Hello, Haight-Ashbury!
As the Byrds (and Bible) said, “To everything (turn turn turn) there is a season (turn turn turn)…” So what season are we in now?
From a Solar perspective, we are entering Spring, a time of balance and regeneration, of new growth and hope for the future. If you find you need a little of that in your life, a walk in nature might soothe your soul (and luckily Golden Gate Park is just down the street).
But you may have noticed that our times are a bit frenetic and chaotic, and have been for several years. Astrologers will often look to slower-moving planets to track longer “seasons”, and the cycles of Uranus (associated with radical change, revolution, etc.) may be helpful to contextualize the current state of our world.
If we use a heliocentric Uranian model, some comparable times to where we are now are Spring 1941, late-Winter/early-Spring 1857, and late-Fall/early-Winter 1772/1773. All of these times were ones of specific turmoil and change for the US and the world. More than that, there were specific “triggers” around these times that are often pointed to as leading to greater conflict. The Boston Tea Party of December 16, 1773 triggered the American Revolution. The Dred Scott Decision of March 6, 1857 triggered the American Civil War. The bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 catalyzed the US to join WWII.
It is my hope that such a “trigger” is avoided in our current cycle. Finding ways to reduce conflict at all levels may help diffuse these energies. If you find yourself revving up for a fight, can you find a way to calm yourself down and identify a compromise or peaceful solution? At the same time, some things may need to be fought or resisted, and knowing when to do so is important.
There are many other ways to weather this storm, and perhaps one of the best is to do it together, get to know your neighbors, look out for one another, focus locally. And be sure to take care of yourself and your needs, too. Meditate, exercise, take breaks from social media, and find ways to laugh. Create art, get involved, connect, protest, dance, live, and start to build what comes next. We’ll get through this, and I look forward to better times ahead with you all. Sending love to the Haight.
