Checking in from Cannon Beach

Hi everyone!

Not an astrological update here, just wanting to check in and let you know I'm off on vacation in Cannon Beach, Oregon. My two sisters and I decided, after both of our parents' passing a couple of year ago, that we would get together at least once a year and have a retreat weekend together.

So, this year we chose Cannon Beach, a magical place. Just to give you an idea, here's a photo of one of my sisters in front of haystack rock:

Now back in our room, relaxing to the sound of the ocean waves crashing on the beach... One of those reminders that life really is OK.

I'll be back in touch soon.

Pam

Comment on this week's Journal

Hi everyone,

I received an email from a reader today that I'd like to share with you, since it comes from a channeler I respect and gives some additional insights and timelines to our current process of energy shift. Here is a slightly abridged copy of the email text:

Dear Pam,

Thank you for writing in-depth about the Uranus-Jupiter conjunction at 28 degrees Pisces. My Ascendant is at 28 degrees Pisces and I have been picking up for a very long time that I would have to wait til my birthday in Jan 2011 for things to shift altogether.

This process began in August 2008 right around the Beijing Olympics. The disconnection (from the old 3D reality) started in earnest around Jan 15, 2009. Then came Sept 9, 2009, which was another powerful shift.

The 2010 Summer of Transformation followed.

The next shift for many of us was Sept 18, 2010. The Autumn Equinox. After that comes the Jan 4, 2011 shift.

It will come to a fruition in March of 2011. Till then we will be in transition mode.

Your blog always confirms everything I channel. You hit the bulls-eye with the Autumn Equinox-SGC alignment and the releasing of past karma...

I have been picking up since 1985 that I would really start living my "real life/new life for this reincarnation" right around the age of 32 i.e. 2011. Until then, I would spend the first 30 years of my life releasing past karma. I had some very definite spiritual contracts to fulfill and therefore some very powerful past life lessons to visit.

From March 2011 to Dec 2013 many of us will prepare for our new roles in society post the major 2012 shift. After the "Big Shift" in Dec 2012, it will take a full year for the new consciousness to manifest and seep into every facet of society.

So, there you have it, with many thanks to my reader.

Oh, my!

Here we are, Dorothy and Toto and our companions, skipping down the yellow brick road -- but our song is not about "lions and tigers and bears," but rather about "conjunctions and equinoxes and Full Moons," oh, my!

To clarify, over the next seven days, we will be seeing the Uranus-Jupiter conjunction (Saturday, Sept 18), the Equinox/Sun entering Libra (Wednesday, Sept 22), and the Full Moon at Aries Point (Thursday, Sept 23).

If you've been feeling emotionally on a rollercoaster, having trouble sleeping, experiencing odd eating patterns, or just feeling generally out-of-sync this past week, you're not alone. And, I would guess, those symptoms are going to be on the increase up through next Thursday's Full Moon, as we navigate the exaggerated and chaotic nature of these planetary influences.

Perhaps some of the higher purpose of this rapid one-two-three punch is to keep us off-balance -- but not for the amusement of some masochistic gods who are pulling strings from the heavens. The nature of these energies, especially the Uranus-Jupiter conjunction, help us detach from reality as we know it, which usually leaves the space for us to have a different kind of experience, and to interpret our lives from an altered perspective.

Uranus and Jupiter are in Pisces, after all, the sign which is often noted for its innate lack of a firm grasp on reality, and for its ability to transcend the ego. And, according to the NASA Science News site, Jupiter and his volcanic moons are currently at their closest proximity to the Earth in a decade (at the same time as the conjunction with Uranus and the opposition to the Sun!), bringing that Jupiterian amplification of Piscean energies right to our back door.

So -- confused? Finding it hard to stay grounded? Wondering why things are so hard to define, and if the world will ever feel "normal" again? Join the club.

Truth be told, the world is not likely ever to feel as it once did. We're all advancing in consciousness, and once those kinds of growth steps are taken, we don't revert to ignorance, even if we pretend at times that we have.

We may sometimes long for the days when "ignorance was bliss" -- but I'm pretty sure we don't really want to go back. There is another, more enlivening, type of bliss that we can find through awareness, and we've all had at least some tastes of that deliciousness. The one-two-three punch over the next week's time has the potential to take us up the awareness scale another notch, if we're willing and open.

Remember, Dorothy didn't get to the Emerald City by staying in Munchkinland.

Saturn in Libra and REAL-ationships

With all this retrograde Mercury fogginess, it's interesting that relationships are now coming into better focus.

Saturn is fully embracing his Libra tasks now. For many, this involves a reality check when it comes to important relationships and partnerships. Saturn's requirements are very straightforward: work harder on relationships that have value in your life, and be willing to let go of those that have completed their purpose.

The answer to the question of which course to take will not be the same for everyone. Some of us are finding seeds of growth at the core of our relationship apple, and others are finding worms. All we can know for sure is that Saturn in Libra will provide us with opportunities to see the REAL in our REAL-ationships, which will help us know whether or not they are part of the future we want to create.

Our next Full Moon, on September 23 and just hours after the Equinox, may be a turning point for many in this area. That lunation will re-ignite the energies of the Cardinal T-square as the Moon (at 0 degrees Aries) aligns with the Uranus-Jupiter conjunction (at 28 degrees Pisces), the Sun aligns with Saturn in early degrees of Libra, and the North Node and Pluto align in early degrees of Capricorn.

Whew

Yesterday's conjunction between the Sun and Mercury Retrograde had a great deal more impact than I would have expected -- but then, this entire Mercury Retrograde time (since August 20) has seemed to have greater effect than usual. Perhaps because we already don't really know which way we're going, or how to define reality, that adding a Retrograde Mercury can have the effect of tipping us even further out of balance.

Assuming that this occurs with ultimately positive intention, we can look at yesterday's Mercury-Sun alignment and consider how it may have represented a reversal of sorts, a throw-back to another way of being, either from this life or another lifetime.

And perhaps it was especially strong for me because it was exactly conjunct my Virgo Moon... Anyone else with natal planets at 11 degrees Virgo, who also felt a significant impact from the planetary alignment on Friday (September 3)?