This December 31st we have an extremely special kind of full moon. Not only is it a lunar eclipse, but it’s also a blue moon! A blue moon is a second full moon inside a calendar month. It only happens in months that are long and that begin with a full moon, allowing room for another full moon 29 days later to still be in the same month, thus the phrase “once in a blue moon.” Full moons are times of heightened emotion to begin with, but when you add the increased intensity of the eclipse, the rarity of the blue moon and the fact that it’s New Year’s Eve for cultures using the Gregorian calendar, the day of December 31st is outrageously special.
This lunar eclipse brings strong emotions and nostalgia to pressure as the sensitive Moon in Cancer is pitted against the tough-minded Sun in Capricorn. Saturn and Pluto act as Shadow Agents, bringing in themes of integrity and intensity.
Details About This Eclipse
Date: December 31, 2009
Time of eclipse: 11:13 AM PST
Type: partial (weak in intensity)
Visible in: People in Asia, Australasia, Europe and Africa will see this small sliver of an eclipse.
At: 10 degrees Cancer
Shadow Agents: Pluto in Capricorn, Saturn in Libra
Does It Affect You Personally?
If your birthday is on any of the following dates, you most likely experienced this eclipse:
December 26-January 5
March 25-April 5
June 27-July 7
September 28-October 8
Remember, not every eclipse touches everyone, but when it does, it’s usually noticeable. A lunar eclipse is likely to bring up strong emotions. The following script is just one possible way it could go.
You hear a knock at the door. You answer it. Saturn is there: he’s a serious-looking older man in a dark business suit, wearing a power tie. Next to him is Pluto, the Alchemist, in a long black robe spattered with various chemicals. Pluto is carrying a large pot. Something seems odd about that pot, but before you can argue, both of them sweep past you and head for . . . your kitchen??
You: wha?
Saturn: Sit down. Shut up. Do as you’re told.
You: But this is MY house!
Pluto: You’re not in charge here.
Saturn pushes you into a chair and actually ties you to it while Pluto gets busy at the stove. Once Saturn has finished restraining you, you can begin to see what Pluto is doing. He’s put the giant, black, cast-iron pot onto the stove, added a lot of some strange-smelling liquid and is turning the heat up. Way up. You notice it’s not so much a pot as it is a cauldron.
You: You’re not going to hurt me, are you guys? What did I do wrong?
Saturn: Nothing. This is just how we roll.
The pot is now boiling. Pluto begins to walk around the house and grab particular items to put into the pot.
You: Hey, that’s my favorite shirt! I aced a job interview in that shirt!
Pluto: Does it have sentimental value? In it goes!
You: Oh no, not that photograph—that’s the only memory I have of her! Damnit, will you fiends stop?
Saturn: Who are you really? Have you thought about it? Where’s your integrity?
You: I don’t know what you mean. You guys are just torturing me. What gives you the right?
Saturn: You are the amalgam of all things that have ever happened to you PLUS the essential ingredient. The thing that makes you different from every other human being alive.
You: What’s that?
Saturn: What you did with what happened to you. That one single driver inside you that decided what to do with all the things that happened. Did you achieve or fail? Did you love or hate? Were you a whiner or were you heroic? That moment of decision—how you act under pressure—is the crucial ingredient.
Saturn reaches into your chest and grabs your heart, pulling it out. You have no idea why you’re still alive as he tosses it into the pot. Pluto claps on the lid and seals it tightly. Belatedly you realize it’s not an ordinary pot—it’s a pressure cooker. As Pluto turns up the heat under the pot, the pressure increases until you think your heart will explode. All the feelings, sensations and experiences you’ve ever had are suddenly compressed together with enormous force. You realize there are few moments in which you made the heroic choice under pressure. You want to die but find yourself alive anyway, and open your eyes.
Saturn: You must change your life.
Pluto: Got it?
You: unh.
They pack up the pot and go.
