Full Moon Musings – “Love the One You’re With”
Hello Everyone,
It’s a gorgeous day in Sydney town as I write; one of those flawless, clear days that is not too hot. We are on the eve of the full moon in Taurus and I’m taking a break from everything (including writing ’10 Ways to Make Love to Your Soul’ and the free sun sign affirmations to go with it. They were so much fun to write! I had a ball!) to share some thoughts with you.
The sadness and grief of last week has finally passed and life feels full of possibilities again, don’t you agree? Change is all around: Barak Obama is the US President-elect and already he is quietly making moves to stabilise the economy and to release some of the inmates of the infamous Guantanamo Bay.
New Zealand also has a new government. My one-time University tutor Helen Clark, (yes, I once dreamed of being NZ’s first woman Prime Minister but then I realised politics wasn’t my calling. Helen is NZ’s second woman PM, Jenny Shipley, of the National Party was first. Even conservative parties are ahead of their time in NZ!) and her Labour government, were resoundingly defeated last weekend. Helen has been a strong leader with integrity, foresight and compassion but it seems to me that any leader, no matter how good, can outstay his or her welcome. Knowing the right time to depart the political scene in a gracious and dignified manner is as much an attribute of a smart politician as knowing when to make a move against your political foe.
The US has got it right, I think, by insisting for two terms only for their Presidents. Australia and NZ have seen several Prime Ministers in the last two decades who just don’t know how to relinquish the reins of power – and their parties have been decimated as a consequence.
So, as I said in my previous blog, change is the order of the day. Whether voluntarily, or kicking and screaming, we are all being birthed into this new world. Actually, the New Moon heralded the start of its labour, the Full Moon that we are now entering signals its completion.
I believe that there is much to rejoice about in all of this upheaval. In this new world we can no longer be complacent. We can no longer be silent. We can no longer pretend that a happy and successful life is simply about smiling sweetly and quietly going about our business of paying off a mortgage and buying the latest toys. We can’t do that while others – and our beloved planet - are suffering. Happiness is only possible when we are doing our bit to ensure that everyone has a chance at being all they can be.
On an astrological level, the “woundedness” that is often the shadow-side of the Scorpio psyche has passed with its namesake New Moon and now we are marching victoriously towards the Taurus Full Moon – to read more, go to the “Star Struck” astrological summary at the end of this blog.
So, if all of this re-birthing is playing out on a global scale, what’s happening at the coal face, in your life and mine? Well, I don’t know about you but it seems life is showing me how to come out of my cave and be part of all that I have observed – and felt deeply – for so long. I’m being shown, once again, that my love and my creativity and my generosity count for something – not only to those in my inner circle of friends and loved ones, but in my community and the world as well.
Last night, along with many others, I watched “Australian Story” on the ABC. The program featured Rick Grossman, former guitar player with The Divinyls who is now part of The Hoodoo Gurus (both great bands that I’ve always loved!). Rick is a recovered heroin addict who now donates his time to work as a counsellor and fundraiser for The Buttery, the rehab facility in Byron Bay that helped him get clean and stay that way. He is also the driving force behind a new CD with songs from such rock legends as Neil Finn, Jimmy Barnes and Mark Seymour that is being sold to raise funds to expand the facilities there.
Rick’s story is both sad and inspiring. I was moved to tears when he described a particular moment in his life when he should have been on top of the world – he was young, successful and in New York to make an album with the Divinyls. He looked out of his hotel window to all of the Great Apple spread out in front of him and he realised his childhood dream to be a rock star had come true. Yet he couldn’t enjoy any of it because he felt “empty inside”. He couldn’t even go on stage to play without the false courage provided by drugs and booze. As he said, he was “running away from himself”.
I remember that feeling of being empty inside. I had it for many years until I learnt how to “fill myself up” with love. Some might say it is the human condition. We are born perfect, trusting and loving, and then life wounds us, either a little or a lot. We go into adulthood still feeling like the wounded child even though we’ve packaged it up in a grown-up body. We meet other wounded souls and form relationships that are really nothing more than projections of our own pain and theirs. When they don’t heal us – or, at the very least – agree with us that we are indeed wounded, we move on. All along the way there are pretty distractions in the form of new relationships, addictions or dis-eases that we can use to numb the pain or blame for our own dysfunction.
