Sunday, November 20, 2011

#26 The Water Bearer and Twin Fish

Hello Fellow Stargazers!

It really brings up a lot of feelings realizing that this is the last post on the zodiac constellations.  All that is left to share with you is the month of December and the constellations that tell the story of Perseus and Andromeda, as well as the story of the name of the full moon of December.  Things are coming to a close this year, and as the Farnsworth household prepares for Thanksgiving and Christmas, the heat is turned on in the house, the tree and decorations bring a warmth all their own, and the evenings are a quiet and blissful time of warm drinks and cozy activities indoors.

I picture myself this December spending some time outdoors walking the lake and reflecting on the gifts poured out over myself and Cassie this year.  As soon as the Christmas lights start appearing on the houses, I find time to enjoy the twinkling stars not only above us, but around us.

Speaking of pouring out, the first of the constellations we will share is Aquarius.  Aquarius is one of the tougher constellations to trace out due to dim stars as well as the area of the sky that it occupies.  The ancient Greeks aptly named this area the "celestial sea" and was the source of all the waters of the night sky.  You can see that the Milky Way seems to spring from this area.

Ganymede is the celestial water bearer, a young man holding either the celestial urn or cup of immortality of the gods.  A young shepherd boy that Zeus judged as the most beautiful of the mortals, he claimed him as the water boy of the Olympian gods and goddesses.  As you will remember when we talked about Jupiter, Ganymede is one of the four Galilean moons, along with Io, Europa, and Callisto, and one of Zeus' many trifle jaunts with the mortals.  He granted Ganymede immortality for his service and symbolized in the night sky as Aquarius.

Pisces is the other of a pair of water signs/constellations which can be seen wrapped around the bottom of the great square of Pegasus, which we will observe in December.  The easiest part of this constellation to view is the circlet of Pisces, which is one head of the two fish that make up this constellation.

 This pair of fish was believed to symbolize the gods Aphrodite and her son Eros (Venus and Cupid) as they transformed themselves into fish to escape the monster Typhon.  Typhon was the largest and most feared of the monsters/Titans by the Gods, and when Typhon led the waged war of the Titans on the Gods for control of Olympus, most of the great ancient gods and goddesses transformed into animals and fled.  Zeus was able to confront and defeat Typhon and seal him under Mount Etna, which is thought to this day to be the source of the mountain's eruptions.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family!

Friday, November 11, 2011

#25 Full Moon November and S.T.A.R.

Hello everyone!

This week we had the pleasure of enjoying the November Full Moon, the Beaver Moon or Frosty Moon.  So called because either it was time to set beaver traps to assure warmth from the beaver pelts gathered, or that beavers were preparing their dams and dens for winter.  The Frosty Moon makes sense: it's starting to get cold and frosty!  Time for the jackets and hats and gloves to come out!  The beautiful part of the winter night sky is its amazing clarity due to dipping temperatures, and you cannot beat its majesty and excuse to carry out a warm beverage like cocoa, coffee, or cider with you to sip on as you take in the cosmos above you.  Speaking of which, I believe that I will have to do just that very soon!

Last weekend I had the pleasure of attending S.T.A.R., my employer's alumni reunion for our clients that have successfully completed treatment.  I have made it a given each year I have worked with my employer that I am available on Saturday evenings to not only offer stargazing but also to catch up with past clients and honor their recovery and continued success.  This is my fourth year of enjoying the reunion activities.

I have had a 50% success rate with the stargazing activities.  The first two years were spectacular, with clear skies and a wonderful turnout and time!  It is sad to say that the last two outings were overcast and the sky was not available to enjoy.  It is interesting to notice that when I was stargazing actively at my workplace with  clients (at the time, I was working as a night counselor,) I had a similar energy about the experience at S.T.A.R.  Once I moved into my daytime therapist position, stargazing with clients became slowly non-existent.  The once well-used Orion telescope gathers dust in the far corner of my office.  I still harbor sadness about this, but it did spark the interest and motivation for this blog to be created, so the activity has continued to evolve into where we are today within Russ' Star Stories.  And shortly after we finish our journey through the night sky this year, I will probably turn your attention to Spirit Stories, which will continue to grow and share how stargazing has been a profound spiritual experience in my life.

This does not mean I did not enjoy the time spent at S.T.A.R. this year; the true gift had been from seeing some familiar faces and hearing that life was continuing to treat them well.  These clients, no, human beings, are a real source of inspiration; it is not easy doing what they did.  To me, they are the true stars!  Keep shining bright!