago, when I was looking for a job, I remember reading through a bunch of craigslist ads demanding a certain set of skills. The word that kept popping up from desk jobs, to restaurant jobs was “multitasking.” “Must have the ability to multitask.” I had just left a position as a host at a sushi restaurant because I felt the pace at which I was being asked to perform was beyond my capacity. At first I just sort of bobbed my head through these ads, “Sure, I can multitask.” After awhile, however, something snapped. I realized I was trying to adjust myself to the word rather than considering whether the word genuinely described my proficiencies. I ended up getting a job that stressed, “An attention to detail,” over “multitasking.”
Sagittarius, this week you may feel that your attention is being pulled in a multitude of directions. This is the potential “shadow side” of having Jupiter as your ruling planet, sometimes you want to expand at a rate faster than you can actually accommodate. It may be best to choose only the things you can throw your full weight behind and let the other less pressing details go.
(10 of Wands/ Didn’t Leave Nobody But The Baby- Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss, Gillian Welch)
CAPRICORN
There is a scene in one of my favorite movies from my teenage years, “Wet Hot American Summer” (if you haven’t seen it, its about a summer camp) where campers are in a canoe about to go over a smallish waterfall. The situation is made ridiculous by frequently cutting back to the scene, showing that the campers are still trapped on the edge of the waterfall several minutes later as counselors attempt to rescue them by rounding up the support of other counselors back at camp.
Capricorn, this week and quite possibly this entire month, you may feel very much like the campers in this scene. You may sense change approaching long before it has arrived. Like many of the things you engage with, these changes may come step by step. Be patient and trust that there is no great danger, since your boat isn’t moving all that fast anyway.
(XVI Tower Rev/ Crazy In Love Remix- Beyonce)
AQUARIUS
Aquarius, I was almost finished with Tarotscopes this week, when I started counting the songs for the playlist and realized I was one short which led me to a huge oversight. I’d skipped over a Tarotscope entirely. I was already behind when I started writing this week for health reasons and in my haste to finish I somehow missed your sign completely, Aquarius. Be assured that is no reflection of my opinion of Aquarians. I hold you in high esteem, my own mother is a card-carrying member. It was like I had run to the check out line without a basket and dropped an item along the way.
Aquarius, this week you might find yourself feeling impatient. Perhaps you are racing a deadline, or maybe you are just eager to see the end result of something you are currently working on. Try to pace yourself so you don’t end up in the situation I almost did this week, with big hole in your horoscope.
(Daughter of Swords/ Be A Body- Grimes)
PISCES
During a recent trip to the beach my friend told us the story of Moby Dick and my thoughts wandered over whales and water. In the tarot the element of water is represented by cups and is said to point to a persons emotions. In the documentary, “Blackfish” a scientist tells an interviewer that the emotional center of a whale’s brain is more highly developed than a human brain. The story of Moby Dick is a story of a ship of humans made vulnerable by a whale attack at a time when whaling was very popular. There is a lot to be learned from water that sea mammals already innately understand. We take advantage of their vulnerability, but it would seem that they are not unaware of their precarious position. They may have adapted by developing a highly evolved emotional center of their brain. Once in the water humans are forced to adhere to the oceans rules, which like our emotions must be acknowledged.
Pisces this week if you find yourself feeling vulnerable, like the humans in Moby Dick, consider taking a whales approach. Acknowledge your precarious position, but use your situation to facilitate a deeper understanding of the oceans of emotion you currently occupy.
(IV Emperor Rev/ Caribbean Blue-Enya)