Dec. 22, 2019

We are now in one of those moments where everything seems to be happening at once. Times like this require special care: you have to take care of your responsibilities, take care of yourself, and manage not to get overwhelmed.

Photo by Stonehenge Stone Circle/Flickr.

Several major astrological events are developing around the time of the civil holidays, which is adding to the pressure.

It’s important that you sort out what might be some obligation (real or imagined) from the outside, and what you must take care of personally, for your own benefit and sanity. The overarching event is, of course, the Saturn-Pluto conjunction on Jan. 12. That’s the one with the longest story arc; you might be addressing matters that go back years.

So you may be trying to resolve things that are not necessarily obvious on their face. It would be wise of you to figure out what they are. Bring the important stuff to the surface and deal with it.

Saturn-Pluto is emphasizing the need to prioritize the truly meaningful issues. Make sure you’re taking care of them, and not getting lost in the sauce of things that really don’t matter so much. Many issues that people have a tendency to push back are the very things that will be coming to the surface under the influence of Saturn-Pluto.

You are likely to have several significant opportunities to resolve old material, relationships and family matters. Remember, you’re in charge of your life.

The winter solstice occurred overnight Saturday to Sunday in most time zones; the Sun is now in Capricorn. The solstice alone comes with a bit of a crux point: we’re just coming out of that moment of maximum compression (in the Northern Hemisphere) and maximum stretch (in the Southern). So just that can apply considerable pressure.

However, we are also approaching an eclipse of the Sun in Capricorn. This is an annular eclipse, at about 4 degrees of that sign. Note that this will be the last solar eclipse in Capricorn for this cycle; the next one is in about nine years. So this, too, is talking about resolving what you need to resolve.

The eclipse is close to the South Node, which says that it’s about releasing old material. It’s also close to Jupiter, which is about expanding into new possibilities. Both are going on at once. You might think of this as an exchange process.

May 10, 2013, annular solar eclipse — often called a ring of fire eclipse. The “fire” is really the sun’s brilliant surface, shining behind the Moon in the far part of its orbit around Earth. Photo by Geoff Sims.

Consciously let go of what you don’t want, and allow in what you do want.

One thing I’ve noticed from many years working as an astrologer is that people tend to fall in love with their problems. This includes the tendencies that surround their problems, but it’s really all one thing.

The other tendency is to throw away what people don’t want, rather than consciously addressing it. But you want to take the time now to actually look through what you’re getting rid of, and consider how you feel about it, before you toss it into the dustbin.

This is going to be an intense few weeks, and this week’s Christmas holiday is sitting right on the bubble of a solar eclipse. You will need to use your spiritual mastery, or at least your training, to direct the flow of your life.

Where family gatherings are concerned, I recommend directing your attention to children, cats and dogs — and stick to your one favorite relative. If political discussions ensue, you can save yourself trouble by not taking a position, and instead gently probing people, inquiring how they know what they know.

You will hear some entertaining things.

Note, the monthly horoscope is scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 26. Check your email then.

With love,