And this is the kind of tension that we can each experience with this week’s lunation:
This Full Moon is conjunct Neptune, amplifying the Piscean ability to confuse or dissolve reality. Pisces can be a slippery energy sometimes, naïve and gullible if it’s not careful, and with Neptune sidling up to this week’s lunation, the odds of your clarity slipping away are higher than usual. On the other hand, Mars is conjunct the Sun, and making an exact opposition to Neptune. As we are reminded with the Six of Wands, be careful about riding on your high horse this week, as things are not always what they seem and our actions and answers may not be right for all situations. Mars in Virgo conjunct the Sun wants to find ways to make things better, yet it can go too far too fast, dazzled by its own brilliance and convinced it knows what’s right every time. That Pisces Full Moon can amp up the compassion factor, but this combination makes way for drama – beware of acts of unnecessary martyrdom, sweeping self-sacrifice, and righteous know-it-alls. The best way to work through the days ahead are to try to avoid making any major decisions or having heated, heavy conversations this weekend if you can help it. However possible, channel this energy into creative endeavours, self-development, or spiritual pursuits. Pisces works well when given the chance to activate our imaginations or spiritual centres, and Virgo loves nothing more than a bit of homework. Here’s a tarot spread that can help you connect to the energies of this weekend’s Pisces Full Moon:
Until next time, Liz xo Do you want to enhance your tarot skills? There’s still time to sign up for my Zodiac Tarot Workshop taking place online this Saturday, September 14. I’ll walk you through one of the best tarot spreads out there. Register here.
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Whatever you are feeling this September, remember that we are in Virgo territory right now, a mutable sign that primes us for the changing seasons. This a time to let yourself walk between worlds as we transition out of summer and into fall, which is just a few weeks away. What are you still lingering over from the summer season that you’re not quite ready to let go of yet? Maybe it’s watching a few more sunsets, or getting out to the beach one last time. And where are you setting your sights once the Fall Equinox arrives on September 23, when we shift into Libra season and begin to take stock of what we’ve sown and reaped so far in 2019? The card I pulled for this week is the Eight of Wands, one that keeps many irons in the fire, one that is relentless in its pursuit of experience.
The Eight of Wands is an interesting energy to flirt with because it almost dares you to spread yourself a little thinner than you probably should. But at this time of year, it also says, “To hell with the consequences. Summer’s down to its final threads and fall’s around the corner. Make the most of your days, love. Stretch them out. Stretch your hours. Stretch into the last dregs summer sunlight. Reach for it, grab hold of as much as you can even though you know you can’t keep it forever. But try, try.” What will you make the effort to reach for? Until next time, Liz xo
Later in my career after working in children’s residential programs and after providing family counselling, I began facilitating children’s groups and groups for parents. This was and continues to be a great fit for me – like a hand in a glove! While working with numerous children, youth and their families over the years in various roles at a Children's Mental Health Centre in the GTA and doing collaborative community work with school boards and partnering agencies, I discovered a common thread – anxiety. Not only was anxiety prevalent in folks of all ages that we were wanting to support, but it was also common among helping professionals. Okay folks – time to remove the stigma from this! Feelings and experiences of anxiety have just become common place – period – whoever you are. What is important to keep an eye on however, is the degree to which it is disrupting your life. It is one of the top reasons for referrals at children’s mental health agencies despite often being overlooked by diagnosticians. But this is not the end of the story. As anxiety has become more and more widespread, it also became a huge area of interest for me. It made me wonder, who doesn’t feel anxious these days and what’s their secret to managing it? As I began learning more about neurodevelopment, the mind-body connection and the power of relationships, answers started to emerge. As a result, I also began training helping professionals about understanding anxiety in those they are supporting but also to be able to recognise how it impacts them personally in their practice.
