We are in that magical time between the seasons, a dreamy and melancholy place. For a few brief weeks we have the best of both summer and fall; the sweetness of summer lingers on as we try and experience every pleasure; the last swim or tennis game of the season, the sweet, juicy peaches or ripe tomatoes with fresh basil, a picnic on the beach, the final ferry back to the mainland. At the same time we can smell the apples ripening on the trees and the faint, pungent fragrance of autumn in the cool night air and that too is full of promise and seduction.

Eclipses

Every New Moon is a new beginning, a time to set a goal or intention then watch it flower at the Full Moon. A solar eclipse is a super charged New Moon, extra potent and powerful. You can sense it in the air; if feels electrifying like right before a storm or during Mardi Gras; the energy is wild and anything can happen. The word, “eclipse” comes from the Greek and means “to cease existing.” Eclipses bring major endings and beginnings; they wake us up and shake us up and move us quickly from one level to another. We all feel the eclipse to some extent but those of us with planets or angles at 20 degrees of Virgo (or the other mutable signs: Gemini, Sagittarius, or Pisces) will experience it more intensely. If an eclipse falls on (or is close to) your birthday, then the year will be eventful.

Virgo is not a flashy sign; it doesn’t possess the optimism and exuberance of Sagittarius or elegance of Libra; nor does it have the intensity and mystery of Scorpio. And yet this modest sign brings devotion and discipline to everything it does. It’s no wonder it shows up in the charts of athletes, musicians, writers and inventors. Serena Williams and Keith Richards both have the Moon in Virgo; ice skater Scott Hamilton, poet Mary Oliver, and Michael Jackson have the Sun in Virgo; Steve Jobs rising sign was Virgo; Leonard Cohen has the Sun and rising sign in Virgo. Along with great talent and skills Virgo planets possesses the necessary focus and dedication to manifest those gifts.

A solar eclipse in Virgo summons us to the higher octave of that sign: to evolve from criticism to discernment, from distraction to focus, from fragmentation to integration. –Stephani Austin (Mountain Astrologer)

The sign Virgo is concerned with refining, consolidating and eliminating. Look to see where you have 20 degrees of Virgo. What do you need to release in order to move forward? What needs to be made whole? A New Moon is a fresh start; an eclipse is super potent. Use the energy this coming week to break old habits and create news ones, especially mental attitudes and old thought patterns. Virgo is also associated with health and well-being so this is the perfect time to initiate a fitness program or healing regime. Harsh criticism, pressure or pushing forward with our ego (the shadow part of Virgo) is not the answer. Whatever you do, make sure to come from a place of loving kindness and self-acceptance. At its highest, Virgo is not about perfection; it is about wholeness and integration.

Wounding becomes sacred when we are willing to release our old stories and become the vehicles through which the new story may emerge into time. When we fail to do this, we tend to repeat the same old story over and over again. –Jean Houston

Communication planet Mercury in diplomatic Libra makes a challenging square to obsessive Pluto in serious Capricorn demanding we speak the truth but with humanity and compassion. Although Mercury in friendly Libra likes to talk pretty and create rapport, when it’s involved with Pluto we have to dig deep and ferret out the story beneath the story, the emotions behind the words, the shadow beneath the light. Mercury goes retrograde on September 17 until October 9. This is an excellent time to review all past contracts and agreements. It is not a good time to enter into any long-term contracts or commitments. Due to the retrograde period Mercury will remain in Libra through November 1 giving us plenty of time to refine our communication skills.

Thanks to Saturn in late Scorpio we’ve all been in rehab this summer, taking inventory and making amends. On September 17 Saturn reenters Sagittarius; the emphasis is on the honesty and integrity. Are you ready to walk your talk, live your truth? Are your actions and choices aligned with your beliefs?

Chiron in forgiving Pisces is opposite the Sun and Moon playing an important role in the Virgo New Moon story. This minor planet, connected to the myth of the Wounded Healer, can bring up old fears and early wounds but it can also soften our hard edges, open our hearts and put us in touch with our vulnerability. When we were children we used to think that when we were grown up we would no longer be vulnerable. But to grow up is to accept vulnerability. To be alive is to be vulnerable. – Madeleine L’Engle 

The Chiron Return is a major threshold crossing, where the past is transformed in our attitude to it, and we can experience a new beginning, often with a renewed sense of the spiritual dimension of life. –Melanie Reinhart

For those of you going through your Chiron Return (one of the generational cycles that takes place around age fifty) this eclipse is especially charged. At our Chiron Return we have the power to change our story, and it isn’t unusual for our life to take off in a new direction. Often a teacher or mentor will appear and act as a catalyst. At other times a failure or, loss or health challenge can serve as a catalyst. Ultimately the Chiron Return is one of the best opportunities to make peace with ourselves, our past and the people in our lives so we are liberated to live more freely and fully in the years ahead. If you are having your Chiron Return, this Virgo eclipse opposite Chiron can bring some unusual events, synchronistic meetings, new people and experiences into your life.

September always feels like the true beginning of the year; the Jewish High Holy Days, the changing of the seasons, an opportunity to release the past year so that life may be renewed once more with passion and purpose. Enjoy this beautiful and sacred season.  Love, Virginia

In Blackwater Woods by Mary Oliver
Look, the trees
are turning
their own bodies
into pillars
of light,
are giving off the rich
fragrance of cinnamon
and fulfillment,
the long tapers
of cattails
are bursting and floating away over
the blue shoulders
of the ponds,
and every pond,
no matter what its
name is, is
nameless now.
Every year
everything
I have ever learned
in my lifetime
leads back to this: the fires
and the black river of loss
whose other side
is salvation,
whose meaning
none of us will ever know.
To live in this world
you must be able
to do three things:
to love what is mortal;
to hold it
against your bones knowing
your own life depends on it;
and, when the time comes to let it go,
to let it go.