Welcome to 2020. Who would have thought that this would be how we would start the seasonal, astrological new year and the new decade. I have been working this way for a few years now, exploring the archetypes and the wisdom Mother Nature gifts us each month, and each year the shifts are amazing.
Last year many of us dived in as Extinction Rebellion began this time with a beautiful fortnight of activism, showing how powerful asking for change in an energy of peace and love could be. It felt like there was a connection all around the world with this truly global movement.
Now we have a totally new worldwide connection. And as we step into the first stage on our astrological journey in lockdown, in isolation, we are all forced to look at ourselves. If I believed in a God that was retributive, I might say that I felt like school girl who had failed last term, failed to be in stillness, forgetting winter was a time of hibernation and preparation, and was now being forced to stay in and do it all again, but properly this time. But I don’t believe any of that is true.
In fact I believe that the word God is a synonym for love and life; a higher vibration, and any negatives we experience are just the limits of our own ability to feel this. This love is an unconditional love far beyond anything we experience day to day. So, I see this time of isolation as a time of opportunity, a chance to soften and to choose to feel and surrender more into this vibration.
This month’s archetype is Aries, the first stage of the year and also represents the first stage of our lifetime journey; birth. We see the buds bursting through after the winter’s stillness and the baby bursting our from the mother’s womb. This time is all about the self and the creative journey. When we emerge after a time of stillness then we jump into action without thought, without judgement, riding the wave of pure inspiration and the thrust of life. We are also the mother, stepping into an opportunity to experience unconditional love for this perfect, beautiful spirit of life we have just given birth to.
This time is different for everyone but there are many who are being forced to isolate, come back to the self and perhaps reevaluate. Others are having to spring into action and get on with the hard task in front of them of saving lives and keeping the country afloat. The worldwide grief is immense and should be fully acknowledged but I think, for those who have the time, it is important to spend it working through this grief so we can come to a place where we can try reimagining what we are going to create as we climb out of cocoons. This is a chance to reinvent ourselves and build on all the positives we are gaining; the stillness, the clean air, and looking out for others as we experience a new level of community engagement.
Every archetype has a positive and negative and when this is in balance we have the chance to raise our energy. This is our opportunity, the first step on our journey of emergence. It’s important to acknowledge the hard experiences that many are going through, and appreciate what those on the front line are doing. Those, for whom this time is ok, may choose to reciprocate by playing their part.
Guilt is not a useful emotion at this time, we each have a role, let’s not waste the time we have.
I spent many years struggling with the fact that my father, a young Jewish naval officer in the Second World War, said this was the best time of his life. I eventually realised it was not my place to take that away from him but acknowledge how blessed he was.
First, I think it is important to give thanks for the time we are living in, however, terrible and frightening it may seem. If we look back to the time of another big epidemic like this, a hundred years ago, we had no NHS, no Welfare and no immediate information service keeping us updated with instant news from around the world. Of course all these have their negative aspects but without them at all, people simply weren’t looked after the way we are; being informed and helped, medically and financially. However, bad you think it is, we are lucky in comparison, our Magic Money Tree is alive and well and being thoroughly shaken. And being grateful for what we have, I feel, is very important and I will talk more about that next month, but for now being in the positive is key.
We are most creative when we stop over thinking and just allow ourselves to be in the flow of the moment. When we stop trying to control the thoughts, the methods and outcomes, we go beyond our own capabilities and become a conduit for something far more powerful than ourselves and often beyond our own limited way of working. ‘Getting out of own way’ and being comfortable saying ‘I don’t know’ is often the best we could do in any situation and now, in the spirit of the energy of Aries, this is the invitation; to just be the instrument, not to believe we are the source.
When the isolation ends, what are we going to do? If we choose business as usual we will have missed a huge opportunity to make changes never believed possible before this started. Let’s be optimistic, positive and go beyond our imagination of the power of hope, joy and love we can all create.
