Liberating Honesty and a Gnarly Scorpio Full Moon


Hello Friends,

I'm a terrible marketer.

Yes, I’ve worked in branding and marketing for over two decades—from Fortune 100 companies to soulful solopreneurs. I even work with a global ethical marketing expert. And yet here I am, hosting an Erotica Writing Playshop on May 15th at Flutter Romance Bookstore, with nothing but a few Instagram posts, Eventbrite listing, and postcards quietly tucked away on a bookstore counter.

Maybe it's because we’re banning books here in Texas. Maybe it’s the tension of these nebulous times where people are being surveilled, silenced, and disappeared. Just this morning, I read that Laotian, Vietnamese, and Filipino migrants are now being targeted for deportation. And even though I’m a citizen, I felt my stomach tighten. Add to that the 89% approval rating for #47 in Texas according to a UT study, the ongoing assault on women’s reproductive rights... and you begin to understand why my Venus in the 12th house and Scorpio Midheaven would prefer to stay hidden.

But still, I write.

Because words matter. Because naming what we feel unblocks our nervous and digestive systems. Because expression is a form of resistance.

My friend Tina Schweiger created FeelWise, a deck and technology that helps us identify and articulate what we feel. My dear Wendy Colonna channels healing through Mojo Tracks, creating personalized affirmations set to music. And my sister Donnabelle Casis just launched a stunning podcast, To Hum is Human, where intuition meets entrepreneurship.

I also want to say this:
Our sexuality is sacred.
It is our chi, our life force, our will to live. And when we disconnect from it—when we don’t feel safe to access or express it—we don’t just repress desire… we suppress our vitality. This isn’t the French petite mort; this is the slow dying of what gives us the courage to explore, create, and connect.


Cosmically Speaking

Full Moon: Monday, May 12, 2025 | 22° Scorpio
Themes: Full-Bodied Honesty & Emotional Revelation
"Pain is the reaction to attachment." — J. Krishnamurti

This full moon opposes the Sun and Uranus in Taurus, a cosmic push-pull between comfort and breakthrough. It forms a yod with Jupiter in Gemini and Chiron in Aries, directing us to a deeper collective healing. Mars in Leo opposes Pluto in Aquarius—individual action meets collective transformation—and Mercury sits at the apex of a T-square, demanding embodiment over intellect.

It’s a powerful time to release, especially if you’ve been feeling the pressure build. Allow a dissolving instead of a forcing.

Lunar Family Story Arc:

  • Nov 13, 2023 (New Moon, 20° Scorpio): A seed is planted
  • Aug 12, 2024 (First Quarter): Action, pruning what no longer serves
  • May 12, 2025 (Full Moon, 22° Scorpio): Emotional reveal, deeper release
  • Feb 9, 2026 (Last Quarter): The closing chapter, integration

For me, this arc has unfolded across my 4th and 10th house axis—home vs. vocation. I considered selling my house last November. I listed it in August. Now in May, as I settle into a new home in Hudson Bend, I’m grieving the change while envisioning what’s next.

I'm searching for land to build a venture studio rooted in permaculture and intentional community. At the same time, I’ve stepped into a deeper collaboration with one of my clients—an alignment of vision, values, and purpose.

Look back through your photos, journals, calendar entries. What is your story arc telling you?


Something Hopeful

Some full moons wash over us gently. Others shake the soul. With these transits and current global griefs, you may be feeling the intensity. I certainly am. Two of my aunts are in hospice and critical. Friends are navigating life-altering diagnoses. And yet—amid sorrow, something beautiful rises.

Committed love.
Reverence for life.
A quiet revolution of care.

From the Centre of Applied Jungian Studies:

“I have often seen patients simply outgrow a problem that had destroyed others... It was not solved logically in its own terms, but faded out when confronted with a new and stronger life urge... from the higher level of personality now looked like a storm in the valley seen from the mountain top.”
— C.G. Jung, CW13, par. 17

We are both the storm and the mountain. We feel the ache and are also the witness who knows, "I am suffering.” That awareness is everything.


Join the Revolution

If you're ready to channel this intensity into creation, join us for Medicine Words—a writing playshop where eros, mythology, and craft collide.

We’ll begin our 6-part series with Aphrodite and The Empress, diving into their mythic symbols to awaken our voices. Come solo or bring a friend. And if you're willing to share it with your people, I'd be deeply grateful.

INVITATION TO WORSHIP

Aphrodite, Empress of bloom and breath,
traced the rim of her goblet
with fingers dripping pomegranate juice.
Wherever she walked, roses unfurled.
She didn’t ask for permission to want—
she simply was desire.
Silk against skin, ripe fruit against lips,
her body was the altar and the offering.


Stretch and Sound

Join me Sunday evenings at 6 p.m. at The Yoga Common for Kripalu Gentle Yoga & Sound. There's always a new student special.

Thank you for reading this far and for your support of my work.

So much love,

Monica

Hello! I'm Monica Paredes

Brand strategist, multi-dimensional entrepreneur, startup mentor, Kripalu Yoga Teacher, astrologer, herbalist, tarot intuitive, author, photographer, teacher, and mama.

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