This journal shares the transcript of the fourth installment of the Lunar Series. This month, Hollis explores the supercharged lunations of April 2024. We begin with a New Moon Eclipse at 19° of Aries on April 8th, followed by a Full Moon at 4° of Scorpio on April 23rd. Both events are ruled by the fiery planet, Mars, symbolizing assertion, directness, aggression, and competition.

Listen to the full episode.

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Hello everyone! Welcome to another episode of the Design Life Podcast. I am very excited to delve into the new lunations for this month of April because there is a consistent theme between both the New Moon and the Full Moon. This New Moon Eclipse and this Full Moon are both ruled by the planet Mars. Mars represents the energy of assertion, directness, aggression, and competition. It's the warrior planet. So, however it shows up in our charts and in our lives demonstrates what we most want to fight for and where we perhaps get a little fiery, a little fired up, where we really experience a sense of passion and courage to fight for the things that matter to us, that we're most passionate about, and what we believe to be most important, true, and valuable for ourselves.

So, in a concise way, this whole month has that energy around it when it comes to the lunations. Just while thinking about stepping into this month and the energy of this, I would love for you to think about your relationship to your motivation, your inner drive, what drives you naturally, what you feel driven to pursue and achieve on a core level. Also, how do you define your own courage? When have you been courageous in your life? And when I talk about courage, I don't mean just doing scary things. I mean acting from the heart in ways that are an extension of what you most care about in this lifetime. Courage can be exhibited in saying something that might rub another person the wrong way but you feel is your truth, or saying "I love you" to someone for the first time, or branching out to find a new job or shifting your career after years of feeling stuck, or even something as simple as going out to eat by yourself when you're used to being social. What are the things that have been challenging or scary for you, but you've done them anyway because you know it's something that, in your heart, you deeply need to pursue, express, experience, cultivate, and develop within yourself, with others, in the world, and in your life?

So, let's get into more details and dates of when this energy will be most activated. But for now, if there's anything I would leave you with, it would be those reflection questions.

Our first lunation of the month is on April 8th. It's a New Moon North Node Eclipse at 19° of Aries. We're already in Eclipse season. We just had a Full Moon Eclipse in Libra a couple of weeks ago. As we discussed last month, Libra is very much about peace, balance, harmony, relationships, and bonding. Whereas Aries, the opposite of Libra, is very much about identity, self, and being ruled by Mars, it's about self-assertion, competition, and striving for what we most want. So, there's something about the pursuit, cultivation, development, and courageous expression of the self and how we actively pursue that self-expression in the world. Being an Eclipse, I don't recommend working with it, but the themes likely to come up around this time are related to a strong rebirth in how we take action and what we take action toward.

This New Moon is sitting right with Chiron, which is a minor planet representing the wounded healer. It's kind of like the wound in the hand that won't ever heal that you always have to kind of be tending to. So, as we explore our own sense of action, assertion, self-expression, and identity, there's also an activation of deep wounds that we consistently have to tend to and heal. It's about revitalization or healing, triggering an old wound for a new sense of healing to come in. So, I recommend taking a look at your chart to see where Aries is and what area of life that house represents for you. Notice what old wounds or patterns are being brought to the surface around this time that you're ready to rewrite a new story for.

Mars, the ruling planet of Aries, is right next to Saturn in Pisces, offering an opportunity to take action towards things we want to heal or towards parts of ourselves that need care and healing. It's about laying down solid structures and plans to create something lasting. So, the energy is asking what you want to heal and what old scar or wound within you is ready for action to support and cultivate. Our wounds and scars are our deepest reserves of wealth and information. When we're talking about healing these parts of ourselves, there's also an opportunity to express the wisdom that comes from our wounds.

Mercury is also in Aries, currently retrograde, asking us to review and revisit themes we've been grappling with and learn to communicate them in new ways. So, this lunation is about tying together self-expression, not necessarily through words alone, but also through creativity, artistry, and movement.

