Are We Ready for Healing?

Maybe We Should Act Like a Person in Love

ARE WE READY FOR HEALING?

In my psychotherapy session, I realized on a visceral level that there are some people who are in so much pain, who are so overwhelmed by their suffering, that it's hard for them to be aware or, let alone welcome, certain blessings and healings that may be nearby and available.

I am not like that now, but I have been like that at times in my life.

I aspire to be a source of blessing and healing for people. At the same time, I never want to force my blessings and healings on anyone. I respect that some people are not yet ready for help; I honor their free will about what influence or inspiration they want to take in.

With those caveats, I pray to my spirit allies to help me find ways to gently crack open the willingness to be blessed and healed in anyone who is ready for that.

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UTTER PRAGMATISM

A pragmatic strategy we could practice is to act like a person in love.

Even if we are not technically in the throes of passion, we can pretend we are. We can simulate and approximate the state.

Everywhere we go, we might exude the charismatic blend of ebullient contentment and blissful turmoil that washes over us when we're infatuated.

We invite our allies to soak up the tender, libidinous wisdom we exude.

We dispense free blessings and pure slack like rich saints who are sure our souls live for all eternity.

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A PREVIEW OF YOUR DESTINY IN 2024

Want to get a head start on your future?

This week my EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES offer you a sneak-peek at some major themes I think you'll be working and playing with in 2024.

Start dreaming and scheming about who you're going to be in the new year. Enlist my help as you energize your quest to become your best self.

To access the Expanded Audio Horoscopes, go to https://RealAstrology.com

Register and/or log in through the main page, and then click on the link "This week (Dec. 19, 2023)."

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The cost for the Expanded Audio Horoscopes is $7 per sign. (You can get discounts for multiple purchases.)

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Beginning with next week's EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES, I’ll devote three weeks to an in-depth discussion of your long-range outlook for 2024.

Part One of my BIG-PICTURE FORECASTS FOR 2024 will be available beginning Tuesday, December 26. Part Two will be available on Tuesday, January 2. Part Three will be available on Tuesday, January 9.

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MERCURY RETROGRADE

Now that Mercury is retrograde for a while, you may want to read my thoughts on the subject, as offered in my book, ASTROLOGY IS REAL.

How should we manage when Mercury is retrograde?

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WHAT NOURISHES YOU EMOTIONALLY AND SPIRITUALLY?

The world is filled with things that provide you with mediocre nourishment. Resources that enrich you with teachings and blessings are smaller in number.  

To say it from another slant: You derive scant sustenance from the vast majority of people, songs, images, words, stories, environments, and sights. From a rare few, you glean illumination and inspiration.  

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So what nourishes you emotionally and spiritually? 

I’m not talking about what provides measly entertainment and meager diversion. Not referring to stimuli that flatter or anesthetize you. Don’t mean lackluster time-wasters that wanly distract you. 

What wonders make you smarter and stronger? Who sees and appreciates your essence? What adventures teach you riveting and pivotal lessons? 

I want to hear you exult about the beauty that replenishes your soul flesh and the symbols that titillate your wisdom and the divine interventions that prove to you your destiny is fueled by sacred mystery.  

I invite you to take inventory of these untamed and untamable treasures. Make decisive moves to be in ongoing communion with them. Strategize about how best to nurture them back. 

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Jenny Holzer said it.

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UNFUCK THE WORLD

I renounce any denunciations I may have carelessly hurled toward our beautiful Earth and its inhabitant when I was under the spell of bad ideas, delusional attitudes, or unloving influences.

I invite you to do the same.

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UNFUCK this. UNFUCK that. UNFUCK these and those.

UNFUCK all the stuff out there and in here.

UNFUCK the people, places, and situations that don't know they need to be UNFUCKED.

UNFUCK every little nuance and every big deal that would make life more fun and interesting for all of us if they were UNFUCKED.

UNFUCK the whole world.

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The definition of UNFUCKWITHABLE: When you're so at peace with yourself and so at home wherever you go that no one can rile you up and knock you out of your groove.

Caveat: There is an important distinction between not giving a fuck about what people think of you and not giving a fuck about other people's feelings.

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I consulted my 117 spirit guides to ask if I should give a fuck.

Their unanimous response: "Fuck yes, you should give a fuck."

So I do.

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LOVE CUES AND CLUES: GOLDEN REPAIR

Kintsukuroi and kintsugi are Japanese words that mean "golden repair." They refer to the practice of fixing cracked pottery with lacquer that's blended with actual gold or silver.

