Astrological Outlook for 2017 w/ Guest Astrologer Rachel Lang

Welcome to the Feng Shui Your Life podcast. I'm your host, Tisha Morris. Thank you so much for joining me on the podcast where I interview change agents, authors, healers, and really anyone helping to make our world better and your life richer. So stay tuned. And also, for more information on my upcoming events, courses, and books, visit my website at earthhome.tv. And now on to today's show. Hi everyone, welcome to Feng Shui Your Life podcast, and today kicks off my very first podcast of 2017. Thank you for tuning in, and I could not think of a better way to start the year off than having my guest today, Rachel Lang, talk about the energy trends that we have coming up for this year. Rachel is an astrologer, writer, speaker, and contributor to the Livebox magazine. She works with individuals and businesses to navigate through transitions, align with planetary cycles, and clear paths towards expansive futures. In her client practice, she combines her psychic gifts, her energy healing and mediumship, along with using the symbolic language of astrology to offer guiding messages to help her clients co-create expansive futures. She works with businesses and communities She earned her MA, her Master's in Theology, from Loyola Marymount University and speaks regularly on topics relating to astrology and spirituality in addition to being an activist for social justice. Thank you, Rachel, for joining us today.

Thank you so much for having me on your show.

Well, like I said, I couldn't think of a better way to get this year started because it sounds like from, from, uh, what I've been seeing And in my own life, 2016 was not an easy year at all. And so my own experience with astrology has been it helps me see a bigger picture, the higher perspective, not just of my own life but also of the collective. And if anyone follows my work that closely, you know I'm a big astrology fan, to the point that sometimes I cheat on Feng Shui. But actually I find that they work really well in tandem. And really, the more information you can have in seeing a bigger picture and also using it to know when there's fortuitous times, whether it's love relationships and so forth. And so that's what I kind of want to help or make come a theme today, to help people see ahead and help navigate the upcoming year. So thank you for being here.

Sure. Thank you for having me. And I agree with you about anytime you have a clearer understanding or a clearer vision of what's ahead, you can better navigate your path. So I think that's one benefit to astrology is just its ability to help you contextualize your experience.

Yeah, so I wanted to expand on that. Before we really dive into the upcoming 2017, I wanted you to share a little bit about your background, how you came into astrology, or maybe how astrology came into you. Your approach to using astrology.

Okay. Well, I feel like for me, my coming into astrology must have been part of my purpose, or it must have been karmic because I had no understanding of astrology at all. I mean, I barely read my horoscope in the newspaper. And one day I was about 13 or 14 years old and I was walking in the public library and I I walked down this one aisle just totally randomly, in quotation marks, and this purple astrology book just almost fell off the shelf. And I was so curious. I didn't know what astrology was. I had no idea, no understanding of it. But I checked out this book, I came home, and I constructed my chart. I read all of the details about where Mercury was in my chart, and where Venus, and how they related to one another, and all of the other outer planets, and for the first time in my whole I really understood myself and I accepted myself on just a foundational level. And then I started doing the charts of my family members and I saw like why my mom, you know, was a certain way or, you know, why my dad was a certain way and I could find relationships between our charts and the charts of my siblings. And from that experience, I was hooked and I just started, it became a passion of mine. And I never really thought it would be a career because I don't think, you know, I didn't think it was even possible for it to become a career. But it was the one thing that I loved learning and I loved studying and I couldn't wait to take classes and study with teachers. So it was always a part of my life, like woven in, in kind of the background. And then eventually I started to realize that I could help people with it. And that the information and the knowledge that helped me understand myself and my place in the world, I could then share and give others the same gift.

