Hi and welcome to the Stella Starwoman December AstroUpdate!!
Sorry it’s a little late – I could blame it on Mercury retrograde, but there’s just been so much stuff going on as we head towards the summer solstice and festive season!
I’d like to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas and all the best for 2019 which promised to be a bumper year with Jupiter in home sign Sagittarius and the Year of the Pig. To my long term subscribers, thank you so much for supporting my work for all these years and to those who are new to AstroUpdate, a very warm welcome.
Romancing the Stone – Nine Ladies Stone Circle
The word ‘boutique’ has definitely been overused, but if ever there were a boutique stone circle, The Nine Ladies is it. No prizes for guessing how many stones there are…. but apparently there used to be more, perhaps as many as twelve. Monica and I did notice some gaps, when we visited back in September. (Monica is from Ohio, home of the mighty Serpent Mound, a formation that rivals the great Serpent Temple in Avebury and which I hope to visit someday.)
The Nine Ladies Circle is on Stanton Moor in the Peak District, a rather wild national park in northern England. Legend has it that nine feisty ladies were turned to stone for dancing to the music of a fiddler on the Christian Sabbath. The fiddler is the King Stone – a standing stone about 40 metres from the main circle. However, the embanked stone circle which is about 10 metres wide, has been found to date back to the Bronze Age and is at least 4000 years old. Nine Ladies is part of a large complex of prehistoric circles and standing stones on Stanton Moor used to mark earth energy points and track the cycles of the sun and moon.
Unlike Avebury, tourists were thin on the ground and we had the circle to ourselves apart from a few sheep. It was lovely sitting with our backs to the stones and soaking up the energy. It felt very intimate and enchanting to be hanging out with the Nine Ladies...and I think Monica felt the same way!
Happy Birthday Capricorn!
This year, from the 22nd December to the 20th January the Sun travels through earth sign Capricorn, noted for its shrewdness, self-discipline, determination to get ahead and respect for tradition and authority. Capricorn is the tenth sign of the zodiac with keywords “I aspire” and “I persist”.
Capricorns have practical and executive ability, are very responsible and love status. They are prepared to work incredibly hard to achieve their dreams and goals. Those born under the sign of the Goat often lead a solitary existence, feeling burdened by the responsibility they carry and struggling with the limitations of material life. At best they use their leadership skills to serve the community and act as pillars of strength for friends and family, believing patient hard work brings its own rewards. Negatively, Capricorns can be selfish, mean, ruthless and materialistic with a tendency to arrogance and autocratic or controlling behaviour.
In medical astrology, Capricorn rules the skin, knees and bones and also has a reflex action on the stomach. When Capricorns are out of balance they can suffer from rheumatism, arthritis, skin complaints such as rashes and boils and digestive disturbances. There can be a tendency towards pessimism and depression. The Capricorn colours are brown and black. Capricorn’s greatest lesson is to lighten up and express their feelings.
Full Moon in Cancer – Love Your Family
The December full moon falls on the 23rd in water sign Cancer, archetype of family and tribe. Family is always important at this time of year and with the full moon falling so close to Christmas we have the opportunity to act with kindness, consideration and gratitude towards members of our own family with the aim of healing any rifts. A conjunction between communication planet Mercury and benevolent Jupiter in Sagittarius will help us think positively, empathise with others and speak our truth. And as full moons bring clarity and awareness, now is perfect time to look back on the events of 2018, celebrating and acknowledging the highs and lows.
Celebrating the Summer Solstice
This year the Australian summer solstice falls on the 22nd December as the sun moves into Capricorn - a time to relish the fullness of life and raise our energy to create abundance and manifest dreams. For thousands of years, people all over the world have celebrated the summer solstice, also known as Midsummer Day, Litha or St. John's Day.
Sol + stice derives from a combination of Latin words meaning "sun" + "to stand still”. As the days grow longer, the sun rises higher in the sky until it seems to stand still for three days, marking the longest days and shortest nights of the year.
Here are some ideas for celebrating the solstice and midsummer with a focus on sunshine, life, lightness, brightness, fertility, joy and the power of nature!
Seven Summer Solstice Celebrations
- Rise early and meditate as you watch the sun rise. Enjoy a cup of hot spicy ginger or cinnamon tea.
- Visit a farmer’s market or berry farm and fill your basket with bountiful summer produce.
- If you live in an area where you can light fires, host a bonfire party with dancing, music, singing and drumming. Dance the night away, throw fresh herbs into the fire and make your wishes for the future.
- Head to the beach, lake or river with friends to swim in the cool waters and celebrate the great outdoors and your connection with nature and the cosmos.
- Pick fresh flowers, place in a jar of water then cover and leave in the sun to make a magical potion to use as you will. Make a beautiful wreath of flowers to wear in your hair.
