Rip up the Script

Venus Retrograde Reflections + Solar Eclipse in Libra

I finally feel in my heart that I’m moving forwards.

All summer long, I was so set on swimming in my soul’s internal soup that I didn’t look up to notice the scintillating sandy shore on the other side. It was as though every experience sank into my soft tissue, showing me how the discomfort I felt on the surface of my life found its roots in a simmering emotional stuckness deep below. And I became inescapably aware of how my head and heart were so often out of alignment with my essence, how my thoughts and feelings about myself had so little to do with how other people know me.

Now I get it. Sometimes we have to roll back the curtain and show everyone what’s backstage. It’s like the Venus retrograde issued me an invitation to rip up the script on how I relate to myself, but first I had to read it aloud in front of a live studio audience. And, dear reader, that audience is you. 🙀

I’ve been wondering for a long time what it means to be on this digital center stage in your Inbox. I’ve wondered how you feel as you drink in my attentively alliterated prose, whether you can sense my wish to bring you ever richer emotions in these short lives we get to spend together. And, most of all, I’ve wondered if you can see yourself in me, if understanding where I’m coming from helps you to understand yourself.

So I want you to know that I’ve learned to listen to what you have to say. It’s (im)perfectly human how challenging it’s been to accept your loving words (truly, thank you - they mean everything to me), and it’s a lot for me to acknowledge that my writing has the power to move you. Yet I know this is true because you tell me it is so, and I also know this is true because my writing moves me, too. I pour my heart into these missives, and rarely does my computer screen reflect back a dry eye.

You’ve told me that it’s time to stop doubting the value of what I offer (here come the waterworks - again😢). And you’ve told me - verbatim - that I need to open myself up to receive your support. So as terrified as I feel right now, I am going to trust you and officially accept paying subscribers. If you freely enjoy these posts just as they are, the last thing I would ever want is to give you less than my full self. So what I’ll do instead is offer you weekly forecasts and quarterly Q&As if you want to take a step closer.

Brief technical note: If you’d like to become a paying subscriber, just scroll down this message until you see the option - it’ll be right above my weekly forecast video.

I’ve also just learned that Substack will effectively force me to limit comments to paid subscribers, so please know that you can also reply to these posts directly over email and accept a promise from me that I will read and respond to any and all of your reflections and inquiries. Please also know that if you want to share your comments with this audience or know that you’d benefit from my forecasts, but right now it doesn’t add up to pay for content, send me a note and I’ll gladly offer you a free subscription.

Lastly, before I go, I want to send you the sturdiest of hugs as we tumble into the time tunnel of eclipse season. This Saturday brings us a Solar Eclipse from the usually harmonious sign of Libra, and it asks us to let go of any relational deadweight that unbalances the scales of giving and receiving. With this eclipse ruled by Venus in Virgo, I also see tremendous value in letting your normally exacting eyes relax into a soft focus as the equilibrium shifts. Venus in Virgo can all too easily find fault in the details of human connections, and would perhaps be better drawn to appreciate the simplicity that is possible between us when we embrace equanimity.

If you’re interested in knowing more, I give a fuller report in this week’s forecast. I’ll also be sharing more about the upcoming Lunar Eclipse in next week’s post, and I invite you to join me and my wonderful friend Nadia for an online Movement Magic Session on Friday, October 27. Registration is free and open to all, with donations welcomed to support our loving friend Fiona who is currently facing a return of ovarian cancer - full details below.

Love always,

Patrick

PS: Special thanks to

Cristy De La Cruz

and

❤️ Jenny Blake

for your loving candor on the importance of accepting support for my writing - this one’s for you 💖

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Eclipse Movement Magic: Release to Ground

Friday, October 27: 10 - 11 am London / 8 - 9 pm Sydney

Eclipses don’t f*ck around. They announce big changes in the world around us, and the shifts they wash into our lives can be sudden and intense. Lunar eclipses are especially uncomfortable, like we just can’t seem to feel safe in our homes or comfortable in our bodies. This month’s lunar eclipse comes to us from the sign of Taurus and leaves us even more untethered from the soft security of the Earth beneath our feet.

Change doesn’t have to be bad if we learn to accept it with gratitude. So come join us to let go of your resistance with a cosmically-inspired meditation and plant your feet firmly on the ground with a mandala movement practice. The circle is free and open to all, donations are welcome to support our friend Fiona.

Register here and/or Donate here

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Weekly Forecast

This week we do a deep dive on Saturday’s Solar Eclipse, get a primer on how to work with Venus in Virgo, and find out when to open up for divine guidance as Mercury passes through the heart of the Sun. Plus check out my new background image: scales on fire in outer space!