After the solar eclipse in Aries this April something shifted, and while time seemed to be moving quickly already, it's almost like we hopped over to another parallel track. Check out the Journal Entry on Starting Anew.
There was a wilder nature to this particular spring and summer has come in like a long and sultry afternoon, a balm to the dizzying skips we’ve been making thus far.
When we make a jump—whether intentional or circumstantial—there is a moment at the landing where it behooves us to pause and assess our position. Time pushes on like a wind (hopefully at our backs), but we cannot always be in flight nor at the mercy of its gales. Whether we’ve stuck the landing or not, the next move will come from a place of contact, of groundedness. It is from here where we can make our most informed decisions, not from the air.
During the Full Moon in Capricorn two weeks ago, we were offered a chance to assess where we have matured, and more importantly, what still needs some work. This theme of maturity will continue throughout the month as we have a second Full Moon in Capricorn on July 21st, right before the sun moves into the regal sign of Leo. We have the opportunity this season to level up emotionally, to finally drop the old stories about our personal value and our capacity for success, love, and change.
So what does this mean: to mature?
To become full grown, to be fully developed, fully fledged.
To reach the most advanced stage in a process.
To reach the end of a term and hence become payable.
In a western culture that has a deeply ingrained sense of time and timing from grade school, summer was often associated with a sense of freedom. But do you remember those later summers? The one right before seventh grade or the one before senior year? We would all come back to the classroom and it was notable who had undergone a transformation in the interim. Those were the summers of maturity. We let the sun bleach out our hair and tan our limbs as they stretched outward. We gained, we lost; friendships, clothes, hair, piercings, knowledge, innocence. And in the chrysalis of June, July, and August, we turned to mush and let that mush reorganize itself in some new way such that we were able to walk through the doors nearly unrecognizable.
Let this be a summer of maturity for you. In recent years, we’ve had summers where we played, summers that held our grief, and summers that radicalized us. We’ve had summers where maybe we had some learning to do, lessons to revisit. In the process of maturation it’s okay to make a mistake. Honor the courage you mustered to try the new thing, and reap the wisdom from your efforts. There will be other opportunities, too.
How does a more grown version of you show up for your goals and dreams?
How does a more grown up version of you show up for your family, friends, and community?
How does a more grown up version of you show up in the face of uncertainty?
—New Moon in Cancer—
Tonight’s New Moon in Cancer held in the arms of the mother archetype is a passionate and nurturing new moon. A far cry from the quick changes and side-walking of last summer, this particular Cancer New Moon offers us a supported restart in our familial relationships, as well as our literal and figurative home. Cancer carries maternal and gestative themes that can make us feel safe to not only express our feelings, but our true nature. It also holds the energy of lineage and the connection to our ancestral wisdom. As a new moon, it is the beginning of the next lunation and a time to officially close the book on that which no longer serves us so that we may start on a fresh, new page. Tune in to how you nurture your own becoming. Put some fresh sheets on the bed, throw out the old flowers, and make a comfort meal to share with a couple of close friends.
This new moon makes a wide conjunction with Venus which will offer a sense of generosity and charm, but it also makes a wide sextile to Mars which is making an exact sextile to Saturn. This Mars * Saturn influence gives us the determination and drive to level up emotionally and relationally. You’re no longer the inexperienced “kid.” Certain experiences you’ve had specifically since last summer and this past spring, have informed and changed your personal narrative, your story and your perspective. Even if it feels a little awkward or clunky at first, you are equipped to take action and relate in new ways; revised boundaries, different acts of care, new levels of devotion are all at your disposal. Plus, Mercury just moved into the sign of Leo so you have all the power when it comes to communication. Make sure you’re not letting your tongue run off, but know that whatever you declare now will be heard loud and clear.
Who were you six months ago at the Full Moon in Cancer?
What was reflected back and illuminated for you around the winter holidays? Now, at the New Moon in Cancer, step into a more mature expression of your emotional selfhood. Earlier this year, you imagined something better for yourself, something more fulfilling in your work or your relationships. Perhaps you wished for more community, perhaps it was a greater sense of autonomy. And this spring, you created the boundaries and tended to the seeds in that garden. Now you have your first yield, your first fruiting. What was firm and green weeks ago is softening into deeper shades, richer texture, and sweeter juice.
As we move through this lunation, we will see further changes in our passions and our relationships. The opportunity to create a net of security through our belief in ourselves and our close ones. So for now, trust in yourself that you are seeing the signs of your dreams ahead. Continue to deepen your intimacy with yourself and with others by navigating relationships with grace and compassion. Those who do not show you the same will likely find their own direction away from yours, off to find what is correct for them.
FOR THE BODY
Cancer rules the stomach, breast, ovaries, womb, vagina and pleura.
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Your stomach is a well of intuition, along with your gut. Many of us experience anxiety here, like a buzzing or uneasiness. Holding our own belly, patting, and rubbing this area can soothe these intense feelings.
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"Womb" can be a divisive word for some folks, for others it doesn't resonate at all. I prefer to use it to indicate a creative center in the body. Your womb is where you let the unknown gestate and transform until it kicks at you, ready to be expressed.
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Drink the tea of or cook with soothing chamomile, fruity red clover, and the distinctively maple flavor of fenugreek.
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Work with and wear moonstone to bring peacefulness, improve psychic attunement and enhance lucid dreaming; pearl to bring harmony and balance our moods; and rhodonite to support emotional healing.
*I am not a doctor nor registered dietician. Please consult your PCP to make sure that any changes are correct for you and your body.
—Gate 39.6—
At the height of the New Moon this afternoon, the sun and moon were both in Gate 39.6— the Gate of Provocation. As a Hexagram in the IChing, this is known as Obstruction, as in an obstruction that compels a response. Gate 39 is located in the Root Center on the bodygraph, and is a filter for the energy to live in this life, in this human experience. When filtered through Gate 39, this lust for life seeks to provoke spirit and passion, as well as an emotional awareness in a given situation. Those with this gate defined in their chart cannot help but provoke others, even just by being in the room. Something in their personhood compels an emotional response or an assessment for evaluation. When we experience this energy collectively, and specifically in the expression of Line 6, we are geared toward problem solving through provocation. Lighting a fire under the ass, so to speak. This New Moon in Cancer is here to make decisions and resolve any outstanding doubts about who you are now, and how you’d like to invest in your passions and your relationships.
I hope you take this opportunity for yourself, First name / my dear friend to close the old doors and step into your next timeline. I so thoroughly enjoyed writing this Moonsletter🌙 to share with you.
As always, I'm happy to answer any questions via email or DM (@honoredbody). If you want to share the Moonsletter with others, feel free to pass it along! And if you're reading this and you haven't signed up, join here!
With honor and gratitude for you,
alexandra@honoredbody.com
Resources to keep or share
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Operating from the unceded land of the Stl’pulmsh (Cowlitz), Chinook, Clackamas, and Cascades Port Land, Oregon 00000, United States
