I came across this great quote today on Gwyneth Paltrow’s quite unexpectedly good web site: goop.com

“the unfamiliar must be approached with humility and respect, slowly and without force”

So very, very true.

I just posted an article at http://planetaryenergies.net on ancient traditions and celebrations at the Summer Solstice, and on upcoming astrological influences. These include two eclipses, another Jupiter/Neptune conjunction, two New Moons in Cancer, and much more……

I’m very pleased to announce that the new (3rd) edition of Her Blood Is Gold: Awakening to the Wisdom of Menstruation, is now available in the US from all the usual sources.

The book is available in both hardcover and paperback. It has a foreword by Christiane Northrup M.D and many glowing endorsements.

If your local bookstore doesn’t have the book in stock, please ask them to order it. All the major distributors have access to copies. The publisher is Archive Publishing, based in Wimborne, UK.

I just posted an essay on Beltane 2009, at http://planetaryenergies.net

Spring feels extra grand this year after the powerful winter. The new shoots and leaves look supernaturally green and feel full of life. 

There is a great sense of newness in the air, of possibilities and unfoldings.

The ferns in the garden are just beginning to unfurl their ammonite-shaped foetus-whirl promise, emerging in their timeless way from the dead stalks of last year.

They require nothing from us, no intervention, no extra nourishment, no pruning or fuss.

The essential and original plant, they are elemental and raw, beautiful in their primitive structure.

Each year they emerge out of bleakness, out of apparent nothingness, to rise up; erect, deep green, and full. 

Resilient yet also delicate, they confound my notions of strength and fragility.

I know they will wither to brown dust later, when this year draws to a close,

but now, and now, and now, they carry the green juice of all life.

And they come back, again, and again, and again. 

Blossom on the new tree, which has settled in really well, sturdy and strong. 

We’re just coming up to the next New Moon, on Saturday. I think of the New Moon in Taurus as the Big Moon of Springtime. This year it is unusually auspicious, as it trines both Pluto and Saturn in earth signs, great for starting big earthy projects. The Venus Mars conjunction and the Jupiter/Neptune/Chiron conjunctions are still in orbs of influence. It’s a really good time for new projects, new relationships, for planting with enthusiasm and moving forwards. But just before we get there, if you feel inward between now and Saturday, go with it. It’s natural to pull in just before the moon renews, to restore a little before the next push into new life. 

I found this poem today, while searching for another one…..

The soul, like the moon,

is new, and always new again.

And I have seen the ocean,

continuously creating.

Since I scoured my mind

and my body, I too, Lalla,

am new, each moment new.

My teacher told me one thing,

Live in the soul.

When that was so,

I began to go naked,

and dance.

by Lal Ded (14^th century, Kashmir, tr. by Coleman Barks)

from Women in Praise of the Sacred by Jane Hirshfield