WINTER SOLSTICE: CAPRICORN SEASON IS HERE

The winter solstice is upon us, bringing the longest night and the shortest day! The darkest days of winter loom as Capricorn takes reign of the Sun from December 21st through January 20th joining Mercury, Venus, and of course, Pluto. With Saturn-ruled Capricorn oversaturating the collective energies, we find ourselves predisposed to making headway on all of those lofty ambitions we dreamed up during Sagittarius season.

Capricorn’s aim is to actualize our dreams, amass resources, creating meticulous plans, while also prioritizing time to nurture and nourish ourselves. They plan the work, and work the plan.

The Sea Goat climbs slowly from the bottom of the ocean to the highest peak of the mountain, becoming a master of all terrains. Capricorn applies this very same approach to life, working methodically while taking gradual steps toward success with thought, time, and intention put into every move.

The Sun’s journey through the zodiac align’s Capricorn season to the end of the Gregorian calendar year. Capricorn, the Cardinal Earth sign, ushers in a new beginning initiated through a definitive ending. Cardinal signs are responsible for beginning the following season but Capricorn season hosts the additional responsibility of beginning the following year. Luckily, Capricorn has no problem being the most responsible.

Saturn is the ancient keeper of time, so it’s fitting for an annual holiday celebrating the passage of time to take place during Capricorn season. Capricorn’s ability to strategize certainly helps when we are analyzing our aspirations in creating New Year's resolutions.

The shadow cast by the longest night may invite us to easier recognize our inner shadow. We are identifying our areas of opportunity through the lens of Saturn’s critical eye. Be wary of pessimism or self-deprecation- Saturn is the teacher who bestows us with opportunities to mature or overcome. Sometimes those opportunities present themselves as loss or hardship.

Winter is a dark and desolate time where nothing blooms, the world is quiet and still allowing us to reflect inward on all that we’ve experienced throughout the year. Here when the sun is weakening, we must find warmth, comfort, and nurturing from within as we continue on.

Capricorn season encourages us to have faith in ourselves and leads us forward one step at a time.

This Capricorn season kicks off with Jupiter’s reimmersion to Aries on December 21st and a potent New Moon on December 23rd. This is the peak manifestation period for the coming cycle. Jupiter in Aries breathes new life into our personal philosophy and brightens our mindset amongst all this sobering Capricorn energy.

When the Sun and Moon meet along the celestial path we enter a period of renewal. This new energy is ideal for setting intentions for the coming year as opposed to later on in the month due to the incoming mercury retrograde.

The new moon in Capricorn hones in our focus on figuring out who we would like to be, what legacy we’d like to build, or what steps we are taking in rooting that in reality. We are being asked to hold ourselves accountable in relation to our personal alchemy.

This New Moon is a moment to assess where we are investing our time and initiate new ways of maximizing our return on that investment.

There is also a regenerative quality to this new moon that may encourage some of us to slow down and tend to our well-being. Earth energy inspires us to evolve. We may be inspired to work hard under this transit but we must also prioritize nourishing ourselves, rest, and recovery.

Capricorn energy is concerned with making progress through hard work, patience, and discipline. With Mercury retrograde taking place on December 29th through January 18th, we may find it a bit challenging to find forward movement. Retrograde transits tend to cause delays, misunderstandings, or overall mayhem.

Retrograde transits inspire reflecting, re-doing, re-visiting, reviewing, revising, and redirecting.

This retrograde transit will help us refocus on our commitments and re-working our daily routines around them. Capricorn energy asks us to optimize our functions in order to maximize our output. This means even finding value in times when you have to stop, rework, rest or slow down in order to be more productive later on.

Under Mercury retrograde, we may find breakdowns in communication, transit, and technology as well as a sense of non-linear or liquid time. Mercury in astrology rules over the mind, and how we process information, communicate, and make connections. There may be lessons around setting boundaries, patience, and maturity within these breakdowns due to Saturn’s heavy involvement here.

I believe Mercury retrograde to actually be a much easier transit to deal with once you’re aware, allowing us to approach such matters with caution.

For example, with transit, we should expect delays so we should leave with extra time. We should expect people to be a bit feeling a bit subjective and not take anything too personally ourselves.

This is a time when everything is not as it seems- so if we can, pause before making any life-altering decisions (such as signing any type of contract or making large purchases). If we can’t avoid it, then we should prepare by reading ALL of the fine print and doing as much research as possible!

This retrograde emphasizes career as a focus, we may encounter issues with authority, figuring out our professional boundaries, or identifying where we could be happier within our work. If we find ourselves relatively unfulfilled, it will be hard to ignore it now. This is a good time to consider what our “dream job” would look like. Physically write it down and envision how you will feel once you find it.

Once Mercury stations direct on January 18th, you have the green light to take action around your goals.

Capricorn season encourages us to ascertain the quality of our experiences. Capricorn is shrewd in their standards but only because they know they deserve the best! They work hard for it after all. Saturn tends to operate in a similar way, hard lessons pay off with big rewards.

This Capricorn season we are being encouraged to build structure in our lives amongst the chaos of it all. We must approach matters with patience, maturity, and sensibility, with more of a focus on planning rather than taking action. We can afford to take our time when making progress with authenticity in mind.

This may be the darkest time of the year but from here on out the days get longer, reminding us that the Sun will return. Until then, with the help of Capricorn’s energy, we must harness the light from within to help us lead the way.