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Art Journal with the Moon September 19-25 2022

Art Journal with the Moon September 19-25, 2022

This is a summary of the moon’s energy for the upcoming week and the inner work and magic you can do in your art journal to make the most of the opportunities the cosmos is gifting us with.

Every week the emotional and magical opportunities the moon is sending you are different because the energy she is drawing down from the planets and stars changes moment to moment. Planets and stars and moon phases and moon signs each carry their own unique energy .This is my weekly update (Mon-Fri) of the moon’s comings and goings to support you in aligning with her energy.

Get your art journal or a scrap of paper you see lying around, your art supplies or those pencil crayons you have hidden away somewhere and have fun. Spend 10 – 20 minutes focusing on the themes the moon is supporting you to explore that day while you play with colors and shapes and watch what happens over time.

It’s amazing what a little consistent creative time can do.

A Few Thoughts About the Moon This Week

There’s a lot happening this week and most of it brings an energy of new beginnings, potential and possibilities.

Another new moon graces the sky on Sunday which is shortly after the autumn equinox – a new moon alongside a new season! That’s some great energizing and initiating energy we can draw on.

When you consider the zodiac signs in terms of seasons, you see there are four zodiac signs that mark the beginning of a season, four zodiac signs that mark the middle of a season and four signs that mark the transition between one season to the next. Libra is one of the zodiac signs that marks a new season and in the northern hemisphere, her season is autumn.

The days are getting shorter. The crops are being harvested. Fruit is being preserved. Cucumbers and carrots are being pickled. Peas are getting shucked and sorted into freezer bags and preparations for the cold season are underway. It’s a time of year when storehouses are being filled with dried fruit and canned vegetables. Plants are wilting and dying in the frost and the once fertile gardens and fields are becoming resting beds of dirt while animals are being hunted or slaughtered and their meat is being preserved. Squirrels are hiding food, frogs are digging beds in the dirt, bears are eating as much as they can and looking for a place to sleep, butterflies are finding warm spots in logs and leaves to hibernate and birds are flying south.

The autumn equinox marks a sacred day where the sky is of equal parts light and dark. It is the past and future meeting the present. It is equally facing inward and outward. It is greeting the light from the sun in the sky then in the darkness turning inward and greeting the light from our own internal sun. The outer world slows down for you to connect to your inner world. It’s a time to heal, uncreate and recreate yourself, honor who you have been and look toward who you are becoming. It’s a season to grow quiet and listen.

From this point, our days will become shorter, our nights longer and the rays and heat of the sun will feel less potent or powerful. It is a time of death and endings. Even the daylight seems to be dying as the moon takes up more and more time in the sky. Nature is speaking loss, long dark cold nights and deep sleeps but as nature shows us, death is not an eternal goodbye. The sun will come again, the birds will fly back, the hibernating animals will wake up, the snow will melt and the seeds will grow shoots out of the dirt when they are warm enough. But, until that time, death and endings are reflected everywhere.

It is a sacred time to acknowledge death and loss, to experience grief, and to honor the Ancestors and the loved ones we’ve lost. It’s a time of year when the veil between this world and the world of Spirit is thinner. Visits and messages from the other side are easier to see and hear.

The sun enters the sign of Libra in this energy and I suspect that’s why Libra carries themes of balance and peace.

The sun isn’t the only one who enters the sign of Libra this week. We also have the new moon happening this week. When we arrive at a new moon, it marks a time when the moon is in the same zodiac sign as the sun so this new moon is in the sign of Libra which ushers us into a Libra and Aries lunar cycle – a Libra new moon and an Aries full moon.

Libra is ruled by the planet Venus so the new moon is bringing a little of that planet’s energy as well.

Libra is about beauty, art, relationships, connection, collaboration, partnerships, marriage, pursuing the ideal, compromising, achieving balance and finding harmony.

