Tag Archives: astrology

Dancing In Stillness, Welcoming Spring!

Elemental Forces Of Creation, meditation, Sacred Dance, Self Care, , , , , , , , ,
7
Photo by Stephanie T. Photography

I haven’t posted since the winter solstice. How interesting the first time I’ve been inspired to write again is the first day of spring! I’ve been spending all my time and energy gestating what will be my most beautiful creation, the little love warrior I’ve been dancing into being.

I’m 39 weeks pregnant today, and I’ve been feeling heavy. Mostly physically, but occasionally mentally and spiritually as well. Growing a person is energetically demanding and incredibly grounding. It feels a little too grounding for me at times. Having to slow down (way, way down) and surrender to stillness is a challenge for my fiery nature. I find myself occasionally getting frustrated with my bodies need for so much rest. I usually use activity, especially dance, to move through my emotions and balance my mood.  I was able to dance, move and work with more grace and ease than I expected to, right up until I finished teaching mid February but now seems like the distant past. This last month has been a process of accepting that in order to honor my body and take care of myself and the baby, I need to let go of the need I normally have to sweat it out.  I’m trying to remember I can get my dance on it other ways.

This morning, when I awoke and thought about the day ahead, time stretched out in a seemingly endless fashion before me. I’ve finished my to-do list, and the empty time seemed daunting. Then I found in my email inbox the first day of a new 21 day meditation experience with Deepak and Oprah called Shedding The Weight: Mind, Body and Spirit that I had signed up for a few weeks ago. Today’s meditation was called ‘Finding The Lightness In Your Life.’ It was amazing, beautiful and perfect timing as the The sun just moved into Aries and the wheel of the year has just turned to Spring. Personally, I really, really needed the reminder.

I don’t have a daily sitting meditation practice, but I’ve been meditating in some form for about 17 years and it never ceases to amaze me how beautiful it can be. I so often choose movement meditation over one sitting in stillness and I forget how good stillness can be. In today’s meditation, the mantra quickly fell away and I saw myself shedding the heavy, dense energy that had hardened around me over the last while. It cracked off in bits and pieces, revealing the brilliant light body underneath. I was reminded we are all the embodiment of conscious light, radiant stars that come to play and learn in this dense physical realm. I felt connected to all light everywhere in the universe and could feel myself as the rays of the sun shining down on the earth. As this light, I was pure love and compassion, and as I touched the faces of the beings on the planet, my heart overflowed with love for them all. I felt myself as every star in the multiverse, and the unending light of love flowing through every dimension. Back in my body, I could see the light of my daughter glowing within me, a soft golden glow, different in quality from my light, and I was once again reminded she’s coming here to teach me how to love in an even bigger way. I can’t wait to have my heart cracked open to experience these new dimensions of love and to dance with her in my arms.

I’ll be taking a hiatus from teaching until January 2017, but when I return, I will have so much more light and  love to share with you all. I can’t wait to dance with you again! Until then, if you want to get your hoop on, there are still classes happening with Infinity Hoopdance.

Wishing you all a Happy Spring!

32
Photo by Stephanie T. Photography

 

 

 

Full Moon Musings (Pisces Supermoon)

Astrology, , , , ,
From glad.is.com
From glad.is.com

 

I seem to have fallen into the rhythm of writing on both the new moon and the full moon.

I’m OK with that.

The pattern reminds me that life is rhythmic and cyclical in nature, and that I’m subject to those rhythms the same way the tides are. That idea brings me peace somehow. I think I’ve mentioned how disconnected I used to feel from nature as a child. Tuning into the rhythms of the wheel of the year, and lunar cycle helps me feel more like a part of the world. It also really helps me to know what to focus on when.

I love doing all the things. I want all of the awesome in my life, but you can’t focus on all of the things, all of the time. Following the rhythms of the moon, the stars and the planet gives me the chance to focus on everything in turn.

Right now, for example, the full moon is in the sign of Pisces, and the sun is in Virgo. Knowing those three things, I have I have a bit of an idea both of what to focus on and what to expect.