Nice. So if anyone is listening to this and you are not that familiar with astrology, you know, it can be helpful in so many ways. It can be helpful in knowing what is called your natal chart, basically like pretty much your makeup of who you are, your personality, how you run your energy. Which is so, so helpful like you just said to help you understand yourself. But in addition to that, there's constantly— the planets are always moving and so they're what we call transits and how those come in and out of your personal chart is kind of where predictive astrology comes into play. And of course this affects— there's also astrology going on for the collective as well because we're all in this together and things are affecting all of us in addition to personal transits going on through our life. And so, you know, my experience with astrology, it's like, I think when I first started really getting into it, I felt like I was cheating a little bit. It's like, wow, I can like really hone in on what days things are gonna happen. And yeah, I mean, pretty, pretty accurately. And so I kind of had to like start seeing astrology as almost like God's little hand, like little map for us. Yeah. What is that?

No, I think that's actually a really good good explanation of it, or a good analogy for it. It does. It allows us to map out our lives and not necessarily, I don't think it limits us. I don't think it limits us by saying these things are going to happen and this is all fixed. I think it helps us understand how we can work with the energies of the collective to map out our way. So when we have something that we want to accomplish, or we have something that we want, maybe we want love, or we want a new job, then I think that understanding astrology, your personal astrology, and also the astrology of what's happening right now in the collective helps you understand how you can get to where you want to go. And the timing of that journey.

Alright, so let's— I don't want to, you know, we don't need to rehash 2016. I think we're all kind of over 2016, and yet I kind of, I mean, it was, I think we all agree, it was a really hard year. And if you could just kind of provide a context as we move into 2017, just in your thoughts astrologically speaking, why 2016 was so hard.

When I think about 2016, The one transit that kind of signified the year for me in terms of my experience working with clients and what I saw in the collective was Saturn opposed Neptune. And Saturn is all about structure, it's about reality, it is what is the stuff of my life. And Neptune is what is the dream, what is the illusion, what is the shiny mirage that I want to be living into. And I think what happened was was when these two planets aspected one another, they— I'm sorry, it was not an opposition, it was a square. When these two planets aspected one another, one thing that we saw is that things that were hidden beneath the surface, hidden toxins, hidden secrets, all started to come up. And we started to see that the things that we thought were real and stable and secure and solid and true weren't exactly as we thought they were. So for example, I know a lot of people who discovered that their bodies had cancer cells. Things that were hidden, things they didn't know were happening started to come up to the surface. And so that diagnosis, all of a sudden in one moment, your whole life changes. Or like with even our political system, everything that we thought was going to happen, everything that the media told us was going to happen, started to shift and change, and we started to see see essentially that the only thing that we can rely on, the only thing that's really stable or that's really solid is the knowing that there's an evolutionary process happening at all times. So we might not necessarily be privy to what, to certain circumstances or to what that process is, but we had to learn, a lot of us had to learn to let go and to to participate with the shifts and the changes and the awarenesses that were all coming up to us in our lives. And so, it was a tough year. People got blindsided. That's what happens under a Neptune-Saturn square, or any kind of Neptune-Saturn contact. And then, we reconstruct our reality based on the truth that's being revealed. And so, it's not necessarily that bad things happened. It's just that we got real honest with ourselves and saw the good, the bad, and the ugly. And so, I think that's why it was so challenging. And also, we were concluding a cycle that had been going on since 2012, which was the Pluto-Uranus Square. And that was kind of the influence of revolution and breaking down the structures of our society and the structures of our families and our lives that weren't necessarily working for us, that were restricting us or preventing us from evolving. Or growing. And so we were concluding those chapters and at the same time realizing a whole lot of truth. Plus Saturn was moving into Sagittarius. So here again, Sagittarius is all about truth and it's Truth with a capital T. Like the stuff that you might not necessarily, it's not comfortable all the time to be shown or be revealed truth. But when it comes, you know that you have a stronger basis of facts and information to work with as you're moving forward in your life.

So yeah, I mean, you know, in hindsight it's easy to—

or not easy because it's not easy—

but to kind of see these bigger themes. And like you said, like the Pluto-Uranus thing, you know, was the big theme for several years. And it's still, you know, all these big transits like this are still somewhat playing on, and like they're like subplots still playing out. Playing themselves out. And then like you said, this last year, Saturn-Uranus is very clear now, or clearer as we have hindsight. So looking forward in 2017, we're going to get into more details of specific transits, but what do you think this time next year we'll be saying was the biggie?

