Laurie Baum  – Happy  Winter  Solstice!  Merry  Christmas  and Happy Hanukkah,  and may you be blessed with love,  happiness, health,  and  prosperity in the New Year of 2018!

The Winter Solstice arrives on Thursday, December 21, 2017. As the days begin to grow longer after the Winter Solstice, the changing angle of the sun will energize your positive thoughts, intentions, and prayers.

This new season is a favorable time to express greater love—to the people around you and to yourself. Your thoughts and prayers have extra power at this time to contribute to peace and harmony around the globe, with the people you are close to, and most importantly, within yourself. Spend extra time in meditation and prayer at this time of year to manifest your positive goals and aspirations.

As I write this 2018 Celestial Forecast, I am also thinking of all of those who have suffered during the last year,  from terrorism, wars, senseless mass shootings, climate-related disasters, wildfires, hurricanes, floods, and earthquakes. And now, just a handful of miles from my home in California, wildfires are burning, normally unheard of in December.

They are blazing through thousands of acres of residential neighborhoods and farmlands. As waves of hazy smoke waft by my window and I contemplate what I will take if we have to evacuate, I feel grateful to see smoke rather than fire. But the circumstances remind me that we are clearly living in a fragile time. We are witnessing the breakdown and demise of many systems that we thought we could depend upon. And the replacement parts have yet to arrive.

Similarly, we are seeing retrogressive policies implemented by our government, leaving many feeling insecure about their futures—whether it be citizenship, health care, jobs, or the mortgage deduction for their home.

Like an archer who must pull his or her bow backward in order for the arrow to go most powerfully, directly, and swiftly forward, our society, is being pulled back to a less progressive time that many imagined had been long forsaken.

Why? Planetary patterns presently portend a reversal of revolutionary ideas and open-mindedness that swept society 50+ years ago, in the 1960s. It may appear that we are going back to the 1950s as some espouse political attitudes that reflect the insularity, fearfulness, conservatism, and xenophobia (fear of foreigners) that characterized mid-20th-century thinking.

We are reaching a point of near-maximum polarity, where the pendulum is swinging just about as far off center as it can go. This state of tension is unsustainable. The pendulum is about to swing the other way—in our continued upward climb toward higher consciousness. When the pendulum swings back to the opposite polarity in the next decade, we will have benefited from this process of integrating opposites. We will be stronger and at a much higher level than when this transitional process started. As a society, we will have reached a consensus that a vast majority will be happy to unite around.

Think back to the darkness that was expressed during World War II, and then to the ensuing period of prosperity and calm that followed. We too will have a similar upsurge in positivity when the current storm clouds pass. Astrologically speaking, we clearly are in a period of exposing darkness, dishonesty, transgressions, and malfeasance. All will eventually be called out for their impropriety. This cleansing process will take until the early 2020s.

A higher level of justice (meted out by the system and by karmic justice) will prevail under the influence of a potent Jupiter-Saturn conjunction in Aquarius on the Winter Solstice of 2020—December 21, 2020. Subsequently, the transition of powerful Pluto into Aquarius in 2023-2024 will help to  remold society into a more united global village where all will have equal access to information and resources and a voice in the outcome of decisions that affect us all.

One person dominating others will not be an option. The collaborative technologies that have already become available will proliferate and distribute greater authority and decision-making power to more people in smaller communities. These communities will play a key role in advancing toward greater synthesis and fusion.

Greater Light/Greater Darkness

For those who are disconcerted by the current level of negative thinking and acting in the world, please remember that the greater the light of illumination and enlightenment that is about to come, the greater the shadow that is cast. We are now living in the shadow of the incoming light. As we reach the point of near-maximum polarity, attitudes and actions are reaching an extreme.

According to the metaphysical law of opposites, this polarity is a necessary step before we can reverse course and return to a central point of unity and equilibrium. The cumulative energy of our collective positive thoughts, prayers, and actions will inevitably tip the balance back in favor of goodness and kindness across the globe, healing the polarities between people. Our positive thoughts, prayers, and actions are the most potent force for preparing the way for the greater expression of positive cosmic energy and light that surrounds us always!

