The Ending is the Beginning
January's New Moon in Capricorn anchors our ability to self-actualize
Happy New Year! The threshold has been crossed, one year over to the next. Just like that. But here’s the trick, there’s no need to feel like you must have it all worked out the moment the calendar changes over. It a turning of the page. As an Astrologer, I go by the seasons. The Astrological calendar begins in Aries, mid-March. The ending of one year is the beginning of another, and we’re collectively on this ride together.
Did you release what you didn’t want to bring with you from 2023 yet? If not, do it immediately! Mercury went direct on January 3rd and the next two weeks are the most fertile time to plant seeds for the New Year. Especially for this New Moon that went exact yesterday in Capricorn, January 11! The New Moon phase lasts for 2 days, so even though the Moon is now in Aquarius as I type this sentence, the flavor and vibe of this New Moon is Capricorn. Aquarius is the garnish, if you will. It’s Capricorn season right now and all New Moons are the same sign as the Sun sign of the moment. Double Capricorn packs power!
Note to readers: It’s a good thing the New Moon lasts a couple of days because I have already slipped up in my ode to Capricorn excellence by not getting this newsletter out yesterday afternoon, at the latest. The original deadline was for the 10th, haha, and I’ve been writing on this all week! Things got busy before I could proof yesterday and before you know it, the next day arrived. One of my goals is to publish earlier instead of chasing my own deadlines. But, I digress…
While the Northern Hemisphere is in Winter watching our days steadily get longer (the birth of the light), we can have faith in the coming Spring and warmth. We can revel in this moment of pause as we prepare for the next seasonal cycle.
The ground may be hard and cold, but the seeds are ready to be planted. These are hearty seeds, seeds of Capricorn, double Capricorn in fact. As an Astrologer, I have really learned how to appreciate every Sign, and Cap was one of those that I had a thorn in my side about…too rigid, I thought, too focused on the final result instead of the journey. I’m a Sagittarius after all, double Sag in fact!
But the beauty, the gift of Capricorn (and we all get to capitalize and benefit from the gifts of every Sign during their season) is their resolve, their follow-through and commitment to finishing what they start, of mastering something, of excellence, accomplishment and doing it efficiently. The part I don’t always align with is the more masculine ambition of success for the sake of success — no need to take it to extremes and workaholic ourselves into the sick bed. Instead, harness the energy of the never-say-die attitude of Capricorn. It is a dual being, like Sagittarius is half human/half horse, Capricorn is half goat/half fish — a land capable mermaid if you will. This amazing goat can climb to the top of the highest mountain and swim to the depths of the deepest sea. Pretty amazing abilities.
Capture that for yourself this Capricorn season, especially right now upon this New Moon cycle. Where can you add more discipline, efficiency, commitment and excellence in your life? What areas of your daily life need more attention and tweaking? It’s the daily routine and the daily commitment toward your goals and dreams that get you there — not necessarily huge leaps. It takes the sure-footed mountain goat time to get to the precipice but he won’t fall. He paces and takes his time, making adjustments along the way that allow him to finally make it to that vantage point very few living beings get to experience!
What have you been working toward? What is something you need to complete? What is something you need to start? To continue and increase? These are the questions to ask during this New Moon. Even if you’ve already set New Year’s intentions, this is the power moment when seeds can take hold and begin to germinate. Until now they’ve been sitting in the frozen ground waiting for Mercury to go direct (January 3) and this momentous New Moon in Capricorn, which has the power to anchor your strong intentions.
How are you in relationship to yourself? To others? Are you putting your dreams and goals first or getting distracted by everyday life and dramas? Are you hoping that a fresh New Year will provide a fresh start toward creating the life you want?
Now is the time, this New Moon, this Capricorn season, to put those Big Picture plans into focus and determine the overarching goals you want to set. You can get into the details after you first solidify WHAT you are hoping to accomplish and WHY that is a priority in your life. Once that’s established you can ruminate on the how and the when. Self-discussion is vital. It is in the times that we communicate honestly with ourselves that we can detect our own b.s. before it goes off the rails. We can course correct in real time! After all you can’t just have the idea alone. You have to craft a plan in order to manifest it, in order to actualize what you want. One step at a time.
