Astrologically, March is part party, part tooth extraction and part obsession. How does that strike you…great? Terrible? Tolerable? That's exactly the point: March 2008 is going to be all over the place and have you coming and going. Between carefree moments will come times of beleaguered obligation, all mixed in with knowing that much needs to be done and yes, that you can get it done, IF….

Hold it! I'll explain that "if" later.

Meanwhile, March begins with the "personal planets" arrayed as follows: Sun in Pisces, Venus and Mercury running side-by-side through Aquarius, and Mars finishing its transit of Gemini before moving into Cancer on March 4.

Given this, March 1 through March 3 is full of variables, and the important thing is to take care of business without leaving out vital details. It's easy to move too fast, so try to keep your purpose and goal in mind; that'll help keep you on track and cut down on the errors. But don't be surprised if you have moments of frustration. Or if everything doesn't go your way. The process is the focus now and the goal is reached through understanding the nuances of the moment or involvement.

Also to be considered: did you make a few decisions during the last half of February? If so, get those ideas into motion as March begins, as once the 4th rolls around, life reverts from "optional" into a testier, maybe stickier "required" mode as Mars moves from Gemini into Cancer.

Thinking back to November and December of 2007, you may realize that some events reflect what happened back then. You may even be dealing with repercussions (or results) of what you did—or didn't do—at that time. Mars in Cancer often brings useful, if cumbersome opportunities, along with a boatload of emotional challenges and sometimes physical/financial annoyances or limitations. Why? So we'll focus on what we can do instead of what we like doing. Mars in Cancer is one of life's ways of denying success or manifesting as loss as a means to force us into motivational gear, commit to new courses of action and work towards accomplishment and a better long-term standard of life. Often the familiar and comfy must be let go of in order to ultimately get where we need to go, but the greater goals are worth it, providing we can trust that the universe never asks us to let go of something (or someone) without good reason. Sometimes the actual test is all about whether you can trust that the letting go is good for all parties.

Two key ideas here are sensible and productive—and if you're a rebel who cringes at the word 'sensible," not to worry—we aren't talking about anything which necessarily bores you to tears, we mean sensible in terms of a decision to be clear about who you are, as opposed to what you might prefer to (idealistically, even pessimistically) think of yourself. Apart from your reluctance to undertake the task, such decisions also may not be glamorous. Or popular. They may not even fit your personal or familial history. And yes, they will require lots of effort and some degree of emotional discomfort. Just reaching these realizations will put you through changes, but the chance for real maturation and personal achievement is invaluable.

And no, age has nothing to do with it, which for some may just be the point. As for "productive," we're talking about true productivity—not busy work and not just making do. Implied here is some sort of mental, emotional, financial, physical or relational “cleaning house.”

These past months of Mars looping through Gemini and Cancer (dating back to October 2007) have been about bringing you to vital realizations about who you really are and what you need to do in order to not undermine yourself. It hasn't all been pleasant, but if we believe in life's process, it has been necessary. From here, dreams await those willing to undertake the changes and the journey. Those who initiate activity and keep at it will know they're on the right track by January 2009 and have a new basis for operation secured by late August or September 2009. Those who avoid or evade responsibility or deny the need for a greater level of honesty with themselves about their own life will face some sort of hard core struggle next January, resolution of which will take most of the 2009 calendar year.

All of this is either modified or underscored (depending on your personal chart) as a New Moon at 17 Pisces occurs on March 7, a figure colored by symbolic change (Uranus) and asteroid Niobe's warning to "be neither proud nor haughty." According to myth, Niobe learned empathy only through pain, realizing too late that good fortune is neither a birthright nor necessarily permanent. Combined with Uranus, this suggests situations which alter the status quo, leading either to positives which require humility or negatives which require acceptance, not overreaction. How you react is one part of the moment, with tackling the "need" with dedication—even if you don't know where you're going. It's tempting to find excuses for goofing off or not taking the harder road, and there is a definite sense of "interactive confusion" here, so be careful about what you know versus what others say.

Another form of this dynamic involves seeing the other guy's flaws, which is easy. Admitting to your own? Not so much fun. But if you can grasp that the commonalty is that all people have flaws, you'll be ahead of the game. Remember: we attract people and situations into our lives in order to explore the Self—both our strengths and weaknesses. Easier said than done? Sure. True all the same? Entirely.

Between the March 7 New Moon and March 21 Full Moon, energetics shift: Venus moves into Pisces on March 12 and Mercury follows into Pisces on March 14. This echo of the Pisces New Moon speaks to "getting by giving" at a level which isn't personal, so think "human nature" and "universal contribution" instead of in strictly cause/effect terms.

Another message from this double Piscean influence asks that we keep one eye on the clock and calendar: Mercury in Pisces tends to indicate times when we're well intended but not necessarily precise or timely. Yet such delays can spell our downfall. Also, because Mars is in Cancer, get the facts—don't go off half-cocked. This is a sensitive time, one which can provoke arguments or invite understanding, depending on how much ego you put into the mix, a difference which can often be summed up as need versus want. Be careful not to get these two confused.

The difficulty here—and yes, there is a difficulty here—is made plain as the Full Moon of March 21 occurs at 1 Libra. Exactly conjunct super-massive Black Hole M87, this is a powerful signal about moving out into the world or releasing something to the world. Getting beyond your "comfort zone" is essential, lest you get swallowed up by your desire never to have to deal with the insecurity of risk. Life is beckoning. Life wants you to have more. There's a whole half a zodiac beyond M87, but accessing that bigger better life requires escaping our own fixations. It's easy to feel alienated in the moment, yet that's not what this Full Moon is actually about. Its message is one of essential creative transformation, a transformation which offers you the chance to be more, do more and have more influence in your world.

Occurring just over 24 hours after the Aries ingress (the Sun having entered Aries either late on the 19th or early on the 20th depending on where you are) this Full Moon occurs in the company of asteroids Isis, Industria, Photographica and Requiem—and just for the record, "Requiem" doesn't mean "mourn," it means "calm." Taken together, this becomes a sign that a time for putting things together has passed; through letting go, one becomes able to move into a new phase of being. As you move on, the promise is that life will afford a period of calm in which to pursue the new course—providing you actually pursue it.

If you don't, you will be sucked back into a turmoil of limitation.

So the good news is this: even if much of March feels challenging, this is a moment which offers each of us a chance to "start anew" if we are only willing to let go of the known, the comfortable, the emotionally swaddling in favor of tapping into unused or underutilized potential. The New and Full Moon combination asks that we focus less on money, emotional grievances or longings, less on family history or heritage…that we release all such preconceptions in favor of accepting our individual potential—and the responsibility to live up to our inherent promise. We are each created for a purpose in this world, with that purpose being offset by temptations it's incredibly easy to fall prey to.

Giving in to those temptations—whatever they may be—leads to feelings of ennui, fear, lack of fulfilling self esteem. Money may be part of it, but money is never an end in and of itself, as is plainly seen in the fabled stories of rich if miserable people. Our "job" is to be who we are without hesitation, consciously asserting our freedom to be honest with self and others, for the promise of Pisces is that being human is all about our commonalties, and how living in one's differences, whether because of circumstance, physicality or heritage, is what creates loneliness, fear, criticism, isolation and defeat. If we would be rich beyond our own imaginings, we must find a way to grow beyond our limitations, turning zodiacal lemons into life's proverbial lemonade.

Yes, life can be sweet, so go out there: live in the knowledge of your validity.

Boots Hart, CAP

  © Copyright 2000-2008 Boots Hart, Daykeeper Journal. All Rights Reserved.