Forecast for week of July 30-August 5, 2012

By Kathy Biehl

Relationships are coming back to the fore. We all have a clarified, reshaped and more sharply focused sense of self, after the puzzle pieces and choices that abounded last week. Opportunities are now here to firm up relationships and agreements to match those freshly honed identities — and, in the process, reshape ourselves even more.

Everything is moving, inescapably, into a new paradigm — yes, I groan at that word myself, but it really does apply to what is happening within each and within each of our connections. We are different. We are relating to each other differently. The structures and rules of our relationships are, as a result, vastly different, too.

These two steps occur on top of each other, so intertwined that the relationship ramifications are developing even as the personal shifts are still going on. The phrase “work in progress” applies to a lot right now. Even so, firm, clear and very real parameters are taking shape that will stay with us.

This week the Sun, which embodies our sense of self, is contacting both of the change agents that are fomenting the relentless upheaval we are experiencing and seeing on so many fronts. Both contacts occur during overnight hours, well before dawn on Monday and on Tuesday. The timing causes the shift resulting from each contact to lock into place in the subconscious (although we will certainly feeling the pressure during waking hours the day before).

The Sun starts the week at a choice point with Pluto, guardian of what lies beneath and holder of the ultimate power of life, death and rebirth. We cast our lot with either fear, compulsions and demons in one direction, or personal truth and alignment with a greater consciousness in the other. The choice permanently changes our psyche and relationship to power; a part of us dies so that the remainder may grow and flourish.

An open channel follows to the liberating, awakening electricity of Uranus. New possibilities are opening up for who we are and who we can be. The Plutonian/Uranian one-two guarantees an end to putting up with situations that squelch or imprison you, simply to keep the peace. Personal honesty, liberation and unfettered freedom of movement and exploration are becoming imperatives.

They’re actually invigorating and intoxicating, to be honest. This has probably already been occurring to you, even if you’re still cowering in soul-deadening circumstances because you don’t see a way out, or feel brave enough to rock the boat. Make that haven’t, up to now. Mice are roaring. Standing up for yourself in even a tiny way makes a huge impact now.

While our inner world is the first frontier for this end of the equation, it will likely also play out through external developments. Watch what blows open, lands in your lap or flies into your life from a direction or source you did not see coming.

All of this coincides with a strengthening, solidifying, grounding and real-making trend in relationships. The astrological timing dovetails perfectly with the psychological. When we are more truly ourselves, we are more present in relationships, and relationships become more honest, true and real.

What’s bringing this on: Venus, ruler of all that we value on a mundane level (relationships, money, possessions, core values, aspects of our selves), is linking with the ruler of stability and commitment, Saturn himself. Situations of lasting value are shaping up. Ones that can’t support us in the long run are winding down.

Information and negotiations are going to fly this week fleshing out new ground rules, discussing where both parties want the relationship to go (and how to get there), making commitments and hashing out exit strategies.

Don’t go into this with anxiety. It will be easy to talk. Conversations will flow. People will be astonishingly amenable to them, too. You don’t have to manipulate or engineer; more than once you will find yourself in the right place at the right time. (You do, however, have to step up to opportunity when it appears.) You already know where most of these situations are heading, or at least you know the direction that you want.

Remember: lasting value is at the top of everyone’s list. That’s why this has not been a summer for light-hearted romance or casual flings. Those would be distractions and interruptions. What we need now are companions who can walk shoulder to shoulder with us, true to their own journey and yet supportive of ours.

There’s also an element of coming to grips with sober, and sobering, reality: recognizing what is feasible and what is not. If you’re hoping that someone who treated you badly is going to come back, undergo a personality change and never engage in that objectionable behavior again…that relationship is in the second category. To which you are starting to wise up.

You won’t want anything other than what is true to you. The clean-up event in this process ensures that: the Aquarius Full Moon late Wednesday/early Thursday. This Moon is not only ruled by Uranus, one of the change agents already at work this week and for the foreseeable future, but it is also in direct and free-flowing contact with the liberating, awakening firepower that Uranus is wielding in Aries. More in my mooncast, which will be posted by Wednesday.

Venus and Saturn are toning down some of the “my way or the highway” impulses, but fires of individuality and personal freedom are igniting and flaring. Reckless, maybe; bold, probably; fast-acting, for certain. Know thyself. Be true to yourself. Speak up. And don’t make agreements you can’t or don’t want to keep.

