We've entered the season of Virgo, between the first and second harvest, and even though it's still technically summer, that feeling of reigning the abundance of summer in and channeling it into preparation work for fall has begun.
Mars and the North Node have just entered Scorpio, adding a note of seriousness and intensity to the already efficient pace of Virgo. It's change from the lightness of the Sun in Leo and Mars in Libra and the stakes of whatever we're planning or involved in may feel suddenly higher. It needs to be done, and it needs to be done now and if it's not done now there will be Consequences! The fervency and obsession of Scorpio can whip Virgo into an anxiety-ridden frenzy over the list of Things Undone (guilty!)
“Nothing diminishes anxiety faster than action.” —Walter Anderson
This level of intensity might be temporary, as Mars leaves Scorpio October 6th for more light-hearted Sagittarius, but Saturn will take up the post in Scorpio where it will remain until late December 2014, and the north node will be there almost as long (Feb 2014). Upon these planet's entry into Scorpio, they make a supportive trine to Neptune in Pisces, softening the hard edges. Inspiration can be found in the dark, in fact, sometimes it can be the best reason to go there.
It really is a time for intense focus and purpose, and Virgo and Scorpio work well together. But this isn't just a time for busy work. While Virgo might normally be satisfied to merrily check things off her to-do list, Scorpio wants to dig at why something's on the list in the first place. Virgo likes a job well done, but Scorpio wants thoroughness. This is a time for true repair, not duct tape. For courage to really change something for the better, not just make the most of what we have.
“In a chronically leaking boat, energy devoted to changing vessels is more productive than energy devoted to patching leaks.” —Warren Buffett
Normally that's good advice, making the most of what you have, but if you're going the wrong way, waiting until circumstances are better or the change is easier may not be the prudent and sensible choice it's masquerading as. It might be good old-fashioned fear. Fear of making a mess, fear of making the wrong choice, fear of losing what you have now. Scorpio is the sign of transformation, but it doesn't happen easily. You have to make a major mess first, as the momentum of life crashes to a halt.
“All great changes are preceded by chaos.” —Deepak Chopra
If it feels like high stakes, it is. It's your life. Scorpio is life and death. It strips away what we try and cover ourselves up with: the illusion that life is safe, that you need another television set, that the stable, wrong job is better than no job at all, and many other sensible but potentially deadening ideas. No, Scorpio isn't practical, and it doesn't promise everything will be alright or that you won't have any regrets. It just knows that fear isn't as good of a reason to avoid doing what you know you must as it seems to be.
“Remembering you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.” –Steve Jobs
Ok, enough with the freaking you out. Scorpio is do or die, and Saturn says the hard work is simply to look deeply and sit with something, until discomfort gives way. The north node encourages the same thing, but Saturn and north node work are things that take practice, and happen sometimes over an entire lifetime. Just keep it in mind. Boldly choose your true north as often as you can bear it. Rest and comfort yourself when you need to.