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Spring and Summer
2009
& Travel Schedule
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To schedule readings, regressions or events, please call
805-963-0842 |
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May 13
Anaheim, CA
May 28 -June 1
Cambria, CA
July 7-15
Phoenix, AZ
August 8
3:00 - 4:00 pm
AM 1290 KZSB Santa Barbara News-Press Radio
Special Guest Appearance
on
Tell Me Your Story: New Paradigms for a
New World
Hosted by
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Quick Links
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Beth McDonald
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Healing Resources:
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Full Moon in Scorpio
May 17th
12:26 am PDT
May 24th
May 30th
8:22 pm PDT
2009
January 25th
Solar Annular
February 9th
Lunar Penumbral
July 17th
Lunar Penumbral
July 21st
Solar Total
August 5th
Solar Total
December 31st
Lunar Partial
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Original Art and Photography
Getty Venus
Beth McDonald
Summer Joy
Jamie O'Toole
Beltane Fire
Jamie O'Toole
Mary's Lillies
Jamie O'Toole
Venus in Taurus
Jamie O'Toole
Spirit of Taurus
Jamie O'Toole
Mercury Retrograde in Taurus
Jamie O'Toole
Venus Disassociating
Beth McDonald
Blue Moon
Jamie O'Toole
Nick Adenhart's Memorial
Eric Watts
Sunshine
Jamie O'Toole
Getty Arbor
Beth McDonald
Kauai Goddess
Eric Watts
Portrait
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Spring is Over, Baby, Summer is Here
Let the Games - and the Mystery - Begin!
Observing May
Day seems to be the most curious and confounding of all the modern
Shabbat day celebrations. We just have trouble figuring it out - what
it is and what it means to us - for many reasons. Not least of which is
The Name Thing. Beltane probably has more
names than any other Shabbat: Beltane, Roodmas, Walpurgisnacht,
Cethsamhain, Whitsuntide are just a mere few. Maybe it's just the
literature major in me, but don't get so hung up on this part.
Precision is good, but remember your Shakespeare: a rose by any other
name would smell as sweet.
Regardless of what you call
it, Beltane is the big party that lies halfway between the Spring
Equinox and the Summer Solstice. It has traditionally been observed on
May First or May Day, though Lunar observances are sometimes slightly
different. The Lunar Beltane this year is May 8th, and for those of you
doing ceremony, this will definitely be the more powerful day as it
falls in the upcoming Mercury retrograde and the Moon is full in
Scorpio.
Regardless
of when you celebrate it, Beltane has long been considered to be the
beginning of summer, and as such is the last of the three planting and
fertility festivals. In ancient times this holiday marked the time crop
planting was completed, livestock were bred, and - as was the case with
all Shabbat days- ceremonies where held to ensure the fertility of the
crops, herds and people and the abundance of future
harvests. Often huge bonfires were lit, both to purify the
members of tribes and communities and to focus the collective
consciousness. In order to clear up the conundrum and determine how,
when and what you are celebrating at summer's official beginning, you
have to start in a very Taurean way - with you: your wants and needs,
your goals, values and priorities. What is it that you want to
create for yourself this year? And why - what redemption do you
believe those accomplishment will bring you? What actions must you take
now to ensure you will achieve those goals?
And
once those things are clear, run them through the filter of the gifts
and lessons inherent in the season. Some years they are clearer than
others, and this is looking like one of those years. The crappy economy
is a tremendous clarifier, isn't it? And leveler.
On the gifts and graces side, it is so much easier now to be aware of
and grateful for all the small things - especially what wealth and love
there is - that are often so easily taken for granted. Even the lessons
are clearer this year. And as usual, the energy of the stars can help
brighten the darker places, and show us the way to reach our goals. And
the biggest planetary influence right now is definitely Taurus. |
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The Spirit of Taurus
Thankfully,
Taurus is a relatively simple energy. What it lacks in complexity, it
makes up for in strength. It is ruled by Venus, who just went direct
after nearly six weeks worth of a retrograde of her own (but we'll save
that conversation for another time). Taurus represents a couple of key
concepts: the divine feminine, values and valuables, and our
relationships with others. I often see people in my practice who are -
consciously or unconsciously - in tune and focused on some aspect of
the seasonal themes, and now is no exception. So let's break them
down one at a time.
Firstly, Taurus rules the divine
feminine archetype: beautiful and loving, compassionate and
collaborative. When Taurus is in play, we are also called upon to
recognize and utilize that softer, more feminine, side of ourselves and
others. So it comes as no surprise that Taurus is always the dominant
energy at Beltane, when we are celebrating the glory and necessity of
the feminine to the future of the tribe and the species. Secondly,
Taurus represents our values, and what we perceive as valuable. Now
this is everything from material things to people. It is both what we
hold dear, and why. With Taurus, we are invited to review and recommit
to whatever that is for us. For many, it is managing their money
better. Especially this year.