Libra desires peace in relationships and is always working to achieve balance to find that harmony. Aries, on the other hand, is focused on other things. Aries doesn’t mind conflict and disharmony if it leads to a desired outcome. Aries is learning about “me” and Libra is learning about “we” and the one thing they can both embrace is boundaries. Kind, healthy boundaries honors both “me” and “we”. Libra and Aries is balancing the personal with the collective. It’s taking into consideration how what you want or what is good for you affects what’s good for everyone.

As you may already know, I’m working on one goal with the moon and my art journal until I reach it. During the Libra new moon I’ll be considering how balance will help me reach my goal. If you are working on a goal with the moon and your art journal alongside me, you might want to explore these themes as well. These are the questions you might roll around in your mind this week until you arrive at the new moon on Sunday.

How would finding a better balance in your work life and your personal life help you reach your goal?

 

How would finding balance between your own needs and desires and the needs and desires of the people around you help you reach your goal?

 

How can you create harmony and balance with the parts within you that want to reach your goal versus the parts within you that are afraid of your goal?

 

How does the goal you’re trying to reach affect other people?

 

How can you use both your strengths and the qualities you love about yourself along with your weaknesses and the qualities you tend to reject, dismiss or judge about yourself help you reach your goal?

 

Do you have a complete picture of your goal? Visualize achieving your goal then see both the goodness it brings as well as the challenges that will come with it as well. Imagine how you will manage both the goodness and the challenges.

During your new moon art rituals, to draw on the energy of Libra, you might also want to play with the concepts of beauty, proportion, color harmony and a balanced composition.

Monday

Today the moon is in the last quarter phase.

This phase is when the moon is once again half in light and half in shadow.

To me, this symbolizes choices and decisions. Take time to consider the choices you make in your everyday life and how they impact you, your goals and your community.

It also symbolizes seeing both sides of a story so finding ways to put yourself in the shoes of someone you disagree with at this time can help you gain wisdom or a perspective you had not considered before.

It also a time to celebrate how far you’ve come, how much you do and how much you’ve grown.

Take a moment to consider how much you’ve learned since the new moon.

What have you learned about relationships in the last few weeks?

What have you learned about yourself in the last few weeks?

What have you learned about reaching your goal since the new moon?

Where have you grown the most in the last few weeks?

In your art journal, draw, paint or collage an image that celebrates how far you’ve come and how much you’ve grown since the last new moon.

For those of you who have joined the Moon Mapping Year and receive the MAP Your Mornings podcast, on Monday morning we work with the last quarter moon phase to celebrate how far you’ve come and acknowledge how much you’ve grown since the last new moon.

We also work with the energy of the moon in the sign of Cancer to nurture your body, heart and spirit

The other energy from the cosmos we use to help your subconscious mind tend to your lost or young parts is the sun having a happy relationship with Pluto. We work with this happy energy to help you gather the strength and faith you need to stay committed to your goal.

Mercury in retrograde is in an opposing relationship with Jupiter. We work with that energy to help you consider which boundaries you need to set in order to reach your goals.

Finally, Venus is in a happy relationship with Uranus so we use that energy to heal a memory when you hid or rejected a part of yourself that was different in order to fit in.

Tuesday

The moon moves into the fixed fire sign of Leo today.

Leo is ruled by the sun so the moon is carrying a little of that energy as well today.

Leo energy wants to bring loyalty, dependability, power, radiance, generosity, warmth, optimism and solidity. It wants to help you shine your light in the world, believe in your worth and boost your confidence. It is warm and expressive but sometimes can bring energy that influences you to be abrupt or impulsive.

Imagine your inner light – the part of you that shines bright no matter what has happened to you or how you are feeling – the part of you that is forever radiant and worthy of goodness.

Now imagine that light grows a little brighter. As it grows brighter, it attracts more goodness to you today.

Imagine your light attracting goodness to you all day long.

What might that look and feel like in your everyday life?

In your art journal, create an image that represents your inner light attracting goodness to you.

If you have joined the Moon Mapping Year and receive the MAP Your Mornings podcast, on Tuesday morning we work with the last quarter moon phase to celebrate how far you’ve come and acknowledge how much you’ve grown since the last new moon.