Metaphorically, the words suggest that something may become more beautiful and valuable after being broken.

The wounds and the healing of the wounds are integral parts of the story, not shameful distortions to be disguised or hidden.

"Break a vase," wrote author Derek Walcott, "and the love that reassembles the fragments is stronger than that love which took its symmetry for granted when it was whole."

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I DON’T WANT YOU TO BE LIKE ME

Someone paid me a high compliment. She said, "I want you to know how often your process of being yourself has helped me in my process of being me."

Yes! I don't want her to be like me, and I don't want YOU to be like me.

I want you to be like you—to the fullest, deepest, most magnificent and sacred and idiosyncratic extent.

And another thing: I love it when you create your own fantastic, unprecedented reality. It inspires me to make my own.

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ORACULAR HOMEWORK #109, excerpted from my new book ASTROLOGY IS REAL.

ARIES: Describe the differences between what your ego needs and what your soul needs.

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TAURUS: "Make your work your play and your play your work," advises Hall of Fame basketball coach Phil Jackson.

I believe that cultivating this enlightened state is a Taurus birthright.

How are you doing with that? Are you making progress toward fulfilling your potential?

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GEMINI: What's your favorite rule to break? Why? What pleasure does it provide?

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CANCERIAN: What would the people who love you best say is the most important thing for you to learn?

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LEO: Is it possible there's something you really need but you don't know what it is? What might it be?

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VIRGO: What feeling do you love to feel more than any other?

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LIBRA: If you had to choose one wild animal to follow, observe, and learn from for a month, which would it be?  .

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SCORPIO: Tell or write a story called "How I Created Something Out of Nothing."

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SAGITTARIUS: What two gifts could you give yourself to enhance your sense that your life is intensely meaningful?

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CAPRICORN: Whether or not we believe in gods, we all worship something. What idea, person, thing, or emotion do you feel reverence for?

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AQUARIUS: Of all the ridiculous situations you've ever been in, which is your favorite? 

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PISCES: What is the most soulful thing you've ever done? The most soulful thing you've never done? The most soulful thing you will do in the future?

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FREE WILL ASTROLOGY

Week of December 21

© Copyright 2023  Rob Brezsny

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): "All the things I really like to do are either illegal, immoral, or fattening," quipped Capricorn author Alexander Woollcott (1887–1943). Since he was never arrested, I conclude he didn't get to enjoy some of the activities he relished. Was he immoral? Not exactly, though he could be caustic. Offering his opinion about a famous pianist, he said, "There is absolutely nothing wrong with Oscar Levant that a miracle couldn't fix." The good news for you, Capricorn, is that 2024 will be mostly free of the problems Woollcott experienced. You will be offered an abundance of perfectly legal and moral enjoyments. They may sometimes be fattening, but so what?

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Author Augusten Burroughs is a devoted urban dweller. He says, "When I get a craving for nature, I turn on TV's Discovery Channel and watch bear-attack survivors recount their horror." Martial arts master Morihei Ueshiba had a different perspective. "Mountains, rivers, plants, and trees should be your teachers," he advised. "Study how water flows in a valley stream, smoothly and freely between the rocks." I recommend Ueshiba's approach to you in 2024, Aquarius—not Burroughs’. Here are my predictions: 1. You will have no dangerous encounters with nature. 2. You will learn more than ever from the wild world. 3. To the degree that you wander in the outdoors, your spiritual life will thrive.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): A study done at Union College in New York found that being fraternity members raised students’ future income by 36 percent, but lowered their grade point average by 0.25 points. Would you make a similar trade-off, Pisces? Would you pursue a path that made you more successful in one way but less successful in another? I suspect you will encounter unusual decisions like this in 2024. My job is not to advise you what to do, but to make you alert for the provocative riddles.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Aries educator Booker T. Washington advised us, "Do the common thing in an uncommon way." That's a useful motto for you in the coming months. If you carry out ordinary activities with flair, you will generate good fortune and attract excellent help. As you attend to details with conscientious enthusiasm, you will access your finest inner resources and exert constructive influences on the world around you. Be thorough and unique, persistent and imaginative, attentive and innovative. Adore your chores in 2024!

