Astrology via Lynn Hayes of Astrodynamics; April 2012's E-newsletter Example

I saw on Facebook many people talking about their day and 'maybe it's because Mercury is in retrograde'. It's almost taken on a humorous/everyday undertone. Spirituality is part of wellness, and now that Lumigrate celebrated it's third year on the Internet with contributors at my invitation who are Jewish and Christian, I thought I'd post something about astrology. I reached out to Yenta's writer and Alice in the first year to have something that would appeal to those major groups in the United States. It also deminstrates that people of diverse beliefs politically and religiously/spiritually can utilize Lumigrate's information and take from the same 'fund of knowledge' but spin things in their own ways to fit their needs.

Everyone is different in terms of what their body/mind/spirit needs, and I want for Lumigrate's users to recognize that first and foremost, along with being respectful of the boundaries between what they believe and others do, and be respectful of others but concentrate on their own, because that's really all we can truly 'control' in the world. If we get that right, the rest of wellness will follow more readily.

I was raised by a father insisting on atheism, with a mother who tried to bring in some Christianity, in an undiverse part of the United States at a time when adults were not as aware that Christianity might not be for everyone. The resultant 'spiritual stress' contributed to my health issues because ... it was STRESS!

So, having my long-time hair stylist in the mid-1990s 'encourage' (insist was more like it) me to connect with her well coiffed client who was both an educator and consultant about astrology was something I resisted for a long time. The woman had been recently married to the astronomy professor at Colorado State University, and had been on Oprah. Funny thing, I actually 'knew' him before she did, though I'd only met him a time or two, as his office was in the same building as mine when I was 19-23. Having such a respected professor married to her helped lower my resistance to calling; she'd spoken at a alternative science/research group I liked to attend which had a lot of educated people presenting and learning because there was more they wanted to learn about than what was 'condoned' by the mainstream education system of the University.

I'm not suggesting that anyone subscribe to this type of thought, integrate it into your belief system, nor follow any of the links to sign up, but I did want to provide a resource I consider to be a valid one for those who might want to know more; I have watched Lynn Hayes' interactions on social medi and her newsletter content for over a year and find her to be very solid and 'mainstream'. When I read today's e-letter and saw how she handled a contract dispute, I thought 'I'm going to put this on Lumigrate because so many people are looking at the stars right now, and are talking about the planets which are in retrograde and they might not really understand what that means. This tells them.'

Lynn is not my personal astrologer, I've never contacted her, though I typically do, as time permits, out of courtesy to those whose work I place here. Since she invites people to forward on the e-newsletter, this is basically what I am doing, just on my website. And for what it's worth, the most I have ever called mine up for input is twice a year, some years not at all, but I do typically do an update around my birthday just to keep 'on top of' things she has proven since the first hour to be incredibly accurate about from my past, and what she discussed about the present and the future has consistently occurred.

A few years after our first consultation, my health and life was very much 'in the ditch', and I have often privately told people that I work with who have chronic illness that had I not had the belief system brought to me by my 'wise elder' in what worked for me related to spirituality at that time, I don't know if I would still be here on Earth. I share this with the sole purpose of helping people reading this to respect this concept of people's spirituality and stressors or benefits from within and without.

I realize that for some faiths, this type of information is not embraced. I want to be clear that I am not intenting to offend those, but to hopefully diminish the spiritual stress they might cause others in the way they discount theirs! Because humans cannot have optimal health if they do not have a belief system that works for their spirit. That can be you're an atheist; my father died a peaceful death in 2010 with the services of hospice, and primarily reaching out to and through the chaplain on the team who was approaching him at his belief system as an atheist. Personally, I felt there was some confusion on his part because he would mention 'God' to me privately, and it had been one of the few words he said at a funeral about a decade before.

That 'confusion', combined with a lack of respect for having a spiritual foundation was a hindrance within his family system, which very much impacted me. And my health slid backwards a great deal, temporarily, while I processed and digested what had occurred. So I'm very committed to the concept about spirituality contributing to wellness or illness as a part of holistic/overall health of people. I utilize all areas of Lumigrate.com in my consulting work with individuals and bigger systems, and now I will have this topic I've created on the palate too.