Well, the biggest theme for us this year, the biggest theme for us, all of us, I think, is going to be Venus. Venus is our love and our money, so it's really personal to us. I think that we're going to see a tremendous amount of growth personally in our own lives through relationships, through relationship ups and downs, through new relationships, through past relationships getting closure, and also sort of an understanding of ourselves, what we deserve. I think that's ultimately underlying any kind of Venus issue. Venus is sort of the planetary guardian of relationships, of connections, of anything that brings people together. Venus is kind of like the magnetic energy that allows us to attract people or resources into our lives. And so if our magnetic fields are sort of being challenged or being highlighted in a really big way, then it's all going to go back into ourselves. So if we are not magnetizing the love that we want, the relationship, the finances, the resources, the connections, whatever that is, we have to go back and say, how is my self-esteem not strong enough? Or how am I valuing myself?

Yeah, that's what was coming up for me as you were talking. What you most value. And this actually ties into— I wrote a blog post about 2017 energy trends, and what came through for me is I call it the year of choice. And this year, I mean, the Law of Attraction is always at play, but for something, for some reason this year seems, and now you just explained why, seems extra important to be very intentional about what you really want, what you truly desire. So that actually makes sense with Venus being so present. If she's the magnetizer, it really makes it even that much more magnetizing.

Yes, it does. I think the cool thing about Venus being so strongly represented is that is that we're going to get a lot of clarity about relationships. And so if you're in a relationship right now, if you're in a relationship that you don't know what's going on, or you can't figure out if you should stay or you should go, or what's happening, this year is going to give you a whole lot of aha moments about what you need. And again, it's like putting me first, you know, or you first, essentially. The other thing that is really, really pronounced Along with this is Saturn square Chiron. It's something that kind of kicked off the year. We had this influence. Saturn, again, structure, responsibility, what is real, what is true, what is secure, solid. And Chiron is the aspect of ourselves that is the most wounded, but also the aspect of ourselves that from our deepest wounds we become of service to other people. And I find that as I'm thinking about 2017 and thinking about what's happening, the Saturn-Chiron square, I always associate Chiron, I think our deepest wounds come from those early experiences of shame. You know, the times when we were told that we weren't good enough, or the times when we were told that we were bad. And so, those experiences create imprints. For us in our belief systems and in the ways that we run our lives. And often we can't see those, but they play out in our life experiences. Do you know what I'm saying? And so when Saturn squares Chiron, then we get an opportunity to understand how we are sabotaging ourselves in preventing us from getting what we want in terms of Law of Attraction. So often, I know you talk about Law of Attraction all the time on your podcast and in your writing. And even in your most recent webinar, you talked about how our subconscious mind is constantly manifesting, constantly working to bring circumstances and situations into our lives, whether we like it or not. And so, when you have Saturn-Chiron square, there's opportunity for you to make some mistakes in terms of really sabotaging. Things that are really good, things that are manifesting in a positive way in your life. So having that conscious awareness, doing things like Feng Shui in your house, making sure that everything is cleared, getting help if you need it, doing healing, digging deep, and making sure that you are consciously manifesting what you want is a really, really important piece of all of 2017.

Nice. Well, I think of Chiron, I mean, The Wounded Healer. Even the symbol is the key, and I think it was the key. I mean, the phrase, 'We teach what you most need to learn,' to me really summarizes Chiron. And it kind of is the key into, like, if you ever want to know what your purpose is in life, it's probably related— as far as what your message is to the world, it's probably related to your Chiron. Yeah. So, and then Saturn is the kind of like mastery. So even though it's a square, which squares are a little, little Is there an opportunity to really master what you teach, what your message is?

Yes, absolutely. And the mastery comes from understanding those patterns in your life that you keep on repeating over and over again. Like if you keep on falling for the same person who doesn't call you back, or you keep on coming into money only to watch it go down the drain. It's the things in your life that you are like, man, why can't I get this? That's kind of an indicator of where Chiron might be challenged in your chart.