I know. As readers, you are probably thinking – “oh, come on, give us at least one tip now.” Focusing on your breathing If I had to choose the best one because of the limited space in this blog, I would be remiss if I didn’t suggest that everyone should learn to focus on their breathing. I know this sounds cliché and it’s not a new one - but it is a good one. It’s foundational – the best place to start. Why? First, because you always have your breath with you in any situation. Second, because we know that things like breathing and heartrate are connected to our Autonomic Nervous Systems (ANS), which become activated when our brains sense danger, consciously or unconsciously. When this happens, we feel uncomfortable in our bodies. The trick however, is finding ways to practice deep breathing and breathing awareness that is age-appropriate and suited to you. For example, young children can be directed to blow at a pinwheel making it move fast and then slow. They can blow bubbles. They can also use belly buddies - small toys placed on their tummies while they are laying on their backs taking deep breaths. The idea behind this is that they can observe their breathing by watching their bellies and their belly buddies going up and down making sure that they don’t fall off. Ask them to describe what is happening. I guarantee you that they will not be focusing on whatever they were worrying about while you are doing this with them. Learning body awareness More importantly, they will be learning body awareness which is crucial these days. If we learn to listen to our bodies, it will tell us whatever we need to know about regulating our emotions. Teens and adults can do something similar by simply putting one hand on their belly and one on their chest. Again, they can observe and describe to themselves what they are seeing and feeling. What I am describing are actually known as mindfulness activities - focusing on one thing at a time in each moment with full attention and without judgement. When you get distracted, and you will, without judging yourself, just bring your attention back to your breathing. Judging ourselves makes us worry more and is a waste of energy. Learning to observe and notice things about ourselves is a very important step towards self-awareness and self-confidence and ultimately, resilience. A lot of anxiety, for adults, youth and children can be managed when we understand how it happens. Current research tells us that we can learn to be in control of it rather than allowing it to hijack us. I also know this from personal and professional experience. More on this too in future blogs. Interested in learning more?
Mercury also goes direct on July 31 at 11:58pm, less than an hour after the Moon begins anew. See how you feel when you wake up on Thursday, August 1. A veil is being lifted somewhere in your life and fresh clarity and confidence are set to grow throughout the month ahead. As this Mercury retrograde period winds down, I encourage you to be like the Hanged Man and take some time out to reflect and review all that has transpired or occurred throughout these last few weeks.
If you would like to connect with this week’s New Moon in Leo, here is a tarot spread to help:
Until next time, Liz xo p.s. If you would like to connect with this week’s New Moon and more, my New Moon Meditations will help you connect to each lunar cycle for deep intention-setting. Order yours here. 7/22/2019 0 Comments Welcoming Leo season
Whatever you’ve been up to lately, I hope it’s been serving you well. And if you’ve been caught up in other things, perhaps something you hadn’t planned on doing or working on this summer, that’s okay, too: You never know why things unfold when they do, or the way they do. Leo season helps us get a second wind if we need it. Personally, I find this time of year to be one of the most free-flowing. Maybe it’s the fiery energy of Leo that provides an added boost to each day. Leo’s gregarious, larger-than-life energy can bring some encouragement to go out and make something happen, or make the most of what’s left of the summer season. Leo also likes to be social, and to be seen. It helps us be out and about, and helps us say yes to all the ways life can unfold – socially, creatively, and personally. This Saturday, July 27, Venus joins Mars and the Sun when she enters Leo, too, bringing some added fire to the sky. Jupiter remains in Sagittarius, another fire sign.
Thinking ahead like that pushes you to look at what you are doing today, right here, right now, and whether it will lead you to where you want to be in several years’ time. And that can be part of the reason those questions get so uncomfortable – especially if they cause us to see that our current actions may not be lining up with tomorrow’s intentions. Tomorrow’s Full Moon and lunar eclipse in Capricorn at 5:38pm EST can help to clear out any habits, commitments, or obligations that are anchoring you to a place you don’t want to be in down the road. Whether you see yourself breaking free next month, or next year, or sometime further off into the future, a tether can begin to loosen this week. This Full Moon opposes Venus in Cancer, pushing you to weigh your desires against your duties. But with a conjunction to Saturn and Pluto, there is also a dose of reality with this Full Moon.
