New Moon Journal

Sun enters Libra-moving to get it

Autumnal Equinox. For those living in the Northern Hemisphere the Sun enters Libra at 5:52 am on September 23 2007 and we collectively begin the fall harvest- of letting go and surrendering. Death of the past to manifest the future. It’s time to give your creative life new form, to disintegrate, purify and regenerate.

During the summer months we may have been imbrued with new direction, a creative project was revealed in the inner world that now seeks attention in our outer world.

Here’s a quick scenario of what happens energetically when you seek to build.

I am inspired with a new idea or project (last spring, New Moon in Aries).

I start to create from that seed thought. The idea is manifesting within my psyche. I plan it, I speak it. [5th chakra] I love it. [4th chakra] I edit and sort my inner and outer worlds to make it real. [Virgo] My dream begins to build power within me and around me. [Mars,3rd chakra] I move to get it.

How good are you at moving it???

To get it, I have to move. I have to stand in my power, be authentic. In order to move I’ll meet others along the way-my partner, my friends, my family [Libra] and as I share my precious idea, those people might not see my vision or understand what I am about.

• How do you meet with naysayers and doubters?
• Do you abandon your creative projects?
• Do you rear up?
• Do you push through it? Again...

How do you move to get it?

It’s now time to temper my response..do I expand and take a risk- feel it and drive it home, or do I contract, retreat- to feel it and drive it home. Each task is a death. Each task is sacred.

The Fall Season- Libra, Scorpio and Sagittarius

In the Fall we harvest the seeds for planting next spring. What you planted in March 2007 is now ready for harvesting. If I planted weeds then I am harvesting weeds. If you planted corn you are harvesting corn. Cycles and rhythm and balance are what this astrology stuff is about. Bringing the sky and the earth together and honoring the rhythm of the seasons and the rhythms of the day and night forces is mirrored back, within you, around you. In that regard issues I may be dealing with issues that are ready to be taken to the next level, released and surrendered too (Scorpio) based on the way I think (Mercury). Plus at the Autumnal Equinox there is a Mars/Pluto opposition (see Lynn Hayes post here) at play taking the intensity up a notch. Mars goes retrograde in November 14th and jabs back and forth at Pluto until Spring 2008.

What did you wish and dream of back in late March? Harvest it now. Here are some themes for the Libra energy and your SoulCollage® cards for the next new moon. In Libra I am the One who....

• I am the One who Partners. I am the One who is a Wife. My energy relates to healthy agreements, sharing and interdependence.
• I am the One who Balances. My energy relates to issues of fairness including balance, equality, appreciation of opposite views, negotiation and counseling.
• I am the One who Counsels.
• I am the One who is Beautiful. I seek harmony representing peace, beauty and art. Refinement- luxury, elegance, pampering, good taste, grace are things that attract me.
• I am the One who builds Teamwork- giving and receiving, collaborating, supportive relationships, cooperation.
• I am on the One who is the Diplomat. I love being social- being companionable, tact, getting along with others, one-on-one interactions, diplomacy, affinity for others. On the world-wide web think of MySpace and Facebook.
• I am the One who is Co-dependent. I feel lost in my relationships- loss of self-identity, appeasing behaviors, indecision, aimless discussion. I represent entanglements that bind.
• I am the One who Harvests. Restoring health- adrenal glands, buttocks, diabetes, kidneys.

Michele’s SoulCollage® card for the Fall Harvest
Death Stalking...

I am the One
who is Death.
You walked
and stalked with me
as a child
learning much.

I bring changes
to the inner and
outer worlds.

To render
to release,
what no longer serves.
To renew.

Walk with me now
see what I hold,
where I go
there are lessons.

-----------

Fall catalogs arrived in record numbers this month, and this One wanted attention. Jennifer Louden’s blogs about resisting her own inward retreat. The death of mommyhood I faced this summer and the renewed energies I have found in letting go reminds me once again how we are collectively called to face the little deaths to be reborn anew.

