December starts off powerfully with Venus rising into the evening sky on the 1st. It might take a few days to see her after the Sun sets in the western sky, depending upon your location and horizon line. Mars starts his new two-year cycle this month. Mercury goes retrograde. December includes the Solstice, the start of the new year seasonally for us northern hemispherians. Venus enters the root chakra gate and more! December is energetically and astrologically action packed.
December Sky Viewing – The astronomical highlights this month are huge!
- Dec 1 – Begin looking for Venus in the western evening sky, just after sunset.
- Dec 7 – Full Moon occulting (crossing over) Mars – big sight to see in the early evening!
- Dec 24 – Waxing crescent Moon meets with Venus in the evening sky.
Venus becomes the Evening Star – Dec 1
Venus rises from the ashes of the underworld, where she has been traveling with the Sun since September. She is quite a sight to behold as she lights up in the dusk sky after the Sun has set. It may take a few days to see her, so be patient and enjoy the moment you first spot her. She’ll be in the evening sky until August.
Gemini Full Moon with new Mars cycle – Dec 7
The Gemini Full Moon will move exactly in front of Mars tonight! This is a big deal that will not happen again until 2059. Not only is it the Full Moon, but it is also the beginning of the new Mars cycle. Mars starts its two-year cycle in Gemini. Mars will move through all the signs over the 25-month period, but will carry the overtone of Gemini for the entire passage.
Mars represents the Divine Masculine principle. Spending two years under the Gemini umbrella offers us an opportunity to move the masculine beyond the polarity and duality into more wholeness. Gemini likes to break us out of our self-imposed boxes. Gemini brings lightness, play and fun while serving a greater spirit. These are energies that are becoming available to the Sacred Masculine, Yang energies within each of us.
Venus enters Capricorn – December 9
Like Mars starting its new cycle in Gemini, Venus began her current cycle in Capricorn last January. Now she returns to her starting sign, as she rises out of the underworld and lights up our evening skies once again. Capricorn is the sign of the grandmothers, the wisdom keepers and sages who know how our world should work and who hold us accountable to preserve the world for the generations to come. Venus traveling through Capricorn again reignites our need to listen to the wisdom of the grandmothers within and around us.
Waning Half Moon – Dec 16
We move into the last quarter of the current Moon cycle that began on November 23 with the New Moon. It is a time to begin reflecting on our previous intention and start refining what we want our upcoming New Moon intention to be. Has this month gone the way we wanted? Do we want to make changes? Is our last intention still in alignment with us now? Or does it need some improvement and adjustment as we move towards this next New Moon? With the coming Solstice, you could reflect on the entire previous year and begin to feel into the seeds you want to plant for the coming year.
December Solstice – Dec 21
The Sun moves into Capricorn signaling the December Solstice. This is the start of the new year from the seasonal perspective here in the northern hemisphere. It is time to celebrate the darkness of the year. We set intentions for the year to come. What do we want to create over the next year in our lives? What seeds do we want to plant in the autumn composted, fertile soil, sitting still, deep in the cold ground?
Capricorn New Moon – Dec 23
Lots of Capricorn wise grandmother energies at this time of the year. Let them guide us into setting our New Moon and Solstice New Year intentions. This is a great day to set your year-long intentions if you didn’t have a chance on the Solstice. Next, bring in one small intention that supports one of those larger intentions for your new Moon intention. I love doing this each month. It’s a powerful practice. I get to the end of the year
Join me for a Capricorn New Moon Ceremony, Thursday, December 22, 1 PM MST, where we’ll dive into more of what these energies mean, play with astrological aromatherapy, and set our Moon and Solstice intentions in community. You can learn more about it and register here. I’d love to set our intentions together!
Crescent Moon meets with Venus in the evening sky – Dec 24
Still within the New Moon energies, the sliver of the waxing moon meets with Venus, just after sunset. This signals Venus’ movement into the root chakra. We’re following the oldest myth ever written down in ancient Sumer about Inanna (Venus). She rises out of the underworld to reclaim her power at seven gates on her journey back into her rightful place as the queen of heaven and earth. Each month as Venus meets with the crescent Moon, we journey through one of these seven gates, through the seven chakras, focusing on reclaiming our power at each one. Learn more and join me on the journey through the evening sky by clicking here.
Mercury goes Retrograde – Dec 29
Yep, it’s that time again! Mercury going retrograde. But, wait, it’s not the awful thing everyone says it is. Yes, there can be communication and technological issues, but that’s just challenging because we are so attached to linear, left-brain thinking. Mercury retrograde offers the left hemisphere a much-needed rest and proposes time to dive into our creative sides and our right-brains. Tune into your intuition and listen. Trust yourself and your inner knowing. Let your heart be your guide.
December Aromatherapy – for all the Capricorn energies
- Ponderosa Pine – our native Colorado tree that stands as the grandmother of our local forests.
- Frankincense – a traditional essence for the time of the Solstice.
- Sitka Spruce – powerful sentinel tree of North America, who carries the wisdom of the land.
Blessings on your journey through December!
New Moon Ceremony Online – Thursday, Dec 22 at 1 PM MST
(always recorded)
