Change of Heart—Gemini Full Moon—27th November.
One new perception, one fresh thought, one act of surrender, one change of heart, one leap of faith can change your life forever. Robert Holden.
Now as we tend to the cherished customs and familiar rituals of this holiday season, it may be easy to be distracted by busyness, overwhelmed with fatigue, whiplashed by unexpected events that leave us disorientated, discombobulated, yearning for soul shelter amongst those simple things that bring us comfort and joy.
November’s full moon invokes Gemini’s mercurial magic as we approach the Solstice on December 21st. In the Greco/Roman world, Mercury/Hermes presided over thresholds, crossroads, and boundaries. As we prepare ourselves for the challenge of crossing a new threshold, we may meet the spirit of Gemini in the wind that rustles the branches of the tree outside our window, a reminder that nothing is constant. Against the rich warm browns of dying bracken and marmalade and honey-gold of the last autumn leaves, it is the oak that holds fast the green the longest. A reminder perhaps that change emerges discretely for some of us, or in a flash, with a sudden change of heart, for others.
Air is Gemini’s element. This is the energy of the trickster—versatile, elusive, clever, playful, and infuriatingly inconsistent. Gemini moves through its two personas, appearing in those either-or choices we feel compelled to make, sometimes showing up at crossroad moments in our lives. Through Gemini we encounter the power of two, the kindred spirit, those relationships we find most challenging, the conflicts that bring out our exiled dark twin. Spiritual teacher, Caroline Myss’ Gemini Moon conveys the archetype of the Storyteller, the Data Gatherer. She writes, “the challenge is for us to decide whether to make choices that enhance our spirit or drain our power.”
So often in myth and fairy tale, opposites are depicted as the hero and his enemy—Parsifal and the Red Knight; Biblical brothers, Cain, and Abel; and in Gnostic teaching, Jesus and Satanael, twin sons of God, symbols of light and dark. Our human minds are hard-wired to see opposites and differences, warring opposites instead of complementary pairs.
As yet another divisive far-right politician brandishing inflammatory rhetoric gains power in Europe, the astrological signature this weekend is dominated by Saturn (structure, authority, tyranny) in boundless Pisces.
As Mars leaves the dark waters of Scorpio to join an optimistic sun in Sagittarius, a deal has been struck for a brief pause in hostilities in Gaza and the release of some prisoners and hostages. On November 24th, Mercury (mediation) makes a trine to the Moon in Aries. On this day, the moon (in Aries) trines Mars (in Leo) in the birth chart of Israel and transiting Mars and Sun trine Israel’s Leo moon, which augers well for the families and those who have been kept in captivity. Mars rouses our survival instinct, stokes our will, and heats our desire. Saturn (boundaries and limitations) arrives in the form of realistic, measurable outcomes that demand accountablity and maturity. This weekend there may be situations and circumstances that test our resilience and fortify our spiritual mettle.
As Mars and the Sun confront this Gemini Moon on November 27th, our battle for security and safety is not yet over. We may still be grappling with impossible choices, still embroiled in misunderstandings that erode our trust, still aching from a betrayal that armours the bruise in our heart. We may have slipped into the habit of expecting a catastrophe, we may find it safer not to hope or dream. We may be wintering, even though the sun is shining.
We can’t avoid winter’s darkness, yet the Sun’s passage through hope-filled Sagittarius is a reminder that we may have become too rigid in our opinions, too wrapped up in anticipatory anxiety or encased in cynicism to dare to trust and hope.
Raising our glasses to the year almost gone, may we listen deeply to what is said around the dinner table, sensing a heart ache or a longing that may be concealed in an emotionally charged silence; then choose to soften our stance, allow a change of heart.
May the winged sandals of Mercury carry us towards those extra-ordinary encounters that bring everything into focus. May the mythic Twins preside over those soulful tugs of choice, careful planning, that herald radical change in the way we live and the way we love.
Light and shadow are opposite sides of the same coin. We can illuminate our paths or darken our way. It is a matter of choice—Maya Angelou.
Please get in touch if you would like to book an astrology consultation for the year ahead: ingrid@trueheartwork.com
Children of chance, we have made ourselves into what we are — creatures who can see a universe of beauty in the feather of a bird and can turn a blind eye to each other’s suffering, creatures capable of the Benedictus and the bomb. Creatures who hope—Pattiann Rogers.

So comes snow after fire, and even dragons have their ending—J.R.R. Tolkien.

