Out of Time

Naked Songwriter #15

Horses, Synesthesia, Trance and the Eternal Present Moment

lilly

Photo by DK

I had an extraordinary experience with a horse – the day after it happened.

Which led to an exploration of the relationship between time and authority – and why we can’t hope to write a different story while we’re stuck in a krono-logical timeframe.

Also:

  • Mercury out of bounds in Cancer
  • Mars out of bounds in Cancer
  • The Cancer New Moon
  • Synesthesia and songwriting

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Like Suicide: Chris Cornell Part 2

Interview with a Dreamer

Christine C. is a prophetic dreamer. Not that she wants to be – it runs in her family. The way being psychic runs in some people’s families. In my interview with Christine, she talks about her dream of Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell on the night he died and why she feels sure his suicide was unintentional.

Does that sound weird – an unintentional suicide? I have a theory on it, as someone who has been to that edge and survived.

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Continue reading

This Too Shall Pass

Can Astrology Save Lives?

The news that Chris Cornell had killed himself (in my hometown of Detroit) on May 18, 2017 came as a shock.¹ The news saddened me but – maybe because I’ve talked to so many people who have been going through bouts of deep despair – it didn’t feel totally surprising.

If Chris Cornell had known a little bit about his natal chart and about astrology in general, would he still be alive today? Continue reading

How to Read Your Horoscope for Fun and Profit

Learn astrology by Reading Your Horoscope

New online interactive class starts June 14

In this class I’m going to share trade secrets utilized by all horoscope columnists that – once you know them – will empower you to:

your chart, blossoming

Inner Sun – photo collage by DK.

  • Realistically assess which days, weeks and months are going to be easier or more challenging for you.
  • Avoid falling prey to self-fulfilling prophecies of doom or disaster.
  • Know which signs and planets you need to focus on when reading your horoscope.
  • Use free apps and websites – or inexpensive astrological calendars and day planners – to calibrate where the events mentioned in your horoscope are actually happening for you.
  • Use your weekly horoscope to teach yourself astrology!

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Astrology Q&A: Sagittarius Full Moon

Observing the Quality of Moments in Time

In my recent post on kronos vs kairos time, I mentioned that one way of defining astrology is as a system that enables us to tune in to the quality or flavor of a given moment in time. In fact, we might say this is the supreme value of astrology: it gives us a language for making meaning out of what is happening to us. (Or what is happening within us.)

As I was meditating on this, I drifted off into a parallel universe not too far from this one. In this universe, all university students take at least one year of basic astrology courses to satisfy the core emotional intelligence requirements all students must pass in order to graduate.

I was trying to explain this concept to Abi. She’s one of my brightest students, but she has grown increasingly frustrated with her progress. She confronted me after class with a question that bedevils many a bright beginner-to-intermediate astrology student. Here’s how our conversation went:

Sagittarius Full Moon chart June 9, 2017

Sagittarius Full Moon. June 9, 2017, 9:09 am, New York, NY.

ABI: I feel like I know a lot about astrology. I know what the planets mean, I’m familiar with the signs, I know my basic aspects, etc. So I’ve got all these pieces, but when it comes to making a coherent, meaningful interpretation…(sigh)…I just can’t seem to put it all together. (Her voice trails off; she has a faraway look in her eyes.) Continue reading

Epigenetics & Ancestors Workshops Live in Michigan

Join DK and Dr. Diana Quinn ND in person for a revolutionary experience in self-care and planetary healing

epigenetics ancestors dk brainard diana quinn nd

I’m excited to announce two new workshops I’ll be facilitating with Dr. Diana Quinn. The Ann Arbor workshop will be more specifically focused on opening communication with helpful ancestors, while the Ferndale workshop will include the ancestors and epigenetics pieces.  The power behind this work is great and Dr. Quinn and I are so pleased to be able to share this in person. Continue reading

The Power of Micro-Stories

Small Changes Add Up

magnolia blossom

Magnolia – image by DK.

I was brooding the other day about my addictive nature and how much time I waste daily in self-sabotaging habits to avoid completing things and thus have to face the possibility of failure.

Or is it the responsibility that accompanies success that I’m so afraid of facing?

The macro story here on a personal level is that I must always try very hard, frequently exhausting myself in the process. But I must always fall just shy of real success in the end.

Because, were I to succeed, the people I love would turn on me. I would be punished and/or exiled and would end up isolated, unloved, shamed and alone. So goes the narrative in my unconscious.

Living in a Van…Down by the River!

