GEMINI 2018 - Standing in the Threshold

Indecisive. Ambivalent.

How do you feel about those two words? For most of us in this society, those words go in the file marked "not good" in the storage systems of our minds. Yet these are revolutionary states of being in our computerized culture, which encourages the seeming efficiency of binary thinking and "branding." Most of us believe we have no time or space for wishy-washiness, for I-dunno-maybe-ness. We are taught not to trust these uncertain states of being, but -

- there is a certain medicine of possibility and shift in the in-between space of kinda-sorta not-sure-ness. This is the medicine of the threshold.

The threshold is an uncertain and uncomfortable place. There, we feel a sorrowful longing for the space we are leaving - perhaps even a reluctance to leave that known world behind, even if it is no longer satisfying - and a fear of the unknown space we are about to enter. We have exhaled yesterday into the infinite stretch of the untenable past, but we have not yet inhaled the future's potential into our being. We are wide-eyed, maybe worried, certainly wondering, and for a moment, empty.

What would you fill yourself with at this point?

What do you really want?

How would you feel if you had what you really want?

This month, let yourself feel like you are already living in the fulfillment of your dreams, no matter how different your outer circumstances are from that ideal reality, and then see what happens when you step out of the threshold, and into the next room in the story of your life.

Sun in Gemini: 5/20/18 - 6/21/18

Click here for everything you need to know about the solar month of Gemini - herbs, insights and meditations about the flitting, bridging time of the twins.

Uranus in Taurus: 5/15/18 - 4/25/2026

Did you feel a shift last month? We just entered a new eight-year chapter from the whirling exploration and challenge of Uranus in Aries (since 2010) to a slower laying down of foundations of Uranus in Taurus (until 2026).

Mars is up to something...

Mars will be retrograding for most of this summer (6/26/18 - 8/27/18). You might already be feeling some twinges of discomfort due to some mis-alignments between your desires and your actions. For now, take note of what you're doing and how in alignment it feels with your deeper longings. Witness these tendencies in yourself and others without judgment, and know this: Change is a'coming...

Full Moon in Sagittarius: 5/29/18 at 7:20 am PDT

This moon encourages us to exercise our mental zoom lens. It's time to follow our gut and make some kind of larger leap in the big picture, but to also maintain awareness of all the moving parts that make up that big picture.

Which pieces of your life fit easily into the whole?

Which pieces of your life are stray fledglings, in need of some other nest?

What do you have total faith in?

In what/whom is your faith shaky?

Sagittarius Full Moon Herbs:

Herbal mental zoom lens booster - Put 1 Tbsp each of gotu kola, eleuthro, rosemary and peppermint, plus a pinch of licorice in a quart mason jar. Fill it with boiling water, cover to keep the steam in, and let steep 4-6 hours. Place in sunlight or moonlight for extra activation. Strain and drink.

New Moon in Gemini: 6/13/18 at 12:43 pm PDT

Thoughts and perceptions influence our emotions, and emotions color our thoughts and perceptions. This is always true, but this new moon accentuates this cyclic pattern - especially on this day, but also throughout this entire lunation cycle (6/13/18 until the 7/12/18 solar eclipse). On this new moon, we'll benefit from practicing awareness around the interplay of our feelings and our perceptions, and in fact, that will set us up well for reaping the breakthrough-benefits of the 7/12 solar eclipse.

Gemini New Moon Practice:

Choose a color or sound you enjoy. Every time you see that color or hear that sound, use it as a signal to ask yourself these questions:

What am I feeling right now, and how might that be coloring my thoughts & perceptions?

What am I sensing right now, and what's my emotional response to that?

What am I thinking right now, and what emotions are those thoughts breeding?

Gemini New Moon Herbs:

Here's a nice heart-mind recipe -

Put 2 Tbsp. hawthorn berries; 1 Tbsp. each of peppermint, gotu gola & rose petals; and 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon in a quart jar.

Fill the jar with boiling water, cover to keep the steam in, and place in the sun for extra activation. Steep 4-6 hours, strain and drink.

Neptune stations retrograde: 6/18/18 - 11/24/18

Shortly before summer solstice, Neptune stations retrograde in Pisces. Although we are at this point still in the thinking and relating orientation of the Gemini solar month, feelings are growing increasingly powerful at this time (due to a grand water trine AND the approach of the three summer eclipses). Neptune's retrograde signifies a time when we benefit from cleaning house internally. Let go in your mind - forgive, surrender, relax - and see how that shifts your outer world.

What unfolds around you when you -

forgive yourself?

forgive others?

stop fighting for or against the things that aren't working in your life?

gently relax the tension in your body?

Neptune's Herbs:

Since Neptune rules dreams, here's a dream tea - Steep 1 Tbsp. of spearmint, 1/2 Tbsp each of passionflower and mugwort, and a bit of freshly grated nutmeg in 2 cups boiling water, covered for one hour. Strain, add a squeeze of lemon, and drink in the evening.

Next month...

...is a doozy! Mars stations retrograde, and we experience the first of three eclipses in a row, occurring every two weeks. As always, you may schedule a consultation if you need some support. Wishing you a month of open eyes, ears, mind and heart, Rae