Hello Friends:

How have you fared during Saturn's entry into Aries, the Fire Horse Lunar New Year with the Aquarius New Moon Solar Eclipse? Do you feel ready to go? Ready to make big changes?

Hold on.

We have entered watery, dreamy, sensitive Pisces Season. Faith and trust in something bigger take center stage.

Tomorrow, February 20th, is the big day that astrologers have been watching for a while. Saturn (time, structure, discipline) and Neptune (imagination, illusion, dreams) meet in fiery Aries at 0°, the beginning of the zodiac. This is tremendous. We commit to the reality of our vision. Saturn solidifies what is real, Neptune dissolves what is not. Before we begin anew.

Let's do a meaningful ritual for a moment.

Before rushing into the energy of the fire horse in 2026, we must honor what we learned in the year of the snake. The year of the sheep comes after in 2027.

What did you shed that was unhelpful, disappointing, and hurtful? How did you learn discernment, which is now your greatest tool in the year of the fire horse?

Answer these as succinctly as possible:

1) I release ___________ (what did you let go of in 2025/Year of the Snake?)

2) I seed __________ (new moons in eclipse season are not meant to start or launch because of the unstable energy)

3 I am ___________________________________ (you are what you identify with, your behaviors & habits show who you are)

Here are mine as an example:

1) I release confusion (this means I prioritize communication and clarity and work on my relational skills)

2) I seed a new prosperity economy (exploring new currencies, trade practices that are fair and equitable)

3) I am a wealthy land steward, active, healthy, and deeply connected to my community as I grow the local food economy while protecting sky and earth through storytelling. (I will spend 2026 and fire horse energy to embody this identity)

Reply to this newsletter and tell me what visions you are committing to?

The Need for Pleasure

While studying with one of my teachers trained as a Taoist nun, a dominatrix, a shaman, and feminine healer, one of the most profound lessons came in an exercise where we imagined something as the body of our lover.

When visiting New York City, I imagined the city as the body of my lover, gazing lovingly at the architecture, touching the park trees, and tasting with delight all that I was experiencing. I lingered and pointed out everything I loved.

If you are feeling a bit exhausted and overwhelmed, I ask you to try this exercise of flirting with your life.

When you wake up in the morning, imagine you've had the best sexy night with the most amazing lover. As you walk outside you have a skip in your step and colors feel more vivid. Breathe in the aroma of grass. Greet the barista or cashier with a compliment and chat with the bird sitting next to you. Smile and say hello if it feels good to share a little sunshine. Because you have been pleasured and now pleasure is you.

The mirror only smiles when you do.

Even if you don't have a lover or partner, you can still be madly in love with your life. All the synchronicities are a wink from the Universe, gasp and delight in them. The stars, the breeze, the stones, and books are the generous gifts you have been given by your lover, Life.

I've made you a playlist so you can start the day feeling vixen-y and loving your big, throbbing, expanding life. Play it on shuffle.

I promise you, life will flirt back.

The rush of energy is priceless.

The Elation Then Deflation

Art and I have been hard at work adjusting pro formas, working on the website, meeting with farmers, and going to farmers markets, and having all the difficult conversations that come up with co-founders. We try to work in spaces like Oak Hill Social so we can take a break playing corn hole or darts after way too much sitting.

I am 91 days into my 117 days of my Mercury Cycle of figuring out what this business is. Our priority is deeply understanding our customer segments of local farmers and producers and their problems. We are living the Lean Canvas.

A few weeks ago, we came upon a 1,650 sq. ft. space in Jesters Village off 2222, where the Papa John's is closing. It has a 10'x14' walk-in cooler already onsite and a hood for our kitchen. Although we were looking for land in Dripping Springs, this seemed an ideal location to stand up the retail store and cafe to validate the concept and get local farmers and producers another retail opportunity fairly quickly.

It looked liked March 20, 2026 might be a reality for our launch!

Our promising negotiations took a turn for the worst as the property owner contracted a new realtor, who convinced the owner to bring the price up to "market value" from $18 to $25 (which they will be doing for all the current tenants) and a NNN of $67 to $8.25. It was out of our budget and seems they are not interested in helping small businesses, including the ones currently occupying spaces in the retail center.

So when I return on March 1st from the UK, it's back to the drawing board and looking for our location once again, albeit wiser about lease negotiations and what to look for and ask about.

We have also changed our name to Soil to Soul Commons: Farm Stop & Cafe. You can see our website here, which is focused more for farmers and producers to sign up with us and gives context about why we are building this. We welcome any feedback.

A Taste of Expertise

To promote our possible opening in March, Art is hosting a class on his specialty of nixtamalization. He'll be teaching this technique of making and cooking masa in a traditional way that imparts more health and flavor. Perhaps you might like to invite a friend to this fun cooking experience, which will be hosted in a gorgeous home in Dripping Springs. It's a small class to ensure lots of hands-on learning and luscious savoring. I posted some photos of Art in his zone of genius here. You can follow him at Nutrir_01.

Feeding My Soul

I sit here getting ready for a trip to Skipton, Yorkshire, UK to study with my teacher Dr. Sharon Blackie. She is hosting "Psyche the Size of the Earth: Creating a New Mythology of Place" at Broughton Sanctuary from February 23-28, 2026.

Even while building a business and repairing my sailboat for a robust racing year, I am committed to my studies of the eco-heroine's journey within fairy tales, folktales, and myths. Saturn and Neptune conjoining in Aries. I believe in the power of storytelling as a healing modality, especially if it is steeped in the wisdom of the natural and Other worlds. I look forward to sharing that experience with you when I return. I'm trying to wean off of social media so I will be sharing news in this newsletter or my Substack moving forward.

Speaking of my sailboat...

We are hosting our naming ceremony on Saturday, February 21st at 10:30 a.m. before the Frostbite Series Race. We'll have bites and beverages as well as all the pomp and circumstance required for a boat's identity. Come join us at the Austin Yacht Club.

Pisces Season

I believe my last newsletter was at the start of Aquarius season and now we have just entered Pisces Season (February 18-March 20), ruled by both Jupiter and Neptune. Emotions and sensitivity can be best harnessed through creativity: watercoloring, journaling, pottery, drawing, dancing and even singing. It is a time to connect to one another and a higher calling. There's an eclipse amidst this flowing time.

Let this be in blinky lights to get your sexy on: February 22nd: Venus in Pisces trines Jupiter retrograde in Cancer.

Mercury is also in the pre-retrograde shadow, stationing retrograde on February 25th inside the Pisces season.

On March 3rd, the Lunar Eclipse in Virgo will be challenging your dreamy state with the need to know how. About everything. Depression is thinking about the past, anxiety is about the future. Stay present. Do this moment right and the rest will take care of itself. Reflect back to March 13, 2025 at the first Virgo eclipse in this series. The story continues.

The New Moon in Pisces on March 18th will guide you to all of the things that feel good. Make good choices ;)

​Book a session if you'd like some cosmic guidance or strategy. I know some of you out there are using AI to figure things out, which also works. But there's something about human witnessing and love that doesn't come from a formula that is weaving your words into something validating and comforting, and even revelatory. There's no risk in being vulnerable to your algorithm. I find the AI I've built so very helpful, but I love and prefer the wisdom I receive from my mentors, advisors, coaches, and friends.

Thank you for being part of my world and for your support of my work.

If there's anything you'd like me to write about, let me know. I'd love to know how you are.

With so much love and admiration,

Monica