Starshine News Spring 2021

Starshine News Vol.25, #2

Spring 2021 wind.jyoti@gmail.com www.jyotiwindastrology.com Dear Friends, Right now, (28Feb-29June) Pluto is 1deg. away from conjunct the Pluto in the U.S. chart. One degree is considered an org of power, close but not exact. So, right now, we are as a country, beginning a dance more closer-in to Pluto’s energies of deep transformation and change. We are getting a taste of something right now. When the aspect is exact (3Feb-10Mar’22, 22June-4Aug’22, Sept.-Oct’23) we will be immersed in it. Powers and Nations rise and fall. It is the nature of life as we know it. A mirror to the rise and fall of land masses from undersea to mountain top over a much longer cycle of time. The U.S., experiencing it’s first Pluto Return, will test its strengths, its beliefs, its direction, its sense of empowerment. It is inevitable that there will be changes, different ideas and perceptions reworked. Remember Pluto is the Phoenix bird that dives down into the fire of transformation to be reborn. I also see Pluto as the 500# gorilla in the room and the U.S. is already feeling its breath on its neck. We are preparing for change. This will occur as a collective, and on the individual levels as well. This is a rite of passage for this country. We will emerge stronger and more empowered as a nation, as a people. Ultimately. The process to get there might seem very intense. Be well, Jyoti Spring Meditation Take a deep breath. Send it down into the core of the Earth and draw up these energies to your heart. Next breath, send awareness with your breath out to the cosmos/a star, bring the energy down into your heart. Release this energy from your heart our to the world/Earth. Third breath, down into the Earth up to the heart and up to the star/heavens and down into the heart in one breath, releasing it out through your heart to the global Earth. Fourth Breath, the same. Astrological Services Consultations are $120. They include: Natal, and Transit Reading. Relationship Charts. Astrocartography Maps. Shamanic Journeys. Spiritual Consulting. Children’s Charts: $60 under 14 yrs. Sliding scale available

Bless all those who walked this land before me. May they have peace and plenty and blessing, and I walk in harmony and respect of the land. Jaime Meyer, Drumming the Soul Awake.

Astrology Column

April begins with Mercury entering Aries on the 3rd. New ideas, new beginnings and some impatience. The New Moon on 11th at 8:31PM/MDT brings a push to look at where we diminish ourselves and how to take our power back. Expand projects. Power struggles possible on the 16th, some frustration on the 17th, and Pluto is stationing between April 20-May 6. We have days of looking deeper. Freedom needs on the 22nd and insights on the 23rd. The Full Moon on the 26th at 9:32PM/MDT says relationships may be challenging. Express your feelings and be clear. On the 27th, Pluto turns Retrograde (Rx) and brings a day of intensity and the beginning of more internal transformative work. Expect the unexpected on the 30th.

May begins with insights on the 2nd, trusting your own wisdom on the 3rd, and expanding your creativity on the 6th. The New Moon on the 11th at 1PM/MDT brings a good deal of personal power. Good time for study and learning. On May 13, Jupiter moves into Pisces for two months and then back into Aquarius until the end of the year. Jupiter expands opportunities and endeavors for Aquarians this year, Pisces next year. On the 15th, Mercury enters its shadow for its next Rx cycle. Mercury will be moving through Gemini so it’s about communication and how well one is doing that. Insights into language, into being forthcoming or not, and looking at our choice-making capacities. Very empowering day on the 17th and between May 21-26, Saturn is stationing and we look at our goals, our perseverance, and our willingness to work for what we want. Saturn turns Rx on the 23rd and we work on our sense of inner discipline for a while. The Lunar Full Moon Eclipse on the 26th at 5:14AM/MDT brings polarities. Inquire, don’t just assume others think differently than you. Create and ‘us’ instead of an ‘us vs them’. Mercury turns Rx on the 29th at 4:34PM/MDT. We begin to look inwardly for the next 3 weeks. Always good to have a project to work on when Mercury turns Rx.

June begins with Saturn trine Sun on the 3rd and brings goals closer with a willingness to work for them. The Solar New Moon Eclipse on the 10th at 4:53AM/MDT brings opportunities to see and speak the truth. Be open to seeing deeper parts of self. On the 14th, Saturn is square Uranus for the 2nd pass. This is the signature aspect of the year. It directs us to find the balance between the old, traditional way with the new, innovative way forward. Not an easy task and there is frustration as a push to let go of things that no longer fit. The Summer Solstice occurs on the 20th at 9:32PM (also Father’s Day) and brings healing opportunities and insights into when to hold on and when to let go. Neptune is stationing between June 21-July 1, and it gives dreams, visions, and asks for spiritual clarity. Mercury turns Direct on the 22nd at 4PM/MDT and we begin to express what the previous 3 weeks showed us. The Full Moon on the 24th at 12:40PM/MDT brings inspiration amidst challenges. Confrontation perhaps. Be willing to drop what’s not working. We end the month with Neptune turning Rx on the 25th and we work on our spiritual thoughts and belief systems over the next 5 months. Happy Summer!

