Happy astrological new year

New year, new poo: potty training + reset with nature

Bighorn Sheep Ram in Banff National Park, Canada. Photo by Pete Nuij.

I understand people have their ups and downs with potty training, and I am not here to minimize that.

I’m just saying, when you’ve just wrestled braids into an uncooperative six year old’s very tangled hair, and you’re attempting to keep the kitchen counters reasonably hygienic while playing a board game with a five-year old and making breakfast and lunches between turns, the fact that a two year old walks by and says “pee pee” is kind of, like, not a top priority. You might just rip their diaper off as they’re running by, point to the bathroom, and hope for the best.

The spring equinox is an auspicious time for new beginnings, whether that’s ditching diapers or starting any new project.

Personally, as spring approaches I feel like I’m anticipating an epic vacation with all my best friends.

The vacation destination is my property, and my best friends are my plants.

This past weekend, after inspecting the crocus stems which have miraculously survived two blizzards above ground already, I found myself actually lifting crusted snow off my garden beds to see the action underneath.

Then I realized I needed to stop, and I did, but it wasn’t easy.

You may know that in astrology, signs are categorized as Cardinal - which start seasons, Fixed - which hold them steady, and Mutable - which hint at transformation into the season coming next.

Pisces is the final sign in the wheel of the year and the one we’ve just left. It’s the Mutable Water, the most shape-shifty and, to be honest, the trickiest to harness. It’s mutable mission is to transform winter into spring which, of all the seasonal transitions, is perhaps the most radical and for many people the most celebrated.

Then Aries gallops in - the Cardinal - the starter. He opens the year up like a ram smashing through a stone fence that should never have been there in the first place, unapologetic and fully embodied in selfhood.

Aries says fuck you to fences generally, unless it built them, in which case, crossing them might hurt.

The Cardinal signs - the starters - they need a little ego, otherwise they wouldn’t be comfortable pulling back the curtain and STARTING THE SHOW.

A lot of people start the (Gregorian) calendar (January 1) year with intentions, resolutions, plans. This is your invitation to a 90-day check-in with those.

And also, the beginning of spring, when the crocuses are appearing, is an auspicious time to regroup and reassess around what you’re looking to create, to do, to feel, to BE.

We have a fish tank in our kitchen, with three tetra glofish. Pisces is green, the largest, and has the best appetite. Leo is orange and mostly keeps to itself. Aries is pink, and active, and usually likes to do what Pisces is doing. In other words, they are less literally aligned to their namesake energies than they could be, but we’re doing our best.

In the spirit of the new beginnings associated with the Spring Equinox and Aries season, I am passing the proverbial keyboard to Tetra Glofish Aries - to provide some guidance today.

Here’s what my dear Aries the glofish says:

Greetings, humans. Happy Spring Equinox. Just breathe. Blink if you must. Just breathe. Eat when served. Move when desired. Rest when needed. Just breathe. You are more beautiful than you know. Just breathe. A little effort, exerted with the tide, can go a lot farther than a lot of effort exerted against it. Just breathe.

Wow, Aries really delivered.

Great advice re: breathing. And effort. Whether you are juggling jobs, callings, creative projects, kids, relationships, identities, health scenarios, worries, dreams, fears, loves, know this: starting now, things are allowed to get clearer, simpler, and more fun. What if we all experimented with reduced effort, exerted with the tide?

And for anyone potty training, just remember that most things are washable.

A special treat

To celebrate spring, here’s a self-coaching snack for you to enjoy this week. Grab a journal or your phone or a friend, walk through these questions, and see what beauty starts to surface.

1. My big goals (say, 1-3) as of Jan this year were:
   

2. As of Spring, these goals are re-stated or re-considered to be:

3. The progress I am proud of so far is (1-3 things):

4. The resistance I feel so far is (1-3 things):

As nature, in its wisdom, demonstrates its masterful transition from winter to spring, it is showing me how I can find more ease and more momentum toward the things I most desire, and those things that most desire me.

5. Based on what I see and feel and smell and hear around me, nature is showing me to approach my goals like this:

I would love to hear if you try these prompts, and how they go for you. Nature is one of our most generous teachers, and all you need to do is witness her. Go outside and say hello.

Wishing you an explosively beautiful spring !

Allison