Rejoice for mid summer is here. With a full moon in father figure Capricorn and new moon in the feminine power of Cancer think of trees, and think of water. Don’t forget to spend time out doors. Stay near trees for support and growth. Near water to cleanse away what doesn’t serve us any more, and near water to bring in fresh new beginnings. The sky is amplified in the reflection.
Flavia
The midnight sun in the northern sky, touches our souls. Take the blue with you, into the throat chakra and express who you are. Feathered clouds await your sign of illumination. Be here now.
Mirasol
July is turning out to be a complete and complex month of everything. We left the end of June in a rather subdued if contented mood. Rewarded for our troubles but still left the month in a veil of secrecy. There is anticipation for bigger things to come. Revelations haven’t started to unfold yet. The mood is one of modest enjoyment. When Temperance arrives she tells us to keep it this way. She’s the Goddess of self control over excess. She’s depicted in traditional iconography with two vessels pouring water from one to the other. Let us follow her. As one of the six virtues in positive psychology, together with wisdom, courage, humanity, justice and transcendence, puts us in charge. We are the masters of our own destiny. And we have to be cool and calm about it. A moderation in action, thought and feeling is called for. Temperance represents our own restrain and self discipline over rash emotions such as anger, harmful desires of overindulgence, and negative thinking of revenge. Our powers are ever stronger and they come from within. Use them wisely, prudently, and lovingly.
And here is how it can be achieved. Temperance is followed by Poetry. Poetry is what we all know as a form of literature we are more or less familiar with. We’ve probably read grand poetry at school, we had our own favourite poetry books and sang songs. Hopefully we still do. Some of us may have even written some poetry of our own. We all now need a bit more of this for our well-being. In ancient Greek the word has its roots in the term ‘making’. And indeed poetry has a long history and may predate literacy. So we can open up and think of poetry in a wider sense of creative activity of making things that can involve aesthetics, rhythm, repetition, memorization and structuring. We can manifest the best of us by engaging in doing and making. This is truly an action month of high purpose.
Now with a good measure of Temperance under our belts and our selves put in the making motion, noble causes call for our attention. We will be handling unfinished business with care. The past has not gone away. Unexpected events and sudden changes will remind us that we must defend our values and others that are vulnerable and need our help. We will run to their aid with a sense of urgency. Energy will be amplified by the months end. Emotions will run high throughout the month and action will be in the making and in manifesting. We will all find ourselves in a cliffhanger before August arrives. Love, money, materialising ideas are in the making but not ripe yet. The change however from one to the other will be sudden and staggering. The Knight, whether on foot or on horse, arrives full of energy and ready for action.
P.S. Remember that July is a complex month. To survive it and triumph at the end, we need Temperance (self-discipline) and Poetry (making) throughout. The Knight although not important in himself, (he’s a servant, he’s here to help us) he will bring with him the energy and support we need. Ask for help and you will get it. Keep cool, take it easy, and keep making, to prepare for a more dramatic August around the corner.
Flavia
After a long sleepy winter and a slow spring, we’re all happy to see some action. Spring came late but with a bang. It brought surprises, new people, new endeavours, new landscapes and we came out in the open to greet the world. That took a lot out of us and we all feel a combination of head spinning from all the sunshine and action, and the boosting and recovery from a heavy winter.
It is the full moon in June. Friends and family are on our mind and our own survival, in the physical sense, as we reach the mid point of the year. However, we should not waste time worrying. Take a deep breath and exhale the heavy winter’s concerns. This is not the to-worry card, not on any account. And we should certainly not be tempted to spend energy on counterproductive and misdirected health related fears. Anxiety and worry are not our friends. They will work against us on work and personal relationships. And against our health and happiness.
It is the time to be confident for positive results. But we could try exercises that help release fear and bring relaxation like massage, meditation, listening to music. We can support ourselves and those around us by engaging in creative activities such as writing, painting, going outdoors, enjoy the country and adopt an attitude by which we trust others and ask for help. Let go of worry. Release fear. Allow others to help and become more helpful in the process.
Flavia
Our guide for this week is the Seven of Cups from the beautiful, feminine and insightful Motherpeace Tarot created by Karen Vogel and Vicki Noble. The Motherpeace is a deck which is anthropologically evocative and inviting when investigating themes of transformation, discovery and self-healing.
The Seven of Cups shows us a woman holding a net, upon her head sits a large cup from which water flows into the other six cups. The card brings a message of imagination, dreaminess, watery visions, fantasy and an abundance of choices. The dove, representing Aphrodite’s bird, activates oracular power to enable us to choose that one special wish of many.