Rather than working with this lunation, I recommend observing what is being asked from within for you to tend to. Commit to tending to those tender spaces within yourself for long-term healing. If you have any planets at 19° of Aries or other cardinal signs, or 19° of the other fire signs, you might feel this energy the most.

This eclipse series of Aries over three years offers an unfolding story. Not everything needs to be wrapped up right now, but it's an opportunity to observe, notice, and perhaps confront where you're feeling overheated or burnt out, and apply that activating energy over a longer-term trajectory for healing.

After all that intensity, let's dive into the Full Moon happening on April 23rd at 4° of Scorpio. This one's quite interesting, you guys. Occurring just days after Venus conjuncts Chiron, it delves into deep matters of the heart, potentially activating old wounds or facilitating deep healing within. Additionally, it comes shortly after a Jupiter-Uranus conjunction, which may suggest significant disruptions and surprises. Adding to the mix, the Sun squares Pluto, hinting at power struggles and conflicts between ego and authority.

With Mars still in Pisces, the energy feels somewhat chaotic, with the ruling planet of this lunation—Mars—partnered with Neptune, leading to a blend of restlessness, anger, confusion, and dreaminess. It's like putting a warrior in a bar. They have a couple drinks with a sword in hand—angry, off balance, and slightly confused. Mercury is also retrograde until the 25th which adds to the potential for crossed wires and heightened emotions.

Scorpio's intense nature amplifies these dynamics, making things even more obsessive and stubborn. At its best, it's very regenerative and transformative sign, so there is the potential for everything that's kind of coming up to the surface around this Full Moon, everything that's bubbling up to bubble up for a reason, in order to be cleared and in order to be transformed. That's my hope for this Full Moon, for all of us. Even if it's messy, even if it's disruptive, even if everything gets shaken up and there's lots of tears or miscommunications, that it all ends up coming to the surface so that it can be cleared and reorganized in a way that does make sense.  

A Full Moon is about expressing something, bringing something to fullness and being fully seen. So, if there's anything that's been hiding in the shadows, anything that's been under the surface, especially you know, since the last New Moon in Scorpio six months ago or the last Full Moon a year ago, it might be ready to really come to the surface and be expressed and be shared.  

It's not always comfortable. Full Moons already have an electric energy about them, so it can feel really restless. But there is rest that comes after it. There is a decrease of energy that comes after. There is a rebirth that also comes after it. So we can expect this time of the month to likely be messy, likely be confusing but also potentially be really healing after that confusion is expressed, reorganized, and clarified.

Reflection questions for this lunation include:

1. What emotions are you deeply experiencing or what emotions are bubbling to the surface right now and why? What is under the surface that feels like it needs your attention? If there is anything that feels stuck, how can you move it through you, either through expression, through movement, through creativity, through work, through meditation, or whatever it is that you need so that it can be transformed and alchemized?

2. What feels messy and confusing right now? How can you kind of allow yourself to be with the mess? What do you need in those moments of messiness when the solutions don't seem to be working? How can you be with the mess? Be with the confusion? And just tend to your nervous system. Take care of yourself.  

3. What's coming to a head with regards to your needs, your health, your sense of power? Is there anything that's challenging your sense of identity and what is ready to be released? Especially over the last six months and last year.  

Pay special attention to how this lunation affects your sense of power, identity, and needs.

If you have planets at 4° of Scorpio or other fixed signs (Aquarius, Taurus, Leo) or other water signs (Cancer, Pisces), you might feel the Full Moon's impact more strongly. Remember to breathe and find healthy outlets for excess energy.

Lastly, check out our New Moon workshop on the website for a deeper dive into the lunar energies and their implications for your chart. This workshop is by donation, and your donations go directly to a different charity every month. So, you will also be supporting a good cause.  

Thank you for joining us on this supercharged journey through the month of April. May this month bring a really healing and regenerative energy as we navigate the depths of our emotions and step into our courage. Stay tuned for more, and until next time, take care.