Benign Planetary Alignments in 2018

The Chinese New Year of the Earth Dog arrives on February 16, 2018. The energy of the earth dog is friendly, hard-working, responsible, yet complacent at times. Similarly, the planetary alignments of 2018 will feel more tame, placid, and less charged than tumultuous celestial alignments that have shaken the status quo since 2012. Yet, we also will see that the empty energetic space created in 2018, when we would normally feel complacent, will be filled by experimentation with and integration of the impactful planetary alignments that occurred between 2012 and 2017. These planetary alignments have introduced dramatic new ways of thinking and living that are now subtly, and not so subtly, weaving themselves into our daily lives.

While the overall planetary activity of 2018 is relatively less sweeping and all-encompassing than the planetary activity of the past 5 years, there will be some potentially volatile interludes in 2018. They will occur under the influence of solar and lunar eclipses from late January to mid-February, and mid-July to mid-August, and under the movements of Mars, which squares unpredictable and innovative Uranus in mid-May, and triggers eclipse points during the summer, from late June to late August, and in October and November. Fall-out from these celestial transits may take some time for us to collectively integrate. But 2018 will feel more like aftershocks rather than the initial quake.

Polarity and Extremes Lead to Unification

So, while we will have a chance to catch our collective breath before embarking upon more challenges and changes in 2019 and 2020, we also will need to assimilate the greater polarization of ideas, extremes of action, and reversals of direction caused by the energies that have already been set in motion. Once all diversities have been recognized and reconciled, we will then be free to re-build a more unified, coherent society—in the early-to-mid-2020’s.

Forgoing Winning and Domination for Synthesis and Balance

What will come next will not be one side “winning” over the other, or one ideology dominating the other. We are moving toward a point of greater synthesis and balance. The next step involves bringing love rather than rancor to the table. There are really no “rights” and “wrongs” or “conservatives” or “liberals” from this higher perspective of love.

Divisiveness Leads to Unification

The divisiveness we are witnessing is a necessary  pre-cursor to expanding our awareness to see the positive in all, even if it seems impossible from our current vantage point. We are in a period of tremendous healing of what has been hidden in the shadows, not only in our lifetimes, but for many decades, even centuries. With greater acceptance of all, we will feel the collective heart opening and the love will begin to flow again.

Unification of Opposing Positive and Negative Poles Creates Strength and Energy/Paradox Leads to Logic

We already are seeing many paradoxes in which situations that appear headed in one direction actually produce results opposite from the ones intended or anticipated. This phenomenon is part of opening our awareness to the idea that we live in a world of duality (light and shadow). Our work is to unify the opposites into one greater whole instead of taking the inferior route of polarizing or dividing.

A lot of past karma is now being worked out. But we are also witnessing the law of physics that states that all opposites are eventually attracted to unite together to produce greater energy—similar to a definition of love—the union of opposites to create greater balance, harmony, and life energy.

Electricity itself is produced by the charge generated by the union of opposite positive and negative poles (the earth itself has two opposing magnetic poles). The greater the electrical charge (union of opposites), the greater the magnetism that is generated. Electricity and magnetism (which produce electro-magnetism) are even said to be opposite forces that work in tandem. Electricity represents male energy and magnetism reflects female energy. They work together to produce greater energy together than they can on their own.

When there is less union of opposites, as is now the case, less balance, harmony, and energy are generated. When the energy level drops to a low-enough point, people will feel no alternative but to unite with the opposite force, for their survival, if for no other altruistic reason.

All polarities eventually become so extreme that they are driven to unite with their opposite. We will see political parties reaching so far to extremes that their ideologies will actually match those of their opponents. Since it is a law of nature that opposite forces create greater energy when they work together than when they operate on their own, it will only make sense that all parties find a way to work together.

“United” States

The “United States” was a great experiment in unifying disparate and divided people into one unified whole. The world always will embrace a pull between light and dark, positive and negative, male and female. We must constantly exercise our will to hold these pairs of opposites together as a united yin and yang—within ourselves and in the world around us. By holding these opposites together, we become stronger and generate more positive power.