For those of you old enough to remember the old Saturday Night Live sketches with Chris Farley, the unconscious narrative that stars up in my subconscious whenever I consider threatening the status quo by doing what I really want bears an eerie resemblance to Matt Foley’s story.

Why on earth would my success, joy and happiness possibly cause anyone else to feel bad? I mean, that’s insane, right? Well, if you grew up in a dysfunctional family system (and most of us did), you began learning and internalizing a certifiably insane story about life – and your place in it – right from the beginning. In ‘my’ big story, here are a couple of reasons why I must never succeed:

  • It would “show up” my mom and my brother, both of whom played the role of the crazy-making ‘blocked artist’ for much of my life. My success would force them to examine their own shameful self-betrayals. This would make them uncomfortable and I would be punished.
  • If I had more resources I might just opt for freedom on all levels, including in my primary relationship. This would embitter my partner, who would then turn my children against me. I would be punished and/or exiled and would end up isolated, unloved, shamed and alone.

Better to honor my childhood contract with my family system to be the nice but weak-willed peacekeeper whose energy is always available to support the others, than risk the possible horrors accompanying success.

Changing the Micro-Story

It’s hard to change your narrative if you don’t even know what stories you’re telling yourself. In this case, I didn’t immediately realize I was telling myself a story about how I was too much of a loser to ever make any progress. What I did notice was that I was feeling particularly bad that morning.

Whenever we’re in the grip of a repressed or denied subconscious belief or archetype, we automatically fall into a light trance state. The mind, unable to choose between our conscious intention and the subconscious instructions to the contrary, starts to dissociate from the body and from the present moment.

This is a big reason why bringing awareness into the body in the present moment – something I do in almost every coaching session with clients – is so powerfully healing. The feelings in this trance included (K) generalized fatigue, a tightness in the stomach, and a heaviness across the shoulders and in the upper chest.¹

The inner dialog (A) accompanying the feelings – which I was unaware of until I had acknowledged the feelings – ran along the lines of:

“I waste so much time every day. No wonder you can’t finish anything. I’m never going to make it. I should just give up and accept that I’m cursed to mediocrity…”

Seize the Inspiration When It Hits

I have been asking Archangel Gabriel for help a lot this year when I find myself stuck in a mental rut. I don’t recall if I had specifically done that in the moments preceding this experience, but it’s likely. Suddenly I received a flash of inspiration: the idea came into my mind that ‘Yes, it’s true I don’t seem to be making any progress today. But I’m doing my best and that means I am making progress (albeit invisible on the outside). So I know² I will be making visible progress soon.’

Suspending disbelief, I followed this train of thought. The next idea to come along sounded (A) something like this:

“I feel it building up. I feel the resolve trying to build. Even though it’s not apparent on the outside I’m going to keep nurturing it. And once it gets strong enough, nothing will be able to stand against it! Yeah!

Whether this was the absolute truth or not (which stories are?) this thought filled me with a small surge of power. The heaviness in my chest now felt like a smooth even fire spreading outwards through the rest of my body (K).

I felt more energized and hopeful than I had a moment before. My body felt like it wanted to move. (K)

So I moved. I went down to my office, fired up the computer and started working on one of those unfinished projects. In fact, not only was the rest of that day enjoyable and productive; I’ve accomplished more – and enjoyed doing it more – in the days since then than I probably did in the entire month leading up to this experience.


Notes:

1- Being aware of the submodalities — visual (V), auditory (A), kinesthetic (K) — that predominate in our various stories  (both subconscious and conscious) can really help you take back your inner authority. While there are a lot of great, proven techniques for harnessing the power of submodalities, it’s really powerful when you can simply allow yourself to become aware of which system the brain leads with when showing you a good story versus feeding you a bad story.

2 – Thanks Corin Grillo for turning me on to the power of specific angels to help us with specific life areas.

What’s Reality? Chris Cornell, Chiron in Pisces & Collective Grief

What Channel Are We Tuned Into?

Feeling the weight of the “War on People”?

This is the revolution, kids. If the wave should suck you under, remember ‘this too shall pass’ and please reach out to your tribe. We love you and we need you.

Plus:

  • The astrology of Mars square Chiron this week, activating collective grief.
  • Exploring Mars out of bounds in Gemini in transit to Chris Cornell’s natal chart.
  • Chiron in Pisces and #blacklivesmatter
  • More downloads on the collective story and why your big problem isn’t really your fault.
  • Melanie Reinhart – Chiron and the Healing Journey.
  • And new music!

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“What is the sound of one hand clapping?” asks the zen koan.

“I don’t know, but, um, personally, I like it when they clap for me,” says the Leo in my chart.

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