A glimpse of behind the scenes with me!
This is me in consultation at a Mind, Body & Spirit Fair a couple of years ago. But a lot went on behind the scenes to get me to that particular seat, opposite a client, discussing her birth chart and projected planetary transits.
I am a Leo Sun. I never felt like a Leo Lion was supposed to be. No roaring for me and you would usually find me in a corner of the playground hoping break time would be over quickly and that I wouldn’t have to speak to anyone. I decided at quite a young age that astrology was not for me. I just was not a Leo lion! And then, a lot of years later, I learnt how to read the symbolism of tarot and decided to give astrology a chance. What a life changing decision. My chart was duly drawn up and read for me by a leading (at the time) astrologer. Well …
Light bulb moment! So much suddenly made sense. My Leo Sun is in a particular position in the sky inspiring me to help others shine. And as to all of my other planets – it was as if someone had suddenly given me a manual to understand me!
And, ever since then, my respect for astrology has grown along with reading, writing and experiencing it!
Back to our behind the scenes glimpse and these are a few of the ‘myths’ I hear …
“But surely It’s all on computer …”
I learnt astrology before computer programs were the norm. And there are still courses out there that teach astrology using paper, pens, tables of houses and ephemeris. Drawing up a chart is an amazing thing to do and, even though I use a computer for the basic birth chart calculations now, I find so many more insights when I sit and draw it by hand. So I will often copy a chart from my screen and draw the planets, stars, asteroids and planetary movements. It becomes a work of art, my craft, and truly fitting for the honour of interpreting a chart for someone.
The best advice I give to anyone who really wants to understand astrology (a life long process I can tell you!) is to watch it unfold. After initially learning I very quickly began reading charts 1-1, at camps and at festivals all over the country. I have given workshops and talks over the years and added in learning from talking to people. Curiosity is probably one of the best traits to have as an astrologer!
A computer will, very quickly, give you a chart and even offer generic interpretations.
It is up to the astrologer however to
a) check a chart is correct
b) look at it as a whole and not just individual planets etc
c) offer interpretations
d) apply planetary transits from the past to begin to make sense for the now and future trends.
“I had my chart done years ago – no need to get it done again”
The stars, planets, our earth and the Universe are constantly moving around and changing their patterns. And so a unique pattern of the stars in the sky is available for every birth. It may be that you wish to know more about the birth of yourself, the start of a business, a purchase you are about to make or the launch of a book or course. All of those ‘births’ will have a chart available for the moment. And that natal chart will remain the same. It is the blue-print and map of all potentials and possibilities.
However the stars move constantly and send out ripples of energy towards us here on planet earth. And we can choose whether to be in flow with those energies … or not!
Your/the birth chart remains the same. But the planetary energies and influences change giving more opportunities for growth and … well … choices!
And, as if looking at planetary transits (the patterns made) isn’t a big enough deal … We can learn so much about ourselves by seeing what happened during a previous and similar pattern made and so be prepared for what is to come.
“Can you tell my future”
Astrology is not predictive for detail and no astrologer will be able to offer a fortune telling service! What we are able to do is to show the planetary movements ahead and give an idea for general trends or great uses for the energy. As an example. Ben asks when he will meet the love of his life. Now he obviously (!) is asking about romantic relationship love and when that will appear. We may well be able to see a beautiful Venus & Moon aspect lingering in his birth chart relationship area and perhaps even a strong Uranian new beginning highlighted. However there may also be some other aspects which lead us to offer that Ben may well meet someone or – and this is the crucial part – make changes which lead him towards someone or something truly great.
Planetary energy is there for us to make the best possible choices and decisions as we walk on this planet of ours. And that is where astrology opens so many doors for us.
“So how do you do it?”
Behind the scenes and my ‘tools of trade’ are:
almost 30 years of reading charts, studying, giving talks and workshops, working professionally AND of course using astrology daily for myself!
my own daily practices of watching the stars unfold their amazing stories;
100 year + 50 year + individual yearly ephemeris (see photo above);
pens and pencils for writing my notes down and re-creating the charts;
an excellent computer program called Time Passages from astrograph.com which has basic through to professional packages and has brilliant customer service.
I hope this has helped you and please do contact me with any questions you may have.
As always, with love, from Alison x
