Hello everyone,

I am again compelled to wish you a happy new year, friends - it feels like the first day of the year to me, since my kids went back to school today and I can get back to working on my own ideas, once again. I mention it, because I know I am not alone - many of us are feeling this way and many of us are dealing with health issues since the 2012 began. Exhaustion and stress, it would seem, are taking their toll on many of us - and with Mars in Virgo, it shows.

Mental Mercury just moved into responsible Capricorn, this past Saturday, and that should help to get that kid in our brain to pay attention to work and being responsible. We may see the more serious side of Virgos and Geminis we know and we should feel energetically supported in sticking with our New Year's resolutions. Whether we state a formal resolution or not, most of us, in our minds, are setting a plan, intention or hope designed to reach a particular goal for this new year. Success will come easier in the year of the Water Dragon if we can focus mentally and emotionally on what we want and NOT on the problem. Thoughts and emotions create more than ever in the new Age, it seems. We must stay positive and remember that while it is true we must, for example, "stick to our diet" which we may hate - it is also true that we are looking forward to "a healthier body". One of those mental mantras has you crankily trudging out of the kitchen, the other has you happily saying "I can't wait for the new!" - one has you barely holding on to your resolve, the other inspires you to reach for more.

Interestingly, too - many of us had issues with authorities or the courts come up in this past Scorpio time (Oct./Nov. 2011) and many of us are realizing that in almost every case, the Universe has said, "nope - this still needs to get done and by YOU." Folks who tried to stand their ground in housing issues have moved into a new location. Folks who tried to get someone else to set rules or changes in personal relationships were told "no, you really do need to work it out for yourself." People who truly needed help got some, but just enough so they could do the real work themselves. The message? There are no shortcuts. There is only Personal Responsibility with Saturn exalted in Libra, still for much of this year - and he is about to turn retrograde on Feb. 7th, in the most intensely Libran part of the sky. If you are embroiled in issues like this, try to think of this as a sort of a dance or the ebb and flow of tides and relationships - just as those Libra scales bobble back and forth until perfectly balanced, so shall this issue work itself out. It can be frustrating or perhaps time consuming and stressful - but getting to the bottom of these issues and finding a way to truly move past them is liberating and makes the work worth doing.

So what's coming up? Over the next 2 weeks, the Sun will square Saturn and people may feel increased pressure to get ambitious projects done, as energy winds down to the Aquarian New Moon - better known as Chinese New Year - on Jan. 23rd. Earth's energy is at its lowest at this point in the year, then begins to build again with the Aquarius New Moon, to start the year of the Water Dragon, known for high energy and good luck. With Mars turning retrograde on the same day, it suggests that the energy will be available for us internally to start the year, eventually pushing out into the world on April 13th, when Mars turns Direct. What does internalized energy do? In Virgo, it can focus us on our health, it can add energy to the details of our lives, though it make us more critical when blocked - it depends on each of our unique situations, relationships and attitude.

January 23rd is a box day, so it's not a great day to start new things, but it's a great day to go back and finish up old things. I also should say retrograde times also can affect our start dates and projects, but it's hard to find time when everything is Direct... well, except for now, that is. Everything is Direct now, so all energy systems are go - making this Friday the 13th (a circle day) an excellent day to start new things.

Finally, I want to mention that next Monday, Jan. 16th is Martin Luther King Day and American banks and post offices will be closed - as well as many schools. This one always sneaks up on me, since it is so close to the winter break, so I mention it to you. We also have World Religion Day on Sunday Jan. 15th, a day dedicated to the unity and oneness of all world religions, from the Baha'i tradition. If you would like to learn more about the holidays we include in the calendar, you can check out our source on our links page.

Wishing you the very best, as always my friends. Take care - xo!

Carole