Alrighty, then!

The Taurus Moon waxes to its fullness at 8:05AM ET. Like the last two Full Moons before it, this is a SuperMoon, meaning that the Moon is closer to Earth than usual, and will appear to be that much bigger in the sky. Thus emotions are also likely running higher than usual. Or so the theory goes.

By the way, I hope you’ve been looking up at the sky in recent weeks, to appreciate Venus, Jupiter and Mars so close together in Virgo — it’s quite a lovely sight.

A Taurus Moon can be quite resistant to change. It prefers to establish material security firmly in its own comfort zone. A Scorpio Sun is interested in jointly-held or shared resources. It is the conflict between MINE and OURS that we may experience in this lunation. If you remember the seeds planted at the New Moon two weeks ago, you may recall it had to do with startling revelations involving relationship. So…more of the same here, with a focus on establishing security.

This Full Moon happens at 3 degrees of Taurus, which considered a favorable placement. It is opposed by the Sun at 3 degrees of Scorpio. So if you have planets or angles at 3 Taurus, Scorpio — and to a lesser extent — Leo and Aquarius, this Full Moon will impact your life more personally. If you don’t know where your planets are, then consult your local astrologer.

The Sabian Symbols for the Full Moon are — for the Moon — “a rainbow’s pot of gold,” and — for the Sun — “a youth holding a lighted candle”. Don’t those sound dreamy? And in fact, we see in the patterns of the Full Moon chart an alignment between the Sun and dreamy Neptune. Yes, something about the illumination potential of this Full Moon borders on the ideal. But are we not “such stuff as dreams are made on?”

Sabian Symbol guru Blain Bovee suggests we apply these symbols with a mind to “the challenge of the enthusiastic pursuit of reward; balancing dreams that enrich the spirit with appreciating what one already has.” He cautions us against gussying up something of intrinsic value. Isn’t it fine just the way it is? Three planets in Virgo in this Full Moon chart can be so fussy! Hmm…maybe your relationship is just fine, too.

If you like these Symbols and find them fascinating food for thought, get Bovee’s wonderful book.   He has plenty of other things to say about these two Symbols, but space and time do not permit me to list them here.

In the 24 hours following the Full Moon, we’ll see a loose Grand Trine among the Moon, Pluto and Jupiter-Venus-Mars — all in Earth Signs. As noted yesterday, a Grand Earth Trine is a pattern suggesting material self-sufficiency and ease of effort in establishing material security. So apply this practical Earth energy to building your monument to material comfort over the next day or so….seasoned with a liberal dash of dreams.  This pattern would seem to bode well for the alleged efforts going on in Washington to reach a budget accord without having to default. Nice.

And now, the news.

How interesting that yesterday did begin with a jolt, as anticipated. There was a 7.5 quake affecting Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Another jolt was a health study from WHO, advising that processed meats “rank along smoking as cancer causes”. A Moon void much ado about nothing? It’s not like this news has not been published before — it has. But this was how The Guardian presented the study, which was all over social media. Nobody wants to give up their bacon! Later that day, it was fascinating to see how the NYT told the story, with these words in the first paragraph:

But the increase in risk is so slight that experts said most people should not be overly worried about it.

Have you read The China Study yet? It was billed as “the most comprehensive study of nutrition ever conducted,” and it’s a page-turner. Darn these three planets in Virgo — and especially Jupiter, which suggest the potential for expanded awareness in matters of health, nutrition and food processing.

Last week I noted that with Venus meeting up with Jupiter over the weekend, I wondered if we’d see a story involving diabetes or some other health matter involving sugar. And in fact, we did see one on Monday, dissecting and criticizing (how very Virgo) a study published last month which concluded that honey was no better than high fructose corn syrup and sugar. What the article did not say is who funded the study that dismissed honey.

Meanwhile, women’s hygiene products are also homepage news in more than one paper in more than one country. Venus (women) conjunct Jupiter (expansion; good fortune; excess) in Virgo (health, hygiene)…with probably a little bit of the adjustment suggested by a current tense pattern between Venus and Uranus (revelation; freedom). Wanna hear these stories? Of course you do. “Under Pressure, Feminine Product Manufacturers Disclose Ingredients” is one. A second is this one:

Britain will lobby Brussels for an end to the 5% rate of VAT on tampons after a threatened rebellion in the House of Commons.

Hear that? Rebellion! And while we’re Going Down There, and since we’re also talking about rebellion, check out the innovative tactics that one woman used to  singlehandedly disperse a protest outside her local Planned Parenthood on Sunday.  That’s what happens when you mix the wacky lightning bolt of Sunday’s Mercury-Uranus opposition with a pile-up of chick-friendly planets in Virgo.

Also making news in the world of women (Venus) and abundance (Jupiter): Wellesley College (my alma mater) announced it has received a gift of $50m, the largest in the school’s history. Huzzah! That’s pretty big — and the timing is perfect, given planetary patterns. What’s also perfect is Wellesley’s launch of its biggest fund-raising campaign, too. My money says they will meet their goal of $500m. Go Blue!

Astrology is amazing. What’s going on in your horoscope? I can’t believe you do not want to know. Taking 90 minutes of time to put the significant events in planetary perspective is a worthwhile investment.  Why? Because patterns repeat themselves, and if you’re facing a challenge or an opportunity now, we can see  how you handled events under similar patterns. This inspires clarity and confidence, and it’s much cheaper than therapy. Here’s the 411 on personal consultations.

Thank you for reading this forecast.