Moody, broody, topsy, turvy, waxing, waning, ebbing, flowing, crying, eating, dreaming, feeding, sensing, psyching, scheming, feeling, clutching, cooing, cooking, creating, birthing, parenting, homemaking and sideways walking right down memory lane.
Cancer.
This sign has been described as a whiny baby and Great Mother of all. If any sign encompasses the parent/child dynamic it is this one. Cancer rules one planet and one planet only; the moon. In our own personal charts the moon symbolizes our childhoods, how we were nurtured, nourished and how we felt in connection to the body, mind and soul of the one who birthed us. Momma moon tells the tale of our most vulnerable state of being, the beginning and development of our minds and bodies, hearts and personalities, our little lives entirely dependent on those around us.
The moon wants safety. Cancer wants security. Being a parent isn’t about wild nights and hefty hangovers, unless you count not sleeping for years on end and having other people spit up on every top you own. Being a child is full of risks but our psychology demands a secure lap to run back to or else we develop some pretty interesting survival techniques. And the fact of the matter is that most of us end up with the latter. Most of us didn’t get to experience the kind of safety, attention, support and praise that we needed in order to become self-defining adults with healthy self-esteem and a good nose for staying out of danger.
Oh well.
We must start from where we are. We must move from our center even if that’s a little off kilter. We must do the best that we can until we can do better.
We must grow ourselves up if we want to live lives of depth and meaning.
It’s the hardest thing for Cancer energy to do however. Cancer is too good at codependent collisions and co-opting the corrupting concoctions of others’ emotional emissions. Cancer is sensitive and impressionable – to a fault sometimes – but victim only to its own desire to merge for fear of going it alone. Cancer wants a brood, a family, a tribe and a clan. Cancer wants a homeland to hold tight to and a home to hermit away in. Crabs have claws, pinchers that will hold on with a death grip and an ability to focus on the past like a reverse explorer. Cancer’s constellation rises backwards in the sky: the poor dear is sentimental for the past while it’s still playing out as the present.
On January 4th at 11:53 pm EST there will be a full moon in Cancer. It’s the last moon to set off the Uranus/Pluto square before its end this March meaning that it’s the last moon to realize itself while making contact with these two brewing bodies. This full moon will oppose Pluto and square Uranus.
Uranus innovates and brings unexpected experiences while Pluto pulls us down into the trenches to battle with our demons. During the full moon the sun (conscious, ego, identity) is merging with Pluto in Capricorn (super powers that brew underground where our resources abound). If Cancer is the archetypal mother then Capricorn is the archetypal father. This combination is offering up a moment to consider how we might unearth and heal the unconscious and warped image of “fatherly protection” that is only a thin guise for Pluto in Capricorn’s shadow: Plutocracy. The square to Uranus tells us to expect the unexpected and to go where innovation takes us. It’s important to remember to trust the changes that are occurring when Cancer’s need for security and safety settles in.
Change is the only constant.
This full moon is also in a very tight conjunction with the sun of the astrological chart of the US. America is having a moment. Because of the era defining quality of the Uranus/Pluto square and because of its recent activation of the sun of America we know that this is a time when the identity of this country is being defined, whether it likes it or not. Perhaps there has been no other greater revealing of the underbelly of this country as there has been in these past few months. Thanks to the positive aspects of social media, independent voices and narratives that have been historically squashed are rising to the top of the hashtag pile. We are collectively changing the conversation.
This is represented in the full moon chart by the cluster of faster moving planets in Aquarius: Mercury, Venus and Mars. Our ability to effectively communicate via technology is changing the game, but it’s up to us to make sure we are changing it in ways that benefit the whole. Remembering the personal struggle and healing (Cancer) that needs to be done in the midst of the collective needs and intersecting realities (Mercury, Venus and Mars in Aquarius and the Uranus/Pluto square) is a way to truly transform, grow and evolve. This moon reminds us that we can’t just do one side of the equation. We need to tend to both our inner and outer worlds to find peace.
This full moon is also the culmination point of the Winter Solstice and new moon in Capricorn that occurred on December 21st. That was a moment of initiation, intention setting and making real concrete moves towards future goals. This full moon is one that wishes to initiate healing. Crying, creating, cooking, eating, sleeping are all good things to do while managing the bigger changes in our lives. Cancer desperately wants to cling to the past, but this is a time when that is not possible. Get rest when and where you can, shed tears that are ready for release and buckle up because everything is in the midst of great change.
Full moon blessings,
Chani
Extra Astro Info For Cosmic Freaks & Geeks:
This full moon is also squaring the north and south nodes (places where eclipses occur) in Libra and Aries respectively. This means that we are half way between eclipses and half way through their curriculum. The last set happened in October 2014 and the next set that will go off will be in March/April 2015. There may not be a massive event come this full moon, but what we choose to do at this moment holds great sway on the outcome of the larger events at play. This is a mid point in the cycle and it means to highlight and deal with the ways in which we treat ourselves and each other, how the personal is political and how we can stay true to our independence while being committed to our partnerships (the Aries/Libra polarity).