The Space Between Endings and Beginnings: A Cosmic Reflection

I wanted to start this blog with "I haven't written an astrology blog for a while", but I am realising how many times I am saying that. Note to self: be more consistent with my blog; good job we are moving into Virgo energy to help with that. There are just so many wonderful and creative astrology writers out there and so many talking about the moon cycles and eclipses; it’s a very crowded space.

However, recently I wrote a blog about one chapter of my life closing and my understanding that another was waiting to begin, even though I was less sure what direction that may take. As I reflected this morning, I realised in many respects it echoed the opportunity presenting itself for all of us in this upcoming Full Moon Partial Eclipse in Pisces. I have always understood astrology best when I can see it applied to life. So, I thought I would unpick this a little more through my own reflections; I am asking you to indulge me a little while I think aloud.

The journey through the cosmos is like any other we may make: there is a beginning, a middle and an end, or perhaps it is more precise to say a renewal. Pisces is the 12th and final sign of the zodiac, and arguably embodies the wisdom from all the other signs. Symbolically, it can invite us to release, surrender and reconnect before the cycle begins again with Aries. After experiencing our lives from a more individualistic perspective, Pisces calls us home to reconnect and regroup. To touch base again with the part of us that is interconnected with something greater than ourselves, the web and weave of life itself.

We often forget this part of our cyclical nature: we need times of release and renewal for our health and wellbeing. When we look at nature, and I will admit I may be on shaky ground with this comparison as I love nature but I am not a gardener (I can kill a cactus and apparently that's quite hard to do), even I know we need to deadhead and prune so that there is the space and vitality for new growth. This Full Moon Partial Eclipse in Pisces presents an opening: the chance to release old patterns and stories and dissolve illusions and fantasies that have accumulated along our journey through the other 11 signs. We deadhead and prune, or if you prefer, it's like getting rid of all the old baggage so there is less to carry when we start our new journey. Pisces encourages us to reflect wistfully on what has gone before and dream of what might come next: two fish facing both directions. The Piscean cycle helps to ready us for when the spark of Aries calls us out again, and our journey of individualisation and the next stage of our learning and growth begins.

I hadn’t fully acknowledged until now how the space I feel I am in is so very Piscean, a space that bridges what was in one chapter of my life and what is yet to emerge as a new chapter opens. As I said in my previous blog, I cannot possibly know what happens next, and if Pisces were sat next to me right now it would probably, with the deepest of compassion, tell me to surrender and go with the flow of this experience.

Yet, even though I understand the process and try to live it more consciously, I find letting go of something to make space for something new really challenging, particularly when I don't yet know what shape that new thing will take. I know my own tendency as a Cancerian can be to cling on a little longer with both pincers in a death grip, and I have to consciously work on this for my own sanity as well as my own growth. But I think this is also human nature: we cling to the comfortable and familiar even when we know it's time to let go and move on because the uncertainty of what comes next is not always easy to accommodate. 

However, without letting go, we cannot fully welcome in something new. To use a suitcase analogy, you can't keep stuffing stuff in; at some point you need to take something out to make space for the different outfits needed for new destinations. Letting go, though, before we know what's coming to fill the space, even allowing ourselves to experience what it's like to have a little internal space can be disconcerting. Yet, if we remember the cyclical nature of accumulation and release, it becomes more liberating than scary. 

And this speaks more fully to the rest of the sky. The North Node has recently moved into Aquarius, bringing a longer-term invitation to think differently about ourselves, our place within our communities and the future we are creating. Aquarius holds the paradox of individuality, the wider collective and belonging. It encourages us to question the old ways of thinking and being that may have emerged from our desire to fit in, while reminding us that we are both individuals and part of humanity as a whole, and that the one quite definitely influences the other.

Mercury is close to the Sun in Virgo, while both are in tension with Uranus in Gemini. Significant in that Uranus is the modern planetary ruler associated with Aquarius, and Mercury with Gemini. With Uranus bringing its liberating and awakening quality, Gemini and Mercury bringing themes of mind, communication and new ways of thinking, and Virgo inviting us to examine, refine and make sense of what we discover, it feels like a potent mix. Under this sky, there is potential for unexpected insights, revelations and new connections to emerge, alongside the naturally releasing quality of a Pisces Full Moon Eclipse.

Yet, the Piscean nature also points to a time to honour our emotions and feel all the feelings that come with this, just in a way that is no longer attached to old narratives or that persistent critical voice that can creep in with the shadow side of Virgo.

When I was teaching child development, I used to tell my students that new knowledge needed an emotional component to support the meaning-making process. As adults, I don't think we are so different. And this is one of the things I see reflected in Mercury in Virgo opposite the Moon in Pisces: new insight is not simply a mental exercise; it requires our emotions too. Yet if we focus too heavily on one or the other, we can distort the sense and meaning we draw from the world around us. Perhaps it is about finding that balance between heart and mind, thinking and feeling as we swim in our own compassionate waters.

While I know one chapter of my life is closing, another is beginning to open, and my life is mine to live, I also know it impacts those around me, family, community and beyond. I know the family patterns and stories that serve me well moving forward and those that don't. And by releasing those that don't, I can liberate not just myself but perhaps those who come after me, becoming more conscious of what I pass down through the family line. But it's also more than that; all of us hold ourselves back all the time with limiting thoughts and beliefs and buying into old stories about what IS and ISN'T possible. Not only do we stop ourselves from living into our full potential, but we also limit what it's possible to offer to others. When we hide or lessen our own light, then there is less light available to shine out into the world.

I feel I finish this blog with Uranus reminding me it’s a good idea to expect the unexpected, Pisces whispering “it's ok to not know, just let go”, and Mercury and Virgo standing by to help me make sense of it all and ground what I discover, and supporting my next steps moving forward. And I have my own significant placements in Virgo about to be activated, giving everything a personal flavour. So, what does this mean for me?

Well, I will be making friends with uncertainty and allowing things to unfold. I will be making the most of this time to reflect on what's in my own suitcase, what stays and what goes, releasing old stories and patterns that no longer serve, and allowing any illusions and fantasies to dissolve. This eclipse also marks the anniversary of a key moment in my life, and there will be feelings emerging from this; I have no doubt. In my own way, I will be reconnecting and renewing, dreaming and revisioning for what may lie ahead. But whatever emerges, my little Cancerian heart will just be content to look out at the moon and feel home.

As always, for me, astrology is not really about prediction or future-casting. Although transits and progressions are incredibly useful astrological tools, there is always space for free will and choice. To me, astrology is more of a cosmic mirror, offering greater insight into myself and my life and giving me the option to work consciously with the potentials reflected in the skies.

I will be looking out at the eclipse when it arrives and reflecting on all it holds. Maybe some of you will join me. 

With warmth and curiosity,

Johanna 

Curiously-U