Nodes of the Moon Explained

Aquarius. Watercolor on board, 8 x 10 inches. © 2010 by Kathy Crabbe

What are the Nodes of the Moon? When astrologers refer to the "the Nodes," they are generally referring to the North and South Nodes of the Moon. The Nodes of the Moon are not planetary bodies; they are points formed by the Moon's orbit around the Earth intersecting with the Earth's path around the Sun. In following the path of the Nodes of the Moon, and thus rebalancing our emotional bodies, we are going a long way toward easing internal stress and reclaiming confidence in our individual beings.

The Moon In astrology, the Moon rules our feelings, our moods, dependency, insecurity, the feeling of belonging - it rules our emotional bodies, self-image or the way we instinctively see ourselves. Considered by Jan Spiller to be the most important planet in the chart from a karmic/past life perspective, it underlies the rest of the personality structure.

North Node For each of us, the North Node is located in a sign and in a house. This can be obtained from an astrologer or a computerized birth chart. For each of us, our deepest core issues are shown in the sign and house of the positions of the North Node at the time of our birth.

The Astrology Chart The astrology chart itself is actually a schematic: a graph that shows people's "inner writing." The wiring in each of us is different. It's not "good" or "bad," it's just wired the way it's wired. Your birth chart provides a picture of the inner wiring you were born with, but what you do with that wiring is up to you. When you can objectively see the patterns of your own behavior, you can make adjustments for more efficient results and better performance. By having a clear picture of your inner wiring, you can become aware of the built-in "glitches," and you can choose not to continue behaviors that aren't working for you.

Position of the North Node in Your Chart In examining the position of your North Node, you are looking at the basic lesson underlying this entire lifetime. Therefore, the changes may not happen all at once. Keep in mind that as you take steps in a new direction, you're going against habits that have become deeply ingrained over many incarnations. That's why you need to keep remembering to do things in a new way and keep moving toward resolution of the past life imbalances you've inherited.

The sign in which the North Node falls denotes the psychological shift that needs to occur within the personality. The house containing the North Node shows the experiences that allow the person to access this new psychological awareness. The house position also indicates the arena in which the life lessons of the North Node are learned. For example, if you North Node is in Cancer in the 11th House, you are learning to get in touch with and communicate your feelings (Cancer) through cultivating the energy of friendships and learning to "go with the flow" (11th House): if your North Node is in Aries in the 4th House, through getting in touch with your gut instincts (4th House) you can discover and communicate who you are (Aries).

Astrology List of Planets and Signs

Astrology List of Planets and Signs

Duplicate Sign/House Position If the sign of your North Node is in the same sign as the house containing your North Node (for example, North Node in Gemini located in the 3rd House, which is also Gemini; or North Node in Pisces in the 12th House, which is also Pisces), it simply means double the intensity of the same life lesson.

Opposing Sign/House Position If your North Node is in a house opposing the sign of your North Node, it will be necessary for you to carefully and continuously check with yourself to find the right blending of behavior. Remember that generally, the house indicates where to learn the lessons of the sign. The house is like a shell -- the environment you need to support the content of the sign. For example, if your North Node is in Aries in the 7th House, you are learning to develop a new sense of self-identity (North Node in Aries) through becoming aware of the identity of others (North Node in the 7th House). Through working cooperatively with other people and supporting them in reaching their goals, you will discover your own true identity. However, when you turn that around and focus on yourself, you lose your identity in trying to please others and be the nice person they expect you to be. In this case, the key to self-identity would actually lie in helping others in their search for identity.

The South Node The South Node position in the birth chart depicts an aspect in our character that has been over emphasized in past lives, and thus tends to take over the personality in this lifetime and throw us off balance. When we are acting without awareness, we tend to "act out" the South Node position in response to our environment because we have been accustomed to that approach working to our advantage. However, in this lifetime, our experiences show us that approaching a situation from the stance shown by the position of the South Node in our chart is not longer working.

Excerpted from Astrology for the Soul by Jan Spiller

Learn more about the Astrology Houses in a natal chart here.

Astrology Reports can be purchased here.

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A Past Life Reading for Jennifer

What is a Past Life Reading?

This reading is a combination astrology and soul reading that will provide you with a better understanding of who you are so that you can make the absolute most of your innate talents and gifts. Real growth comes from understanding and transforming behavior patterns so that you can challenge yourself to develop in new and exciting ways based upon knowledge of your past lives.