New Moon Apr 11 8:31PM/MDT

Full Moon Apr 26 9:32PM/MDT

New Moon May 11 1PM/MDT

Mercury enters its shadow May 15

Lunar Full Moon Eclipse May 26 5:14AM/MDT

Mercury turns Retrograde May 29 4:34PM/MDT

Solar New Moon Eclipse June 10 4:53AM/MDT

Summer Solstice June 20 9:32PM/MDT

Mercury turns Direct June 22 4PM/MDT

Full Moon June 24 12:40PM/MDT

Mercury’s Cycle

enters shadow May 15

Mercury Rx May 28

Mercury Direct June 22

Mercury catches up July 7

Spring 2021 Book Reviews

The Perfume Garden by Kate Lord Brown. Emily, mourning the passing of her mother and the loss of her own relationship, travels to Spain to a villa her mother had owned. Pregnant, disheartened, she vows to keep her mother’s wishes as a perfumer alive. She sets about restoring the villa and the scent gardens, finding more and more about her own history. From the war in Spain in the late 30s to her present experience, all is not what it seems, and she learns who she really is.

In the Woods by Tana French, Mystery. This book actually is the first book in the Dublin Murder Squad Series. Here in her debut novel, winner of numerous awards, we meet Detective Rob Ryan and his partner Cassie Maddox, investigating the murder of a young girl. Her body was found in the woods adjacent to an archeological dig in Ireland. These are the same woods that Rob was found as the only young survivor of a triple missing child incident when he was a kid. The other two children were never found. It haunts him, being in these woods again. Part psychological thriller, part police procedure, we walk with Rob through his process in trying to solve both crimes if he can. Loved this engrossing story. Am ready for the second book.

The Coincidence of Coconut Cake by Amy E. Reichert. Lou brings her signature Coconut Cake as a surprise breakfast birthday gift to her fiancé. Surprising her as she walks in on him and his assistant. Running through the street, with remnants of the cake she had thrown down on the entryway floor on her clothes, she collides with snarky British food critique, Al. They have a moment, there on the Chicago street, and then she runs off, heartbroken. Al’s review of Luella’s French Restaurant with such sarcasm and derision was a death knell for Lou’s restaurant. Little did either of them know who the other person actually was. They meet again, Lou showing him all the foodie highlights of the city, from food fests to food stands at the park. The inevitable occurs as Lou finds out it was he who began the fall of her dream of the restaurant. I loved the sensuality of food, the transformative arc, and the heart of the story.

Encounters with Nature: An Artist’s Spiritual Awakening by Jan Wright. Journeys into the South West States and Deserts. We read the stories of Jan’s experiences, the paintings, the references to animal medicine meanings. We go on the journeys she undertakes and the ensuing transformations she goes through. Really enjoyed the paintings and her stories, and her realizations along the way. Available: www.janwrightwatercolors.com $26. Jan Wright, 13602 Road 33.6, Mancos, CO 81328.

Shamanic Depossession: A Compassionate Healing Practice by Peter Salomone, Shamanic Practitioner. This slim book is packed with basic shamanic concepts and how to conduct oneself in the shamanic worlds. His knowledge of possession, how and why it happens, and how to use shamanic tools to address it, and know what you are doing, is so needed now for those who are deepening their work. I am so grateful that this book is available.

Shamanic Possession and other True Healing Miracles by Brad ‘Little Frog’ Hudson. Actual cases in this slim volume takes you inside the journeys and healing processes of depossessing clients of those who have attached themselves to this host, out of loss, out of fear and confusion. I loved this book.

High Treason at the Grand Hotel by Kelly Oliver. Book 2 in the Fiona Figg series. Fiona finds herself dressed up as Harold the bellhop at the Grand Hotel in Paris. WWII is in full swing, Mata Hari is staying at this hotel as well as Frederick Frederickson, a suspected double agent, Fiona, as British spy, is in full gear, changing between her bellhop role and her own personal, trying to solve the murder of an Austrian Countess. I enjoyed Book 1 and this one. Book 3 is not out yet.

If women remember that once upon a time we sang with the tongues of seals and flew with the wings of swans, that we forged our own paths through the dark forest while creating a community of its many inhabitants, then we will rise up rooted, like trees.