- Host a picnic or BBQ dinner on the eve of the solstice. Create a large sun wheel with flowers, twigs and moss. Take some strips of paper and have your friends and family write a wish on each one and tie it to the wreath.
- Light some brightly coloured candles and create your own Altar of Light surrounded by luscious summer fruits and flowers. Meditate on all you have to be grateful for at this special time of year while drinking a toast to the sun.
Mercury Direct - Back on Track
Communication planet Mercury has been travelling backwards through the tactless but brutally honest fire sign Sagittarius since 17th November, pushing us to deal with unfinished business, delivering home truths and alerting us to hunches and gut feelings. When Mercury is retrograde, our unconscious and intuitive sides are extremely active and the best laid plans often come to a halt as events take on a life of their own. On 7th December, Mercury comes to a halt and will start moving forwards again, helping us make sense of the events of the past three weeks… and you never know - that missing sweater/parcel/document could well turn up!
Personally I am hoping to find the missing footrest on my dad’s wheelchair, which disappeared from the nursing home the day Mercury went retrograde! We can’t take him out with just one footrest, so he’s literally been stopped from moving forward. Damn that pesky planet!!
Sagittarius New Moon - Out of the Comfort Zone
The December new moon falls on the 7th in excitable fire sign Sagittarius, the same day Mercury completes his retrograde cycle. New moons favour new beginnings, so prepare to step out of your comfort zone and make plans for the future.
A challenging angle between the new moon and Mars and Neptune in Pisces will force you to bide your time and refine your ideas, but that’s not such a bad thing, given that Sagittarius can be overly optimistic. Pay attention to hunches, dreams and gut feelings and they’ll lead you in the right direction. Nothing ventured… nothing gained!
November & December Moon Calendar
Launch projects a couple of days after the New Moon, bring them to completion in the period from just before the Full Moon to the Third Quarter phase and wind them down and reflect on developments in the week before the next New Moon.
The period between the New Moon and the Full Moon is the waxing moon (moon getting bigger and fuller). The period between the Full Moon and the New Moon is the waning moon (moon getting smaller and thinner).
You can use this moon table to select the most favourable days to slow or increase hair regrowth. Full instructions can be found in my Lunar Hair Care guidelines but to get you started I’ve marked the best dates for waxing/shaving to slow regrowth in yellow and the best dates to cut hair for thicker, lusher growth in green. If you’re serious about Lunar Hair Care – why not purchase a moon calendar, available at most esoteric book stores, then you’ll know exactly what time of day the moon changes from one zodiac sign to the next, meaning you can fine-tune your activities with confidence.
|
Date |
Moon Sign |
Element |
Moon Phase |
|
NOVEMBER |
|||
|
1st-2nd |
Leo |
Fire |
Third Quarter |
|
2nd-4th |
Virgo |
Earth |
|
|
4th-7th |
Libra |
Air |
|
|
7th-9th |
Scorpio |
Water |
New Moon 8th |
|
9th-11th |
Sagittarius |
Fire |
|
|
11th-14th |
Capricorn |
Earth |
|
|
14th-16th |
Aquarius |
Air |
First Quarter |
|
16th-19th |
Pisces |
Water |
|
|
19th-21st |
Aries |
Fire |
|
|
21st-23rd |
Taurus |
Earth |
|
|
23rd-25th |
Gemini |
Air |
Full Moon 23rd |
|
25th-27th |
Cancer |
Water |
|
|
27th-29th |
Leo |
Fire |
|
|
29th-2nd |
Virgo |
Earth |
Third Quarter |
|
Date |
Moon Sign |
Element |
Moon Phase |
|
DECEMBER |
|||
|
1st-2nd |
Virgo |
Earth |
|
|
2nd-4th |
Libra |
Air |
|
|
4th-6th |
Scorpio |
Water |
|
|
6th-8th |
Sagittarius |
Fire |
New Moon 7th |
|
8th-11th |
Capricorn |
Earth |
|
|
11th-13th |
Aquarius |
Air |
|
|
13th-16th |
Pisces |
Water |
First Quarter |
|
16th-18th |
Aries |
Fire |
|
|
18th-21st |
Taurus |
Earth |
|
|
21st-23rd |
Gemini |
Air |
|
|
23rd-25th |
Cancer |
Water |
Full Moon 23rd |
|
25th-27th |
Leo |
Fire |
|
|
27th-29th |
Virgo |
Earth |
|
|
29th-31st |
Libra |
Air |
Third Quarter |
Thanks for being part of AstroUpdate. If there’s something you’d like to see featured, or have something you think would interest others, please contact me at stella@stellastarwoman.com
Happy Stargazing
Stella Woods
www.stellastarwoman.com