You may now find yourself dealing with issues that are ready to be taken to the next level, released and surrendered too (Scorpio) based on the way you think (Mercury). Who and how are you going to partner with another to make your creative dream happen?

Thus, as we turn the wheel from summer into fall, Libra’s energies call us to bring our creative life back into balance- in all our relationships. To ask what has heart and meaning for me now? How do I hold myself back? Am I supported? What needs to be let go of so I can move freely into the future?

Saturn’s now in Virgo, demanding change, attention to details and the structure of health and work.

You’ll see pretty quickly what needs attention, what needs to be let go. The archetype of Pluto, the Transformer as death [also Saturn] is often depicted as a dark form holding a sickle. Saturn represents the structure, the status quo, the ego. Fear. Pluto is the cosmic garbage collector, he takes away in order to transform. Something needs to change or be surrendered in order to go to the next place. Restructure.

Harvesting your seed thoughts means that Death is stalking. Fall is a time of disintegration, we surrender and let go to move to the next place. Expect resistance, expect disintegration and then renewal. The Moon and the seasons reflect this cycle of birth, death and renewal. Our own birth chart mirrors this dance with death (8th house, Scorpio) and at the turn of the wheel we begin the Fall. Namaste.

Some resources to share:

A retreat Discovering your Authentic Self, November 1-4, 2007 in Delray Beach, Florida is a four day psycho-spiritual retreat with both integrative breathwork and SoulCollage® offered by my friend, Noreen Donahue, LCSW.
Jennifer Louden’s September Newsletter is full of insights.
The Alchemy of Social Transformation by Lenore Norrgard. Visit Lenore’s website for more about her ritual Dreaming the Dark Solstice Ritual.

About: Rev. Michele Lessirard, C.Ht. is an astrologer, SoulCollage Facilitator and shamanic practitioner providing healing, counseling and instruction since 1993. She writes, shares her thoughts and art online at The New Moon Journal®.

Don’t judge yourself in the here and now.

This year Rich and I went to see the musical play – Moving Out.  We dated, married and matured listening and dancing to the music of Billy Joel. What I am struck by is the body of work and what this man created in the last four decades. Each song linked with each song, in-sync with the times…the story unfolds and weaves an artist’s journey. The play and his music is just remarkable.

This week we move through a lot of cosmic energy as it clears the way for the new cycle to begin at the Aries new moon next week on March 29th. Let go of what isn’t working…to find what is…What do you want to create? What project is knocking at your door? Stay aware…

Aries is fiery and passionate, and he needs the dreamer within you and I to set the pace, to create the intent. Pisces into Aries. Many times, through many cycles we create a body of extraordinary work. Don’t judge yourself in the here and now. In the end it will be, not in the here and now, but the long road traveled…through your river of dreams…

The River Of Dreams by Billy Joel released in 1993:

In the middle of the night
I go walking in my sleep
From the mountains of faith
To a river so deep
I must be looking for something
Something sacred I lost
But the river is wide
And it's too hard to cross

And even though I know the river is wide
I walk down every evening and I stand on the shore
And try to cross to the opposite side
So I can finally find out what I've been looking for

In the middle of the night
I go walking in my sleep
Through the valley of fear
To a river so deep
And I've been searching for something
Taken out of my soul
Something I would never lose
Something somebody stole

I don't know why I go walking at night
But now I'm tired and I don't want to walk anymore
I hope it doesn't take the rest of my life
Until I find what it is that I've been looking for

In the middle of the night
I go walking in my sleep
Through the jungle of doubt
To a river so deep
I know I'm searching for something
Something so undefined
That it can only be seen
By the eyes of the blind
In the middle of the night

I'm not sure about a life after this
God knows I've never been a spiritual man
Baptized by the fire, I wade into the river
That runs to the promised land
In the middle of the night
I go walking in my sleep
Through the desert of truth
To the river so deep
We all end in the ocean
We all start in the streams
We're all carried along
By the river of dreams
In the middle of the night

 

Spring Equinox- honor your intuitive self by building spiritual muscle

Spring is the time of new beginnings. “Our homes are living portrayals of everything you are and what is happening in your life.” - Karen Kingston, Creating sacred space.