Alright, so this Saturn-Chiron transit is going to be hitting throughout the year basically, right? As is, going back to our Venus-Saturn square.

Yeah, yeah. And actually, you know, I was just realizing that some people might not know these astrological terms, and you just said squares are challenges. And they are mostly internal tension. So it starts from something inside of you that's like, "Hmm, this isn't working for me." And then it eventually kind of moves out into the external events of your life. But a lot of times, you know, I think all of us have been in that circumstance where we've been in a relationship that kind of isn't working and I don't know what to do. And the tension is the knowing of, "I might need to leave." that then spurs circumstances and events that happen. Like, then you break up. So I think that's kind of, as we're looking at these squares, I think that that's something that people might expect within themselves: awareness, aha moments, those kinds of experiences.

Let's continue on Venus for a second while we're here, and we can kind of COVID her. With the Venus-Saturn square, it's kind of a lot of breakdowns and breakthroughs for relationships because that can also solidify relationships as well.

Oh my God, yes, thank you for bringing that point up. Yeah, totally, because Saturn is glue. And so if Saturn and Venus are making any kind of contact, if you endure challenges together as a couple and you work through them, then, oh my God, you've got this relationship that can last forever. And I find a lot of times in compatibility charts that if couples have really strong Saturn synastry or really strong Saturn influences together, then they're likely to work hard, they're likely not to give up. And so this is actually an opportunity. So it's not that all relationships are going to break up, but everyone kind of goes through a growth spur. And the relationships that are in your life, oh my God, they just deepen and they become even more amazing and even more connected and even more intimate. So I think that there are some really beautiful opportunities for couples. And I will say, with Venus retrograde, people tell you not to get married during a Venus retrograde.

Oh yeah, we're going to hit that.

But I always think that Venus— do you want to talk about Venus retrograde?

No, let's come back to that.

Okay, go ahead.

I was just saying one other thing about Saturn. Okay. Because I have had to make friends with Saturn because I have a lot of Saturn in my chart.

You know, a strong influence.

And going to its presence here with Venus this year and Chiron, with Saturn, if you do the work, there's a payoff.

Yes, that's a really good point.

You do the work and that's what regards relationships and healing. So if you put in the work with Saturn, it will pay you off. That's the way I'm approaching it.

Yeah, it's kind of like I always relate it to that teacher in grade school that makes you work really, really hard because he or she wants you to get an A. Saturn wants you to succeed and it wants you to clear all kinds of past karma. It deals with the past, it deals with karma, it deals with things challenges that you kind of come in to work out in this life. Like you said, mastery. And so, yeah, Saturn wants you to succeed. Saturn wants your success. And it wants you to really be empowered, you know, like really to be kind of in-powered, like powered within yourself. Not to have external people or circumstances tell you or define for you who you are or what your power is. Saturn really wants you to be like, yeah, I'm amazing. But it makes you work hard to do it.

Alright, so let's pause for a second and really quick, tell people how to get in contact with you because you do one-on-one readings.

Yes, I do. And also I want to give everybody listening to this show a discount.

Oh, awesome.

Yeah, yeah, just to support your show and, you know, feng shui your life.

Okay, so your website is Contact you at RachelCLang.com. And I'll put that in the show notes. So, all right, let's kind of go back in time to today and kind of look at the chronologic coming up this year. And let's start with this week.

Ooh, this week!

Because first of all, this year started out so weird because Mercury was still retrograde. We just came out of it a couple days ago. The year, the New Year has gotten off a little slow, and that's because we're still kind of in that— which the New Year never seems to seem like a new year until the Chinese New Year to me, which is the end of January. It's like January seems like a, like a just kind of getting your motor going again. But this week, specifically tomorrow, we can't talk about the year really without— tomorrow's a big day. It's a big day.

Yeah, it's a really big day.

Yeah, it's like what's called a Grand Cross, and so you can Tell people more about that.