We also work with the energy of the moon in the sign of Cancer to nurture your body, heart and spirit

The moon is void of course until the early afternoon so we use that energy to surrender to the Divine a troubling situation you’re currently facing.

The moon moves into the sign of Leo in the early afternoon so we use that energy to grow your inner light and attract more goodness to you.

The moon is in an opposing relationship with Pluto on Tuesday so we use that energy to invite calm in your body and dissolve memories that cause you stress or anxiety.

The moon is also in a happy relationship with Neptune on Tuesday so we use that energy to magnetize that soulful, imaginative, dreamy, divine, unconditionally loving, psychic, intuitive and caring energy.

The moon is also in a happy relationship with Jupiter so we use that energy to remind you of what’s good in your life and open your heart with gratitude.

Finally, Venus is in a happy relationship with Uranus so we use that energy to heal a memory when you hid or rejected a part of yourself that was different in order to fit in.

Wednesday

Today the moon is in the balsamic phase.

This phase is when the moon is once again a silver sliver in the sky. She is retreating and preparing to hide away in the darkness of the New Moon. This is a time to move inward; to grow still and quiet and change the direction of your looking and to look within and trust your own wisdom and truth. Communing with Spirit and your deepest self is helpful during this phase.

I use this phase to make time to communicate with the angels and my Highest Self. I try to tune into the wisdom and support I carry within me. The veil between Spirit and my conscious mind is thinner at this time of the moon cycle so it eases communication and intuition. It’s also when I’m focusing on my intuition, paying attention to Spirit Signs, making notes of my sleeping dreams and communicating with Spirit.

It is a good time to address the shadow aspects of my personality and to get curious about what I have buried in my subconscious. Sometimes, when life is busy, we don’t have time to process the emotions and triggers that arise in our everyday life and in our relationships. This phase of the Moon is a good time to deal with whatever you didn’t have time to deal with earlier on in the moon cycle. Taking this time to make friends with your shadow before a new moon cycle begins will help you to be clearer and less influenced by my wounded parts as I make my New Moon intentions.

You can’t always see what needs to be tended to.

Ask your subconscious mind to show you what you most need to treat today.

Is it something from your past?

Is there a belief or a memory that has been holding you back?

Trust whatever surfaces.

In your art journal, draw, paint or collage an image that represents the memory, thought or belief your subconscious mind showed you most needs to be tended to today.

If you have joined the Moon Mapping Year and receive the MAP Your Mornings podcast, on Wednesday morning the moon is in the balsamic phase. We use that moon phase energy to surrender the healing to your subconscious mind and ask it to show you which memories, thoughts or beliefs most needs to be tended to before you start your day.

The moon is also in the sign of Leo so we use that energy to grow your inner light and attract more goodness to you.

Thursday

The moon is void of course for almost the entire day – all the way from the very early morning in the mountain time zone until the wee hours of the morning tomorrow.

This sometimes happens when the moon is moving from one zodiac sign to another or when it’s not making any aspects with other planets – I think of it as though the moon is just hanging around alone and in the in-between space – no longer where it was but not yet where it will be. The moon likes reflecting energy down to us but when it’s void of course there’s nothing substantial for it to reflect so its reflecting that emptiness back to us.

When the moon is void of course it is a good time to rest and relax and look inward. If you can prevent it, don’t start anything new or sign anything important when the moon is void of course since the energy it carries speaks of not having the momentum to carry it through to the end or in other words, whatever you start when the moon is void of course won’t go anywhere or won’t go where you thought it would.

It is a good time, however, to connect with your subconscious mind and your intuition.

Let yourself be curious for a moment and consider if you have any parts who are uncomfortable with emptiness or the unknown.

Do you have parts that like to take control and feel worried when it’s time to surrender and trust?

Think about a situation in your life right now where it would be great to surrender to the Divine and trust you will be taken care of.

