horoscope

In his weekly forecasts for Aquarians, Rob Brezsny often offers lofty predictions for us water bearers, particularly when the sun in is our station. Midwinter seems to be a good time for us to plant seeds for future explosive growth, reap emotional and fiscal rewards, gather love and good vibes about us, and show off our exuberant genius.

It has rarely worked out for me this way.

On the other hand, I never let myself believe that it could, and isn’t believing in yourself most of the battle? You can’t grow if you don’t reach. You can’t display your talents if you believe the shelf is empty. It’s immensely difficult to gather love when you don’t love yourself very much.

This week, Brezsny compares the imminent future of the Aquarian to the destiny of the Wright Brothers. Mere weeks before they launched their first flight, the New York Times published an editorial blasting efforts to develop flight technologies, insisting that human flight could not be achieved for at least a million years. Nine weeks later…

Brezsny believes that Aquarians are in a good position to disprove a prediction about our own supposed limitations.

If this happens, if I exceed my possibilities or achieve some great objective, it will be because, this time, I believe in myself.

What’s your definition of personal wealth? Most of us would agree that means financial gain and security, but each of us also has our own idea of what we’d like to have in addition.

You might measure wealth in relationships and family. Or maybe you have an abundance of time for your spiritual or creative pursuits. You may express the concept of wealth as self-fulfillment, contentment, ease, and appreciation.

Rob Brezsny says that 2024 will be a good time for Aquarians to build our wealth, but it’s up to us to define it.

My desire in life is to be rich with friendships and love, the time and ability to learn and create, and simple contentment. I don’t need to be ecstatically happy and I’d like not to suffer terrible sadness. I’m ok in the middle. This year, I strive to be more present in the moment, to enjoy what I’m doing as I do it, and to fret less about what’s out of my control. I want to spend more time with friends, reconnect with people I haven’t seen in a while, and build my writing community. Throw in some decent health and maybe a dog, and I would consider myself satisfactorily wealthy.

On the other hand, I’m also looking to get that dough. Dice are rolling on that front. Wish me luck.

Tori Amos believes that she was burned as a witch in a previous life. Astrologer Rob Brezsny brings this up because he believes this year will provide Aquarians with opportunities to heal from past hurts. “You will have a series of experiences that could help you recover from the illusion that being faithful to your truth is somehow wrong,” he writes. “Life will conspire with you to help you reclaim more of the full audacity to be your gorgeous, genuine self.”

I’ve written before about my acquired negativity about my writing and creativity. Whether it’s lack of acknowledgement, shaming, undue criticism, or pure mockery, I’ve learned that talking about my writing with most people is a no-win strategy. It’s something best kept under wraps. The fact that I still love it and engage in it is testament to my resilience. Or stupidity and possibly masochism.

But if life is going to heal something this year, I pick that.

This week marks the final forecast of 2023 for Aquarians and it’s a good one.

Rob Brezsny suggests that Aquarians adopt the shark as our soul creatures for 2024, but not because they are apex predators. Instead, he encourages us to emulate the shark’s longevity and endurance. Science proposes that sharks lived on Earth before the dinosaurs and existed in the universe prior to Saturn’s rings.

Key words for 2024: resolute, staunch, indomitable, sturdy, resilient.

F*ck yeah.

This week’s forecast for Aquarians draws from the life of famous Aquarian Charles Dickens, who experienced severe financial difficulties in his early 30s. At the end of his means, Dickens wrote A Christmas Carol in a compact six-week period, publishing the story shortly after its completion. The rest of the story – Dickens’ and his novel’s – are well known.

Rob Brezsny says that the near future will be a good time for Aquarians to take dramatic, focused – or even obsessive – action to fix a problem we’re having.

I like the thought, but I don’t have a relevant problem. Which I suppose is a good thing.

Good news for Aquarians this week! In our January 5 horoscope, Rob Brezsny says that our ability to multi-task, think ahead, and adapt will be more appreciated and rewarded than usual. Being unpredictable is in our favor!

He suggests others may be jealous of the Aquarian talent for multi-tasking, but I haven’t experienced that (to my knowledge). My employers have taken advantage of it and my co-workers are happy to fail lightly so that I have to use it to keep the ship afloat, but I think most of them think I’m weird or semi-magical. If I’m going to be rewarded for the fundamental change in my job this year, I like money. It’s the season.

If it’s Wednesday, that means it’s time for another post about my horoscope, which appears to be my least-popular series, but I don’t care, because I’m just that contrary.

This week, Rob Brezsny shares some more thoughts on How to Be [Your Zodiac Sign]. My fellow Aquarians might recognize themselves in some of the following:

• Few people really understand you, so you may need to be your own best friend, the person that gets and encourages everything you do.
• There are no instructions on how to be an Aquarian, and if there were, we’d probably ignore them.
• People love you because you are freaky and eccentric and yet also sincere and kind. You are unconventional, non-conformist, unique, unusual, odd—and also trustworthy, tolerant, non-judgmental, and compassionate. You’re going to make me blush!
• You are often ahead of the game, sometimes so far ahead that the world needs time to catch up.