And is we rise up rooted, like trees…well then, women might indeed save not only ourselves, but the world. From If Women Rose Rooted by Sharon Blackie.

As shamanism is a way of life, you can be spontaneous with your ceremonies. You might find yourself out in nature and feel guided to pick up a stick and break it, signifying that you are ready to disconnect from an unhealthy relationship. Or you might be sitting in a beautiful place in nature and decide to use your breath to blow your old wounds into a stone and then bury the stone in the earth, always ending with gratitude for the earth’s ability to release the energy as fertilizer for new growth. These spontaneous acts are types of healing ceremonies. From the Book of Ceremony: Shamanic Wisdom for Invoking the Sacred in Everyday Life by Sandra Ingerman.

Witness

(Prompt:) “The act of turning around & catching the goodness in ourselves is to wake up.” Natalie Goldberg

The mirror of the world

Bounces back our attitudes.

Witness

Mistakes too easily seen, deflated with compassion.

Witness

The light of goodness grow ever stronger,

Emanating from within.

Terra Rafael

The Glass Castle, A Memoir by Jeannette Walls. This was a fascinating read, especially during this Covid virus experience. If I ever imagined myself to be resourceful and resilient, and I have, the pages of this book opened me to whole other level of a woman's life journey on this planet - at this time. When this book was first recommended to me, I resisted; but once I opened the cover and read the first two paragraphs, I was completely captivated. The author tells the story of her life - a nearly unbelievable saga of chaos and turbulence - with humor and grace and sensitivity for her family. It was both heart warming and heart breaking. I highly recommend this book, its lessons will stay with me forever. Guest Reviewer: Annette Price.

The Way of the Seabhean: An Irish Shamanic Path by Amantha Murphy with Orla O’Connell. Amantha shares her personal stories amidst the myths she grew up with. As a Shamanic Teacher, she weaves her teachings, her truths, into her narrative. I loved her perspectives on life, her journey offerings, her weavings of the Wheel of the Year and the seasonal directives. Twenty-five years in the making and I’m so glad it happened! I loved this book.

Who I Am

I am a listener at the door of the Universe,

willing to embrace whatever I overhear.

I am the long-legged bird that wades into the deep waters,

daring the tides to drown me.

I am the strong-willed molecule of spirit

that fights the darkness with words and a sabre of Light.

I am a pattern-reader and gate-keeper, a defender of the Holi of Holies,

yet genuflects before Truth.

And I am the chooser of free will wherever freedom speaks,

cherishing the choices of all who live.

Jyoti Wind

Death in Focus by Anne Perry. Elena Standish, on assignment as a photographer, finds herself drawn to Ian Newton. He’s kindly and they decide to travel together, via train, from Italy back to London via Paris. World events begin to intrude on their budding relationship and Elena winds up in pre WWII Berlin. Perry’s writing always moves me, her breadth of subject includes the geo-political climate of that time. I really enjoyed this deeper read.

Testimony

(for my daughters) I want to tell you that the world is still beautiful. I tell you that despite children raped on city streets, shot down in school rooms, despite the slow poisons seeping from old and hidden sins into our air, soil, water, despite the thinning film that encloses our aching world. Despite my own terror and despair. I want you to know that spring is no small thing, that the tender grasses curling like a baby's fine hairs around your fingers are a recurring miracle. I want to tell you that the river rocks shine like God, that the crisp voices of the orange and gold October leaves are laughing at death, I want to remind you to look beneath the grass, to note the fragile hieroglyphs of ant, snail, beetle. I want you to understand that you are no more and no less necessary than the brown recluse, the ruby- throated hummingbird, the humpback whale, the profligate mimosa. I want to say, like Neruda, that I am waiting for "a great and common tenderness", that I still believe we are capable of attention, that anyone who notices the world must want to save it.

~ Rebecca Baggett ~

Last Port of Call by Jean Grainger. Jean writes of families and relationships, usually placed in Ireland. Here we meet young Harp Delaney, an eccentric child who feels like an adult, living with her mother, Rose, and Mr. Devereaux, the eccentric lord of the manor where they live. He opens his library to Harp and teaches her his knowledge of the world. Through mishap, Harp and Rose’s life suddenly change, and we meet some very interesting and wonderful people, bound for the new world of America. Loved this! (1st novel in a new series.)

Our Prayer Body

Our prayer body receives the blessings of each moment

and offers thanks.

It knows we have no real life without the blessings

given to us.

Our prayer body opens to accept life,

offers ourselves

to its ongoingness and remembers those

in our care.

Our prayer body is humble

before the Great Mystery,

before the heart