I am so aware of the new beginnings this year thanks to Hurricane Wilma. Right after the Wilma the plants in our yard went into hyper drive and started blooming as a way to compensate for the wind damage. Now we are seeing the results of the trauma… trees and plants dying back from the shock, root damage that was hidden right after the storm can now be seen. In my own yard plants have been cut back so new growth can begin again.  I honor that dismembering. I see the new growth all around. We in South Florida are having two Springs!

Finding your creative muse before Mercury goes retrograde.

Mercury is going retrograde in Pisces from March 2nd through March 25th. When Mercury goes retrograde we need to know our conscious mind is out to lunch, we are operating in a fog. That’s one reason why they say don’t sign contracts when Mercury retrogrades. Pisces represents your relationship to Spirit. Translating spirit into matter. How you navigate the spiritual waters in your own life. Mercury is the communicator, how you speak your own inner truth. Mercury is a great teacher.

Saturn has great significance for the Fifty-Something crowd.

If you are between the ages of 50–59 we are heading towards our Saturn Return. I thought I would share this article I found online at Meta Arts.

Saturn has great significance for the Fifty-Something crowd. According to astrologers, it has to do with the wisdom gained of experience.

Sometimes that wisdom comes from repeatedly bumping up against reality, and sometimes we learn our lessons more gracefully. Still, the Saturn times of our lives--like the ages of 50 and 57 and every seven years thereafter--are eras when we grow and mature, even when that isn't exactly what we had in mind. Saturn's orbit is divided into seven-year fractions, leading to the familiar observations about the seven-year itch. To read the rest of this story by astrologer Donna Cunningham, go online to The Meta Arts.

Explore the world behind your eyes. Our circle begins again on Wednesday, January 11, 2006

Our weekly circle begins again Wednesday nights starting January 11, 2006 at 7:00 pm. The cost is $15 per week. If paid in advance $70 for seven weeks. This circle is open for two sessions and then closes to new members. We close the circle to build power within the community allowing us to go deeper into the Work.

Each seasonal cycle works with a particular theme given to Michele by her Spirit Allies, based on the time of season and current energies at play. Winter is now here and we are preparing the ground for our spring planting. Working with shamanism as a daily practice and  We’ll be working with Jacquelyn Small’s book -the Sacred purpose of being human. During the 7 weeks you will learn how to:

• Release stuck emotions through "inner work" designed to heal your past.
• Identify pseudo-personalities that masquerade as your true self.
• Create the inner space required for a spiritual awakening to occur naturally.

The Winter Solstice ~ the Sun enters Capricorn

The Winter Solstice on December 21, 2005 at 1:35 pm est the Sun enters Capricorn

It is just before sunrise on a cold December day some three thousand years before the coming of Christ. For those crouched at the heart of the mound it must seem as though light has been banished forever. Then suddenly a tiny sliver of sunlight strikes the stone slab at the back of the chamber. Slowly it widens, climbs upward, illuminating a number of mysterious carvings- circles and spirals, zigzag patterns. For people crouched in the center of the great mound every symbol has meaning. But by far the greatest significance is the return of the Sun itself. The light that enters the dark womb of the earth brings with it the promise of warmth and life to come. -John Mathews from The Winter Solstice

Click here for a pdf of this text with pictures to print.

The 12 Days of Christmas is a template to review this past year’s actions and intentions. Recapitulation ~ a creative time to seize the coming year. Wednesday, December 21, 2005 we celebrate the Winter Solstice of moving from darkness (shadow) to light (divinity). Cross culturally this time heralds the Sun's return as it enters Capricorn. "Capricorn- admits the soul into life and then allows it to return to its former god-like state [the child of wonder and grace]." (Mathews, p. 40) At the time of the new moon in Capricorn we at the midpoint of the twelve days of Christmas ~ the days between Christmas Eve to Epiphany on the 6th of January that "really exist outside of linear time. [These days] are in a sense, the fruit of the past year, and one day for each month that has past." (Mathews, p. 173).