Capricorn asks you to think of how you spend your time, each day, and put effort toward cultivating more discipline bit by bit (a concerted effort for this Sagittarius). The idea is to maybe do a little less of the time-sucking yet pleasurable things and a little more of the productive, energizing, make-yourself-proud-of-yourself things. As you find a better balance there, it won’t take long until you derive more pleasure from following through than avoidance. I say it just as much for me as for you!
Like a seed planted upon a snowflake, the desire, your wish, is carried into the ether and granted upon your journey. As you embark on this next 28-day Lunar Cycle, continue to pull out the details of your plan. Determine how you’ll accomplish the goals you are setting right now, upon this New Moon cycle (which hit exact at 6:57 a.m. ET) and during this weekend — January 12-14. A New Moon cycle lasts 2ish days. Anytime in that 2 days is the most fertile and powerful time for setting intentions, casting wishes, planting seeds of your goals, dreams and ambitions.
Fret not if you miss this New Moon window exactly, the Balsamic Phase is the germinating soup with which your seeds can receive nourishment and fuel. The next few days are still strong to set intentions and follow the ritual work I set out below.
If you haven’t yet, take some time to reflect on your main theme from 2023. Then think on what you want your 2024 main theme to be. Give it words. What word or words do you want to carry as affirmations? Make definitive statements.
It’s not about completely erasing 2023, but assimilating the lessons learned and wisdom gained while releasing what didn’t work, old habits that held you back, baggage. What are the kernels of truth and wisdom that shaped a new mindset in you last year and what weeds took root and grew?
You are also invited to cast your wishes and plant your seeds for the world, the Collective, to all humankind — your highest hopes, wishes and dreams for humanity on this planet. But remember, the only way for vast change is with change at the individual level. My wish for humanity is more kindness, compassion and relating to one another as fellow humans — looking at each other through the eyes of a child.
In that, I envision one person at a time choosing kindness over anger or dismissal of another human. For every, one person who makes a new choice to avoid giving into their lower selves, we all benefit and receive more Light.
Now is the time to prune that garden and make it fresh for the year ahead! Use the lessons learned as fertilizer for this year’s dreams — from the heartaches and the grief, as well as the happy moments, all of it. Don’t bring the yucky stuff — insecurities, doubt, fear, hopelessness — ask the Universe | Source | God | the Collective | your Higher Self — to allow you the space to start anew, with hope in your heart and a willingness to release doubt. Open up to the unified field of quantum possibility. You get to decide who you are and how you get there. You get to decide if you want to stay the same or make adjustments. They don’t have to be big, huge leaps but small things that lead to an overall positive evolution for your personal journey while you’re here, manifested in a body, on this beautiful planet Earth.
Start big, think about the macro and state your objectives. Then work on plans, the micro details, and adjust as you go along in the coming days/weeks. Winter, increased Sunlight, New Moon, powerful stuff right here. Leading us ultimately to Spring, rebirth, renewal and “go” time for the intentions we set right now.
As the light of the Sun continues to grow, think of what you are creating for 2024, what you want to bring into the light, to grow, to be birthed, to manifest into reality. It all begins with an idea that comes from a spark of desire. From idea to action there are two crucial steps that must be taken for an idea to be fully actualized: thinking and planning. Capricorn has this part down pat!
This New Moon highlights our ability to balance what we want with how we are going to get there. Where can you use more thinking and planning, and less “just go for it” or “it’ll work itself out.” Be prepared, make sure you’re ready to go when your name is called. What have you been working on, maybe for a long time now, to put out in the world? You don’t have to over plan things to death, but you also want to put true effort into your vision. The Universe cannot support your vision without proper instructions.
If you look on your natal chart and see what house this Capricorn New Moon lands on, that is the area most affected by this New Moon and the seat of power for your goals and intentions for 2024. If you haven’t looked that up before, you will need your birth time. I use astro.com and they have free charts, choose natal chart w/ transits. If you want to know even more, book me for a reading and I’ll explain it!