This dreamy and watery energy is synchronised with the Summer Solstice and the Cancer season arriving 21 June. Experiencing the longest day with heightened solar energy and Cancerian water infuses a celebration of the fiery masculine and watery feminine aspects of ourselves. The directional south in the Medicine Wheel is the place of fire and action, whereas some Native American groups invoke water in this direction, which would resonate with the water element of the Cancer.
Take extra care of yourself during this time. When we enter the emotional and watery Cancer, deep self-healing becomes more evident and also more accessible. Her nourishing gifts connect us to our hidden emotions and invites us to nurture community and self, often in a reciprocal relationship.
In Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the fairy dust awoke the innermost dreams of love for the characters, which resonates with the dreamy aspects of the Seven of Cups. Remember that the card suggests to choose our wishes wisely, some of them might not be the ones we truly want when accessing our heart space. When a choice is made, we can energise our dream during the Summer Solstice, and by finding the balance within us during the longest day and shortest night, the wish is activated with the potency of both fire and water.
Solstice Reflection
Take a few minutes and gaze on the Seven of Cups and find stillness inside yourself.
Observe how the water is poured into the cups and how the flow of the liquid brings movement of many ideas.
Take a deep breath and relax.
Sit in silence for a few minutes.
Then consider the below questions:
What is your most heartfelt wish at the moment?
What can you do to nurture this wish?
Journal your answers with words or/and imagery in your notebook.
Say thank you and know it will be so.
Mirasol
June is speeding through with all the power that went into spring during the new moon in Aries on 16 April. The need for rest of early April was swapped for the desire to succeed as the month moved on. By now in mid June we are all spinning out of control balancing the additional plates that joined us in May and the others sitting quietly in the back burner since January. But there’s no time to stop. Nor do we want to drop any of them. Plans and past projects, people and situations are developing urgency at an even faster pace. And it’s not high summer yet.
So the energies are moving fast. But what does it all mean for us? How are we placed in these happenings? And what is the best way to deal with it, and make the most of our selves and our situation?
So the answer to our many questions came quick and unequivocal with the presence of Terpsicore. Don’t ask any questions. Just join in. This is our immediate environment.
Terpsicore is one of the nine Muses in Graeco-Roman mythology and part of the ancient Greek Pantheon. She represents happiness in dance and choral song. Therefore she reminds us about the joy in group activities and being part of others’ lives. So keep going. Don’t think about it. Enjoy it. The way to know the other is being part of the other. Moreover, we will never understand something unless we try it ourselves. This is the lesson Terpsicore is teaching. So this card is really an invitation and an encouragement to participate in everything that life has to offer and this is the time to do it.
This is how we come to the second card. It’s Venus. An acceleration of events will be inevitable. But it’s all positive. When the Roman Goddess Venus arrives we know it’s unashamedly all about earthly pleasures and material goods. Of course we’re all familiar in some way with Venus. But one aspect of Venus to think about here is that she normally is either holding a purse or she’s surrounded by water. Her association with the elements, is an association with wealth. When she appears, this is the time to make the most of all the gifts of life. Beauty, aesthetic, goodness, luxury, elegant objects, money, eroticism and some frivolity will be the order of the day throughout June. And we shouldn’t even think about resisting. Holding back is not an option while so much activity is happening all around. The best course of action would be to immerse ourselves in the productive flow of people and things. Both cards are pointing in the direction of love and family affection, and health and spiritual life. For those who want to focus on improving their physical condition, emotional health and general state of being, June is turning out to be a massive ally
By the end of June a much sombre mood is upon us with pensive Muse Polymnia. June will conclude with the urge to start taking stock of our situation. Polymnia represents dance and religious hymns, sacred poetry and agriculture. Keep in mind that the Muses’ father is ancient Greek god father of all gods Zeus (Giove in Latin) and their mother is Mnemosini. Zeus represents justice. Menemosini represents memory. And Polymnia is especially connected to memory and justice herself. She appears in Dante’s Divine Comedy in Paradise where she is blessing past achievements with her particular world music. Our work and efforts will be praised. Polymnia, just as she’s portraited in Dante’s Paradise, represents recognition. Reward for our skills is on the way and it can go high and wide. With it there is responsibility which means that this card is suggestive of events that go far into the future. Polymnia wears a loose veil or mantle wrapped around her body. Her hair is elaborately tied at the back. Things are hidden and secrets are alluded in her posture. Beyond the month’s end and in a much more serious note, we will feel the effects of this June in unexpected ways. A reminder that harvest is on the way. Mystery too. And a whole new mood will follow.
Flavia