January 6th is Epiphany a celebration in the Christian faith as the day the three wise men arrived to see the Christ child after their long journey. The Wise Men represented the shaman’s and priests of their tribe coming to honor the new King.

Thanks to all who sent support our way

My deep thanks to you all and the support sent our way. Saturday morning just before the Recharge, Renew, Restore gathering I woke up feeling very different. Firm. An energetic strength deep in my inner core (K'uychi) that was not present Friday night when I went to sleep. Checking in my teacher shared it is power from the circles within circles. Wow. Incredible… and the groundedness is still with me. I feel grateful, supported, loved and loving.

The night before there was a huge office Christmas party in the clubhouse where our group was gathering. I spent a good hour energetically clearing and setting up our sacred space- that was fun to witness as the flame on the Epsom salts keep hitting pockets of gunk and going out.

Holiday Circle ~Recharge, Renew, Restore

For those of us living in South Florida the past 90 days have been challenging and enlightening on so many levels. As a shamanic practitioner of soul retrieval in the days that followed Wilma I have witnessed zombie-like people dealing with the stress of the hurricane’s after effects. Symptoms of soul loss at a community wide level. I feel grateful for my own awareness but also sad. I asked to be of service and in a journey to my helping spirits they asked me to put this intent out.

Holiday Circle ~Recharge, Renew, Restore
Saturday December 10, 2005
10 am to 2 pm
El Dorado Clubhouse
1 El Dorado Parkway
Plantation, FL   33317-3209

Cost: A gift to you at this holiday season. Please RSVP to Roz at 954.224.4474 or msroslyn@sharedjourneys.org.

Saturday, December 10th from 10-2pm we’ll come together. My intention is to work collectively with the people, the land and spirit of South Florida -a soul retrieval and soul remembering journey. I need your support and the power of your presence. Each of us showing up, connecting and allowing our helping spirits to guide us builds power and is empowering. We’ll recharging and renewing vitality, balance and sanctuary within and without after the devastating effects of Hurricanes Wilma, Rita and Katrina which touched our homes and lives this past 2005 hurricane season. We’ll give and also receive. For those who are on my mailing list as shamanic practitioners and light workers please join us in spirit.

I’ll speak briefly about the current unfolding astrology cycle- Mars retrograde in particular. We’ll be working with sacred principles from the Sandra Ingerman’s book Medicine for the Earth. It is not necessary for you to have a working knowledge of this work. All you need to bring to the circle is your openness to the information presented- your heart's desire will create the container for the experiences to unfold magically in a deeply sacred way.

If you have not met and worked with me before I invite you to come early at 9:00am for a brief introduction. If this work calls to you- stay and play with us for the rest of the day. I hope you can join the circle.

In loving support,
Michele Lessirard

Directions to Clubhouse:
From I-95 head West on I-595 to University Drive.
North on University Dive to Broward Blvd.
East on Broward to first traffic light (El Dorado Parkway).
Turn right at El Dorado Parkway. There is a stand of pine trees, canal and brick bridge on the right (south side). There is a guard house, just go through the gate (you don't have to stop) and turn right at the first turn into the clubhouse driveway.

What to bring:
Wear lose comfortable clothes, bring socks to keep your feet warm and an eye cover (scarf or bandana) to keep the light out. If weather permits-there is work done outside in nature so bring appropriate shoes.Bring a blanket/mat, cushion and/or back jack support if necessary (we'll be on the floor).Color pencils/pens and paper/journal. Bring a rattle if you have one. Bring something of personal significance to help you create a sacred space on the mesa or to keep with you while you journey. We’ll be convening for four hours, you may want to bring a snack.