In your art journal, create an image that represents what a situation you want to surrender to the Divine.

If you have joined the Moon Mapping Year and receive the MAP Your Mornings podcast, on Thursday morning we work with the balsamic moon to surrender the healing to your subconscious mind and ask it to show you which memories, thoughts or beliefs most needs to be tended to before you start your day.

The moon is also in the sign of Leo for the wee early hours in the morning so we use that energy to grow your inner light and attract more goodness to you.

The moon is void of course for almost the entire day so we use that energy to surrender to the Divine a troubling situation you’re currently facing.

The moon is in an opposing relationship with Saturn so we work with that energy to consider where you struggle setting boundaries in your life.

The moon is also in a tense relationship with Uranus on Thursday so we work with the MAP Method and your subconscious mind to release an expectation you placed on yourself or someone else has placed on you which no longer serves you or the goal you are trying to reach.

The sun moves into the sign of Libra and heralds the autumn equinox. We use that energy to explore how balance will help you reach your goals.

We also magnetize the beautiful, harmonious, collaborating, relationship-centered and balanced energy the sun in Libra energy gifts us with.

Friday

The moon moves into the sign of Virgo today.

Virgo is ruled by the planet Mercury so it’s carrying a little of that planet’s energy as well.

Virgo is an earth sign. It is also mutable and versatile. It supports you in being efficient and organized. It wants to help you find the most effective way of doing things. It brings practicality, attention to detail, a love of quality and precision but it can cause you to get lost in the details.

When the moon is in Virgo, it’s the perfect time for review and adjustments.

Do you like what you’ve been creating in your life lately?

You’re not in control of creating everything you experience in your life but of the things you do have control over, which situations and experiences that you’ve been creating do you enjoy and which situations and experiences have you not been enjoying?

If you don’t like what you’re creating, what adjustments can you make?

In your art journal, draw, paint or collage images that represent the adjustments you want to make in your outer or your inner world.

If you have joined the Moon Mapping Year and receive the MAP Your Mornings podcast, on Friday morning, the moon is still in the balsamic phase. We work with that energy again to surrender the healing to your subconscious mind and ask it to show you which memories, thoughts or beliefs most needs to be tended to before you start your day.

The moon moves into the sign of Virgo on Friday so we use that energy to consider what adjustments you can make in your life to help you reach your goals.

The other energy in the cosmos we tend to is the energy of Mercury retrograde moving into the sign of Virgo again. We use that energy with the MAP Method to help us become more mindful and present to the important details we will face in the day ahead.

The sun is in an intense relationship with Mercury on Friday so we use that connected and divinely-inspired energy to receive a message from your spirit guides or angels.

The sun moved into the sign of Libra on Thursday so we use that energy one more time to explore how balance will help you reach your goals.

We also magnetize the beautiful, harmonious, collaborating, relationship-centered and balanced energy the sun in Libra energy gifts us with.

Sunday

It’s a Libra new moon on Sunday.

Libra is ruled by the planet Venus so the new moon is bringing a little of that planet’s energy as well.

Libra is about beauty, art, relationships, connection, collaboration, partnerships, marriage, pursuing the ideal, compromising, achieving balance and finding harmony.

Libra brings energy that is soft, beautiful and artistic. It likes to help you be sociable and enjoy friendships, gatherings and groups. It also likes to keep things balanced and looks for equality in relationships. It brings an energy of acceptance and understanding but it can also be too outwardly focused or, in other words, have you focusing on other people’s needs at the expense of honoring your own feelings and needs.

To personalize this new moon, let’s get specific and see the area of YOUR life this new moon energy is focused on. Once you know the area of life the Libra new moon is in, you can consider how bringing balance to that area of your life with help you reach your goal.

To figure out what area of your life the Libra new moon wants you to focus on, you simply need to know your rising sign.

If your rising sign is in the sign of Aries, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions of balance and harmony when it comes to your close, intimate relationships or partnerships. Think about your marriage or partnership or best friend and consider what changes you can make in those relationships to experience more harmony and balance.