A past life reading also includes an examination of the north and south nodes of the Moon in your birth chart. The Moon rules your feelings, moods, and emotional body and is the most important planet in your chart from a karmic/past life perspective and will help you understand your karmic mission for this lifetime based upon your past lives.

Jennifer's Comments:

Okay, so I'll just take it from the beginning. When I was little I had several dolls that I had named Beatriz and I used this spelling when I wrote out their names. One doll in particular was a rag doll and she had wavy blond hair. I remember my sister telling me that it was a dumb name for her but I insisted that was her name. I found it interesting that I had wavy hair in my past life (guess I'll never get rid of these curls!)

In my adolescent years I used to show horses and I still enjoy riding and even crave to ride, but I no longer own a horse.Several years ago my now ex husband and I started going to Renaissance festivals. At first I didn't want to go, but after my first time attending one I felt very comfortable and loved being dressed up. Also I have no problem understanding Shakespeare or other Elizabethan works which people find odd.

I am fascinated and petrified at the same time of bats, but the mystical stuff has always fascinated me although I have never practiced anything like that because it just feels a bit weird.

You mentioned that you caught glimpses of other lifetimes and in one of them I was blinded by pain and feeling pain behind the knee - I have always been enamored with the US Civil War and have always felt that I was a Confederate Soldier who died in battle.

On to the second lifetime! My paternal grandfather's name is Amiel and I got a little kick out of the fact that you felt my name sounded like Amiel. Still a blond, huh? At least in past lifetimes I didn't get the blond out of a bottle!

I have always wanted to be a Gypsy!! When I was married we used to take off in the car without alot of money, and just drive until we stopped. The craziest thing we ever did was take off and drive to Southern California and we only had $300 to get us there and back. It was a fun trip though!

I also love a good bonfire and feel at home when I am at one! My dress style is very gypsy like or bohemian.

Becoming a nurse and working at a hospital is sort of interesting - I cannot stand blood and guts. I have gone back to school to study social work and I still want to do social work but I am kinda changing my mind and am interested in grief counseling or working in a hospice center instead - I just want to help people. Mystical influences have always interested me but I have always been afraid to dive into it. Maybe in this lifetime I should.

You talk about receiving a charm - when I was born my maternal grandmother pinned a Virgin Mary charm to the mattress of my crib. The charm was silver but Mary was in blue. All of my mattresses have had this charm on it, but one day it disappeared and I have not been able to find it since - that was probably about 4 years ago. I am going to work on the "tendencies to leave behind," especially the impatience and the second guessing of what others are thinking. All in all I thought it was a great reading!! Thank you VERY much!

A Past Life Reading for Jennifer Jamiel

*This reading was reprinted with kind permission from Jennifer.

I will begin your past life reading by taking a look at two of your past lives based upon a psychic/soul reading of your past life energy.

Lifetime 1

The first lifetime I tap into takes place in England during medieval times and your name is Beatrice (Beatriz).

The first thing I see is a horse wearing some sort of head hear (a mask) running up and the rider has a plume on his helmet and hands a message intended for the king to a gate keeper.

Then I see you, all alone, high up in a tiny window within the castle. You are looking down and your face is pale and your hair is long, blonde and wavy. You are quite bored and lonely as you traipse from room to room dangling your hands over the furniture.

Fast forward in time…you have your own castle now and a tall, thin husband, but you’re still bored! So you go to the local witch for help and she gives you a potion to stir up some excitement in your marriage. You take this potion, but start to feel like you’re seeing bats in your hair so you stop!

Later on you give birth to a baby boy, “Timmy” and a girl, “Anelise” and you are happier, but you also have a vision of a masked “Bird Man” that you have been dreaming of for awhile. He is someone that complements your soul and brings you strength.

So you take up riding and dream of him, as if searching for him while on your long rides. You never find him, but you realize later that he was the brother that you never had (he may have died at birth).

Life Lesson: This was an unfulfilled life in some ways, but you endured, made the best of it and lived well, but always with the feeling that something was missing.

I also catch a glimpse of several other lifetimes:

- I see simple toy wooden animals and people making the sign of the cross. - You are blinded and in pain in this lifetime and feeling pain behind your knee. - I see a group of three black haired Celtic friends making merry.

Lifetime 2

The second lifetime I tap into takes place in Holland in the 1700’s and your name sounds like Amiel.

My first image of you is as a stocky, strong, wide, blondish woman wearing a pale blue apron. You are very practical and take charge.