Polarization, extremes, and reversals are a necessary step of revelation as we move toward greater strength and the unification of opposites. We cannot live in a state of extreme division and conflict forever. Ultimately, we will all naturally see others’ points of view and seek compromise and consensus, which will bring a higher level of peace and harmony for all.

Examples of Paradoxes and Polarities for Healing

* Higher consciousness: We are in a time of awakening to higher consciousness and greater light (in the form of love and wisdom). Yet, paradoxically, we are seeing an upswing in violence, greed, and the ideological polarization of people. As the light of goodness gets stronger on the planet, so too does the force of dark. Like a magnet whose positive pole gets stronger, so too does the negative pole—to maintain a provisional balance. This unstable balance will lead to a breakthrough of greater harmony and balance at a higher level of light and awareness.

* Technology: Technology was supposed to save us time and make our lives easier. But somehow, it has created more complexity, and made all of us feel more busy. Technology also was supposed to facilitate communications between people. It has done so and has leveled the playing field so that people around the globe have access to the same information (and light).

Yet, people also are more distracted and overwhelmed than ever before. And some people are feeling more isolated than ever—feeling more dependent upon their relationship with their phone than with other human beings. Yet, people who would have never connected in positive ways now have a way of finding each other.

Advanced technology also has helped governments and corporations function more efficiently. But it also has exposed these systems to revelations of  “secret information,” through leaks, hacking, distortion of information, and “fake news.” Thus, we are seeing the pull of extremes that will eventually lead to a higher order.

With the advent of advanced technologies, countries or people with less military power may be able to outmaneuver countries with more military power, such as the United States. Thus, the United States will eventually be led to make peace with her perceived enemies, because she will no longer be able to prevail over them with military might alone. Technology is leveling the political playing field across the globe.

* Political Polarization and Breakdown of Governmental Systems: The very systems and governing bodies that were supposed to protect people are becoming more dysfunctional and damaging. Ordinary citizens are increasingly relying on each other to fulfill functions heretofore taken care of by the state.

Lower federal taxes in the U.S. will also mean fewer governmental services, which, on a positive note, will spur smaller communities to fill the void. Political polarization seems contentious, but it will lead to unification of people from both extremes who will find a point of agreement. People also will more readily change sides to create consensus. For example, people who once opposed universal health insurance coverage are now the ones standing up for the insurance coverage they didn’t want to lose.

* Corporate Sexism: Corporations that once oppressed women are now unconditionally supporting women as they speak out about sexual harassment. Once a bastion of male dominance, corporations are taking action, albeit drastic at times, against accused male perpetrators, sometimes without a fair judicial process. Eventually a balance will be struck where people will be considered innocent until proven guilty, but they will no longer be considered innocent after proven guilty. Therefore, an atmosphere of greater equality and collaboration will reign.

* Weakening Financial Systems: As people’s diminished confidence in the global financial system leads to greater anxiety and insecurity, new virtual cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin, will ascend. These new currencies will give people greater autonomy and freedom.

* Violent Weather and other Atrocities: People who may not have known each other, or who were previously “enemies,” are coming together to re-build after violent atrocities or other climate-related disasters. Joint efforts and human compassion are supplanting outside governmental intervention. Increased suffering will lead ordinary citizens to express greater activism and caring.

* Time: Time feels like it is speeding up. People will have no choice but to either speed up to the point that they can no longer remember what they’re doing, or they will slow down, and feel greater peace and harmony within themselves, despite outer world activity. The paradox is that as greater time pressures reach an extreme, it will lead to its opposite: greater calm and tranquility.

Please read on for Descriptions of Planetary Patterns  in 2018:

Jupiter in Scorpio

Jupiter is in Scorpio from October 10, 2017 to November 8, 2018. Jupiter is in Scorpio for 1 year every 12 years. Jupiter was last in Scorpio from October 25, 2005 to November 23, 2006. Think back to the issues you were facing in 2005-2006. You will have an opportunity to transform those areas of your life left unhealed or unresolved from this earlier time.

