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“The plant that was a seed and then a shoot gives birth to a bud which will gradually become a flower. The plant can now be seen as the mother of the flower, and the flower the completion of the growth of the plant. It now takes over as the mother of future seeds, sharing itself as color and fragrance” The Lunar Cycle by Philip Levine

At the New Moon a conception occurred ~ at the Crescent the new life quickened in the womb~ at the First Quarter we announced the upcoming birth ~ at the Gibbous we took care of all the little details as we waited.

Now during the Full Moon Phase the life that's been growing inside is revealed and begins to takes on a life of it's own ~ but is that new life viable and healthy ~ has Mom made adequate preparation?

At the Full Moon we become aware that we can't do this alone, we need the co-operation of others and we need the sharing of information if we are to reach our goal. During this phase we re-evaluate our future and reach a compromise between our expectations and reality.

The Full Moon is a time of realization, of reward and fulfillment ~ or of failure ~ usually a bit of both. Missed opportunities from earlier in the cycle can come back to haunt you as the Full Moon illuminates all the dark places. But any difficulties experienced in the Full Moon Phase provide a valuable learning experience for the future.

Success or failure, it really doesn't matter, you've reached a turning point. During the two waxing weeks you pushed outward and felt an urge to actively build and achieve ~ now as the waning two weeks progress you will become ever more internal and cerebral.

Continuing with the example used in previous Moon Phase articles~ during the New Moon Phase your dream of a new job became a goal. In the Crescent Phase the realization of the what that could mean raised all the doubts you have about yourself. During the First Quarter Phase you acted confidently, made a commitment and told others of your decision. During the Gibbous Phase you looked into the jobs available, adjusted your expectations and got real with yourself.

Now during the Full Moon you connect with others as you submit resumes, go on job interviews, network and seek the advise of others.

 If everything has gone as it should during the previous phases this will be the time when you have the realization you are on track to attain the dream job that will become the "mother of a seed for the future".

However, if the the previous few phases have not gone so well ~ it can also be the time when you come to the realization that a lateral move is the best you can expect, even though such a move can only take you back to where you were when you began.

In this case your choice is either to accept failure or re-orient yourself to the future. Perhaps as you listened to the advise of prospective employers you realized that in order to obtain the sort of job you dreamed of only two weeks ago it will be necessay to get more eduction or training. Now, do you stay where you are, take that lateral move from one company to another or do you re-orient yourself toward the future and see your job search not as a failure but as the “Mother of a seed for the future”?

The realizations of the Full Moon phase lead to the Disseminating Phase where you either reckon with your failure or re-orient to the future.

Each of the 8 phases last just under 4 days. During the Full Moon Phase the Moon it traveling from 180 – 225 degrees ahead of the Sun rising in the east at sunset and setting in the west around sunrise.

Born During a Full Moon

If you were born during the Full Moon you are infected with an urge toward greatness. You have high expectations of yourself but also feel pulled in two directions. Perhaps it's this inner tug of war that spurs you onto to even greater achievements as it fills you with the notion that no matter what you have or what you do it's never enough. Relationships are central to your life ~ they keep you balanced and growing. It is in the give and take of relating that you are able to find the balance that reconciles your inner world with the outer.

Note: while a cycle has an end that is also a new beginning the purpose of an astrological cycle is growth and evolution. As a visual, imagine running on a flat circular track where in the end you come right back to the same spot that once was the beginning. Astrological cycles are best to visualized a spiral cycling upward ~ you never come back to the same place you started. Though you've completed a complete cycle you've been moving upward and should now be able to you are a bit  above the spot where you began.

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Patricia Lantz is a practicing astrologer and hypnotherapist living in Atlanta Georgia. She can be reached by calling (678) 763 0552 or by visiting her home on the web at www.astrology-hypnotherapy.com. Patricia is also the Astrology Editor for All Things Healing,  an online community for spiritual and healing practices.