Gemini Full Moon - What are we all talking about and why does it matter?
Full moon greetings friends, family, neighbors, strangers, lovers, all...
Well now. This has been quite some times eh? Hopefully we've made time in the last few weeks to continue giving thanks and making space to remember all that we're grateful for. It's gratitude and appreciation that will get us through when all us fails. Gratitude's salvation is in remembering the stories of kindness. Remember the small acts (and the large ones) of grace that have been offered and the times when someone "got you" and that was all you needed... Even if you don't feel that now. Remember and be grateful and appreciate. Appreciate that we're all in this together and while no one's story is better, each and every story is unique, and is held tenderly by the one who carries it.
Remember that stories are shared and carried collectively, and that the stories we carry depend upon those around us to continue. Remember that stories are always mythic- there are always beasts to tame, wilds to get lost in and guides to point the way. Remember that we play these roles for one another: the beasts, the wilds, the guides and the hero/ines.
Remember that and appreciate it the next time an adversary challenges you, or someone just "doesn't get" you, or when you feel like the beasts are closing in. We are all here making each other's stories. What kind of character are you?
This full moon reveals herself in Gemini, the sign of the storyteller. Each full moon is an opposition to the sun and reflects the axis of polarity. The Sun is currently in Sagittarius, the sign of the truth-seeker. The Gemini-Sagittarius axis is one that illuminates how the stories we tell become the truths we live, and how the truths we seek become the parameters of our understanding.
The moon represents our inner, instinctual, intuitive, emotional self- the emotional self we revert to when pressed, the one who has learned emotional response from the womb. The moon is the feeling of family lineage that we carry presently, and the water from which our material needs are fed. The sun represents our soul, here differentiated from the spirit that permeates all creation... Imagine spirit as the fire and soul as a single flame. The sun- the flame of our beingness is here to radiate something that is unique and personal but which is also part of, and imperative to, the larger force that's burning.
Every full moon can ask these questions: - How does the emotional lineage that I carry influence my current perception of self? - What understandings have my recent life experiences illuminated that are serving to evolve the question(s) I was born with? - How can I consciously work with my instincts and emotional reactions?
This full moon is coming in the middle of a (r)evolution of understanding that is taking place in our country. The characters that we have been born as are being asked to look at their costumes. What color is your skin? What roles can you play in the costume you have been given? How will the other characters read you? Who do you see as beast and who sees you as their foe? What kind of wilds do you have to wade through? Are they forests of thorns or labyrinths of systemic oppression? Do you have to fight against outer adversaries or inner, unseen prejudice?
The full moon in Gemini is curious and gives the gift of mutability, to change its perceptions if a new and more interesting story is presented. We are seeing a readiness to let go of the same old story and a desire to embrace a new perspective. The Gemini full moon is ruled by Mercury currently conjunct, and acting with, the Sun in Sagittarius. This full moon wants to talk. When does it want it? Now!! The challenge in this conversation is to dig into the big ideas without getting trapped by soundbites and the party line. The Moon, and Sun/Mercury are all square to Neptune and Chiron in Pisces forming what's called a T-Square. The energy of this aspect is one that channels the intensity of the opposition onto the angle of the square. Neptune as the square angle represents attachment to a collective mythology that blinds us to truth as well as the potential remembering and empathy that can free us from our delusions of separation. Chiron is the personal wound, the subjective 'ouch' that requires us to get past the thorns stuck in our sides and submit our frail egos to humbleness and healing.
The tricky part is this... The mythology we are enslaved to is one that our ancestors built, and that we continue to build because that is what we were taught to do from the beginning. It is true that we are all the same underneath these skins, we all suffer, we all seek comfort, we are all trying the best that we can given the resources and situations we are working with. But collectively we have built a story in which some have suffered more at the hands of others, where comfort is a thing that has become commodified and manipulated, often by violence, where resources are stolen and distributed unevenly and without any sense of equity, and sometimes the best that any of us can do is fight...
This full moon is a story that wants to be told. The story is just like any other- it is mythic, it began before the beginning and will continue after the end, every character has been recreated a thousand times, every hero has his vice and every heroine her claws. This story is working itself out in the wilds of the streets, the courtrooms, and the classrooms but most of all in the space between our instincts and our ideals. This full moon is also ready to tell a new story, and your voice is one of the chapters. Tell yourself the story of your becoming... Where did your skin come from? What stories does its color have to tell? How did the stories of your ancestors form the experiences that have shaped your perceptions, and what have you perceived? Tell your story of the past and listen for the story of the future... Listen.
The telling of each story needs to be listened to. And appreciate. Appreciate that each new story departs from one that went before. And be grateful. Give thanks to others telling their stories. Remember that wise-guides often dress up as adversaries and reward those who are willing to extend kindness and not succumb to fear. Remember that knowledge is always a hard won battle of ego, but it is waiting for us when we have given up being right. If we can give that up then all we are left with is curiosity- no right, no wrong, just listening.
With love, Renee
To know more about what this full moon means for you locate 14˚ Gemini in your natal chart. Whatever house the full moon falls in is the area of your life that is ripe for examining the question of how you articulate yourself to yourself and what the bigger ideas are that you can grow into. 4˚-13˚ Pisces is an area that could feel confusing and painful but that ultimately will hold a key for healing. You can find your free chart and many resources for its interpretation here. Melina and I are also both available for readings!
I hope you'll consider joining us on December 30th when we do a very special edition of Embodying the Zodiac for Capricorn. This sign helps us work hard to achieve what matters to us. In the class we'll work with this archetype to super-charge New Year's intentions and clarify our ambitions.
Embodying The Zodiac- Capricorn & New Year's Intentions December 30th 7-9PM $15 Be Space - 211 SE 11th Ave, Portland OR