markspringle.com

Please come suport this great cause with me on Sunday April 26, 2009!

I’ve donated a free astrology reading for the auction, and I would love to meet you. If you see me, please say hello!

HELP Inc.’s 13th Annual “A New Day of HOPE” www.HopeIncLaw.com
Under the Big Top
Sunday, April 26, 2009

1pm - 5pm
Temple Beth Sholom
4144 Chase Avenue
Miami Beach, FL

About Help Inc.

Since 1994, HELP has provided direct legal assistance free of charge to South Florida’s largely immigrant and financially disadvantaged HIV-positive community. Through the combined efforts of the Law Director, volunteer attorneys and law students, HELP has assisted over 300 individuals and families in matters of public benefits, discrimination, immigration, wills/trusts, the rights of the incarcerated, and landlord-tenant disputes.

Dear Friends,

Sorry to have missed a few weeks. As we all know, these are stressful times, and the stress has caught up with me. I am saddened to share the news of my sister-in-law’s death. I would like to publicly acknowledge her bravery and strength throughout her seven year battle with breast cancer.  I also send my most sincere condolences to all of you who have lost loved ones to this disease.

It has been a difficult few weeks for my family, and as I sit on the plane taking me to her funeral, I cant help but notice that Venus has been retrograde in the last degree of Pisces for most of this time. The last degree of any sign brings the complete development of those qualities represented by the sign to a head. Pisces is ruled by Neptune, whose energy rules the dissolution of boundaries. However, boundaries are important mechanisms in our lives, for they define beginnings and endings. Interestingly, as my sister-in-law passed, my 15 year old nephew came for his first visit to see me. I could not help but notice that as one important relationship in my life ended, another began.

Friday, April 24th, marks the new moon in Taurus. Taurus is the sign of the zodiac concerned with what we own and the things that no one can take away from us, including our God-given talents, whatever they may be. The sign of Taurus is ruled by Venus, who rules money, relationships, and the economy. I am sure we can all appreciate the importance of this Venus-ruled new moon, especially since it carries with it the intensity of the Pluto square about which I have written much lately. Pluto is the modern ruler of the 8th house of the zodiac, commonly associated with Scorpio. Pluto rules real estate and taxes, as well inheritances and the resources of the other people in our lives. This perspective makes this new moon especially relevant, since we are all affected by the economy, the real estate crisis, and taxes!

A new moon in the appropriate time to set our intentions for what we would like to see grow in our lives over the upcoming month. The next full moon in Scorpio on May 9 will be when we get a glimpse of our progress towards these goals. With all of the change, loss, and uncertainty, it would be easy to focus on the negative right now: on what we have lost or do not have. My mentor, Brenda Brush, reminds us all that this new moon is also the full phase of a Taurus cycle that began ten years ago. The full phase of a cycle is where we receive the consequences of our actions, the impact of our intentions. The next 10 years will be a time when we process and accept these results as we begin to build a new foundation for the next cycle.

Even as we recognize the folly or prudence of our decisions over the past 9-10 years, we are also being given a chance with this new moon to re-establish our goals for abundance, which is also ruled by Taurus. Taurus wants satisfaction and beauty, in addition to security, so if we focus on the positive, accept the lessons we have learned, and make a realistic plan for how to accomplish these goals, this could be a fantastic time to make dramatic improvements in the quality of our experience.

Looking to the ruler of Taurus for guidance on how to accomplish this, we find that Venus is at 0 degrees Aries! This is a very powerful degree for all cardinal signs: Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn. This degree of Aries signals action: strong, bold, and creative… Yes, creative! Aries is the most creative sign of the zodiac! We should be grateful for the things we have today‘ we should recognize our talents, and we should use them to help us create the new vision of abundance we have for ourselves.

Now is time to be optimistic about our futures and to honor the things which and the people who bring true value to our lives. The Venus retrograde in Aries square to Pluto in Capricorn has shown us where we have placed too much importance on value-less things in our lives. Venus retrograde in Aries wanted us to re-invent ourselves. The Pluto square demanded that his change be real and significant, with meaning and value. Now that Venus is direct at 0 degrees Aries and ruling a new moon in Taurus at the full phase of a Taurus cycle, we can be sure that now is the time that we can take responsibility for our actions, acknowledge our mistakes, be thankful for what we still have, and move forward to create a more sustainable future for ourselves.

It a great day! Its a great week! Its a great life!

with love

mark

MOORE TO CONSIDER ABOUT THIS WEEK’S ASTROLOGY

Cris Stambaugh

Dear Friends,

I am so sorry not to have posted lately. The recent two squares of Venus to Pluto have been creating challenges for all of us, and we still have the final square to go on May 2nd.