Under the influence of Jupiter in Scorpio, hidden information is revealed. Crimes are exposed. Investigations into subterranean secrets produce revelations. Think of it as a societal archeological dig. Prominent issues discovered under Jupiter in Scorpio involve sexuality, death, taxes, and insurance.

Medical breakthroughs also will abound. The effects of drilling under the ocean or earth will be prominent. Jupiter in Scorpio is like a cosmic alchemist. You will have the opportunity to discover deeper truths about yourself and transform the lead of your personality into the gold of your soul under this influence. Financial fortunes can be regenerated or erased under the dominion of Jupiter in Scorpio.

Jupiter in Sagittarius

Jupiter will be in Sagittarius from November 8, 2018 to December 2, 2019. Jupiter is in Sagittarius for 1 year  every 12 years. Jupiter was last in Sagittarius from November 23, 2006 to December 18, 2007.  Toward the end of 2018, think back to the issues you were facing in 2007. You will have an opportunity to heal those areas of your life that have been unresolved from that time.

Under the influence of Jupiter in Sagittarius, you may experience unbridled enthusiasm for ideas you believe in. Check the realistic nature of the possibilities you are passionate about—and make sure your plans are grounded in realistic principles. Check with others, as it is possible to get good advice under the influence of Jupiter in Sagittarius. Of course, the opposite is also true—it is possible to be misled. So, make sure you ascertain the validity of the sources of your information before following the advice that is offered.

Saturn in Capricorn

Saturn is in Capricorn from December 19, 2017 to December 17, 2020. Saturn is in Capricorn for 2.5-3 years, every 29.5 years. Saturn was last in Capricorn from February 13, 1988 to February 6, 1991. Reflect back upon the issues you were dealing with during this prior 3-year period. You may be re-visiting these issues on a higher level. And you will have an opportunity to resolve or heal any outstanding issues from this earlier time.

Saturn in Capricorn brings caution, conservativism, contraction, and discipline. In your personal life, you may gravitate toward more traditional or structured roles or self-expression. You may focus more on your sense of security,  responsibility, and “fitting in.” Saturn in Capricorn also influences people to seek leadership positions and assert their power and authority.

This is not a time for apathy toward the system. At the very least, pray for the highest outcome for the people taking action. There will be many jockeying for power. People will try to prove themselves in whatever way they deem necessary. Ultimately, fissures in governmental and corporate systems will be exposed, and the groundwork for transformation will be laid. New and innovative structures will begin to take root after Saturn leaves Capricorn in 2020. Prior to 2020, the old paradigm will struggle to maintain a foothold.

Saturn is a planet of karmic justice. That which is owed comes due under Saturn in Capricorn. Results are fair—particularly in economic, financial, and political matters. That which is meant to succeed will succeed. That which is meant to fail will fail. Financial recessions are possible under the influence of Saturn in Capricorn—if governments, corporations, and consumers are over-spent or over-extended.

Uranus in Taurus

Uranus enters Taurus on May 15, 2018 and remains in the Sign of the Bull until April 25, 2026. Uranus is in Taurus for 7 years every 84 years. Uranus was last in Taurus from March 27, 1935 to May 14, 1942.

Under the influence of Uranus in Taurus, alternative forms of currency will emerge at a rapid rate. Remember, our current financial system was restructured during the last passage of Uranus through Taurus (1935 to 1942), on the heels of the Great Depression. The Social Security system, for example, began on August 14, 1935, just months after Uranus moved into Taurus.

Uranus in Taurus will enable people to branch out and seek non-traditional forms of “security,” whether it be financial, emotional, or physical. People will be prone to experiencing financial losses as Uranus enters Taurus in May 2018 and as it forms a tense angle with Mars (direct and retrograde) and the South Node of the Moon throughout the summer months. Tense months for financial affairs include May, June, July, and August.

Neptune in Pisces

Neptune entered Pisces on April 4, 2011 and will remain in the Sign of the Fish until January 26, 2026. Neptune spends 14-15 years in Pisces every 169 years. Neptune was last in Pisces from 1847 to 1862.

