Not the Same as it Was
August 2022
This blog post was first published on Substack
Happy August Friends!
Hope you are all hanging in there… the sky weather is particularly intense at the moment, especially if you have fixed sign placements. I’ve had this ridiculously catchy Harry Styles song stuck in my head for the last three days hence the title of the newsletter. I think it speaks to the liminal quality of the current time though…
Oh and happy Lughnasadh! Today is the first harvest festival of the year… also known as Lammas:
Celebrated on 1 August, it’s a time to pause and enjoy the abundance that the summer season has provided. Traditionally, on this date the first grain was gathered, ground and baked into bread. This loaf would be shared amongst the community for luck and protection. I’m planning to harvest a few things from the vegetable patch to mark the occasion.
The swallows, swifts & house martins! And a pigeon!
Spotted
Over the last few weeks our skies have been chock-full of flycatchers… a seriously unusual number of swifts, swallows and house martins have been whooshing, swooping and zooming over the fields around the house. Most summers we see a decent collection of birds, but these numbers are unprecedented. I’d like to believe it’s because we have particularly tasty beasties but suspect that actually, it’s climate change driving the little flappy-floofsters further north…
If you have trouble identifying between swifts, swallows and house martins, here’s my extremely scientific guide:
Extra fun fact: Swifts have the shortest legs of any bird relative to their body size and can’t take off from the ground. Their scientific name, Apus apus, even means without feet!
Sniffed
There could be no winner other than the honeysuckle we’ve had decorating the country lanes this month. Oof! The heady scent wafts along to greet you on every walk and is particularly strong come the early evening, apparently hoping to entice pollinating moths that might be passing.
Nicholas Culpeper, an English botanist, herbalist, physician and astrologer, wrote one of the most detailed works on medical astrology in Early Modern Europe. Here’s what he thought of honeysuckle:
Honeysuckles are cleansing, consuming and digesting, and therefore no way fit for inflammations. Take a leaf and chew it in your mouth and you will quickly find it likelier to cause a sore mouth and throat than cure it. If it be not good for this, what is it good for? It is good for something, for God and nature made nothing in vain. It is a herb of Mercury, and appropriated to the lungs; the celestial Crab claims dominion over it, neither is it a foe to the Lion; if the lungs be afflicted by Jupiter, this is your cure. It is fitting a conserve made of the flowers should be kept in every gentlewoman's house; I know no better cure for the asthma than this besides it takes away the evil of the spleen: provokes urine, procures speedy delivery of women in travail, relieves cramps, convulsions, and palsies, and whatsoever griefs come of cold or obstructed perspiration; if you make use of it as an ointment, it will clear the skin of morphew, freckles, and sunburnings, or whatever else discolours it, and then the maids will love it. Authors say, the flowers are of more effect than the leaves, and that is true: but they say the seeds are the least effectual of all. But there is a vital spirit in every seed to beget its like; there is a greater heat in the seed than any other part of the plant; and heat is the mother of action.
Culpeper was pretty radical for his day and sought to make medical knowledge available to everyone, especially those who couldn’t afford to pay for a physician. He has a fascinating story if you find the time for a few Wikipedia rabbit holes…
Sampled
Around six or seven years ago, a dairy farm just up the road from us that had been worked for hundreds of years was given up its elderly inhabitants upon reaching “retirement” - they were well into their eighties…
When they left, the farm tenancy reverted back into the hands of the wider estate but has lain empty ever since. It’s a lovely little spot and quite sad to see the farmhouse and outbuildings slowly deteriorating. However, a tonne of wildlife has moved in and seems to have made itself happily at home.
The garden is now completely wild but right on the edge of the property are enormous blackcurrant and redcurrant bushes. They must have been planted many moons ago…
Obviously it would have been rude to just leave ALL the berries for the birds… so we now have a lovely blackcurrant squishy sauce thing that we’ve been enjoying with ice cream, and the redcurrants will be frozen for later in the year.
Aside from pilfering berries, I’ve been enjoying loads of vegetables from the plot and have made the most of what I’ve picked this month. Freshly podded peas were turned into this lemony pea and rocket risotto with salmon steaks, courgettes into this super easy and light pasta dish, and swiss chard into these delicious crispeddi chi giri or swiss chard fritters. Yum!
“Hold on a minute… what if I pull the Capricorn III card in the middle of July?”
It’s a good question! This month I thought I’d explain a little about how you might interact with the deck. I’ve envisaged it being used in a few different ways but the first is simply as a tool for divination. I’ll use Capricorn III as an example.
Elk (or Moose if you prefer) sadly no longer inhabit Scotland, but can be found roaming all over Northern Europe (and beyond) and are one of our oldest living creatures with carbon dating placing evidence of their earliest existence between the Ice Ages, some 700,000-900,000 years ago. You could say they are almost as old as time itself…
Saturn, also known as Kronos, “Father Time” or the god of time, rules the zodiac sign of Capricorn and makes a symbolic appearance here in the form of a raven, who is a stark reminder for our Elk friend of the passage of time. As is the Sun, also a timekeeper and ruler of this particular decan, disappearing over the horizon.
The message assigned to this card is “Security and Stability” and if we pull this card in a reading, it might get us thinking about longer term plans, particularly those that relate to earthy material matters such as finances and money.
