Before saying, "Here's the lowdown on 2004," a word about predictions: They must be made responsibly, keeping in mind that Earth is a place of free will, and at every turn, the human spirit is capable of taking the higher road. With that in mind, I recently sat down with my calendars, ephemerides, and charts for the months ahead to give you a sense of what's to come.
While 2004 is an election year here in the U.S., astrologically, it's a perception year, a time to review our perceptions of--not only the candidates--but virtually everything else, lending intense scrutiny and emotional honesty to what shapes our passions, tastes, and points of view. This is the year to appraise, revise, and revive stale belief systems. Staying clear and centered is the challenge, but the rewards will be worth the effort.
The year begins with a bold and tense T-square formation, a harsh confrontational aspect, evident this past week in mudslides, crashes, explosions, avalanches, and earthquakes throughout the world.
So if you don't feel much like a New Year's Eve party or celebration the next day, listen to yourself and honor your gut. Pass the time quietly if you like. Mercury, the planet of communication has been retrograde since December 17th, covering much of the holiday season, and it does not go direct until January 7th. In fact, as far as I'm concerned, the Chinese calendar has it right in `04, and it won't really feel much like the New Year until after the new moon in Aquarius on January 21.
But beyond the somber-ish beginning, for most of us there are sparkling opportunities for growth, creativity, and success in the year ahead, especially for those of us aspiring to live a more creative, less rigid life. Both planets of communication, Mercury and Jupiter, will station (stand still) at the same 9th degree of Virgo. And the Sabian Symbol (a visual image assigned each degree of the zodiac) for that degree is an Expressionist painter at work. As that image implies, connecting with your inner artist/creator is the underlying theme of the year, and "cultural creatives" will rock and rule!
What's a cultural creative? It's a sociological term coined several years ago, describing those who create their life as they go along and who are less dependent than their predecessors on external structures (job, church, union, etc.) to support them. Cultural creatives care less about the financial bottom line and more about how their lives and actions impact others. They are said to make up about 26 percent of the population in America (or at least 50 million people) and growing strong.