Here’s a tarot spread to help you connect to this week’s Full Moon and lunar eclipse in Capricorn:
1. What is weighing me down? 2. How can I begin to break free? 3. What new perspective can I gain at this time? 4. What fear is it time to overcome? Until next time, Liz xo Eclipse season is a great time to get a reading. Book an appointment with me here. Want to work with me in other ways? Explore my books and meditations in my shop.
The frustration that arises while Mercury remains in Leo may at first feel more connected to creative projects or plans, or anything that pushes you to become front and centre. You may suddenly wonder if you’re ready to be doing what you’re doing, or you might realize there’s something that needs to be tweaked before you make a big announcement or launch an idea into the world. Once Mercury backs up into Cancer on July 19, the focus becomes much more about feelings – ours and everyone else’s. This can be a particularly powerful time to sort through the tough stuff within your personal relationships:
These are just a few examples of the themes that can emerge during this summer’s Mercury retrograde period.
7/2/2019 1 Comment Sigil Making (by Nick Veit)
Having drawn this simple sigil I can spend some time meditating on it, following it with my eyes and even trying to make a mental image in my memory that I can hold. A strong memory is a great asset to sigil making and can also result from it. You could make a simple sigil like this one and then close your eyes and try to bring it to mind as clearly as possible before opening your eyes and experiencing the subtle differences between your imaginative image and what you see with your eyes. Try to imagine as vividly as possible before looking at the drawing. Really commit to it. You may think of your visualization as a loving offering to the reality of what you see with your eyes and the world to which it belongs. Honour what you see with your eyes for what it is—no more, no less. If you do this process a few times, you’ll probably find a sort of conversation happens between the sigil, your consciousness and your intention/affirmation etc. This experience is often one that you can feel in your whole body as a form of tension and balance. For me this is very tactile and sculptural, but everyone is different.  Focusing on specific parts of the sigil is important for this process, as individual letters and words that form part of the original statement come to have more organic relationships with one another as parts of a whole.
If you experience morphing and shifting of different parts of the drawing within your visual field this is very good, and it is very beneficial for you to use the original image with its definite proportions and shapes etc., as a grounding point for this intensive movement and fluidity—have faith, honour and trust in the external reality of the physical drawing. If and when your imagination becomes so strong that it seems as if the unified being that is your sigil is something that exists in our consciousness as an image in your mind’s eye, keep the image there in your mind’s eye and maintain the subtle awareness that “there is a drawing, this image that I see in my mind’s eye relates to something definite and concrete.” After a little while, go do something else while holding this awareness for a few moments. Being keenly aware of the physical reality of the sigil is important, and it is a visceral experience which is key for developing a strong memory and imagination. After a short while, take a deep breath and let the image go.
But Mars in Leo can also give some people too much bravado. Channeled differently, it can make some of us hungry for attention. It can over-inflate an ego, or highlight a pushy, impatient vibe within the collective. At its worst, Leo can be all about, “me, me, me.” So if you’re being sidelined by an attention-seeker at work, or perhaps you’re noticing some of these traits within yourself, use this time to redirect this energy towards something that feels more constructive: Put time into your own projects, for example, or create clear action steps that will help you gain the credit and recognition you want in a positive, constructive way.
Anyone who is hoping to set intentions around making more time for friends and family, or focusing on more personal goals will want to connect with this week’s New Moon. Ask yourself:
“What do I hope to experience in my life as a result of the changes I would like to make?” On Wednesday, July 3, Venus enters Cancer, too, bringing us added emphasis around personal and intuitive pursuits. If you’d like to connect with this week’s New Moon and solar eclipse in Cancer, here’s a tarot spread that can help: 1. What kind of change is in the air for me? 2. What can I create as a result? 3. What does my heart desire at this time? 4. What can I experience if I surrender to change? Until next time, Liz xo
This week gives you another nudge in asserting your own path within a world that wants everyone to be going in the same direction. It’s a time to untangle your mind and heart from the illusions out there. It’s a time to work on the parts of yourself that have been conditioned to think, feel, or act in ways that are not true to you. It’s a time to get clear about what you like and what you want, regardless of whether it fits into the conventional narratives out there. What part of yourself are you willing to fight for?
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