RCG-I Seasonal Salon Spring Equinox 2006

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Winds of Change: She Changes Everything She Touches

Several years ago I went to a workshop with Patricia Monaghan on Chaos Theory. It was one of my “ah ha” moments. To me, this was a huge recognition of the power of change. Just think there is a theory that explains that life is chaos and we have moments of calm! Growing up in a railroad family who got transferred across the nation, I grew up with changing cities, schools, friends, weather, accents, morays, roles, politics and systems. I do change well. Change seems to me, to be one of the few constants in life. Our earth, our family, our work, our personal relationships all mutate over time.

“She changes everything She touches and everything She touches changes.”
The above chant is my mantra. She is the ebb and flow. She is the wind across the earth blowing new ideas, projects, people and opportunities. When I began studying Runes I was amazed at out many of them were about how we as humans accomplish change. Hagalaz is the Rune of hard, quick changes in our lives. It is the change that comes from death, separation, confusion, accidents and how other people’s change affects us. It is the change run of separation and endings. Isa is the Rune of no changes, stagnation, and the inability to move from where we are at in our lives. Sometimes Isa means we need to wait to make changes and sometimes it is a way we hide from the inevitable changes of life. Not all changes are full of roses and lavender. We all struggle with change at times in our lives, at least I know I certainly have struggled in the midst of change and upheaval.

Some changes are part of the natural process of life. Berkana is the Rune about slow steady growth and change. It is the change which flows naturally through our physical, emotional, spiritual and intellectual growth. Jera is the Rune of natural earth changes, the flow of the seasons, aging, and sowing and reaping of ideas. Inguz is the Rune of growth, fertility and productivity. It is the success of new changes, new plans, new business and the birth of all good things. Ehwaz is the Rune of transport, movement, assistance and help, energy, power, communication, and willpower. Puberty, hand-fasting, change of residence, changing job positions, promotions, these are the changes that are inevitable…birth, rites of passage, aging, death and rebirth. We all live through these changes in the course of our life. All changes we make in our life reflect on our actions. Who I am as an individual is related to so many different psychological, spiritual aspects of my lives.

Lewin, a social psychologist, in 1951 described change as a three stage process. The first stage is unfreezing. This is the process in which we overcome apathy and begin take apart our old beliefs or actions. It is the stage where we have to look at our defense mechanisms and that they have to be met and sidestepped. The second stage is the change. This is a time of bewilderment because the old is being confronted and we don’t have any idea what the new will bring to us. The third stage is called refreezing. This is when our new attitudes become part of us and we meet the calm again. Lewin believed that once we worked our way through apprehension, fear, denial, anger, resentment, depression we work our way to acceptance and internalization of the change.

Astrology, Qualities, Signs and Change
Attitudes toward change are a combination of emotions and the way we think. We all react differently because of the complexities of our personal process, our experiences and our upbringing. Other indicators of how we handle change can come from looking at our astrological chart. Within an astrological chart, the Quality describes a person's attitudes in life and the way they approach projects. The three Qualities are Cardinal, Fixed and Mutable.

The Cardinal Signs are Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn. These four Signs are the initiators of the Zodiac. Their common characteristics include action and drive; they have initiative and strong motivation. Cardinal Signs are the people who come up with ideas and get the project moving, but they are not very good at completion and follow-through. Change to us (I have my Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Saturn, Neptune, Uranus, and Chiron in Cardinal Signs) is easy and fast.

The Fixed Signs are Taurus, Leo, Scorpio and Aquarius. These four Signs are the members of the Zodiac who dedicate themselves to seeing projects through to completion. Their common characteristics include determination and persistence; they are stable and self-reliant. Fixed Signs are the people who keep a project going and see it through to the end, but they can also be stubborn, resistant to change and inflexible.

The Mutable Signs are Gemini, Virgo, Pisces, and Sagittarius. These four Signs are the flexible members of the Zodiac, happy to fill an assigned role. Their common characteristics include adaptability and changeability; they are flexible and versatile. Mutable Signs adapt easily to changing conditions, and they don't have a particular agenda. They can, however, be wishy-washy or inconsistent.

Change Is
Growth, opportunity, renewal, development are all positive aspects of change. Some people look at change with fear and feel completely lost and some meet change with excitement. Of course this also depends on the types of changes we meet as we walk our journey in life. The Mother does change well. She has helped us flow through the seasons since the beginning of time. As I grow older, the chaos theory lives on in my life. I changed. I got calmer. I got patient. I got peaceful in the midst of chaos.

Spring brings the possibility, the Maiden energy of excitement, new projects, new relationships and new adventures. This is a time were we can look again at the changes we need to make in our lives. As the fresh winds of spring blow across our faces both as gentle spring breezes and stormy winds, I try to embrace the mantra, look forward to the renewal of life and all the astounding changes that lie ahead for all of us. It is easier to ride the waves then swim against the current. May your spring be chaotically calm.

Kore Chant
Her name cannot be Spoken,
Her face was not forgotten,
Her power is to open.
Her promise can never be broken.
All sleeping seed She wakens
The rainbow is Her token,
Now winter’s power is taken,
In love, all chains are broken.
All seeds She deeply buries,
She weaves the thread of the seasons.
Her secret, darkness carries,
She loves beyond all reason.
She changes everything she touches
And everything she touches changes.

Change is, Touch is, Change is.
Change us, Touch us, Change is.
Everything lost is found again
In a new form, in a new way
Everything hurt is healed again,
In a new life, In a new day.
(Starhawk, the Spiral Dance pp.102-03)