The Full Moon on May 5th, 16º Scorpio 01′ promises to be a mixed bag of energies. A heavenly box represents the low road and will create a lot of tension (Mars square N. Node, square Neptune/Chiron, square S. Node, square Mars), so watch out for anxiety as you move through the day. But beware…if you allow frustration and irritation to get the best of you, being out of synch with everyone else will be the norm. Adding to the fray, Mercury opposing Saturn may hold you down with defensiveness and depression that can prevent you from recognizing opportunities.

In polarity, we find Jupiter conjoining Sun, Pluto sextile Moon and trine Mars, with Uranus quincunx Mars. This combination of aspects gives us a positive outlook and help to accomplish our aims by focusing on the good of the whole, while learning how to act quickly and independently without being rebellious or provoking others. By taking the high road, Pluto shows us how to regenerate our vitality, and personal lives through constructive action, and by replacing old emotional patterns with new ones.

The New Moon and Solar Eclipse occurs on May 20th at  0º Gemini 21′ at 7:23 pm. EST. Although we will not see the eclipse on the east coast, its path will cover parts of China, Japan, California/Oregon border, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas.

This eclipse has brought a lot of attention from New Agers who feel it is a grand portal to a new consciousness, to Apocalypse mongers who see it as the beginning of the world’s doom. Although everyone has the right to an opinion, let’s look at the astrology for a more pragmatic and balanced interpretation.

The term eclipse means releasing or taking away. When we have a New Moon, Solar Eclipse we are releasing old patterns and bringing in new ones in a very dynamic way. So eclipses can serve as a catalyst for change in the world and in our personal lives. Those of you who have planets, or angular points (Ascendant, Descendant, Nadir, Midheaven) close to 0 degrees Gemini will be affected the most. Planetary aspects to this degree of Gemini will also be affected.

Being an Air sign, this Gemini, New Moon, Solar Eclipse is showing us that we need to adjust our attitudes in some way for clear sailing. With retrograde Venus in the mix, looking at our values, how we relate to others, and our financial concerns in a new light helps to shift our consciousness.

With sobering Saturn being trine to Venus, and quincunx to Mercury and Jupiter, we are asked to reevaluate how we feel about the needs of others less fortunate than ourselves, overcome pessimism, develop a sense of humor, and participate in the exploration of new ideas.

Jupiter conjoining Sun, Moon and Mercury attracts good luck when we are concerned for the good of all. But with Neptune square the Sun and Moon we must be careful not to give in to delusions of grandeur and loose our grip on reality.

Both the Full and New Moons this month are certainly pointing out the polarization in our culture today.  Will you cling to the old ways with temper tantrums and only self-concern, or will you turn the other cheek and welcome in the new regime? 

The choice is yours!

According to Brophy’s extensive research the ancients encoded the Orion star grouping into the layout of its thirteen-foot stone circle, as well as Sighting Stones for the rising and setting summer solstice sun. Large sighting stones in the center of the megalithic circle also marked the zenith or noon sun three weeks before and after the summer solstice. Although it is known that vertical stones near the Tropic of Cancer during summer solstice will not cast a shadow, we can only guess at why this was important to these people.

These early Egyptians kept track of the heavens for thousands of years with this sophisticated, astronomical, observatory, and it’s interesting to note that only in the last twenty years our own astronomers have been able to come up with similar data.

If this type of information excites you as much as it does me…I strongly encourage you to take the time (10 min. each) and watch Part 1 and 2 of Dr. Brophy’s videos explaining in illustrated detail how this  complex stone circle works.

Nabta Playa Video #1  

Nabts Playa Video #2

Traditionally, Rosemary was seen as a protecting, magical herb.  When grown in a pot close to your house it was believed to protect that dwelling, plus all its inhabitants.  It was also said that a bush of Rosemary growing by your door  only allows love to enter and in turn, was also given as a token of friendship, reflecting its qualities of mental stimulation and remembrance.

Considered sacred by many, this herb was  burned for its dense smoke (smudge) during religious and mystical settings when frankincense or myrrh were not available.   Naturally antibacterial, Rosemary’s smudge was also used during times of plague to clear airborne infections and given to mourners as a protection from illness.

Looking for a new herb to grow in your plant bed?  Give Rosemary a try and maybe some of its magical properties will rub off on you!

The Full Moon happens this month on April 6th at
17º 23′ Libra and  in the Northern Hemisphere is known as the Pink Moon that celebrates the return of spring with pink flowers.

The key theme here is creating balance while relating to yourself and others.   With an exact square between Mars & Venus, this is an excellent time to maintain a low profile when relating with loved ones or business partners, as emotions will run high, with the potential for heated arguments.

A close square between Venus and Neptune/Chiron, emphases the need for authentic relationships and personal growth.  With Neptune/Chiron opposing Mars we will need to be on the look-out of what is actually fact and what is an imaging of our over active emotions.

Neptune trine Saturn enhances the idea of staying home alone to do your inner work and meditation instead of going out and raising hoopla with friends on the Full Moon.

The New Moon on 21st April at 1º Taurus is as complex as last month because the heavens have produced another Grand Kite configuration.  This time we have the same Grand Trine in Earth signs: Pluto in Capricorn, Sun/Moon in Taurus, and Mars in Virgo, with the Neptune/Chiron in Pisces sextile both the Sun/Moon and Pluto, along with Neptune/Chiron opposing Mars in Virgo.