As always, the lovely ladies at mysticmamma have compiled some amazing astral insight to give you a more in depth run down of what this Pisces supermoon is bringing us.

 On the days leading up to the full moon, I was more emotional than I am normally, and I did some major releasing (and by releasing, I mean sobbing uncontrollably for an hour). It was surprising and it seemed to come out of nowhere, although my husband was easily able to tell me all the unresolved emotions I had about things that had happened recently.  He’s so emotionally intelligent, and compassionate (at least when it comes to the people he loves) and I’m so very grateful for it. Seriously though, it was violently intense, I cried harder than I may have ever ried before… Afterwards I felt very empty. It was cathartic, and I had no idea how much tension and stress I had been carrying around for weeks/months..

When I read the words about this super moon from Divine Harmony (via Mystic Mamma), I felt both vindicated and comforted. She called this full moon “a waterworks full moon”.

 
“The Moon in any of the water signs is already very emotional, sensitive and receptive- but I would argue that Pisces is the most sensitive of all the signs…”
“With the Full Moon in Pisces we have a heightened sense of sensitivity– which could bring us to the point of bliss or to the point of pain and suffering.
“If you find yourself in tears leading up to this Full Moon- now you know why. (I think crying is good- it helps you to release all that you are holding onto.)

So… It’s not just me and I’m not crazy. Even though I knew that to be the case, there is something tremendously comforting about having that shared experience and having an explanation for it.

As I said, I felt a million times lighter after releasing so much. Did you know we actually release stress hormones in our tears? We are literally cleansing our bodies when we cry. There are tons of health benefits to tears, another reason not to try to keep it all in.

Anyway, I wasn’t quite done “releasing” and a few days later, when I was listening to a Songza bedtime playlist, a Mozart piece came on and I was instantly transported back in time to my Grandma’s last days in the hospital. I vividly saw her listening to one of her favorite Opera Arias. Then I started to remember so many other things, and I missed her terribly. I cried and cried again. This time, sobbing in the bathroom in the dark. I didn’t cry like this when she was dying, or after she passed, because I rationally knew how it was time, and that I would still be in contact with her energy, etc, etc. I cried, but not like this..

These were the tears of my inner child, who missed her terribly. I let myself cry and then, suddenly, as always seems to happen, I was finished and felt lighter again, and at peace.

I don’t think I could have cried like this all those months ago. The timing needed to be right, and the stars needed to align and then I really didn’t have a choice in the matter. The tears just came.

So, if you have anything you’ve been saving up, emotions you’ve been hoarding, or rationalizing away… This is the perfect time to let them out. Let yourself really feel them. You won’t drown in them, but once you really let yourself feel them, they’ll move through you and out of you. Opening up space for whatever happens next.

The full moon is always such an interesting ride.

Using the Virgo New Moon

Astrology, Elemental Forces Of Creation, , , , ,

Johfra-Bosschart-Virgo

The new moon is always a potent time to plant the seeds of creation, and today the new moon happens to be in Virgo (with the Sun in Virgo as well). Double Virgo must be why I’ve been so incredibly productive today when it comes to checking things off my list, and getting practical, administrative business details dealt with. That’s usually not my favorite jam, but after a 3 hour dance rehearsal today (for my new job which I’ll tell you about soon), I sat down an my computer, turned on a Spotify working playlist (Spotify where have you been all my life?? Seriously, how did I just start using this?), and worked for hours on a bunch of loose ends I’ve been needing to tie up. I also created a new facebook page for this website and my workshops, which you can like here.