I see creeks full of running water around you and I see you herding chickens.

You are married to a man named Jeremy. I also see a ‘friend’ of yours by the name of Magda. She is a strong woman with wild black hair. You are strangely attracted to the wild gypsy ways of Magda especially when you catch glimpses of her sitting by a fire at night. She is such a contrast to your own practical life.

You don’t want to befriend her (she is too far beneath you) but you do decide to let her read your palm. At the last moment you take your hand away from her just before she read it because you are afraid. Instead, she reads your tea leaves not saying anything of importance, but she does give you a charm, like a wish.

After receiving this charm, you begin to focus on what you really want in life and you decide that you want to help people and be compensated for doing this. So you become a nurse and eventually you work at a hospital and this truly fulfills you.

You never mention the gypsy encounter to anyone, but you keep that blue charm safely stored in a treasure box, for it changed your life.

Life Lesson: Once again you invited mystical outside influences into your life and most importantly, you paid attention to them. During your lifetime you managed to build upon your strengths and contribute much to society. This was a good life that was well lived and you were a very giving and strong person.

Jennifer, I’m ending this part of your reading by surrounding you with health, happiness and the guidance of your strong will.

Part 2 - An Astrological Analysis of the Nodes of the Moon in your Natal (Birth) Chart

Your Karmic Mission based upon past lives – Why are you here? (The Nodes of the Moon)

In astrology, the Moon rules our feelings, our moods, and our emotional bodies. It is the most important planet in our chart from a karmic/past life perspective. An analysis of the North and South Nodes of the Moon will help you better understand your Karmic Mission for this lifetime based upon your past lives.

Your North Node is in Sagittarius in the 1st House (Aries House) - Your present life. Your South Node is in Gemini in the 7th House (Libra House) - Your past lives.

North Node in Sagittarius

Attributes to develop: (Work in these areas can help uncover hidden gifts and talents)

- Reliance on intuition, prophetic abilities, and invisible guidance - Spontaneity – developing a sense of freedom and adventure - Direct communication free from censorship - Trusting oneself - Spending time alone and in nature - Intuitive listening – hearing the meaning behind the words

Tendencies to leave behind: (Working to reduce the influence of these tendencies can help make life easier and more enjoyable)

- Second-guessing what others are thinking - Indecisiveness - Perpetually seeking more information - Gossiping - Impatience – wanting immediate answers

You may find yourself on an unending search for information in a desire for mental security and on a search for truth. The bottom line is that you will never have enough information to know what the “truth” is. At some point, you need to go beyond logic to your intuition, and demonstrate what your higher truth is telling you. Real growth is only possible when you learn to let go of control and follow your intuition. Acting from your own truth will draw out your integrity and bring the right people to you which will help give you the security and peace of mind you seek.

You are highly intuitive and can excel in the psychic fields. You can also be successful in situations involving interactions with foreign countries. You are happiest when using your talents to find solutions ie. lawyer, religious or spiritual leader, professor, publisher, or a role in advertising – promoting various causes that you believe in on a mass level. You have a gift for foreseeing probable outcomes and when you verbalize this you can create win/win situations. However, if you work in professions where understanding and reporting how others think is the goal you may not fare as well. Teaching mundane subjects or working with projects that deal with fact rather than inspiration, can promote uneasiness and fear of being hurt unexpectedly.

You have spent many lifetimes in positions where it was essential for you to understand how others think: as a teacher, writer, orator and salesperson. You have the talent of seeing everyone else’s point of view, but in the process have lost touch with your own truth. Now you need to connect with your spirituality and rediscover yourself. You also have the gift of gab and can see into the mindset of other people.

You may have a tough time making decisions because you are accustomed to seeing both sides. To avoid this problem, you must not allow yourself to question your first feeling of “knowing.” Your intuition is usually accurate.

Be careful not to slip into telling white lies. Your special gift in this lifetime is truth. When you can honestly and directly reveal your own point of view, others will respect what you say.

The desire to win is also correct and healthy for you. You have a positive, cheerful and outgoing nature and are attuned to insights from your Guides and Angels. When you become negative, it’s because you’re thinking too much. As you relax your mind, your natural faith in positive outcomes will be able to re-establish itself.

One of the greatest gifts you can share with others is your unique ability to help people overcome negative thoughts and to show them how to take a positive point of view. One of the greatest challenges you face is achieving peace of mind. One viewpoint that could help is: “Hey, this is all just an adventure! It’s an experiment, a discovery!”