Thirdly,
Taurus rules relationships - with friends, family, lovers, and material
things - especially ones that are beautiful, balanced, and harmonious.
And right now I tend to see a lot of people desperately trying to make
themselves, their lives and their worlds more so. The trick is handling
the places where your world overlaps and intersects with that of
somebody else. Then the question becomes how do we work together to
form a more perfect union (or beautification committee)? And how do we
compromise? On broader issues it is often easier than it is on personal
ones, where the solutions often look a lot like the home version of Lets Make a Deal.
A subset of this is primary love relationships, and I am also seeing a
lot of people trying to harmonize and balance those in spades. At the
core of the issue is usually the gender balance (or battle) and the
quest for relational and sexual equality. This is often a grow or go
period for those in committed, or allegedly committed, relationships.
And then there is the team thing.
It is no surprise to me that so many big sports season begin or end
when Taurus is dominant. Taurus rules teams, and this time of year you
absolutely have to learn how to be part of one. And cleanly, without
becoming a bitter, resentful martyr or victim. You have to learn the
difference between compromising and caving in. And this is where the
downside of Taurus becomes apparent. The lower octave of Taurus is its
absolutely epic stubbornness. This time of year we are called upon to
differentiate between the ways and places where our stubbornness helps
us and is an asset and the ways and places where it does not and is
not. So just when you need help figuring out how to do that,
how to stay on track with a purely Venutian program of beauty, harmony,
and turning a tidy profit,the universe is all too happy to help and
provides you with a handy learning lab. A Mercury Retrograde.
The Summer Mercury Retrograde
A Moment in Gemini, A Lifetime in Taurus
Okay,
this one is a long one - 24 days - and I could probably talk about it
alone for about a year. Y'all know how I feel about the retrogrades,
especially Mercury. For right now I'll save it for the book. If
you want more info, call me. Book a session, or take me out to lunch;
we'll tawk. So with that said, our pal
Mercury goes retrograde late in the evening of May 6th at 01 degree
Gemini. He moves into Taurus on May 11th, where he moves ever so
steadfastly until May 30th (!) when he goes direct at 22 degrees.
So
much energy in one sign - in this case Taurus - puts a whole lot of
focus there. Like putting blinders on a horse, you pretty much can't
look anywhere else. So that is how the stage was set. Enter the Mercury
retrograde, the guy whose job it is to show you the chinks in your
armor. And suddenly now not only can you not look away, but you are
suddenly all you can see is the places where the Taurus energy - the
feminine, the beauty, the harmony, the collaboration, the money - aint workin' for ya. Where try as you might, you just haven't gotten it all figured out yet.
It's all
too confrontational, some days, I know. But trust me, it serves. If we
don't understand a problem, we can't truly fix it. This retrograde will
show us where we can no longer avoid having to face, own and fix
certain problems of our own making. And it will request that we make
some choices. Bigger, better, less self-sabotaging choices. This
retrograde, as Sergeant Major John Sixta tends to say in Generation Kill, we have to learn how to "unf*^k" ourselves.
This
is precisely where that fixed Taurus energy can really be an asset,
especially if we can take a stand for using it in a more mature and
judicious way. Be stubbornly committed to only the right things. And
let go of the rest. Granted that can be easier said than done -
sorting through it all to make those determinations is a complicated
thing. And this is where a little Taurean compassion and Mercurial
humor has to come in. I got a glimpse of that recently when I was
watching Mike Scioscia, manager of the Angles baseball team, get
ejected from his second game in a week, and the announcer gave it the
perfect reframe. He said Mike was getting an invitation to take an early shower.
And as he did, it dawned on me once again the truth of the ancient
wisdoms that reframe every challenge into an invitation, an
opportunity. With that said, the best question to be asking yourself
right about now is what are your challenges inviting you to do? |
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In closing, remember
the challenge - or invitation - before us each Beltane is subtly and
slightly different. Last year the Beltane challenge/invitation was in
getting with the program. This year the world and it's rules are
radically different, and a lot of us are desperately trying to just
figure out what the new program is, so we can get on board. But it is
an inside job - you have to revisit and reflect on your personal
values, using that information to define your Beltane and it's
relevance. It's just personal.
This is where I love the
ancient spiritualities - as well as Martin Luther's influences - in
that you have permission, no; you have a responsibility to figure out
what this all means to you. It has to be personal. And functional.
And fun. This year you are channeling some love child of Rodney King and Mary Poppins: there is no reason we can't all get along and have fun with it.
This Beltane, find a way to make it fun. It's not about things being so
dark we can't or don't celebrate, it's about find a new way. Innovate.
Be committed to finding the joy and the grace of the process. And as
usual, the energy of the stars will show you the way, if you have the
courage and the focus to look. Use only the best of that epic
Taurean stubbornness to stay strong and positive and committed to
yourself, your values and your community. And if you get stuck, call
me. We'll figure it out.
Blessings,
Beth |
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