I had actually forgotten it was the new moon completely, but boy have I been tapped into the Virgo priestess energy. The Virgo priestess archetype honors the sacred in the mundane daily tasks that need to be done. She’s a pro at getting things organized. In fact, very little thrills many of my Virgo friends more than making lists and checking things off them. It goes deeper than just crossing off tasks. Way deeper. According to Kari Samuels, intuitive counselor and happiness coach:

With the sun and moon in earthy Virgo, this month is all about reinventing your lifestyle so you can create a life that is pleasing to your senses as well as your soul. This new moon is particularly powerful because we have a conjunction of Mars (passion) and Saturn (practicality) that comes only once every two years. When these two powerhouses come together you get a marriage of desire-fueled ambition with common-sense action. Together, they help you build your dreams from the ground up.

I’m in the middle of changing my lifestyle and my livelihood right now, so I am going to ride this energy as hard as I can. That new job I mentioned is a super exciting game changer for me. I’m going to be an artist in residence with Dani Altier Inc, offering gymnastics, acrobatics and dance residencies at elementary schools starting this fall!

If you had asked me even two years ago if I would be interested in working with kids the answer would have been a no. Ten years ago, it would have been a HELL no! My how things (and people) change!

It all came about in a magical way as well. My hours at the restaurant were dropping because of how slow it is in the summer and I told the universe to bring me some other income making opportunities where I could share my gifts with the world. Then a few days later, I ran into Dani with my hoops at the Art Walk. She was with some friends of one of my friends, having a dance party to the techno music playing in the park with this gorgeous little girl. I went over to say hi and wound up hoop dancing for this lovely year and half year old with the most amazing blue eyes. She was mesmerized and had a great time when I let her play with my hoops. This chance encounter seems even more magical when I learned Dani had been asking the universe to send an someone her way. Someone who could teach her units proficiently but didn’t have too much experience (so they would still need her). Her online job posting says “The right candidate is the rare mix of part Artist, part Educator and part Entertainer.

The universe definitely conspired to have us cross paths! It’s funny, even thought my hoops brought us together, this isn’t a hoop dance adventure.

It’s going to be an exciting new chapter in my life, and I can’t wait. We started with rehearsals today. It will be an interesting transition as I juggle staying on part time at the restaurant, with these new residencies and balancing my own workshops and healing practice, but I have the tools to stay on track. Working with the wheel of the year, the sun, the moon, and the elemental forces gives me the structure to take  grounded, rhythmic steps to integrate all of these separate elements and dance my dreams into being.

black-trans

Happy Solstice- Time To Play In All The Light!

Astrology, Elemental Forces Of Creation, , , , , ,

 

Photo from NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) by Dr. Alex C. Young
Photo from NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) by Dr. Alex C. Young

I absolutely adore the solstice points of the year: these curious moments where time seems to stand still, like the pause between breaths. Since the winter solstice, the Earth has been slowly inhaling. The days have been getting longer. Almost imperceptibly  at first, but living this far North, I noticed the sun setting at 11pm last night (with the most glorious colors!)

Today is the longest day,  the apex of that arc that begins to descend tomorrow, as the Earth begins to slowly exhale, with the days becoming shorter and we retreat back into that deep dark space of internal reflection and creation before the light comes back. But enough about the darkness, plenty of time for that later. Right now it’s time to celebrate the light!!!! It’s a great time to notice how the seeds of intention you planted in the darkest times are ripening! It’s been exciting to watch my own creations take form and blossom with the transformational power of the solar force that rules our lives! Cheers to you, Sun!

Also exciting, this solstice marks the day the Sun moves into Cancer, the comfortable loving, nurturing water sign. Water is the element that you can magnetize with your intention and its primary power is love, which makes this the perfect time to bath yourself in the healing powers of both love and light (my two favorite things!!!)

It would be a spectacular day to surround yourself with your loved ones and play in this energy, spending time outside in the light, bonus points if you can spend time in or around water! Refresh and replenish your spirit with fun activities and light nourishing foods directly from the earth (skipping the pop tarts in favor of garden carrots or fresh picked raspberries perhaps!).

It’s also a perfect time to celebrate the change in the seasons! It’s summer time for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, and that’s definitely something I’m going to celebrate. Time to laugh, dance and play. Honor the abundance that summer brings, and spend some time deeply appreciating all the love and light surrounding you today, symbolically, metaphorically and literally!