It’s also healthy for you to retreat from society, and spend time outdoors, with animals, and in nature. Regular exercise, meditation, hot baths and swimming will help you relax.

Healing Affirmations:

- “When I follow my own sense of truth, I win.” - “When I let others be themselves, I am free.” - “My intuition will show me the right road, spontaneously, as events occur.”

North Node in the 1st House (the Aries House)

Attributes to develop: (Work in these areas can help uncover hidden gifts and talents)

- Independence - Self-awareness - Trusting one’s impulses - Courage - Self-nurturance

Tendencies to leave behind: (Working to reduce the influence of these tendencies can help make life easier and more enjoyable)

- Debilitating selflessness - Being Mr. or Ms. Nice - Obsessive attachment to fairness and justice

You need to watch out for of a preoccupation with justice. What you really want is to experience happiness, harmony and support with one partner whom you love, but this feeling of completeness will never be achieved through another, because it must be achieved individually first. You are also someone who needs to do your own thing without being limited by the input of others. You are the leader, the innovator, the pioneer.

From past lives, you have the gift of being able to see the other person’s point of view and negotiate diplomatically to ensure fairness. You can use this innate ability to further your own success.

You have had many past lives of supporting others and you have a natural talent for it. You may have had past incarnations as a housewife, secretary, counselor or assistant. You were the person ‘behind the scenes’ who gave others energy and support. Although you were very giving in past lives you did had an ulterior motive; you were part of a team and if your partner did well, it also ensured your own survival. So you gave up paying attention to your own needs in order to devote full attention to your partner.

But your present incarnation is not set up to work this way. In the process of supporting others, you extinguished you own identity. Your destiny now is to get in touch with the strength and power of your own vibration. That is why every time you rely on a partner to come through for you without asking directly for help, you end up feeling disappointed. It’s time now to rediscover your self.

Healing Affirmations:

- “When I trust myself and follow my impulses, everyone wins.” - “Before I can support others, I have to learn how to nurture myself.” - “I can help others best by truly being myself.”

You can read more Sample Readings here and Testimonials are here.

Aquarius New Moon Musings

New Moon Musings

New Moon In Aquarius

February 13, 2010

This month’s New Moon is in the sign of Aquarius, a fixed air sign. You know the type…usually on the outer edge of everything peering in, or lost in space, or surrounded by a large group of friends, but not really close to any of them.

Aquarians are known for their independence, individuality and detachment. Their shadow side comes out in contrariness, rebellion and emotional unavailability.

Moon in Aquarius calls us to the circle, collaboration and collectivization. We recognize that what one does effects us all. We tend the web of community as natural team-builders.

More Aquarian Stuff

Aquarius – the water bearer

Time of Year – Winter, Imbolc

Quality – fixed

Element – air

Ruler – Uranus

Anatomy – bloodstream, circulation, shins, ankles

Natural sign of – 11th house

Opposite sign – Leo

Color – electric blue, turquoise, silver

Gemstone – obsidian, opal, sapphire

Tarot card – the star

Goddesses – Feng P’O P’O, Freya, Ix Chel, Nut, Tien-Mu

More About The Lunar Cycles

The new moon is the perfect time of the month to plant seeds of intention for the month ahead. It is a time of trust, of beginnings and of letting go into intuition. The new moon lies in darkness, not yet reflecting the light of the sun, so our intentions may not yet be fully revealed to us and therefore trust is necessary - trust and faith that your newly planted seeds are indeed germinating beneath ground.

Allow the moon maiden/mother/crone to be your touchstone for balance, serenity and divine knowing. Let her cool, pale fingers touch your spirit as your soul flows knowingly, calmly, and with strength into divine being-ness. Allow her to be your support system to keep you pure, whole, holy and connected with your soul’s true purpose. Bless her as you bless yourself, for truly, we are all One.

The moon changes signs approximately every 2 ½ days, going through all twelve signs of the Zodiac every 29 ½ days. The sign that the moon is in reflects qualities of your inner self and being-ness. Each month there is at least one new moon that will rise at sunrise and set at sunset. Astrologically speaking this means that the sun and the moon are in conjunction.

My version of Aquarius

Abraxia is part of a series of left handed drawings I created over a period of five years. To me she represents the essence of Aquarius – independent, unusual, and “Nut-like” – as in the Egyptian Goddess Nut, ruler of the night sky. It’s a good idea to keep Abraxia in front of you as you prepare to answer her questions, and yes, she does like an audience although she may not admit it! So keep a pen and paper handy to take notes starting off with how she makes you feel – first impressions are best.