Disclaimer: Shared Journeys, Michele Bailey-Lessirard reserves the right to cancel any workshops or training courses, or the participation of anyone, at any time, for any reason. In such a case, fees paid in advance will be reimbursed.

Big wind from Wilma, we got through the storm.

Until Andrew blew into Greater Miami, the 1926 hurricane was the Big One. In a matter of hours, Andrew changed everything. Our generation will learn from this tragedy just as the people did in 1926. Building codes will be strengthened, shutters will be purchased and home buyers will be more cautious ... But in the years to come, we hope that those who follow will not let down their guard as we did. We know only too well that a building may look well built, but unattached tiles, unprotected and unshuttered glass windows and doors as well as pasteboard walls and roofs cannot fool Mother Nature.- Arva Moore Parks, The Florida Hurricane & Disaster 1992

Andrew was a Catagory 5 storm. Katrina was a Cat-4. Wilma was a Cat-3. Just to put it in perspective for you. South Florida, where I live, took a direct hit from Wilma. Broward County was on the strongest side of Hurricane Wilma where the worst winds where. Hurricane means big wind or so I am told. From a shamanic view it is fascinating-an incredible experience to sit in the power of the storm. From a human point of view this weather sucks. I remember watching the first Star Wars movie where Luke Skywalker lives in his home, the windows are shuttered and it is perpetual winter, looking rather bleak. Sitting in our home, having to shutter and hunker down for the storm reminds me of Luke’s journey. Why is the weather so severe?  How am I/we out of balance?  In Wilma’s aftermath I am grateful for my husband and daughter, the presence of such fine neighbors who came to help and support each other before and after the storm, after a week of boiling water I appreciate the clean water to drink when I turn on the tap, the winds that brought cooler weather, the fire to heat my food and the earth to walk on. There is a balance happening after the storm. 

Wilma's winds had to be well over 120 mph or higher at one point based on the sounds and the damage outside. Incredible sounds and energy as we sat in the dark of our home and listened. Our house is totally shuttered, and well built, it never shook or moved. After Hurricane Andrew in 1992 our building codes were strenghtened. South Florida has the toughest of standards. I am so grateful to our home. Our neighbors watched as the storm took down a 20 foot live oak on our property and then dragged the tree across the driveway. I think officials are going to find the winds were higher than predicted. All the trees in the community have been through a dismemberment, ripped and twisted branches, there is so much more light streaming in. Trees are twisted, leaves stripped. We've lost a lot of our landscaping to the tune of $20-25,000. Our neighbor's roof shingles are all up and down the street embedded in landscape. It will take some time for things to return to normal.Many families didn't prepare for the storm, and well those are the people you are seeing in the news looking for supplies.

“At dawn on October 24, Hurricane Wilma made landfall in southwest Florida as a Category 3 storm and pushed rapidly and with a wider than expected swath of hurricane force winds through the heart of FPL’s heavily populated west coast and South Florida regions. A record 3.2 million FPL customers – about 75% -- were left without electric service as transmission lines and substations were especially hard hit.They say it will take four weeks to restore power. Over 3 million people lost power.”– FPL Website

Thanks to FPL our little development (250 homes in El Dorado with underground utilities) had power back Tuesday night.Yeah. Look at the picture of the downed transmission lines. . .these are those huge mental structures that are found along US 27 by the Everglades. Wow. There are more images on FLP’s website, just click the picture on the left. We never lost phone service and we had a great gas generator running the frig, a light and a hot plate to cook. We boiled water for a week, but with the electric on, its not too bad. I bought food to last six days and cooked a lot of meals. That in itself is a miracle because we eat out.

The only thing there isn't any gas. No power to run the gas pumps. Fema and local governments are going through their own hassles. Lack of gas, water and ice is causing a panic in the community and long lines. I feel sad for what we have all gone through this season- three hurricanes (Katrina, Rita and Wilma) passing through South Florida in one season is a bit much.

I’ll be posting the New Moon Journal for Scorpio on Monday, October 31th, 2005. Please send prayers of support to the people in South Florida.