Winter Solstice, December 22, 2011 12:30am EDT

Winter Solstice has arrived north of the equator, bringing with it a deep urge for contemplation and exploration of inner mysticism. We have just spent a lot of time working with goal setting, and those Southern Hemisphere people, you must take a look of the goals you set on the Spring Equinox and see how it’s going. It is time to put those goals and ideas out into the greater community in a practical way. The next 3 months are all about implementing, structuring and creating those goals here, now. Because I feel that so many of us are struggling to stay afloat, I am going to focus a lot of my writing on prosperity and opportunity, because I fell that it is crucial to bridge the divide between spirituality and money, allowing abundance and feeling empowered to unleash our dreams into reality. I think it is important that we deal with these ideas, because they will influence how we politically work them out and safe guard our future. What we do personally has great impact on the global at this time

I think this Solstice is an important one. There are a couple of schools of thought about the end of the Mayan Calendar, one places the end on October 28^th this year and another more academic view is that it is on next years Winter Solstice when the Sun aligns with the Galactic Center. The has sun already come closer to the Galactic Center in 1998, so I don’t think that it is as big of a deal as we are hearing about, although it is significant. I tend to agree with the newer calculations that put the end on October 28^th, as the trends we are going through really match up to that timing. I place greater importance on THIS Solstice, as it is the first one to follow the end of the calendar. It appears to be a doorway into another set of energies that are very specific in their workings on us. And does herald a time of change and the incorporation of the new into our lives.

I firmly believe that we are in a time of connecting to greater flow and abundance, even though it seems so dark. It’s like we have one foot in scarcity and real financial adjustment, and the other foot is in possibility, seeing that we can create something new with excitement about real abundance. Uranus has gone direct and after the new moon on the 24^th, Jupiter will go direct, so we will start the New Year with all planets taking us forward into new territory, which is a great thing. Uranus in Aries is fortunate, as it is about new ideas and the entrepreneurs to carry them forward that is the engine of the economy. When expansive Jupiter goes direct, it will unleash the opportunities to rebuild our lives in an emerging new economy based on reality and not so much on debt. It seems that more and more financial corrections will be taken globally over the next 3 months, restructuring debt and mortgages to bring a new balance.

Creativity is the key to getting us past our financial problems. This creativity needs to be applied to looking at different ways of doing work, and what work in the traditional sense means to us.  Since we have the technology to work virtually, we are going to see big change in how we work together, and how this impacts two income families. The traditional set-up of one partner working full time, while the other takes care of the home is not feasible right now for many of us. There will be many new businesses springing up, and new technologies and local systems to support this. Local food, local services, and engaging in local communities, will balance virtual business, working alone, and technical thinking that is emerging. This is great for the economy.

One thing I want to stress here and will also touch on in the New Moon reading, Jupiter and Lilith are riding the sky together for the next 3 months and this has some significance. Jupiter is expansive and very happy traveling through Taurus. It will help us keep our belts tight where we need to and expand on new possibilities. It will let us enjoy the abundance that is in our lives and compel us to feel good about ourselves and create more. Very positive. The kill-joy is Lilith. She is an asteroid that personifies the dark emotions, the dark moon, women’s hidden power and our inner “bitch.” So I encourage you not to be surprised when you see this coming out, slipping out sometimes, and think about it. Instead of being horrified, work with it. The inner bitch is a good energy that we can use to be more empowered. Don’t slay anyone with it, and by any means don’t use it to be mean. Rather, when in touch with this feeling, we can learn to not be so overly concerned with other people’s feelings and be POWERFUL. It’s ok to be powerful! Other people may not like it, but don’t let that hold you back. The female side of our nature wants to make things smooth and be accepted and sometimes we sacrifice being in touch with our power for others. Now is not the time for that! Let go of that fear and stand up! We must not buy into fear at all, for that is what keeps us from fulfilling our goals. In this time of action, move ahead with the hard stuff despite the fear and you will have great success, and build on that. This is a step-by-step process of recovery.

Two other things I want to focus on: The emergence of women as a force to be reckoned with, and the availing of the mystical inner pull that will ground us through change. They are related, as they are both based in the feminine power of Venus looking to express power, measured with the steady influence of Saturn and wisdom of Jupiter. This influence will be apparent for the next three months. I encourage us all to really pull back, acknowledge the divine creative force within, and use your spiritual practice to ground and diffuse the fear as things continue to unravel around us. It has to. Totally unravel. And we have to be strong enough to let it. Which means we have to be strong spiritually and develop an inner philosophy that will see us through.

As the feminine emerges and invites us open our hearts to the problems of the world and apply creative solutions, we will also see women banding together to balance male repression. I wouldn’t be surprised to see women doing things like having a strike at home (not doing any cooking, cleaning…) or coming together to protest rape and sexual repression in countries where this is status quo. I see women taking back their safety, possessions and reinventing their place in the home. And in the same measure I see men allowing their feminine sides to exist, even inform them and foster compassion for their female counterparts. This is very interesting in a year where Venus plays a bigger part than we have ever seen…for she later eclipses the Sun in June, a rare planetary event in our life times.

This is a very positive start to another 3-month period of change. We are becoming experts at change and this will continue throughout 2012.  I think that issues of food, scarcity and changing growing patterns will emerge as the biggest issues that we will focus on in the coming few years. We will see glimmers of the problems and the opportunities in those sectors in the following months. Also in the way we use, create and store electricity, as many new technologies will emerge that change the power industry. As Saturn traverses Libra, it is upending all kinds of old structures, affecting all levels of the power grid. But because Uranus rules electricity and is in Aries, the new will emerge to bring us forward. So tally-ho, off we go!!

Happy Holidays to all of you! Enjoy this new phase of change!