Abraxia’s Questions:

When have you gone out on a limb recently and how did it feel?

Choose a symbol to represent how that feels.

As you sit and ponder your New Moon intentions (you have written them out, haven’t you?!) ask yourself what first step you could take that would satisfy that symbol you’ve just come up with for yourself.

Describe that first step in detail.

Now, to take this exercise even further I’m going to ask you to be very Aquarian with your plan and to share it with the world-at-large or at least with your friends so that we can all learn from you. How will you do this? How does this idea make you feel?

An Abraxian Exercise

Go outside (especially at sunset) and wave your arms in the air as you let your fingers tingle and shimmy. You are Goddess Divine upholding the sky. Repeat 3 times after me:

“I AM GODDESS DIVINE”

“I AM GODDESS DIVINE”

“I AM GODDESS DIVINE”

Now, get out there and save the world, as only you can!

Aquarian Gemstone Messages

A Message from Opal:

Let yourself be colorful in a subtle way. Then one day surprise yourself by doing something wildly colorful, no holds barred – let your inner imp out to play and feel the freedom that accompanies your decision.

Now congratulate yourself on being brave and remember you can always switch gears and tone things down at any time, especially if you start to get carried away (having too much fun!)

A Message from Obsidian:

Don’t be afraid to take a chance on love – you’re worth it!

Sparkly Blessings to All!

Kathy Crabbe

Bio: Kathy Crabbe is a soul reader and artist who has devoted her life to exploring spirituality and creativity with passion and integrity. Her art and writing have been published and shown throughout the world at museum shows, galleries, magazines and books. Through online resources Kathy is able to help other soul seekers express their unique gifts and talents in empowering ways. She maintains two blogs and a website sharing her experiences with the psychic, intuitive realms and the world of art making. You can find her online at http://KathyCrabbe.com The artwork featured above is from Kathy’s Goddess Zodiac deck and Lefty Oracle deck, two of the four decks she incorporates into her soul readings.

Kathy is currently teaching “Awaken the Divine Feminine” at the Wise Woman University. “I hope this course inspires you to discover and express your passionate, intuitive selves. As women I believe the moon can help guide and challenge us to know our instinctual, emotional self in a balanced, harmonious and soulful way. Isn’t it time you awakened the divine feminine within yourself?”

A Past Life Reading for Shirley

What is a Past Life Reading?This combination astrology and soul reading will help you gain a better understanding of who you are so that you can maximize your potential and natural abilities to the utmost of your ability. Real growth comes from understanding and transforming behavior patterns so that you can challenge yourself to develop in new and exciting ways based upon a knowledge of your past lives.

Your past life reading will also include an examination of the north and south nodes of the Moon in your birth chart. The Moon rules your feelings, moods, and emotional body. It is the most important planet in your chart from a karmic/past life perspective and will help you understand your karmic mission for this lifetime based upon your past lives.

Your reading will explore: • two or three major past lives • the location in the world in which you were born and lived • information about your gender and appearance • your important experiences and relationships • talents or abilities you cultivated • your ethical and spiritual development • major lessons you learned

How a Soul Reading Works: My preferred mode of reading someone's soul-energy is via distance - this allows me to focus on you, your spirit and your guides in a focused way clear of distractions. Each reading involves preparations such as meditation and yoga to help me focus. I will often pull healing stones and a card(s) from one of my four self-designed and painted oracle card decks, but unlike a tarot reading I will not actually look at the card until after your reading is finished. The card imagery and description often serve to accentuate and emphasize certain points in your reading and along with the healing stones may also give you some more tools to work with on your own after the reading is over.

Shirley comments on her reading: "I have to say, that with all of the negativity swirling around me, your readings have been the only bright spot, the only glimmer of light that's kind of giving me the oomph to keep pushing through this gunk. That probably sounds melodramatic, but I just don't deal well with stress! And I have to say...Wow. Wow! I've never had such a beautiful, insightful, and just plain interesting reading." *You can read more of her comments at the end of this post*

A Past Life Reading for Shirley *reprinted with permission *You can purchase a reading here.

I will begin your past life reading by taking a look at two of your past lives based upon a psychic/soul reading of your past life energy.

