HOW DO I GO FORWARD?

Q: My main problem is this: My marriage has broken up, I need a full-time job but am having problems getting one, I have several important health issues, and I am nearing retirement age but can't retire for around 18 months. What do I do in the meanwhile to obtain a full-time income and fill my life?

A: Your chart is an interesting one because there are so many elements that don't connect. We usually think of a difficult chart as being one with lots of squares and oppositions because those are aspects denoting inner conflict, but it can be just as difficult when there are many facets to our personality that have nothing to do with one another. For example, your Capricorn ascendant requires you to be dutiful and responsible, while your Sun/Mars conjunction in Pisces seeks a more flowing life and connection with all beings. And then you have three planets in Aquarius including the Moon which are more unemotional and rational, preferring to live in a life of ideas.

Many of the health problems that I see in my practice have to do with the blocked expression of Mars. Mars is our vital energy force, and in your chart it conjuncts the Sun which is another expression of our vitality. In Pisces Mars is more concerned with taking the easy and uncomplicated road than in really standing up for itself and setting good boundaries, and in your chart Mars and the Sun are squared by Chiron. In its role of Wounded Healer, Chiron makes sure that our issues continue to rise to the conscious level where they can be dealt with, and it also identifies an issue in your chart around setting good boundaries and meeting our own needs.

You are very sensitive to the aggressive instincts of others and are likely to shy away from confrontation as a result. You prefer to keep your chin up and plow on through (Capricorn) rather than stop and say, "Hey! You hurt my feelings." Your Aquarius Moon can rationalize away any emotion that is distasteful and this can lead to migraines if emotions become stifled.

This is not an easy time for you but it can be a time of great change and transformation if you approach it with courage and a sense of adventure. Over the past couple of years, as you may know, the Saturn/Neptune opposition has been aspecting your Venus as Neptune crossed over it and Saturn opposed it. At the same time Pluto was opposing Uranus in your chart, creating an urge within your for change and challenging you to rid yourself of anything that no longer served you. Pluto has been stationary as it turns direct right on Uranus in your chart since July, so this has no doubt been an intense time. You are getting some relief from that, but of course you have now begun your second Saturn return which will complete in April through June of 2008.

Saturn is trine your progressed Sun through June while it is returning to its place in your chart, so there is an opportunity for you to build solid structures that serve your new, and more authentic (Uranus), life. Saturn is opposing your Sun right now and this will impact your Saturn return. You are likely to feel challenged in every direction as this transit is bringing out the pain and isolation of your natal Saturn/Sun opposition. The beauty of Saturn is that he does reward us when we do what he wants. He wants us to spend time alone, planning for the future, setting goals, and avoiding despair.

It is really crucial during this difficult time that you avoid negative thinking, since your retrograde Saturn will lead you down a path in which you could create problems for yourself. I have learned in my own life that positive thinking is a habit that can be formed by watching the tapes that you play inside your own head, and then changing them. When you catch yourself thinking thoughts of despair, turn that thought around and turn it into something positive. Example: "Nothing ever works out for me" becomes "I am able to create the destiny that I desire."

This is a time for you to focus on yourself and what it is that you need. This will be very useful to your Mars which will help your sense of vitality and therefore your general health. Your progressed Moon, which has been in Pisces for the past two years, will cross into Aries at the end of February 2008. At that time your Will is likely to become stronger which will help you to harness the direction of your life. This is really a time for you to take charge of your own destiny. Set goals - make lists of what you want to accomplish during the next third of your life. Look ahead to the future and learn from the past, this is Saturn's lesson.