Some of the major events influenced by Neptune in Pisces during those years dealt with trans-continental  travel, long-distance communications and financial transactions, (Western Union, American Express were founded), borders (Mexican-American War), and ideological divisions in the U.S. over slavery versus freedom (American Civil War).

The first personal income tax was instituted in 1861 (and now it looks like it is about to be practically repealed). And petroleum products were first produced, watches were first manufactured, and photography gained popularity under the influence of Neptune in Pisces from 1847 to 1862.

Principles raised during the last transit of Neptune through Pisces will be raised again through 2026. These include: the border and immigration between Mexico and the United States, mass communications (internet and smart phones), long-distance travel (virtual and real), the income tax code, photography and drones—and to what extent they can be deployed in personal and/or governmental domains, and the use of petroleum products versus alternative forms of energy.

The resolution of remaining tensions between the North and South of the United States will also eventually come to fruition as a result of the homogenizing and harmonizing energy of Neptune in Pisces until 2026. Greatest tensions are coming to the fore now, especially in ideological divisions between conservatives and liberals and red and blue states. Neptune dissolves previous boundaries and attitudes to bring an opening of and expansion of our way of thinking. Tensions between North Korea and the United States also will be dissolved or resolved during this time.

Neptune in Pisces will show you that there are multiple levels of valid reality, such as our perception of time. On the physical level, this includes the Apple Watch and other gadgets and how they impact our sense of time. New realizations about the dimensions of time and space on the earth plane—as well as other dimensions—also will emerge during the 2020’s.

Many currently are experiencing the sensation of “time speeding up” in reaction to the avalanche of electrical information they are trying to process in relation to the magnetic field of the earth and their bodies (electro-magnetic energy). People will devise various strategies for coping with the onslaught of information.

While some many disconnect from the informational reality altogether, the most integrated path will be one where you balance between realistically acknowledging the news and information that you are barraged with, but you also find ways to transcend the chaos through practices of prayer, meditation, contemplation, and exercises, such as yoga, tai chi, or qigong, so you may simultaneously feel grounded in your own inner peace and reality while witnessing the physical reality around you.

Neptune in Pisces also raises issues of water, accessibility to water, availability of water, purity of water, and issues of droughts and floods.

Pluto in Capricorn

Pluto entered Capricorn on January 26, 2008 and will remain in the Sign of the Goat until November 19, 2024. It takes Pluto approximately 248 years to orbit the Sun. Pluto was last in Capricorn from 1762 to 1778, during the American and French Revolutions and the initial stages of formation of these new governments.

Clearly, the American government is in the process of being dismantled and will need to be reconstituted once Pluto leaves Capricorn in 2024. After that time, we will see the formation of more streamlined, decentralized, and equitable forms of government.

Interestingly, France and the United States currently appear to be at the opposite ends of the climate change political spectrum, whereas France was a key ally during the American Revolution. Today, France has as its leader a young, centrist liberal, idealistic yet pragmatic President Emmanuel Macron, who is taking the initiative to curb global warming.

As its president, the United States has an older, conservative businessman who has stepped back from official U.S. participation in efforts to curb global warming, and actually is proposing new policies that appear to contribute to warming of the planet.

Key Dates

* January 31, 2018 – Total Lunar Eclipse – 11 degrees Leo – Similar events to those that occurred in the winter of 1999 may arise for resolution. Stay alert. This eclipse also coincides with other potential triggers, including conjunctions with the south node of moon in April 2018, and with Mars in June and October 2018. These could be potentially volatile months.

* February 15, 2018 – Partial Solar Eclipse – 27 degrees Aquarius – Similar events to those that occurred in the winter of 1999 may arise for resolution. Remain aware. Mars  in Aquarius hits this eclipse point along with expansive Jupiter in Scorpio in November 2018. This is a potentially volatile month.

* March 22 – April 15, 2018 Mercury Retrograde – 16 degrees Aries – Impulsive actions hit roadblocks to give you time to consider consequences.