Yeah, yeah. Well, okay, so just rewind real quick. For those of you who don't know what Mercury retrograde is and why this year was off to a slow start, anytime a planet is in retrograde there is an optical illusion happening that makes it look like the planet is moving backwards. And it's based on where the planet is in relation to the motion and how the planet is moving in relation to the motion of the Earth. The placement of the Earth. And during a retrograde period, we all kind of feel a little bit slow or looking back at the past. You might hear from people from your past. It's a time of reflection, reconsideration, revisiting past decisions, all of those things. And it's not always a time when you're like gung-ho about moving forward. Now, cut to tomorrow. Tomorrow's Full Moon. So I feel like tomorrow is really going to kick off this year. And what's happening is we have what's called a Grand Cardinal Cross. And any time there's a Grand Cross, there are essentially 4 heavenly bodies that are all forming one great big square. So each one is 90 degrees apart from the other, and 2 oppositions, so 180 degrees. So it looks like a great big cross. Holy Cross. Yeah, like literally. And that is a point of real tension. And so I think we are all feeling, a lot of people I know, I've heard this week are feeling like something is going to happen, something big, something big is going to happen. What's happening is we have the Full Moon in Cancer, the Moon is in Cancer, Sun is in Capricorn, and Uranus is in Aries, and Jupiter is in Libra. And so Cardinal energy is energy that wants to move. Very active. It's initiatory. It is looking forward. Something needs to happen and it needs to happen now. And because Jupiter and Uranus are kind of the big players in this game, I'll just kind of explain a little bit about that. So Jupiter makes everything big, kind of magnifies and intensifies anything that's happening. And it's relating to Uranus, which is kind of the rebel planet. It's the planet that wants us to have our independence and our freedom and to break away from past structures that have been holding us back. So, like, you know, if you have any kind of— like your job, anything in your life that feels limiting, Uranus wants you to break free. And so that urge is going to be intensified tomorrow, magnified. Then we have the Sun and the Moon. The Sun is our primary energy. It relates to ourselves, how we express ourselves in the world, our creative energy, our life spark. And the Moon is the deepest, deepest part of ourselves, the subconscious, the emotions. And so when you have all these 4 energies kind of in a standoff with one another, there's a sense of urgency that we feel about making something happen in our lives. And some of us, you know, for everyone that's going to be different. And I think the way that you can make the most of this, and the way that you can really use this energy is to take some kind of really calculated risk in support of something that you want. Do the thing that scares you the most. As long as it doesn't hurt other people. We really want to be gentle with each other through this week and through next week and through the week after that too. We want to be really compassionate, really gentle. But if you have something that you've been wanting to say, or if you've been wanting to start a podcast, or you've been wanting to start a YouTube channel, or you've been wanting to write something, this is the time to take the leap of faith in a very calculated way, in a very careful way, because that Uranus-Jupiter opposition can make us impulsive. And so it's a time maybe when you want to create, doing something in support of your dream might mean that you form a strategy around it, or that you write out a business plan, or that you talk to a mentor. So doing something in support of yourself and your self-expression, but doing it in a very careful way.

Jupiter expands everything, the Full Moon puts a big back, just does the same thing, and you've got Uranus in the mix, and then the Sun. So this Jupiter-Uranus opposition, this is the first of a couple times this will happen this year, right?

Actually, we had a little taste of it in in late December. Oh, that's right.

Yes, yes, yes. Okay, all right, so that should be interesting.

Yeah, yeah, and I'll say too that because Jupiter expands everything, if you have something that's happening in your life that feels, that doesn't, that's bringing sadness or bringing some kind of hardship, or if you have something challenging going on in your life, you can feel like it's overwhelming. And so in those circumstances try not to make mountains out of molehills. Try to keep everything in perspective and maybe see things from a different perspective or from a different view. Like, take an aerial view and look at your life circumstance or your situation in the context of overall what you want to create in your life. Because a lot of times when we are manifesting something or when we want something and we set out that intention, there's a lot of clearing that has to happen. In order for us to become free in order to pursue that desire. So for example, if you want a new job, but you don't know how you are going to leave your current job, and you feel stuck in that rut, sometimes what can happen if you are a really strong manifestor, sometimes you can, you know, what can happen is you can have some kind of change or something that happens within your job that then spurs you to need to pursue another job. So like you could lose your job, or you could, you know, something could happen externally in support of the bigger vision of your dream, but it might not feel good at the time. And so with the Cardinal Grand Cross, these kinds of circumstances could happen. Just remember that sometimes those shocking sort of like, "Oh my God, I didn't see this it's coming. Sometimes those kinds of experiences or those kinds of events catalyze so much remarkable, beautiful change in your life that it's like you can't judge something as good or bad. I mean, you just can't. We can't. Because everything is in support of our spiritual evolution and our enlightenment.