For me, Capricorn hits the 1st and 2nd houses but this Moon hit exact (the moment the Moon became conjunct the Sun, which is what a New Moon is) at 20-degrees Capricorn, so that is my 2nd house. The 2nd House covers material possessions, finances, value, worth, self-worth, spirituality, sensuality - the five senses. It’s ruled by Taurus. My intentions will include areas that hit this house and I know that my seeds planted this year will be the strongest in these areas.
It happens to align beautifully with my 2024 intentions, which have been sort of perma-intentions for a while now. It’s an area for which I have to learn lessons and cultivate more of the Earth Element in my life. This New Moon is a like a super-charged mega seed of Make It Happen. Each day that I do the next thing toward my goals, I am making it happen. No more chastising, just honest self reflection and course correction when needed. It’s an unending process, but the time between adjustments can get much longer the more you work at bettering yourself.
Like the steady goat, it doesn’t rush but it also doesn’t waste time in starting, it sees the goal ahead and keeps its head down as it carefully steps across the jagged surface, taking breaks when needed but never considering going back. Once it starts, it goes until it makes it — use this metaphor. It’s not about working yourself into exhaustion. It’s not about hustle culture, about productivity for the sake of productivity and profit where the ends always justify the means — no, not that. What Capricorn is really about is keeping an eye on the prize while fastidiously planning and adjusting along the way — the most efficient way to reach your state of excellence.
New Moon in Capricorn — New Year Ritual
This year I have allowed my intentions from the last year or two, that have been on a similar track toward a bigger goal, to solidify my commitment to said goals. Of course I know all the things I want to do, I want to be able to do, but how to put that into a care package for the Universe, for Great Spirit, God, Source? How do you give the Universe, the great “I Am,” the directions for this year’s happenings and outcomes? With some prayer and ritual. Take it seriously, what you focus on expands and allowing key moments like these New Moons pass by without a clear directive is a wasteful.
So let’s make the most of the first New Moon of 2024, the true pivot moment for your intentions of what you want to manifest in 2024. Start with your big picture for this year, write ambitious but tangible goals. With Capricorn’s excellence and get-the-job-done attitude and Aquarius’ all-things-are-possible spirit, you want to make sure you are going all in, not holding back. What do you want to happen this year? What things can happen THIS year and what things are you building for the future?
Throughout this year, follow the Moon. Take life one month at a time, one Lunar Cycle at a time. The Moon is our guide through the individuality of our experience. Use this powerful, fertile time to direct and harness the energy it offers for possibility, creativity and receptivity.
Exercise
Write out your goals/intentions/wishes/dreams for 2024 and why you want them on a piece of paper that you can burn - thinner is better
Read them back and sit with them, meditate if you’d like and picture these things coming true in your life
Light a ritual candle or tea light with this paper in your hand and think of how you are planting these thoughts in the psyche of the Universe upon lighting the candle
Ritual
Find a safe vessel (glass or metal) to burn your paper to keep it contained, and a lid to cover, if needed
When you are ready, light your paper with the ritual candle you lit (if possible, if not, just light it with a lighter) and let it burn in the safe vessel
Watch it burn all the way out
Take the ashes and spread them around the outside of your property
Affirmation
Upon this New Moon, I plant the seeds that I wish to see grow to fruition over the course of 2024. I set the intentions to advance my wishes and dreams, to commit to creating the reality I want and using my inner will everyday to move a little bit closer to making my dreams come true — both the big and the small.
Addition if you so wish: I call upon the forces of inner will to help humanity reach a positive evolution in our Collective. I wish for people to choose connection over separation. I bless all souls and visualize an end to suffering everywhere in the world.
Happy New Moon everyone!
May 2024 bring you immense gifts to grow your Soul!
Stay tuned for additional content coming from my Woman Sees World Substack in 2024! Follow me on the socials — @holliseesyou @womanseesworld
As always, feel free to comment or leave feedback.
Images - Pixabay
Transcendence - Gerd Altman
Goat on mountain - Very Fasching
Frozen bubble - Myriams-Fotos
Sunlight through winter trees - 12019
Capricorn image - Dorothe + Darkmoon_Art