* April 17, 2018 – Chiron enters Aries – Chiron was last in Aries from 1968 to 1977. Chiron in Aries ushers in a period of greater self-assertion and expression of individuality.

* May 15, 2018 – Uranus enters Taurus for the first time since May, 14, 1942. Uranus will remain in Taurus (except for November 6, 2018 to March 6, 2019) until April 25, 2026. Uranus was last in Taurus from March 27, 1935 to May 14, 1942. Banking and financial systems will undergo an overhaul under this influence. Cryptocurrencies (such as Bitcoin) and virtual financial transactions will supplant traditional systems of commerce.

* May 25, 2018 – Jupiter trines Neptune – 16 degrees Scorpio/16 degrees Pisces – Your intuition becomes stronger and you perceive the thoughts and feelings of others. Others perceive your thoughts and feelings as well.

* June 26 – August 27, 2018 – Mars Retrograde – 9 degrees Aquarius – 28 degrees Capricorn – Pent-up energy can be expressed suddenly. Consider consequences before reacting. Restrain your expressions of anger for best results. (Mars retrogrades near the eclipse point of January 31 and July 27, 2018—bringing potential for unpredictability or volatility.)

* July 25 – August 18, 2018 – Mercury Retrograde – 23 degrees Leo – 11 degrees Leo – Think first, speak second. Impulsive or rude speech can lead to negative results. (This Mercury Retrograde ends by conjoining the eclipse point of January 31, 2018—issues from earlier in the year will arise during the retrograde.)

* July 12, 2018 – Partial Solar Eclipse – 20 degrees Cancer – You may feel more moody than usual. Make provisions to give yourself time and space to process your feelings.

* July 27, 2018 – Total Lunar Eclipse – 4 degrees Aquarius – Defer to others to preserve peace and harmony. (Mars hits this eclipse point in late July and late September so be prepared for extra activity and interaction.)

*  August 11, 2018 – Partial Solar Eclipse – 18 degrees Leo – Listen to your intuition under this eclipse. (Jupiter in Scorpio squares this eclipse point in mid-September, which will bring revelations and positive outcomes.)

*  August 19, 2018 – Jupiter Trines Neptune – 15 degrees Scorpio/15 degrees Pisces – Your intuition becomes stronger and you perceive the thoughts and feelings of others. Others perceive your thoughts and feelings as well.

*  August 27, 2018 – Mars Direct – 28 degrees Capricorn – Progress resumes on projects that have been delayed or blocked since June 2018.

*  October 5 – November 16, 2018 – Venus Retrograde – 10 degrees Scorpio – 25 degrees Libra – Lovingly connect with people from your past. Relationships formed under this influence will be nourishing, but may not endure.

*  November 6, 2018 – May 4, 2020 – Nodes of Moon Enter Cancer-Capricorn – Home, family, and national security are highlighted. (The Moon’s nodes were last in Cancer-Capricorn from April 8, 2000 to October 12, 2001.)

*  November 6, 2018 – Uranus re-enters Aries – 29 degrees Aries – Expression of individual differences escalates.

*  November 8, 2018 – Jupiter enters Sagittarius –  Your feelings of hope and optimism are strengthened. (Jupiter was last in Sagittarius from November 23, 2006 to December 18, 2007. Jupiter will be in Sagittarius until December 2, 2019.)

* November 16, 2018 – Venus Direct – 25 degrees Libra – Inharmonious relationship dynamics reach resolution.

* November 16 – December 6, 2018 – Mercury Retrograde – 13 degrees Sagittarius – 27 degrees Scorpio – Confusion and misunderstandings are more common than normal. Opt for clarity over using abbreviations and short-hand for beneficial results. (Mercury retrogrades near spiritual, intuitive Neptune, bringing you greater spiritual progress and intuitive insights. Yet, the blend of Mercury and Neptune can produce foggy thinking or bring unclarity in person-to-person communications. Meditate deeply on complex issues, and ask another person for their perspective if you feel your conclusions may be cloudy.)

SF Source Laurie Baum Dec 2017