I think of these big events like this, or these kind of transits as advancing the storyline.

Yeah, I like that.

It's like, 'Okay, let's get on with it.' So the next big advancing the storyline is in February with the first set of eclipses.

Woo!

Eclipses are all about advancing the storyline. Yeah, yeah, in a big way.

Plot twists.

Plot twists, plot twists. So the first one— so there's two sets of eclipses in February and then in August. We'll get to August 2nd, which is a big biggie.

Mark it on your calendar.

Yeah. So February, what's going to happen with the eclipses in February?

Okay, so eclipses, why eclipses are significant is because if you think about it, there are really big Full Moons and New Moons, like massive, bigger, expanded Full Moons and New Moons. And if you think about the Full Moon or the New Moon, the Moons change and regulate the way that water moves on our planet. And we are primarily made of water. And so think about a big huge ocean moving. In a more pronounced way, the body of water, the movement of water is going to shake up the ground underneath. It's going to shift the tectonic plates. And that's what happens for us personally too. I mean, the symbolism of that happens for us too, in that our emotions get stirred and that leads to shifts and changes in the structure of our lives. And so I feel like the February eclipses are going to be, you know, I feel like they are going to be really heart-opening. And I feel like the big shifts are going to be just in breaking down barriers for us connecting with one another, going with this whole Venus theme for the year, the big pronounced Venus theme. I feel like there's going to be some real opportunity for us. To relate in different ways with one another and to deepen those relationships that we have. And I think that— you can interrupt me if you want to— but I think that one of the other things that's happening in the middle of the eclipse— so there's a Lunar Eclipse on February 10th, a Solar Eclipse on February 26th, The tunnel in between eclipses, that time, that 2-week period in between eclipses is like really intense. Oh my God, so many things are happening. Very, very, very intense.

You mean other transits? Yeah. Because that time anyway.

That time anyway.

That time anyway. Yeah, and so in addition there's these.

In addition there's Mars square Moon-Pluto conjunction. Ah, okay, great. So Mars. Is the energy that separates us. It's the 'me, mine' versus 'you, yours.' Our ideologies, our beliefs are like— there's a sense of 'we,' of 'other' whenever there's a real strong Mars influence. Mars square Pluto can be sort of a major conflict, like a disagreement, really intense, like you become almost obsessed about your position, your point of view. And so this is a time when we have to go inward. No, it's a time when actually, you know, it's a time when our weather is going to be like, pshew, like more, everything in our environment will be reflecting this dynamic tension. And in the midst of that, what happens is, I think that any time there is that kind of conflictual energy, our natural response to from that, to go from one polarity, the conflictual energy, into a conjoining energy. So it's like Mars square Pluto says, "I'm going to fight you." And these eclipses are naturally bringing us back together. So it's like finding, I think, the end of February eclipse is bringing us back together, or a desire to connect, to connect in communities, to connect in relationships, to connect in collaborative projects, to do something innovative in support of healing, in support— and I actually, as I'm saying this, I'm really having a strong feeling that this is going to play out in terms of world events, in terms of global issues, and maybe even political issues. And so I think that February is going to be a time when all of our Lightworkers are going to want to be gathering in community, when anyone passionate about a cause is going to want to really put yourself out there in an egoless way to connect for a bigger picture. And so yes, we can look at this in our personal lives because this is a very personal year. There are a lot of personal planet influences. That are taking the primary focus. But I think we also have to look at this in terms of collective.