The beauty of darkness is how it lets you see. Adrienne Rich. 
The essence of Libra brings harmony to polarities, offers a possibility to let go of the melodrama, to transcend the personal, and touch the heart of another with hope.
Heaven and earth, the Celtic saying goes, are only three feet apart, but in thin places that distance is even shorter. They are places that make us feel something larger than ourselves, as though we are held in a place between worlds, beyond experience―Kerri ní Dochartaigh.

It’s easy to see the beginnings of things, and harder to see the ends—Joan Didion.

Another world is possible. On a quiet day, I can hear her coming.
“The wave of the future is on the local level,” writes activist and author Joanna Macy. “Don’t waste your heart and mind trying to pull down what is already destroying itself. Come to where you’re almost below the radar and reorganize life. We want communities where we live and work and fight for the future.”
Rising on a pink wave of nostalgia, Barbie bursts onto the screen as Saturn moves Retrograde in imaginative Pisces (fantasy manifest.) Greta Gerwig’s creative offering is now the biggest debut ever for a film directed by a woman. As the Sun travelled through Pisces, on March 9th 1959, Barbie was born, long legged, wasp waisted, wearing a tiny black and white striped swimsuit. Barbie was not welcomed by skeptical buyers at the New York Toy Fair, but how could they know that there was a new moon in Pisces on that day? How could they possibly see that Barbie would capture the hearts and the imaginations of men, women, and children in her many manifestations for 64 years?
We learn to love ourselves precisely because we have experienced being loved by someone. We learn to take care of ourselves because somebody has taken care of us. Our self-worth and self-esteem also develop because of other people―Stan Tatkin.
Gemini’s two brightest stars are Castor and Pollux, twin brothers, twin souls. When his brother, Castor died in battle, a bereft Pollux implored Zeus to allow him to die also. Zeus agreed and now they are sibling stars, twin souls. In Gemini we encounter the Other that comes in the guise of the Twin Soul, the phosphorus twin flame who burns into our life like a shooting star. Twin souls rarely appear by choice. They appear in many guises. Often the timing is all wrong, circumstances impossible, yet there’s a recognition that pulls us together again across lifetimes. A divine Grace that directs us with absolute certainty towards a life we would never have imagined.
At this new moon time, may the motif of the Soulmate enrich our imagination this month. May the winged sandals of Mercury carry us towards those extra-ordinary encounters that bring everything into focus. May the mythic Twins preside over those soulful tugs that herald of radical change in the way we live and the way we love.
Break the tyranny of your ordinary awareness. The rest will begin to unfold itself—Cynthia Bourgeault.
Venus enters her Retrograde Shadow on June 19th and will descend into darkness for 40 days and 40 nights from July 23rd (28° Leo) to September 5th, finally leaving the shadowy Retrograde landscape on October 7th. This Venus Retrograde ingress has a disruptive energy as Venus will consort with unpredictable Uranus on July 1st, a call to be creative, resourceful and wise. Venus Retrograde periods invite us to reflect upon who and what we hold dear to our hearts. Venus presides over love and beauty, aesthetics and quite literally, money and social events. Many astrologers suggest it might be wise to postpone a marriage or commit to any important financial venture, invasive “cosmetic” procedures, home renovation.
The opposition of the sun and the moon tonight is a reminder that what we relegate to the dark side of the moon will emerge in our experiences and circumstances—the peace loving yoga teacher who meets a confrontational student, the idealistic social worker who encounters hatred and bigotry.
The miracle is light. The miracle is that we rise again out of suffering. The miracle is the persistence of the soul to find itself, to look hard into the darkness, reach back, and grasp remnants of ourselves. The miracle is that we create ourselves anew—Tina Davidson.
The full Moon lunar eclipse illuminates the lavish £100 million carefully choreographed coronation spectacle, the cost of which will be borne by the taxpayer, not the billionaire King. Screened from public view, a private anointing with holy oil blessed in Jerusalem will emphasise the sacred import of the ceremony, a heavy 361 year old solid gold bejewelled crown with a comfortable padding of ermine will be placed on the royal head. Those who will be watching the ceremony will be invited to swear allegiance to the monarch and his descendants. The richly decorated robes and weighty sceptre will add magic and spectacle to this ancient rite rooted in patriarchy. “Charles III will share in a ritual that originally marked out the kings of Israel—Saul and David and Solomon—as the adopted ones of God. The 21st century will be joined by means of a living ceremony to the bronze age.” Writes 