Lifetime 1

In the first lifetime I tap into I see you as a little girl by the name of Gena and you have been sent to a school/convent where a harsh nun is being very unkind to you; she reprimands you and raps your knuckles in front of the class. - You are a very high-strung child and quite the tricksie, or trickster (joker). - And you are also very unusual, in that you are able to pull out these ‘cords of negativity’ from your body that were put there by the nun. You stuff them into a small, wooden compartment/closet/box.

- You grow up very determined and quite hardened, with little patience, especially for little girls! - You like to snap your fingers and have things done immediately. - You are also very unhappy. - You live in a small town in Italy near the mountains. - You regret everything that has happened, but you can’t stop. - The time period is the 1600’s and the power of the Church was evident. - One day you decide that “Tomorrow, I will settle the score” and you return to the old school/convent, find the box (with the negative cords), open it, and blow away all the remnants of negative energy still within it. You almost slump to the ground from relief and exhaustion. - You never again return to your business, but instead work in service to create better schools and systems.

Life Lesson: Your life lesson was well learned, but not easily. You overcame hard lessons and managed to tap into your healing abilities at long last and were able to give back to your community with compassion and common sense.

I also catch a glimpse of several other lifetimes: - I see peacock feathers and dancers – it appears to be ancient times in Persia. - I see a sweet, lonely girl named Kathryn in a tower. She is pining away. - I see a horse and short, dark, good humoured male rider in a parade in Mexico. - I see a 1950’s farm wife looking out a window, and I see pigs and slop (their food).

Lifetime 2

- The second lifetime I tap into takes place in the Congo in the early second century AD and your name is Kentu (Bentu). - You are the blackest person I’ve ever seen – you have a shiny, black ebony body and you are almost naked (except for a loin cloth) and are jumping through fields. - The next image I see is of you beating a rhythm with one foot, as you form a sun pattern with your hand, all around your body. - I also see women forming in a circle around you – they are symbolizing ‘rain’ in a special ceremony. - The jungle gets quiet for just a moment as you re-enact this ancient ceremony. - This is the last time you will be doing the ceremony, because you are passing it on to someone else. - You are free now to pursue a ‘normal’ life and I see you hunting cheetahs, or leopards. - You still partake in ceremonies, but not as the Sun, instead you are a star. - You are very content and at one with yourself, your body and your tribe. - You are very lithe and skilful as a hunter and you move so beautifully in your skin. - Marriage does not exist at this time, but you do beget two children – two boys.

Life Lesson: You were completely at one with your life mission and your life this time around. This was a lifetime of singular beauty, grace and intelligence: of the body and your place in the universe. Beautiful!

I am ending this part of your reading by sending you a blessing for condensation of knowing and for sharing your beauty and beautiful ways.

Part 2 - An Astrological Analysis of the Nodes of the Moon in your Natal (Birth) Chart

Your Karmic Mission based upon past lives – Why are you here? (The Nodes of the Moon)

In astrology, the Moon rules our feelings, our moods, and our emotional bodies. It is the most important planet in our chart from a karmic/past life perspective. An analysis of the North and South Nodes of the Moon will help you better understand your Karmic Mission for this lifetime based upon your past lives.

Your North Node is in Capricorn in the 11th House (the Aquarius House) - Your present life. Your South Node is in Cancer in the 5th House (the Leo House) - Your past lives.

North Node in Capricorn

Attributes to develop: (Work in these areas can help uncover hidden gifts and talents)

- Self-control - Staying goal oriented - Sensible approaches to problem solving - Letting go of the past - Self-care - Accepting responsibility for your success

Tendencies to leave behind: (Working to reduce the influence of these tendencies can help make life easier and more enjoyable)

- Dependence - Moodiness - Using the past to avoid the present - Isolation – spending too much time at home - Avoidance of personal risk

This lifetime is all about freedom for you, the freedom to be independent and courageous, to do your own thing and follow your own instincts. This lifetime is about getting in touch with your own vibrations and developing self-control and self-respect. It’s time to let go of moodiness, dependence and isolation.

Watch out that you don’t form emotional dependencies upon others because it’s a bottomless pit and you will never get enough reassurance to feel safe. At some point a risk must be taken and it will be time to take charge and assume full responsibility for the consequences. Once this happens, you will feel secure and in control of your own destiny. When you bring yourself into alignment with a higher principle or spiritual belief, you will feel protected and nurtured.

You will probably excel at being the boss and others are only too willing to cooperate with your goals because you approach people under your authority with sensitivity. You are better off in goal-oriented professions or positions that allow you to lovingly organize others to work toward a specific goal.

