A year ago, in March 20th/21st, I was flying overnight from Houston to the UK, ahead of the first lockdown which started on March 23rd. Covid-19 was taking hold, it was getting downright scary, and with great regret we cut short our stay with the family and had to find an alternative route back as our flight was cancelled. Saying goodbye to our grandchildren was the hardest thing to do.
We decided to splash out and travel Business Class - in the interests of our own safety and because we could afford to dip into the savings. The return flight was in three stages, it took 25 hours. It's a long story, but we were upgraded to First Class - that's me here trying to relax into this one-off experience just after we'd boarded. It's very unlikely we'll ever travel First Class again!
I'm taking a retrospective look at what was going on this time last year, and taking a look - with an astrological-psychological slant - at where we are now, what has changed and what is ongoing.
Pluto - the planet of transformation and clearing out of that which is outworn and outdated - is still making its way through Capricorn. Unsurprisingly a few shocks have rattled the bars of the so-called establishment this year so far. Harry and Meghan's interview with Oprah Winfrey is one; the Metroplitan police handling of the London vigil to highlight safety for women, following the abduction and murder of Sarah Everard, is another.
Astrologically ongoing is the challenging configuration between Uranus and Saturn. There's work to be done here, and if the energy isn't harnessed and utilised productively, a real spat and a standoff could develop as they square up to each other and edge closer together in the summer. I see them as already working well together.
Uranus seeks stability and finds innovative ways to provide this, often causing a fair bit of distruption along the way. It's not regarded as the planet of revolution for nothing, so there could easily be more distruption to what we used to consider, pre-Covid, as the norm. Uranus is sometimes quirky and individualistic, but significantly it's a researcher, coming from the mind.
Like a scientist, it wants clear answers and bases hypotheses on trials and facts. I'm thinking here of the scientists advising the government on what's needed to move us away from the need to lockdown and ease the effects of the pandemic, such as the roll out of the vaccination programme, the vaccine itself created by the work and research of scientists.
Saturn prefers the stability of the status quo and resists change, fired by fears, doubt and caution. It wants to hold on to what it's got, maybe wanting to please everyone, and it's very efficient at ensuring all systems are working properly and safely. Saturn is associated with matter and the material world, and this apsect of it is symbolised by the weighing up, by governments, of how to maintain the economy in this ongoing pandemic.
Interestingly, Saturn in currently moving through the sign of Aquarius, whose qualities actually promote and encourage a creative approach to problem solving, with "off the wall" innovative tendencies, and technologies. It is the natural astrological "home" sign of Uranus and it may therefore be Saturn's role to shape and structure what has emerged in the past 12 months.
Looking back over the past year, with these intertwined signs and planetary energies and qualities, I am amazed and imressed at how far we've come technologically. Using this astrologial lens I can see an example of how Uranus and Saturn have worked together. A year ago most people wouldn't have imagined, in their wildest, oddest dreams, that they would not only be using Zoom for work and social interactions, but that they would have learned and mastered it too. Many of us hadn't heard of it; now it's in common usage as the needs of the lockdown/working from home/staying home have replaced previous behaviour.
Jupiter, associated with vision, looking to the future, opportunity and even risk-taking, is journeying through Aquarius throughout this year. It briefly rubbed shoulders with Saturn at the start of the year, but will hang around in the background, hopefully acting as a positive, encouraging presence, perhaps softening the edges and protective barriers which Saturn might be tempted to erect. There are probably still plenty of changes ahead, which are way beyond my desire to "predict", but I see Jupiter's role in this snapshot of time as a door opener, an inspirer, and yes, a visionary of what might be.
We all want to look to the future to; right now we can't make any plans and have no idea yet what the new "normal" might be. All we can do for now is sit tight and do our best to cooperate in helping get this pandemic under control, and - in the words of Jean Luc Picard, captain of the Star Ship Enterprise - "Make it so" to the best of our ability.
No comments:
Post a Comment