Hello Friends:

I know you're busy, so I'll try to make this one short. Thank you for taking the time to read this. My hope is always that it provides some value that you can use.

I'm on day 25 of my Scorpio New Moon cycle and Mercury 117-day cycle, and something is clarifying. The Sagittarius New Moon arrives on December 19th, closing out not just this lunar and solar cycle, but the entire year at a tangible threshold. We are changing seasons with the Winter Solstice on Sunday, December 21st, which we'll feel viscerally in our bodies. During changes in season, do you get a cold? Need more sleep? Notice your diet needs are different? All of Nature's beings need rest and care during these transition times.

The Moon and Sun both in the late degrees of 28°25′ near the Galactic Center are presenting the big shifts if you have been doing the work. The Archer (Sagittarius) is often depicted aiming its arrow directly at Antares, the royal star at the heart of the Scorpion constellation, where the last new moon was conjoined.

Sagittarius asks the essential question: What do you believe in enough to build your life around?

For me, that question has a deadline. March 20, 2026. 119 days from now. That's when Equanimity launches, and I'm learning in real time what it means to turn belief into practice. If you've been following along, I have been sharing the tools and insights that have been helping me.

The Sun and Moon join Venus in Sagittarius this week, highlighting vision and the longing to live with integrity. But there's tension too. Saturn and Neptune in Pisces square this fire energy, reminding us that dreams must be lived, not just imagined. Mars in Capricorn provides the anchor. This is devotional energy. The kind that shows up steadily, patiently, over time.

I've written and posted photos of my progress towards Equanimity on my Substack so I won't bore you with duplicate information here. Instead, I'd like to share the tools, resources, and practices that you can use as daily ritual towards your goals and visions.

Guides as Nervous System Tools

Here's what I'm discovering: your guides aren't abstract spiritual concepts. They're your actual nervous system regulation tools when building something big feels terrifying.

Every morning I draw and journal to check in with inner wisdom. It's part of my 2-hour morning ritual spent with Source. The first hour includes 20 minutes of sweaty exercise, 20 minutes of meditation, and 20 minutes of reflection. I honor my altar, with Kuan Yin at the center with representations of ancestors, loved ones, nature, and energies.

The second hour I catalog and explore my dreams and draw at least one thing that stands out. I draw one thing that helps me visualize and feel Equanimity. The act of translating something from inside me to my hands helps me distinguish between wise caution and fear-based resistance. It's become my way of asking: Is this doubt actually guidance, or is it just my nervous system trying to keep me safe?

​Friday's New Moon ceremony will help me get even clearer on that distinction. This New Moon lands near the Galactic Center, where belief systems shift and old ideas lose their grip. New truths form, but they're not visible yet. They're subtly or strangely felt.

The specific guides keeping me moving right now:

• My daily drawing practice during my morning ritual with Source as a check-in point
• The mentors and friends showing up at exactly the right moments (you know who you are)
• The eco-embodiment work that reminds my nervous system I can do hard things​
• The archetypes I'm working with to stay grounded in the vision
• My daimon, which can be found in my natal chart as my protector, muse, and accountability partner

You can find your daimon or daemon (not to be confused with demon), which is mentioned in various cultures and specifically in Plato's "The Myth of Er" found in The Republic (Book X) and in James Hillman's The Soul's Code. These works weave philosophies of the afterlife, reincarnation, justice, and purpose. I was introduced to this Hellenistic technique by astrologer Samuel F. Reynolds, who teaches about daemonic geometry and methodology. When I learned about my daimon, my life got so much better. You can book a session to find yours and how to work with it.

This New Moon asks where we've stayed loyal to outdated stories just to belong, and where we're ready to recommit with clarity, conviction, and self-respect.

Faith as Lived Trust

With Saturn and Neptune in tension with this New Moon, faith becomes the defining practice. Not faith as blind hope, but faith as lived trust.

My 80-year-old neighbor Frank told me recently that the right thing will show up when it's meant to, and it will feel easy. "No need to force it to happen." I keep thinking about that. Sometimes faith means pulling back, creating the conditions, doing the work, and trusting the timing.

But sometimes faith means choosing the mountain (yep, I'm a seagoat 🐐🧜🏼‍♀️) instead of the safe path. It means using metaphysical tools as practical business strategy. It means showing up to the 119-day countdown even when it feels impossible.

My mentor Joe says that stuckness and procrastination are simply avoiding the feelings I don't want to feel. If I can be with the feelings of shame, regret, panic, sadness, and anger...they will pass and I can move on to make the next right choice.

Here's a short meditation.

​Try it.

It may make you cry.

Where are your delayed decisions?

What feelings are you avoiding?

This New Moon asks:

• What do I actually have faith in that guides my life?
• Where do I turn when certainty falls away?
• Am I committed to living what I believe, or only thinking about it?

I'm choosing to live it. One day, one drawing, one ceremony, one decision at a time.

If you want to read more about my Scorpio new moon and Mercury cycle quest and what led me here, I've posted people, places, and things here. I'm really trying to stay off socials and Substack will be my only public-facing social platform in the new year 🤞🏽.

Some Things of Interest

I'll be hosting a New Moon in Sagittarius and Winter Solstice ceremony on Friday, December 19th at 6:30 p.m. if you're in Austin. Reserve at RitualResonance.com. This one is not in my typical place, so you'll have to reserve your spot and the directions and codes will be sent.

Find me offering Astro-Tarot readings, Spellbound journals & pouches, and travel altars at The Witches Market at the Brewtorium on Saturday, December 20, 2025 from 11 a.m. - 4 p.m.

January 9-11, 2026 Compass of Devotion: 2026 Vision Strategy Retreat (weekend and daylong options)

Sundays 6 p.m. Kripalu Yoga & Sound at The Yoga Common

Thank you for reading this far and being a part of my community.

If you have a moment, can you let me know if any of this was helpful or interesting?

Will you hit reply and let me know how you are this holiday season?

Wishing you a delightful Winter Solstice 🕯️✨ and all the heartwarming things that light you up.

Peace, wonder, and stars...

And lots and lots of love!

Monica

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