In the actual horoscope for this week, Brezsny shares a disgusting quote from Neil deGrasse Tyson, who says that the water molecules we drink have “passed through the kidneys of Socrates, Genghis Khan, and Joan of Arc.” So, if you think about Mongol pee when you brush your teeth tonight, thank Neil.

At the macro level though, it can be comforting to feel that we are connected to other beings, those here today and those who have gone before. Brezsny also suggests that when we deepen this connection with all aspects of life, we attract more help and support. If we’re all part of the same living universe, what helps one person helps the whole.

This week, Rob Brezsny touches on a topic I’ve hit a few times in the past year: giving back by paying it forward, with no expectation for a return on your investment. “Find the sweet spot where you love bestowing blessings for no other reason except this one: You are expressing your gratitude for the miraculous life you have been given,” he writes.

I’m not as connected to the community as I’d like, but I still pitch in where I’m able. In the last few months, I’ve given critiques at an in-person writing group and spent an evening sharing publishing information with a writer moving forward with self-publishing her novella.

I hope to do more of this in the next year. I’m in a good writing groove with my novel in progress and should have time to write more about craft issues and open discussions in various places. I’d like to have an intimate writing circle, but we’ll see. I haven’t yet cracked the code for putting one together and it might be more of a time commitment than I can handle.

I genuinely enjoy mentoring and cheerleading, especially for other writers. If I had my druthers (and the time and money), I’d have a formal process for engaging and encouraging. I hate to think that’s something that will have to wait until I’m retired, but there you go.

The great thing about writers – most of us – is our generosity. The community crabs are well outnumbered by writers who will freely share whatever they know – craft tips, paying markets, technical advice, marketing know-how, publishing practices, and more. We’re good eggs.

If you can help another writer, I hope you will. I think you’ll find the emotional rewards well worth your investment of time.

In this week’s horoscope for Aquarians, Rob Brezsny advises us to seek out advice from unconventional sources, such as a banker who uses the Tarot to forecast financial trends. “Now is a favorable time to take an inventory of your posse of teachers, helpers, and counselors,” he says. “Make sure it’s serving you well and providing maximum inspiration and support. Hot tip: It may be time to add a new facilitator or two to your entourage.”

My regular readers know that community and mentors have been a recurring theme on the blog. Where do we find them? How do we connect? What must we do to fit in? Community doesn’t simply happen. It’s hard to find a good one and even the best may not suit our vibes or the stage of our writing development. I know I’m not a unicorn, but some days I feel like I’m searching for one.

Oddly enough, the day after this horoscope was posted, I got a Facebook ad for a social platform and webinar series by my favorite, bar none, writer who also teaches and mentors. I am checking it out and will report back later. I may or may not have found a place to sit for a while, but at the least, I expect that anyone following this writer and interested in her platform would give good vibes. Wish me luck!

It’s another two-fer in the astrological realm this week, as Rob Brezsny shares excerpts from his new book, Astrology is Real: Revelations from My Life as an Oracle. This week, he publishes from a section called “How to be…” and since I’m an Aquarius, that’s all you get here. You other 11 signs can buy the book.

How to be an Aquarius

1. It’s not easy. Legendary Aquarian Tallulah Bankhead once said, “Nobody can be exactly like me. Even I have trouble doing it.” Amen, girl. (PS – If you get the chance to read TB’s biography, do it.)
2. Look forward. “Dream up creative solutions to problems that haven’t materialized yet,” Brezsny says. “Then apply your discoveries as you address problems that already exist. Your almost psychic capacity to foretell coming trends can be instrumental as you fix glitches in the here and now.” With all due modesty, I sometimes feel like I can predict the future, in a way that is not unlike watching a train about to collide with a car stuck on the tracks. I should write this stuff down, but I worry I’ll look insane.
3. One of Brezsny’s readers, Chandira Hensey, says “We may be called aloof and dispassionate, but the truth is we feel everything and need to work diligently to screen out the constant chatter we absorb. We benefit by escaping to wild places where the airwaves are quieter and where we can think our own thoughts and feel our own feelings.” YES. I had to develop a thick skin to keep myself from being cut to emotional ribbons.

In this week’s astrological forecast, Brezsny says that Aquarians have a leg up on our current problems. “You are smarter and wiser than you realize about the pressing issues that are now vying for your attention,” he says. “You know more than you know you know.”

I’m not sure what pressing issues I have going on right now. My day job is busy and more complex than usual, but also more challenging and therefore engaging. I feel like that’s mostly under control. I’ve scaled back my creative ambitions to a more manageable – and therefore enjoyable – level, and I’m getting lots more done on my most important projects.

Brezsny says that Aquarians have “earned this welcome phase of lucid certainty.” Maybe I was just ahead of schedule. But I’m always happy to discover new moments of insight, clarity, and peace.