For more big-picture information (and strategies), visit my Summer of 2012 Resource page. Bookmark this and come back to it again and again!

For another take on this week’s events, listen to my quickie podcast. If you like it, please give it five stars on iTunes! NEW: You can now get my podcast as an app for your iPhone, iPad or iPod! Info under this week’s podcast.

Monday: Pay attention to how you feel this morning — not physically but emotionally and energetically. Your sense of self clarified and crystallized overnight. Baggage dropped; old definitions fell away; somehow you have been sharpened and focused. Don’t you feel calmer, more secure and more accepting of yourself? The day’s journey is an emotional exploration of what the recent shifts and upheaval mean for you personally. You’re looking at change, feeling change, processing change and breaking free. It’s a stage, sure, but you’re engaging in the process, probably more consciously and willingly than before. It might be useful to put writing materials by your bed.

Tuesday: The dance of the change agents continues overnight. This round goes from freestyle flailing to couples dancing in a shared predictable rhythm. Even if you rarely pay attention to your dreams, think them over this morning. Look for clues that a door opened, a chain broke or a brazenly new possible future played out. Your heart has also settled down. You’ve made an internal commitment, at a minimum to what your heart needs, and possibly to specific external situations as well. Whether the second part is true or not, your social and financial dealings have entered a calmer, more stable stage — which involve maturely dismantling them as well as locking them in for the long haul. You have the whole evening to ponder. The Moon pushes off from stabilizing Saturn to go void of course around 7:30 PM, until just before 6 AM EDT tomorrow.

Wednesday: Change agent Uranus rules the day. One thing’s for sure: it won’t be boring! He’s the last planet the Moon contacts before she becomes full (after midnight in the East, late tonight in the rest of the US) — and he rules her, to boot. The contact brings an opportunity to shake up the evening, your plans, your thinking. Whether it’s a huge monkey wrench or just a little buzz of electricity, consider it well before dismissing it. (Not dismissing it, of course, would be even better.) The Full Moon is lighting up all kinds of issues involving how well you can be your unique self while coexisting with others. My money’s on your casting your lot with the being your unique self part of the equation. More in my mooncast, which will be on the site by Wednesday.

Thursday: “There’s a bright golden haze on the meadow….” Enjoy the optimism and good-heartedness that launches the day. Don’t you feel great about yourself? Tell yourself that your glass is half full — heck, it’s overflowing, really — and spend a little time inventorying why this is true. You could end up convincing yourself, and you’ll definitely fill your frame of reference with happiness and gratitude (an unbeatable magnet for more!) Social interactions may push some buttons as the morning progresses, but that could serve to expand your sense of self (and that glorious, golden frame of reference) even more. Stay in gratitude. Keep seeing your glass overflowing. That will steer you clear of the aggressions, arguments and agendas that will be erupting out of clouds of confusion late tonight.

Friday: Today belongs to Neptune, bringer of dreams, compassion and divine love. (Also happy hours, which may come ahead of schedule.) The Moon spends the day in his home waters of Pisces and meets with him right after diving in, sending out waves of gentleness and escapism. As appealing as staring out the window is, there’s still work to be done, deadlines to be met, commitments to be honored — and, somehow, the drive to follow through. (This is an excellent day to pull in otherworldly helpers, by the way, should you be inclined to that sort of tactic.) Mercury hits a choice point with Neptune: The trickster meets the lord of deception, and you may have to rely on guidance to decide which direction leads to truth and which to smoke and mirrors.

Saturday: The rulers of desire and money are squaring off today. Frustration could be great. You could spy a temptation that you want oh so badly but can not reach. You may be torn between a garden variety hankering and something that every cell in your body is screaming for. The takeaway: You’re getting some distance on the whole issue of love and money (with special meaning for those of you in triangles). Against this backdrop the skies are delivering one unfriendly aspect after another. Use the resulting edginess to gain distance and perspective.

Sunday: You may wake up thinking, “Whew! Glad that’s over.” Only it’s not. Pervasive uneasiness continues today. Let it fuel personal (and private, please) research expeditions. By evening opportunities will open up to discuss everything like civilized people. Before, though….proceed at your own risk.

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