After a courageous battle with breast cancer, my sister-in-law has passed. I have been taking care of my family through this difficult time and hope to return to my regular Friday posting schedule next week.

My sincere condolences to all of you who have lost loved ones to breast cancer, as well as to all who have lost loved ones recently.

We are all connected through life and death, and each ending is a new beginning. As a matter of fact, a new baby was born in to our lives the day Cris said good-bye.

With love,   Mark

Hello Everyone!

This is going to be a very intense week, if it isn’t already. Pluto opens our week with a precise square to Venus on Friday, April 3rd. Venus is retrograde in Aries, demanding that we work on ourselves and create a new way of being in the world. A square is a challenge that we must meet in order to progress to the next higher level of experience. Pluto is a very strong energy which can feel destructive, oppressive, and inescapable. Well, the truth is that Pluto does want to transform whatever he touches, and he is not the softest touch in the heavens. Pluto comes in when nothing else has worked and *BAM* destroys whatever is not working and then creates something from the wreckage. The good news is that Pluto will not alter what is working, so we can be thankful that whatever goes *BAM* this weekend was broken anyway, so good riddance to bad rubbish! Don’t mourn what is lost, because the idea here is not to wallow or grieve, but to move forward. Life goes on and we need to keep up.

Normally, the planets make contact and continue moving, so there is movement and a fairly quick release of the energy being triggered. Well, Pluto will station the day after the Venus square, and we will feel like the Earth has stopped. People who don’t handle prolonged intensity well should prepare themselves. People who can handle prolonged intensity should rest up, and everyone else will have to do their best. While Pluto is sitting still, there will be a focus on something in our lives where transformation is necessary. Pay attention. We may want to run and hide from this energy, but there is no place to hide. This Pluto station is carrying the weight of the Venus square. Many of us have already felt the effects of this relationship building. I have friends who have announced their divorce, another couple I know did not speak for 3 days this week, I myself was in a minor car accident, and I have a family member who has taken very ill. I know we have all had some difficult experiences this week. This energy will sit on top of us for the rest of the week because the cosmos, in its infinite generosity, really wants us to figure this out and to generate real change for ourselves so that we can be more free and more happy.

On Thursday, April 9th, we will have a full Moon in Libra. A full Moon magnifies the things that we need to see. We can think of a full Moon as a hiking marker or a trail-blaze which directs our attention as we forge through the forest of our lives. Libra is the sign concerned with cooperation and balance. Libra is ruled by Venus, who also rules Taurus, so there will be a Taurus flavor to this full Moon. Taurus rules the economy, our finances and real estate, as well as sensuous delights and art, and anything else we possess, including our talents.   Venus is in Aries, which has a strong call to action, although since she is retrograde and carrying the weight of the Pluto square, action may not be possible just yet. The call is there, however, to protect what we have and to do so by initiating a protective, or at least proactive, process. Even if concrete action seems impossible, we should be creating a plan to be proactive in saving what is ours. Whether this means contacting the bank before the bank contacts us, or putting ourselves on a restricted budget before we run out of money, or adopting new perspectives to help us in our relationships, it is clear that proactive measures are required. Remember that Pluto is operating from the Capricorn sector of the sky, which is devoted to responsibility and dignity. We have made our beds, and perhaps soiled the linen. Now we must do the laundry ourselves and remake the bed if we want clean sheets.

This full Moon is the culmination of the lunation that began with a new Moon in Aries . Action is still required, but we are now getting more information on how this action should be created and manifested. Venus retrograde in Aries wants deep change integrated on a very personal level. The Pluto square will make this change transformative and lasting. The full Moon in Libra will bring our attention to protecting what we have by balancing our previous actions - the ones that got us where we are - through more actions, this time dedicated to righting, balancing, or correcting our previous mistakes.

Make no doubt about it, now is the time to take responsibility for ourselves and to pull ourselves up out of the mess we have created for ourselves. Personal responsibility is the demand from Pluto in Capricorn . The ruler of Capricorn is Saturn, and as we know, Saturn is in Virgo, the sign of the zodiac most concern with healthy habits and the details of life. Let the heavy focus and concentration of Pluto, along with the full Moon, give us strength to focus upon the issues we are facing. The new Moon in Aries has already lit the fuse which will set off a barrage of life-changing fireworks. This week, we will feel the anticipation, excitement, and perhaps dread, of watching the fuse burn towards its eventual destination. By April 15th, the fireworks will explode in earnest as Mars joins Uranus followed by Venus turning direct on April 17th. Make plans now, because once these two things happen, we will all feel like we are on a roller coaster towards our own destinies.

Be well and much love!

mark

MOORE TO CONSIDER ABOUT THIS WEEK’S ASTROLOGY