Growing up is what Rick did when he finally called, “Enough”! Growing up is really deciding to heal your wounds by becoming your own lover. Remember that old song, “Love the one you’re with”? The lyrics talk about making the most of the moment and the person you’re with, but they could just as easily be exhorting the benefits of loving that One you’re with ALL the time; in the shower, in bed, driving your car, doing the grocery shopping, everywhere, day and night, every minute of your existence. That’s right - you. The one you can never escape. You can either be your own Lover or your own worst enemy; your choice.
And, on a global scale, we are called now to grow up; to love ourselves and to show that love by helping others. When Rick got better, he decided to help others in the same situation. Who better than one who has been there?
The Divine Intelligence guiding this Universe is very loving and very patient. I call her Divine Mother but it really doesn’t matter what you call this force of love and compassion, as long as you know She/He/It cares about you. When you truly know that in your core – in your soul – then you will see how to use the healing gift of those old wounds to help others. You won’t have to go far; there are people everywhere who need your loving presence in their life. They could be your neighbour, the annoying guy who sits next to you at work or the woman who makes your coffee. Take a look at who’s sitting beside you and then, love the one you’re with!
Coming soon:
‘10 Ways to Make Love to Your Soul’ is crammed with practical things you can do every day to get in touch with your soul and its wisdom for your life.
Offer extended:
Selling for just $9.95, every one who purchases before 28 February 2009 receives a free, personalised affirmation.
Be Love, be Joy, be Change.
“I don’t know anything about astrology but after reading Joy’s blog I found myself swimming and thinking about things like the Aries full moon. Your words stayed with me … I love how you connect concepts in your mind and then let them flow together in the writing”
- Jacq Love
Star Struck
Astrological forces coming our way:
Please note: Star Struck is not a full astrological report, it is merely a summary of astrological energies that relate to the blog and to what we might be feeling and experiencing right now.
Full Moon in Taurus – 12th November
The most important celestial influence on us right now is the Full Moon. The Full Moon and I go right back. In the house where I live now I have a triangular window above my blind-covered main window. Each full moon she comes and wakes me up from my slumber as she bathes me in her silvery light. How blessed am I?
You may not realise this but the Moon is actually a “dead” planet. The light we see is actually the light of her death from light years away. The moon acts as a catalyst to the past and all that is unhealed to our conscious mind. She is also the symbol of the Great Mother (the sun is Divine Father) and all that is intuitive, hidden and unspoken.
Some people dread the full moon. Hospital workers, for instance, hate it because there are more than the usual “loonies” about on that one night of the month. It is certainly true that the full moon is intense. It brings to the surface those deep feelings you’ve been trying to bury all month. What’s more, the full moon is about the completion of a cycle. It’s time to relax, to nurture yourself, to conserve energy and get ready for the next new moon when new projects can start.
This Taurus full moon is about celebrating Love and Beauty. Venus is the ruling planet of the sun sign Taurus and she, as you know, is the Goddess of Love and Beauty.
In esoteric astrology (the astrology of the soul) Taurus has the affirmation: ‘I see and when the eye is opened, all is illumined’. This Full Moon in Taurus is not the usual indulgence in the sensual pleasures.
This November full moon asks us to open our eyes and look around. It asks us to see the places where beauty does not reside and, in love, be the light that transforms that which is ugly into that which is lovely. Is someone around you really suffering as a result of the economic downturn? Is someone near you feeling lonely and neglected? Take your beauty and share it with them – that is the message for all of us today. Barak Obama is already looking to those who are suffering in prison and seeking ways to help them. In his position he can do a lot to help many people. You, in your world, can also bring peace and happiness. Look around you – and love the one you’re with!
In love,
Joy.
Hybrid Mode