I plan on spending the day with my family, eating and playing together, shopping for a new lego set and then I’ll be dressing up like a zebra and heading to the Zoo with Flowscience as we dance and light up the night with our LED props.

Zebra Kacie sends love, light and happiness to you all. I’ll leave you with the song ‘Here comes the Sun’ that synchronistically started playing just now by Phaeleh from his album tides: https://soundcloud.com/phaeleh/here-comes-the-sun

 

Zebra Kacie at Astral Harvest Photo by Ra Osiris
Zebra Kacie at Astral Harvest Photo by Ra Osiris

 

Scorpio Full Moon: Washing Away The Last Few Walls

Astrology, Elemental Forces Of Creation, , ,
by Hardwig HKD cc by 2.0
by Hardwig HKD cc by 2.0

I always love the moon, and I’m ever so mesmerized by it when it’s full. Last night, I had a hard time watching the road as I was driving home. It was just shade away fullness, and it was hanging low in the early evening sky. Every time I was stopped at a light I would have to stare at it, sometimes getting lost in the images and sensations I see in it’s fullness. Something about it fills me with feelings of infinite possibilities and perfect freedom.

The new moon is a beautiful time for planting seeds of intention and creation. It’s also a time of infinite possibilities, representing all that can be;  but I connect more deeply to the freedom and joyful, ecstatic releasing of what no longer serves me when the moon is full. I feel like every time I let go of something, I have more room within my soul for something greater. I love the expansive feeling of emptiness inside my spirit, as an empty vessel ready for whatever is coming next.

This full moon is in watery Scorpio, a sign that has made me uneasy in the past. I’m really more of an earth and fire gal, and I’m very comfortable with the mental realm of air, but the deeply emotional element of water was out of my realm of experience and expertise for much of my life. I honestly didn’t like human emotions until fairly recently, especially not the deep, painful, confusing ones. It took me a long time to appreciate them as beautiful teachers: an integral part of the human experience.

Working consciously with the elements over the last few years I’ve developed a deep respect for the cleansing power of water. I no longer shy away from my feelings, but I welcome them into my body for me to fully experience. Surrendering to, rather than fighting  whatever feelings arise allows the natural ebb and flow of emotions to happen gracefully. After being fully experienced, the feelings are washed away, always leaving me feeling light and free. They no longer frighten me.

With this full moon, I welcome that cleansing water into my heart, to wash out the remaining walls I hold there. I’ve been slowly breaking these walls down and now I’m ready to smash the last bits away, honoring them for protecting me so well, and sending them back into the light with gratitude.

I am ready to open my heart all the way, to love and connect more deeply with all those I encounter.

 

Here are more beautiful insights on the Scorpio Full Moon from Mystic Mama.

 

 

Compassionate Pisces- Softening My Gaze

Astrology, Wisdom from Within, , , , ,
New Moon, cc by 2.0
New Moon, cc by 2.0

We’re moving into a soft and dreamy Pisces new moon while the Sun is also in Pisces. Double the Pisces, double the love!

Pisces is the sign of the compassionate Bodhisattva, where the highest ideals of service to humanity are expressed. It’s the last sign of the zodiac, and the one with the highest vibrational attunement. Working in the Pisces realm means working with absolute divine love, Christ Consciousness and the ascended masters like Quan Yin, the goddess of compassion. Basically with our double Pisces energy right now, we’re being bombarded with universal love.

I know I can feel it… I’ve been pretty hard on myself lately for some reason, falling back into my perfectionist tendencies, and I’ve been beating myself up for these perceived imperfections. I know better, but that just becomes another reason to judge myself harshly :”You of all people should know better!” exclaims my inner monoluge! I had been berating myself for weeks,  but finally had a respite and I felt my inner voice soften over the last day or two. Suddenly I was able to see myself with the compassionate gaze I had been missing for sometime. My heart softened and I recognized that more than any harsh words, what I needed more than anything was loving compassion. I spent some time today sending these loving, compassionate and appreciative thoughts to my heart and to my body. It felt fantastic, as though a knot of tension I’d been carrying for weeks just melted away.