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Taurus philosopher John Stuart Mill (1806–1873) was among the smartest people who ever lived. As is often the case with geniuses, he believed in the supreme value of liberty for all. He was a feminist long before that word existed. Like another genius, architect Frank Lloyd Wright, he thought that "individuality realized is the supreme attainment of the human soul, the master-master’s work of art. Individuality is sacred." I nominate Mill to be a role model for you in 2024, Taurus. This could be a time when you reach unprecedented new heights and depths of unique self-expression and liberation. PS: Here’s a quote from Mill: “Eccentricity has always abounded where strength of character has abounded; and the amount of eccentricity in a society has been proportional to the amount of genius, mental vigor, and moral courage which it contained.”

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Emotionally and spiritually, you will ripen at a robust rate in 2024. Your intelligence will mature into wisdom in surprising and gratifying ways. Harvesting rich lessons from long-smoldering confusions and long-simmering mysteries will be your specialty. PS: Some of you Geminis joke around and say you never want to grow up. But I hope you minimize that attitude in the coming months.

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START EXPLORING YOUR LONG-RANGE FUTURE

This week my EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES offer you a teaser, sneak-peek look of some major themes you'll be working and playing with in 2024.

Who do you want to be in the coming year? What do you want to do? Where do you want to go? Your destiny is more wide-open than you might imagine. You have a lot of power to shape the flow of events.

I hope to inspire you to take advantage of the possibilities!

The cost is $7, with a discount for multiple purchases.

To get your sneak peek of some of 2024's major themes:

1. Go to https://RealAstrology.com

2. Register and/or log in

3. Then click on the link "This week (Dec. 19, 2023)."

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CANCER (June 21-July 22): Indigenous people study the intelligence of animals and incorporate it into their own lives. If you’re game to do that in 2024, I suggest you choose elephants as a source of teaching and inspiration. Have fun studying and meditating on their ways! Here are a few facts to get you started. Problem-solving is one of their stengths. They are experts at learning how to get what they need and passing that knowledge on to their offspring. They seldom suffer from sickness, but if they do, they often self-medicate with plants in their environment. Elder females are the knowledge keepers, retaining inner maps of where food, drink, and other resources are located.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Writer Janet Champ speaks about the joy of locating “the big wow, the big yesyesyes.” It happens when you find something or someone you regard as “better, greater, cuter, wiser, more wonderful than anything you have ever known." I’ll be lavish and predict you will encounter a big wow and yesyesyes like this in 2024. Will you know what to do with it? Will you be able to keep it? Those possibilities are less certain, but I have high hopes for you. For best results, cultivate a vivid vision of how the big wow and big yesyesyes will benefit others as well as you.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): In 1916, most women in the world could not vote. Many men considered women to be inferior—lacking in courage and initiative. It was the Dark Ages! That summer, two sisters named Augusta and Adeline Van Buren rebelled against the stereotypes by riding their motorcycles across America. Roads were poor, rains were frequent, and police arrested them frequently for wearing men’s clothes. Male-dominated media derided them, with one newspaper criticizing their escape from “their proper roles as housewives.” I nominate them to be your role models in 2024, no matter what gender you are. It will be a favorable time to transcend conventional wisdom, override decaying traditions, and be a cheerful rebel.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): For hundreds of years, European nations stole land and resources from Indigenous people all over the world. Among the thefts were art, ritual objects, cultural treasures, and human skeletons. Museums in the West are still full of such plunder. But in recent years, some museums have begun to return the loot. Germany sent back hundreds of artifacts to Nigerian museums. France restored many objects to the African country of Benin. Let’s apply this scenario as a useful metaphor for you in 2024, Libra. Is there a part of your past that was hijacked? Your memories appropriated or denied? Your rightful belongings poached, or your authentic feelings infringed upon? It’s time for corrections and healing.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): I suggest we choose the brilliant Scorpio physicist and chemist Marie Curie (1867–1934) as your role model in 2024. She is the only person to win a Nobel Prize in two different fields. She managed to pursue a rigorous scientific career while raising two children and having a fulfilling marriage. Being of service to humanity was a central life goal. She grew up in poverty and sometimes suffered from depression, but worked hard to become the genius she aspired to be. May the spirit of Marie Curie inspire you, dear Scorpio, as you make dramatic progress in expressing your unique soul’s code.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): In my fairy tale about your year ahead, I see you searching for treasure. It’s not a wild and wandering exploration, but a diligent, disciplined quest. You are well-organized about it, carefully gathering research and asking incisive questions. You ruminate on the possibilities with both your logical and intuitive faculties. You meditate on how you might make adjustments in yourself so as to become fully available for the riches you seek. Your gradual, incremental approach gives you strength. You draw inspiration from your sheer persistence and relentless inquiry. And it all pays off by the second half of 2024.