You have spent many past lifetimes as a householder; a central figure in the home, and on the farm, and thoroughly identified with your family or clan. But you have not had a lot of past life experience being out on your own. You may have difficult family karma because you were too often born into a situation where immediate family members had many emotional problems. You were so used to being the nurturer that you lost a sense of your own direction. The first step for you, in this lifetime, is to distance yourself from total emotional involvement with your family.

You may often dislike or feel alienated from one, or both of your parents. To be successful you must be willing to put your own best interests and self-respect ahead of the desire to cast your parents or others as wrong. There must be a conscious effort not to dwell on the past, and to stay focused on what makes your life strong in the present – doing things that bring you self-respect

You may feel you need a strong partner for protection and support but what you really need, is a partner who can support you in developing your own professional and personal authority. When you come from a position of neediness, your relationships break down. The fulfillment you seek can never come primarily from a relationship; it will come from actively pursuing your mission and participating in life from a take-charge position that builds self-respect.

A primary factor in the problems you may have experienced in relationships and with intimacy is your disinclination to listen. To make relationships work you must deliberately concentrate on listening. When you are focused on helping others you can bypass your emotional response and connect with your ability to see the larger picture. Not listening may cause you to miss opportunities. You consciously work on this by saying to yourself: “What opportunity is this person bringing to me, what is the opportunity in this situation?” By focusing on opportunities that are being presented, your capacity to listen will shift to a focused, take-charge mode.

Your salvation lies in becoming more objective and goal oriented in all areas of your life. Commitment is key and reaching a goal is extremely fulfilling for you because it validates your power, expertise and competence in a way that nothing else can. In the end, the self-assurance and self-respect that has been gained from the process is your true reward.

Healing Affirmations:

- “I cannot control others, but I can control myself.” - “In releasing the past, I deal more effectively with the present.” - “When I take charge, I win.” - “I don’t need to depend on anyone else to take care of me.” - “I am in charge of my inner state of being.”

North Node in the 11th House (Aquarius)

Attributes to develop: (Work in these areas can help uncover hidden gifts and talents)

- Objectivity (seeing the “total picture”) - Willingness to share unconventional ideas - Active participation in groups - Recognizing how others are special

Tendencies to leave behind: (Working to reduce the influence of these tendencies can help make life easier and more enjoyable)

- Insistence on getting one’s way - Making changes just to exercise authority - Attachments to taking risks (romance or gambling) - Melodramatic tendencies - Prideful responses based on fear

You do need to become aware of a need for others’ approval, because you will never get enough approval to feel satisfied or to feel free to be yourself. You must risk disapproval and be true to your own unorthodox ideas in order to develop the deeper and more satisfying feeling of self-approval. You may find yourself endlessly risk taking – especially in romance. If you don’t balance this romantic energy with a daily commitment to some type of humanitarian cause, it can become too intense and you may inadvertently destroy the very relationships you want so badly.

What you really want is to be in love: to be adored and share “center stage” with someone who returns your passion. To reach this goal you must learn to go with the flow – to let life (with its perfect timing) bring others to you, who will recognize and adore you. You were probably an entertainer or a King or Queen in past lives – someone who was accustomed to being “special.” But this lifetime is more about consciously focusing on the people you interact with and encouraging them to get in touch with their own needs and to manifest their own dreams! Your destiny is to come down from your isolated throne and re-establish yourself as part of the collective, to help bring in the New Age.

You are probably quite talented with groups and are able to bring innovative ideas to the public. You may have been a well-known artist or highly creative person in your past lives, developing an attachment to pride, as you arrogantly promoted your vision above all others. This can help you reach goals in this lifetime, and it also gives you innate confidence in your own power to overcome life’s obstacles. But this is not a “do it yourself” lifetime,” instead you are learning how to transform your overactive ego into a vehicle for furthering the evolution of humankind.

You also work well in positions that require objectivity; scientist, astrologer, electrician, technician, computer expert, or in any occupation where the ability to see the future and bring it into the present is an asset. You are successful and happy in work that brings innovative ideas to the public. Broadcast work in radio or television is another field in which you have innate talents. But if you willfully enter professions that spotlight you rather than a higher principle (eg. movie star, corporate head), it leaves you hardened and unable to relate to others with equality.