I want to invite you to soften your gaze as well, and see yourself through that lens of loving kindness and compassion. See just how beautiful you really are, and how you’re doing a such wonderful job. You’re learning exactly what you came here to learn, and you are perfect in your gloriously imperfect humanity.

I find it easy to see the rest of the world through this lens. I adore and admire every person on this planet for being brave enough to come down to this difficult place to learn all they can. Turning this loving gaze inward is what’s hard. I often hold myself to impossible standards that I would never set for anyone else. But today and in this new moon window, I’m trying! I’m feeling the freedom that comes from releasing myself from whatever unloving thoughts and self talk I was holding and replacing them with love. Nothing good comes from judging ourselves harshly.

As soon as we are all able to soften our gaze with loving compassion, we begin to really love ourselves  exactly as we are. This unconditional self love allows our inner radiance to shine more brightly, which in turn inspires others to do the same and makes the world a more loving place. It’s one of the easiest, yet most challenging things to do in the world, but we can take advantage of this new moon energy to plant the seeds of loving compassion everywhere we need in our lives, including our perceptions of ourselves. This is one way we can effect real change in the world, by starting right at home, by loving ourselves.

Me in Bali- photo by Cadencia Photography
Me in Bali- photo by Cadencia Photography

It’s Time To Shine, Radiant Ones!

Astrology, Elemental Forces Of Creation, , ,

 

Astrologically speaking, we spent the last month diving deep into the emotional realms with the archetype of Cancer, a sign ruled by the moon. This was a time to be focused on nurturing, comfort and personal growth. It was the perfect time to do that healing work, and I just so  happened to be in Atlanta with Lisa Michaels, certifying as a Natural Rhythms conscious dance facilitator. It was an amazingly supportive environment for personal growth and I was able to really dig down into the messy stuff and dance it out while I was there. But as a really fiery, earthy person myself, the watery emotional stuff always makes me a bit uncomfortable and although I’m grateful for all the lessons that the realm of feelings impart, I’m also SUPER grateful to be back in my comfort zone!

Today is the start of the Leo new moon, and the sun is also in Leo. Double Leos! What does it mean? Well, Leo is fiery action sign all about self-love, so it’s time to ramp up your radiant inner light! Shining your own light is a gift to the world as it inspires others and gives them permission to do the same! It’s time to celebrate the gorgeous awesome radiant light being who YOU are!

We are constantly receiving messages that we need to contain our fire and our radiance. Humility is a virtue and we don’t want to appear conceited or like we’re showing off. It’s a fine line, for sure and as in all things, we need to strike a balance. But Leo teaches us how to strike that perfect balance by allowing us to use our radiant self love to illuminate the world and make it a better place. It isn’t about showing off, it’s about allowing the light within us to shine as brightly as it can.

This makes this month a spectacular time to focus on illuminating your true self. Let your true essence be seen. The Real You is more inspiring than any image or idea you have about who you “should” be. The Real You is brilliant, and beautiful beyond all imagination. We are, at our core, beings of pure light who have chosen to come into these physical forms to have an experience! We should enjoy our physical bodies as well as our souls! Have fun adorning yours! This is a perfect time to take really good care of this body you’ve decided to inhabit!  There is nothing conceited about making yourself look and feel fantastic!

I’m planning on using this mega double down Leo energy to it’s full potential. I’m wearing more sparkles than usual, and I’m getting a hair cut tomorrow!  I’m also in the process of packing up all my greatest costumes for Shambhala Music Festival, (my happy place) where I’ll be dancing and celebrating my joyful radiant self all weekend, with ten thousand other beautiful, shiny, happy, radiant beings of light, dressed up and having some of their finest human experiences!

 

OUwwemw1g_1xAWHUyJAlf2i7d0QRwoosTahu3-_vBtI