Full Strawberry Moon in Sagittarius and Neptune Retrograde

The full moon in 22 degrees of Sagittarius was exact at 12:11 a.m. on Friday, June 13th on the east coast but I would bet the farm that most of us have been feeling its effects since Monday, June 9th when Neptune stationed retrograde in 7 degrees of Pisces. There was a foggy feel to the day that had a tendency to play out in either heightened idealism or disillusionment.

Why is it called a Strawberry moon?  According to the Indians, the month of June with its 30 days represented the short season for harvesting strawberries.  It is extremely rare that this full moon falls on a Friday the 13^th, a day rife with superstition.  We won’t have another full moon on Friday the 13^th until August 13, 2049.  So, with this full moon and Mercury retrograde, you can definitely expect the unexpected and prepare to clean out your life both literally and figuratively.

We may finally have Mars direct, but last week Mercury went retrograde and now we have Neptune retrograde until November 16th. Neptune retrograde forces us to review the condition of our soul, and for many of us, to let go of our need to rescue others by developing the faith that they will find the strength to overcome their own challenges. And don't be surprised if dreams become even more vivid over the next few months; that is part and parcel of Neptune's territory.  We cannot forget the re in retrograde and what it stands for: reassess!

Saturn in Scorpio has been playing a huge role in this week's planetary activity. On Tuesday, June 10th the moon in Scorpio conjuncted Saturn in Scorpio. This inspired me to tweet: "Big reality check today as moon conjuncts Saturn in Scorpio. No escape from doing the work to transform our toxins." It must have resonated big-time for a lot of folks because it garnered 254 views and quite a few retweets and favorites.

Astrologer Henry Seltzer aptly named this week's full moon as "The Painful Progress of the Sagittarius Full Moon" in his astrograph.com newsletter. This full moon opposes Mercury in addition to the Sun, inconjuncts Jupiter in Cancer and squares Chiron in Pisces, forming a T-square.  Henry likens it to being on a shamanic path because of the difficult changes we are going through and I couldn't agree more.

I googled shamanism and found a beautiful definition on:

www.shamanic.journey.com

that I would like to share:

"Healing is the most important function in shamanism along with prophecy as well as addressing the condition of the soul for healing to occur in the first place."

Venus in Taurus also opposes Saturn in Scorpio, which is trining Chiron in Pisces and this supports the theme of uncovering prior wounding.  Indeed, it is an opportunity to explore underlying difficulties in our relationships that prevent them from reaching their full potential.

The full moon falls in my third house and Neptune is stationing retrograde in my fifth house.  How is that playing out for me?  Well, I am trying to put myself out there in the community more in terms of developing my business by engaging in some creative behavior.  I would like to have some more Reiki clients, but I realize that no matter what you say or write about it, unless you have experienced Reiki, you just don’t understand it or how it can benefit you.  During the last two years when I was extremely stressed out from my job, I would do Reiki on myself every morning in the bathroom to destress.  This week I started thinking that a lot of people get that feeling of dread on Sunday at the thought of going back to work on Monday.  Wouldn’t it be nice if you could do something for yourself to prepare for the work week and balance your energy so that you are in a calm, relaxed state?  So I asked the owner of the acupuncture clinic that I work at if I could host a Reiki event on a Sunday from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. and offer 10 free chair Reiki sessions that are ten minutes long.  My usual sessions are twenty minutes and include a chair and a shikibuton where the client gets to lay down and receive treatment.  She agreed to it and it will be held on July 20^th, when Mercury is finally out of its shadow retrograde and Saturn is stationary direct.  It seems like Saturn has been retrograde forever, but in reality, only since March 2^nd.  It feels like forever to me because Saturn’s retrograde station began on my Venus and will resume direct motion three degrees away from my Sun. 

Transiting Pluto in Capricorn is still in my third house within striking distance of my north node, so it is high time that I make myself more visible to the community.  This does not come naturally to me, as I am a bonafide introvert, especially with Saturn in the first house conjunct the Sun. 

And did I mention that I work at a community clinic that offers acupuncture, herbal medicine and Reiki? This just seemed like the perfect way to harness the energies of the third and fifth houses.  Just in case anyone does want to learn more about the benefits of Reiki, check out this link:

http://everyonesacupuncture.com/what-reiki-can-do-for-you/

On June 14, 2014 we will revisit the themes of April’s Grand Cross with Mars in 12 degrees of Libra squaring Pluto in 13 degrees of Capricorn.  But this time Mars is direct this time (don’t you feel like you need a score card to keep up with all of these retrogrades?), so we can expect more cosmic support to implement those changes we have been contemplating.

In addition to Reiki, please consider getting an astrological reading to obtain more insight and healing during these challenging times. Check out my services page on this site at:

http://phoenixscorpio.blogspot.com/p/services-offered.html

Please feel free to follow me on Twitter for my daily astrological insights at:

https://twitter.com/danceofphoenix

 Happy Friday the 13th and Full Moon!