In summary this complex configuration is reminding us that in this important time of seeding ideas and visions, we need to recognize that the Earth is our Mother and to form Right Relationship with her and all her inhabitants. It’s also an excellent time to use creative visualization to change our cultural dream so it begins to serve humanity instead of colliding with it.  In this way you can ride the higher energies and not get sucked into the doom and gloom of Sun/Moon opposing Saturn.

Author Frank Joseph has done a superb job in Survivors of Atlantis, Their Impact on World Culture by using scientific evidence along with archaeology, mythology, ancient literature, astronomy and geology of many world cultures to bring us an in-depth study of our earliest historical beginnings.

According to Joseph, after several cosmic catastrophes and a “ Mediterranean world war” that was waged against Egypt and her allies, Atlantis sunk only 3,200 years ago.  Joseph also links Atlantis with highly sophisticated copper mining that took place around the US Great Lakes district in ancient times and it’s subsequent connection with the Bronze Age.

By working with the recorded mass migrations of the Peruvian Incas, Celtic Irish, classical Greeks, and the Aztecs of Mexico, Joseph, shows how the sinking of Atlantis is a credible part of our own world history.

A group of little beings that I have seen hard at work already is the bee population.  This is the perfect totem for spring because bees traditionally represent fertility.  This symbolism has come about because of their role in plant pollination.   As bees go from flower to flower pollen attached to their legs is transferred to other flowers creating fertilization.

Bees are also great symbols of productivity, organization and community awareness.   Determined at birth whether a bee will be a queen, drone or worker, bees always know their place in the pecking order of the hive and work tirelessly to preserve the survival of their home and queen.

If bees have shown up in your life recently perhaps you need to examine your own productivity.   Are you too busy and not enjoying the fruits of your labor?  The bee reminds us that if we work consistently to follow our dreams, we can reach the end of our rainbow and savor the honey in our lives.

Here’s a video to help you savor the honey in your life! 

Complexity is the theme here with a rare astrological configuration called a Grand Kite. This is composed of a Grand Trine (Moon/Mars in Virgo, Pluto in Capricorn and Venus/Jupiter in Taurus), an opposition of the Sun and Moon, and two sextiles (Neptune/Chiron in Pisces sextile to Pluto and Venus/Jupiter.)

This Full Moon configuration emphasizes the building of an inner foundation of peace and spiritual consciousness, while finding new solutions for solving old problems and emotional attachments. 

A few days after the Full Moon, Mercury goes Retrograde on March 12th and in the next three weeks will catalyze the still prominent Uranus/Pluto square three times.  It’s best to keep a low profile during this Mercury Retrograde and do your inner work.  You can spend time thinking about future projects, and goals, but do not act on them until Mercury turns Direct on April 4th.

On March 22nd the Spring Equinox and New Moon  occur as the Sun moves into Aries.  Complexity seems to be the norm this month as the Grand Kite is still prominent in the heavens, except the opposing planets that hold the Kite together have changed to Mars opposing Neptune and Chiron. Now we need to continue our inner work but focus the light towards any lingering anger issues and heal them.

To add to the mix, Sun/Moon/Uranus/Mercury Retrograde are all  conjunct in Aries and square Pluto.  This is a very powerful time of personal and global transformation.  However, we must be careful not to act too impulsively, for afterward we may regret our actions.  Look deeply within yourself to find the truth behind your issues and work on healing them. This configuration also tells us that as  individuals and as a collective, it’s imperative to align our heart, mind and soul with Mother Earth now and in the future.

The New Moon is usually a time of seeding and beginning new projects.  With Mercury Retrograde and Uranus in the mix, it may be best to simply gestate and gather new ways to implement your healing. Then in the next lunar cycle when Mercury is Direct, move forward with confidence and put your new ideas into action.

The first settlement in the Northwest Territory, the early Marietta inhabitants had the privilege of viewing an Adena prehistoric village, as well as ceremonial sites that dotted the landscape.  Sadly today, only a few monuments remain.

Archeologists refer to these people as the Adena and Hopewell and their cultures extended from the Great Lakes, Mississippi River valley,  Ohio River Valley and their tributaries. During a 5,000-year period  these two  traditions constructed various styles of earthen mounds for religious, ceremonial, astronomical, burial, and residential purposes.  The most famous of these remaining sites is the Serpent Mound near Cincinnati, Ohio.

The Adena culture is seen as the forebears of the Hopewell traditions and as casting considerable influence with these later tribes. The Adena lived in the Central Ohio valley, Kentucky,  Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

The Hopewell communities were connected together with a network of trade routes known now as the Hopewell Exchange System, which ran from Canada to the Southeastern United States.  Through this system these ancient people were able to receive goods from all over North America.

So, nestled on a corner of land where the Ohio & Muskingum  rivers meet,  Marietta was a perfect site for both the Adena and Hopewell civilizations and the white settlements that followed centuries later.

If the protocol passes some of the eleven new rights for Mother Earth will be:

- to continue vital cycles and processes free from human alteration

-to have pure water and clean air

- to have a balanced environment

- for mother earth not to be polluted

- to ban genetic cellular, structure modification

To see the complete article, please go to http://www.isfoundation.com/campaign/earth-summit-2012-rio20.

Sweet pea has traditionally been used to find friendship, protect children and have good luck. Because of its wandering vines and fine tendrils, as a flower essence it is now taken to help wandering souls to ground, balance and harmonize with society, along with discovering their beautiful, unique talents and how to share them with others. With a delicate, feminine scent and flowers, Sweet Pea is associated with the Moon, innocence and chastity.

A great addition to anyone’s garden, Sweet Pea’s crunchy texture, and delicate flavor is good for stir fries, salads, and simply eaten off the vine.