Gratefully for those who have read this and understood my intentions. ~~ Mardy

Dear friends,

Mercury as you may know has been retrograde (four times every year Mercury takes a turn and appears to move backwards for about three weeks and we call this "retrograde") since early March and finally turns direct on the 4th. Mars has also been retrograde [1] and is turning direct on the 14th. If you've been experiencing communication kerfuffles and equipment glitches, help is on the way!

This year the challenging square formation between Uranus and Pluto really heats up, and we will see this start to take shape at the end of April. So now is the time to get our personal lives in greater order so that we will be able to maintain our balance as the world around us begins to shift.

News from me:

If you were a subscriber to Astrological Musings on Beliefnet, please be sure to cancel your subscription. They have hired another writer to write my blog in violation of my contract, and there will be some legal wranglings to deal with. But in the meantime I would appreciate your switching your newsfeed subscriptions to Patheos where my blog now lives: Astrological Musings at Patheos. Thank you in advance

NOTE from Mardy from April 6, more from Lynn related to the shuffle she is having to go through with her blog and intellectual properties issues: SO what she said, above about Patheos still goes about it being a great cite, but she cannot put her blog there, she has to put it at her own site, see below:

Dear friends,

Many of you know that I had moved my blog to Patheos, a great new religion site. I was very happy there but unfortunately Beliefnet, which hosted my blog from 2008-2012, has threatened to sue Patheos saying that they own the trademark for Astrological Musings. This is a complete fabrication but it has necessitated my moving the blog back to my website.

Here is where you can again find the blog Astrological Musings. [2] And if you have an RSS feed you can sign up using these links [3].

http://www.facebook.com/astrodynamics [4]I post every blog article on my Facebook page too, so you never have to miss an article.

With Mercury and Mars both stationing direct right now this is not a surprise, but it is still annoying! Thanks for listening, and have a wonderful weekend.

Peace and best wishes,

Lynn Hayes
www.astrodynamics.net [5]

And remember you will find daily astrological updates on my Facebook [6]andTwitter [7]pages.

Now on to Skywatch:

The complete Skywatch article can be found on my website [8] here [9]. This email contains an abridged simplification that is easier to understand and read, but you will find the complete details, along with the list of planetary events for the month, in the online version.

Usual housekeeping stuff:

If you are new to astrology, you might want to start here [10] for basic explanations of the concepts we'll be discussing here. Please feel free to forward this article to anyone who might be interested. If this article has been forwarded to you, please visit my website [11] to sign up for your own subscription! You can unsubscribe any time by following the instructions at the bottom of this email. And, of course, if you would like to schedule a personal consultation please email me directly [12] or visit my website for more information about readings [13].

Summary for April 2012:

OVERALL ASTROLOGICAL PICTURE

As April begins it can be difficult to get things moving. We may feel frustration and irritation as our will and desire are stymied at every turn, and it may be difficult to implement our plans and goals as we look over our shoulder instead of forward.

Once Mercury turns direct on the 4th it will become easier to plan and visualize the future although the actual implementation likely won’t come easily until after Mars changes direction on the 14th. Many people have reported an inability to sleep and a great deal of agitation under the stationary Mars influence, so plan to get a great deal of physical activity to help to release the pent-up energy as productively as possible.

At the same time we are in the middle of a planetary cycle which demands that we look at our world in a different way. It can be difficult to sleep, and we are highly energized and passionate. This will be exhilarating for those of us to embrace change, and more difficult for those of us who cling to the past. But change is inevitable now, so it's time to loosen our grip and move forward into the unknown with perfect love and perfect trust in the Universal wisdom which is guiding us.

And last but not least, we also have a powerful influence of Pluto, the planet of transformation and renewal. Under Pluto we are dealing with secrets and the dark side of life that usually remains hidden from view but which needs to be revealed so that true transformation may occur.

APRIL DETAILS

April brings mostly fast-moving planetary cycles that last only a day or two, so other than the need for constant re-evaluation from the retrograde planets these cycles will be relatively comfortable and easy to manage.

Venus enters Gemini on April 3rd which should help to facilitate dialogue and communication (matters ruled by Gemini) as well as give us greater perspective on our relationships. Gemini is an air sign, and the element of air provides us with greater objectivity and an ability to reason through situations rather than react.