If your rising sign is in the sign of Taurus, then the new moon is inviting you to set intentions of balance and harmony when it comes to your routines, work, pets or wellness. Think about these areas of your life and consider what intentions you want to make during the new moon in order to bring more balance and harmony to your healthy routines, your working life, your pets or your overall well-being.

For Gemini people like me, the new moon is inviting you set intentions of balance and harmony when it comes to your children, hobbies, pleasure or your creativity. Think about these areas of your life and consider what intentions you want to make during the new moon in order to support bringing more harmony and balance to your parenting life, a creative hobby that’s dear to your heart or those activities in your life that bring you joy.

If your rising sign is in the sign of Cancer, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions of balance and harmony when it comes to your parents, your ancestors, your childhood or your home and living situation. Think about these areas of your life and consider what intentions you can make to support bringing more harmony and balance to your relationship with your parents, your ancestors, your memories of your childhood. You can also consider how you can bring more harmony and balance to your home or living situation.

For Leo people, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions of balance and harmony when it comes to learning, communication, your siblings, the goddess or earth-based rituals. Which one of these topics feel most important for you to focus on during this new moon? Choose one of them and consider what intentions you want to make in order to support experiencing more balance and harmony in that area of your life.

For Virgo people, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions of balance and harmony when it comes to money, assets, income and your livelihood. Think about these areas of your life and consider what intentions you want to make during the new moon in order to support bringing more balance and harmony to your possessions, finances or livelihood.

If your rising sign is in the sign of Libra, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions of balance and harmony when it comes to your identity, body, appearance or your spirit. Think about these areas of your life and consider what intentions you want to make during the new moon in order to support bringing more balance and harmony to your health, personal expression, identity or your relationship with your body.

For Scorpio people, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions of balance and harmony when it comes to your subconscious mind and those things you hide from others and most importantly those things you hide from yourself. During this new moon set intentions around the kind of shadow work or brain rewiring you’d like to do and the balanced and harmonious results you’d like to experience from that deep inner work.

For Sagittarius people, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions of balance and harmony when it comes to friendships, community and your hopes and wishes. Think about these areas of your life and consider what intentions you want to make during the new moon in order to bring more harmony and balance to your friendships or community or your hopes and wishes.

If your rising sign is in the sign of Capricorn, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions of balance and harmony when it comes to your career, reputation or ideas of success. During this new moon set intentions around achieving more balance and harmony in your career or visualize how you can achieve success or improve your reputation in a more harmonious and balanced way.

For Aquarius people, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions of balance and harmony when it comes to your faith, spiritual practices, travel or future success. Think about these areas of your life and consider what intentions you want to make during the new moon in order to bring more harmony and balance to your spirituality or your travel dreams or your goals for the future.

Finally, for Pisces people, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions of balance and harmony when it comes to feelings and thoughts around death, taxes, your psyche or any debt you have accumulated. What intentions can you set to bring more balance and harmony to your emotional or mental well-being? What kind of intentions can you set to bring more balance and harmony to any energetic, emotional or physical debt you may be carrying (your own or your ancestors’)?

In your art journal, create a page that represents how bringing more balance and harmony in that area of your life will help you reach your goal.

Join Me

If you are ready to enhance your alignment with the moon and rewire your brain at the same time, check out the Moon Mapping Year. When you subscribe, you now receive the MAP Your Mornings private podcast as  a BONUS. MAP Your Mornings is where I align with the moon’s energy for the day and use the MAP Method to teach your subconscious mind how to rewire your brain. Every morning (Mon-Fri), we work with the MAP Method AND the emotional and spiritual themes the moon and the planets and stars are supporting us with to rewire your brain and help you manifest the changes you most want to see in your life.

with love,

Dana da Ponte

 

 

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This is a space where art and spirit come together. On the blog, I share art rituals for working with the magic of the moon. I also work with the subconscious mind to lighten your emotional load and follow your creative dreams.

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