Yeah, I mean, that's what's so amazing about astrology. It's like these transits are affecting everyone on every level. The Mars-Pluto, it's like you're having your own Mars-Pluto and so is the world. And it really just shows the interconnectedness of everything. And, you know, in addition to being being affected by world events because obviously we're part of the collective. But we are having these transits take place in our own life, and it kind of depends on which houses these are hitting in one's personal chart to see what area of your life it's really going to affect you the most. But yeah, astrology really does show the interconnectedness of everything. All right, so that's February.

Yeah, I want to say something too.

Oh, sure.

I could just because I'm all of a sudden remembering a conversation that we've had before about— and this is like a point that you brought up that I really believe you said in one previous conversation that we've had— that the way that the collective changes is through interpersonal relationships. And I thought maybe you could talk a little bit about that.

Well, I think actually it's so perfect that this that you're honing in on this kind of being the year of interpersonal relationships, because I think that's really what's going to kind of save us, so to speak, from— I mean, the world feels really crazy right now, and I don't think that's going to go away anytime soon. And so I think it's kind of setting it up for us to really form, whether it's interpersonal relationships or communities, because I think that's really where our our future life, and when I mean future, I mean future happiness and future gratification and future manifestations, and it's going to take place on that level as we kind of disassociate, so to speak, with governments and institutions and really more form communities which are of course based on relationships. So that's interesting that astrology is kind of leading in that direction as well.

And I think the example that you gave when we were talking about it before, it's really perfect. You know, at one point gay marriage was like not even a consideration. Like, no, no, that just would not happen. But suddenly people coming out and family members realizing, oh my God, my daughter or my son is gay and they deserve happiness, or my best friend, or that that one by one we influence each other's lives and then eventually over time, short time or time, time is relative, but eventually over time the love that we have in the personal connections that we have bring us a sense of compassion and a sense of understanding that then creates that global political shift.

Yeah, I mean, I think that's really, I mean, I think Gandhi kind of Tisha Morris picked up on this a long time ago, but I really do still believe that that is the way for peace on Earth. It has to go from household to household, and this is why I do the work I do, and it's why you do the work that you do, of working on an individual basis, in individual homes, in individual lives. And of course, that person affects whoever they're in contact or relationship with, and that's the way it snowballs into— that's the only way it really can happen. It's not from these big institutions that change a policy or whatever. It's going to happen on an individual level.

Yeah, and so I think that that's important as we're looking at, I mean, for anybody looking at how do you make the most of 2017, love big. If this is a year of love, oh my God, and you're in a relationship that is not going anywhere, or is sad, or lonely, or if you're lonely in a relationship, Make changes. That doesn't mean that you have to leave the relationship, but speak up. Love big. And that's how you change the world. There's a lot of political and global and economic stress this year. And when I say this, it's not to instill any kind of fear, like, oh my God, I have to 'Take all my money and stop marketing!' No, no, no, no, no. It's like your personal lives are going to be challenged so that you do connect with other people, so that you do reach out. We have a lot of ups and downs, I think, in terms of maybe some conflict this year. I mean, if we were looking at the big picture, There's a lot of tension, there's a lot of challenge. And later in the year when Jupiter moves into Scorpio, it's like the toxicity of political scandals, of anything that that's insidious and hidden in our society. All is going to come out in a big, big way. And so because of this and because there's not a whole lot that we're going to be able to hold on to emotionally, energetically in that big picture, and there's going to be a lot of instability in that big picture, the thing that we have to come back to and that we have to understand is that our everyday lives our everyday relationships, our deepest connections, they are going to be the rocks that we can cling to when things shift and change.

Yeah, and Jupiter is giving us that opportunity because it's in Libra, which is the planet of partnership, up until it goes into Scorpio in October. So now is the time. Speaking of love, let's talk about Venus going retrograde from beginning March to mid-April. What should we be aware of during that period.

Okay, so this—

Venus in retrograde are two words that don't really sit well with