Once Mercury turns direct on April 4th we will begin to have a sense that our lives are beginning to move forward again although this won’t really be the reality until after Mars turns direct on the 13th.

A challenging aspect for a few days before and after April 5th can make it difficult to see things clearly but it also greatly enhances creativity and the yearning for beauty. This can be a time of intense spiritual experience since the bonds of reality are loosened, but it can also be a time when our romanticism gets the better of us and we lose touch with reality. This is a great period for creativity endeavors or spiritual gatherings, but it is not a good time to make decisions which require level-headed objectivity.

The Libra Full Moon on April 6th balances the individuality and self-motivation of the Aries Sun with the Libran urge for peace and balance. Discussion of some sort will be required and things may not be exactly as they seem.

The urge to find balance and harmony in interpersonal relationships (Libra) sometimes comes at the cost of our individual needs (Aries). The urge to assert ourselves independently of others (Aries) often comes at the cost of personal relationships (Libra). Balancing the two is the key to any healthy relationship and this is the theme of this Full Moon.

There is the potential for self-delusion here and all of these factors will need to be seamlessly integrated in order to be effective during the Full Moon. Observe your relationships to see where personal needs are out of balance with relationship needs. See where you might be blind to the reality of a situation, and where you need to step up to the plate and assert yourself more clearly. Or if you are more the Arien type, perhaps you are the one who is ignoring the needs of others. This is the time to find that balance and improve all relationships.

Pluto turns retrograde on April 10th. Don’t expect to see anything major occur on that day – Pluto moves very slowly and the entire month will have a Plutonic tinge of intensity and darkness as we travel into the Underworld to see what has been hidden from view that needs to be more consciously integrated into our lives.

For a day or two around the 12th watch for you and the people in your life to be more sensitive than usual as old wounds are brought to the surface so that they can be healed.

Mercury (communication) enters Aries on April 16th and the conversation is likely to become more animated and energized for a few weeks. It will become easier to make decisions but there is also the tendency for misunderstandings and impulsive speech.

That will be moderated somewhat when the Sun enters Taurus on the 19th and seeks comfort and pleasure in the simple and the safe.

The New Moon is the initiation of the new lunar cycle, and after a month of working through imbalances in our personal lives and unearthing Plutonian treasures and being exhausted by Martian passion, this Taurus New Moon will provide a resting place within which to find harmony and serenity.

This is a beautiful time of retreat and enjoyment of the simpler things that bring simple pleasure into the human life.

The mind is stimulated and ready to embrace new ideas and ways of thinking although with the strong Earth influence in the New Moon chart any action will be slow to unfold. There is a hint and an echo of the revolutionary excitement that is just around the corner as the challenging square between Uranus and Pluto begins to tighten.

And then the excitement begins! Stay tuned more for more dramatic details in next month’s Skywatch. Meanwhile have a great April.

As always, if you have questions about this information or would like toschedule a consultation [14] to discover how your own chart is affected, don't hesitate to contact me [15].

Peace and best wishes,

Lynn Hayes
www.astrodynamics.net [16]

__________________

Live and Learn. Learn and Live Better! is my motto. I'm Mardy Ross, and I founded Lumigrate in 2008 after a career as an occupational therapist with a background in health education and environmental research program administration. Today I function as the desk clerk for short questions people have, as well as 'concierge' services offered for those who want a thorough exploration of their health history and direction to resources likely to progress their health according to their goals. Contact Us comes to me, so please do if you have questions or comments. Lumigrate is "Lighting the Path to Health and Well-Being" for increasing numbers of people. Follow us on social networking sites such as: Twitter: http://twitter.com/lumigrate [17] and Facebook. (There is my personal page and several Lumigrate pages. For those interested in "groovy" local education and networking for those uniquely talented LumiGRATE experts located in my own back yard, "LumiGRATE Groove of the Grand Valley" is a Facebook page to join. (Many who have joined are beyond our area but like to see the Groovy information! We not only have FUN, we are learning about other providers we can be referring patients to and 'wearing a groove' to each other's doors -- or websites/home offices!) By covering some of the things we do, including case examples, it reinforces the concepts at Lumigrate.com as well as making YOU feel that you're part of a community. Which you ARE at Lumigrate!