If we pull the Capricorn III card, we might ask:
What will provide me with more “Security and Stability” by the time I reach the dates of this decan?
What changes do I need to make now to make that a reality? Do I need to adjust my plans or direction to get there? Maybe I need to impose some limits or boundaries (Saturn) in order to achieve my goals.
Are there any lessons I have learned in this area since the last time the Sun passed through this decan? How can I integrate them to feel more anchored and solid, or gain new clarity about a current situation?
And there’s another way you could interpret the card….
The third decan of Capricorn (10 – 19th January) is deepest darkest winter in the northern hemisphere. The light is low, the nights are long and energy is depleted. It’s usually the time that we quietly plan for the seasons ahead. A response to pulling the Capricorn III card could also speak to this time of year and the need for reflection and recuperation, for slow replenishment and for putting your house in order.
We all know that if you invest in your health or well-being by taking time out, it usually pays dividends in terms of productivity and creativity in the days and weeks that follow. Saturn can help us to honour our limits and clarify what is essential to our survival. After all, burning the candle at both ends doesn’t usually end well…
So maybe when you pull this card, it’s time for a radical reset and rest! Perhaps in the middle of July, a period of hibernation could be a perfect way to honour the dog days of summer… despite what our Capricorn hardworking friends might argue.
If you’re keen to follow along with progress of this project, make sure you sign up to receive the next Reconnect ↟ Remember ↟ Rewild newsletter!
It might be a challenging month! We are in the thick of some fairly hairy astrology at the moment, however there are still a few sweet spots that we can make the most of…
A Few Dates to Note:
1st August - Mars conjunct North Node and Mars conjunct Uranus (18 Taurus): Eep! We kick off the month with an explosive aspect which will likely shake up our individual lives and potentially alter the world we live in… it’s a rare configuration. Today is not the day to take any unnecessary risks!
4th August - Mercury enters Virgo: This is a really great spot for Mercury so expect to see a few weeks of functional and productive energy for all mercurial matters. Think technology, communication, logistics, planning, paperwork and travel. It’s a great time to get yourself organised too. Mercury will be in his happy place until August 25th when he moves in Libra and loses strength.
7th August - Mars (22 Taurus) square Saturn (22 Aquarius): We may be held back from moving forward on or around this date as party-pooping Saturn issues a big fat nope to excitable Mars. Our passionate energy for a task or goal might drain away as we are faced with fear or external criticism. However, we can potentially make constructive use of this energy by restructuring or adjusting our plans for the better. Tantrums are best avoided!
11th August - Venus enters Leo: After a few weeks of quiet, introverted Venus in Cancer…. she moves into outgoing and expressive Leo carrying a “IT’S TIME TO SHINE” placard!
11th August - Full Moon (19 Aquarius) conjunct Saturn (22 Aquarius) making a square to Uranus (18 Taurus): This T-square is a pressure cooker that might well blow its top. Think upheaval, structural change, destabilisation… this full moon comes with a pretty dramatic serving of energy. On a positive note, we might gain some clarity on what has been slowing us down or holding us back. There is the potential for a breakthrough! If you have any fixed sign placements, you’ll feel this more than most.
18th August - Venus (8 Leo) trine Jupiter (8 Aries): A lovely aspect! This is a super uplifting and joyful highlight of the month. There’s flair, drama, entertainment and confidence! A sense of hope and optimism fills the air. It’s a day to say yes to whatever comes your way.
20th August - Mars enters Gemini: After having a little rest in Taurus, Mars picks up strength as he enters Gemini where he will be for 7 MONTHS! Owing to a retrograde coming later in the year, his stay is much longer than the usual six week period. Take care of your brains over this period as it will be easier than usual for a monkey-mind mentality to take hold. There will be a chaotic quality to this time so be sure you aren’t taking on too much at once.
23rd August - Sun enters Virgo: Aaaaaand breathe! We may find ourselves slowing down, craving order and routine. We opt for less drama and find ourselves moving into more regular rhythms. It’s the little things as the Sun moves through Virgo…
24th August - Uranus stations Retrograde (18 Taurus): Authenticity, autonomy, freedom… now is the time to review these themes in the areas of our lives where we feel frustrated, restricted or restless.
27th August - New Moon (4 Virgo) square Mars (4 Gemini): We might feel a sense of energy, enthusiasm or urgency around this date but also friction around how to move forward. Your new moon plans (and anything happing in the following two weeks) might need some last minute adjustments thanks to that mutable Mars aspect!
If you’re not sure about degree placements in your chart, you can find out here. ☽
My friend and fellow deck creator Kara Simmons is currently running a Kickstarter campaign for her new creation Song of the Grandmothers, a gorgeous oracle deck illustrated by Mari in the Sky of The Gentle Tarot fame!
Astrologer Dan Waites has a new mundane astrology YouTube channel called World Astrology Report and its FANTASTIC. Dan’s topical videos contain a depth of research, super interesting insights and are beautifully produced pieces of work. It’s big-picture-world-shaking-astrology and absolutely fascinating. If you want to learn more about the Mars-Uranus-North Node conjunction that takes place on 1 August, this is an excellent watch.
Faunabelle Tarot, the deck I co-created last year, is still available here with a 10% discount (the checkout code is WILDWAY) which is perfect if you’re curious about tarot, looking for a new deck or gift for a friend.
That’s all for this month! Thanks for joining me!