You are learning to trust the Flow. You are very generous, and life responds to you with generosity. If you don’t get your way – or if someone says “no” to you – you need to expand your vision to see what other opportunity life is bringing. You must let go of your limited picture of what will make you happy and be open to life’s bounty – then a wealth of new experiences will bring you unexpected pleasure.

Healing Affirmations: “When I do what’s best for everyone involved, I win.” “Once I decide what I want, the universe will bring it to me.” “I don’t have to dominate others to feel okay about myself.”

Shirley's Comments:

Lifetime #1: Gena: The only thing that stood out to me was her unhappiness; that's something I've dealt with all too often in this lifetime, without a doubt.

Katheryn, who you saw pining away in a tower: My twenties were rough, and I often felt as if I were trapped in a metaphorical tower. I'm also all too familiar with that pining away feeling, that longing for a better life.

The male in Mexico: This didn't surprize me all that much! My heritage is German-Hungarian, but as a pre-teen I became obsessed with the band Menudo, and I'd sing along with them not knowing a lick of Spanish, and was able to more or less understand what was being sung. When I take the time to learn (and practice), Spanish comes fairly easy to me, and I've been told my pronunciation was pretty spot on for a white chick!

Lifetime #2, Kentu (or Bentu): This was really interesting to me; the idea that I was a warrior or sorts! I wonder if the ceremony you saw was Goddess-centered; it would certainly explain my draw to her.

Nodes of the Moon: Things to develop: Yes, yes, yes, and yes to each and every one! I need to work on each and every one of those things. I don't think I ever learned how to do any of those things in any real way.

Things to leave behind: Again, spot on.

"This lifetime is all about freedom for you; the freedom to be independent and courageous, to do your own thing and follow your own instincts. This lifetime is about getting in touch with your own vibrations and developing self control and self respect".

This truly resonated with me, because I don't have the freedom that I've always craved. The lesson, I suppose then, is that I'm to learn how to find it. That means standing up for myself for a change. I usually end up being viewed (and treated) as an emotional punching bag rather than a daughter.

"You may have difficult family karma because you were too often born into a situation where immediate family members had many emotional problems".

I don't know about any other lifetimes, but you certainly hit the proverbial nail on the head in this one.

"You may often dislike or feel alienated from one or both of your parents".

Oh, gosh, yes. Very much so. I often feel like I was born to the wrong people. Especially my mother.

North Node in 11th House: All of the above! The groups thing...now, that's really hard for a loner type like me! I have a tendency to fade to the background in groups.

To leave behind: I don't take very many risks, especially in relationships/friendships. I've been burned so many times before that it takes me a while to really trust that someone's being honest rather than using me. I will say, though, that I do have a tendency toward the melodramatic. More than I care for, really.

"You do need to be aware of a need for others approval..."

I'm very aware. It's a hard habit to break. For most of my life I've been put down and told how worthless I am, and I've found that it manifests itself in that need-to-please mode. I have a hard time saying, "This is me, the hell with everyone else".

"What you really want is to be in love..."

Yes. Above all else, yes. This really hit me in the face when I was looking over my vision boards (I do them in a huge spiral bound sketch pad). When I compare them to examples I've seen in books, mine are overwhelmingly love/marriage related, whereas everyone else's is money and success. (Those things are in mine, too, but love wins out hands down!)

I definitely want to give the healing affirmations you included with both a try, too.

The only thing that truly didn't resonate with me was in the past life reading, the farmhouse wife in the 1950's. Although as a teen I was intrigued with that era (I used to pester my mom to take me to local car shows so I could drool over the Ford Fairlanes and I was really into the music, too), that part didn't really strike a chord in me. And I'm not sure I really understand Gena's (the little Italian girl) ability to remove cords of negativity and store them away, only to release them later. I wonder if she was a witch? Was that metaphorical or metaphysical?

The simple fact that you want feedback - both good and bad - shows how much you care about what you do and those you read. That goes a long way in my book!

I have to say, that with all of the negativity swirling around me, your readings have been the only bright spot, the only glimmer of light that's kind of giving me the oomph to keep pushing through this gunk. That probably sounds melodramatic, but I just don't deal well with stress!

And I have to say...Wow. Wow! I've never had such a beautiful, insightful, and just plain interesting reading.

And thank you for being a little bit of a bright spot for me in what's turning out to be a really crummy week! Now, more than ever, I'm ready for it to finally be my season, my time to really live instead of just survive. You gave me a little hope. Thank you.

You can purchase a Past Life Reading here.