I have created a new format for the Newsletter, which will work much better for people who receive it via email (see the instructions on the left side of your screen if you want to be one of those people).
I will still post the main content here, but it won’t look like this and it won’t have the special, announcements, or upcoming classes.
Greetings!
March – The beginning of Spring. To some, the beginning of the year. Known as Windy Moon, Big Famine Moon, Moon When Eyes Are Sore from Bright Snow, Moon of Winds, Chaste Moon, and Death Moon. March is, for many, a time of waiting to be done with waiting for Spring.
I live in Southern California. March can be rainy, but it is rarely bleak. We’ve had, up until the last couple of days, a rather mild winter, and people are beginning to wonder if we are headed back into drought, so many of us are hoping for weather. Having said that, the last few days have reminded me of how winter can feel. If only we would have more rain.
Pagans call the Vernal Equinox (aka: the first day of Spring) “Ostara” or “Alban Eiler.” It is the balance between light and dark, when the day is as long as the night. It is the second fertility festival, when the seeds are beginning to germinate and the first few sprouts are poking their heads through the earth. It is the rebirth of Nature, as embodied by the flora of the land. It is a time for rebirthing ourselves as well. Spring cleaning is more than just going through your closets, it is a form of sympathetic magic, where we get to reevaluate ourselves and make any course corrections that might need to happen.
This is especially important this year. We are marching steadily toward June, when we will each be required to stand in our Truth. If you would like your transition to me smooth, perhaps now is the time to think about what that Truth is. Ask yourself these questions:
- What do you love?
- What are the three most important values in your life?
- What are the three most distasteful qualities to you?
What you love determines who you really are. The three most important values in your life determine your personal mission statement. And the three qualities in life that are most distasteful to you define those things that will eat your soul if you allow them into your life on a regular basis. If you can answer these questions, you will have a better understanding of your Truth, and you will certainly have a measuing stick for all of the choices you encounter.
Mercury Retrograde begins March 12th. The pre-wash on that has felt especially long this go-round. I shouldn’t even be feeling it yet, but Mercury has been topsy turvy in my life for at least a week, and I’m not the only one. Now, this is not the disaster people seem to think it is. I always remind people that Mercury Retrograde is nothing more than the break you are always asking the Universe for. It is a time to stop, breathe, get your feet back under you, and be conscious. It is a time to look at how you got where you are and see if there are any loose ends that need tying up. It is actually an excellent time for manifesting, because the energy is so thick and still, but you must be very present and very conscious. This retrograde involves Mercury moving from Aries back into Pisces, or from the beginning to the ending of the zodiac. Dousing our fire with water. Shifting from actions back into emotions. According to Dorothy Oja, the Pisces aspect may help us discover where we’ve been blind to an aspect of ourselves, or in someone else. So remember that, as you come up against scheduling and communication challenges. And let yourself be in compassion, for yourself as well as for others. Change is not something we always do gracefully.
Namaste
Ayamanatara