Karina Lafayette – January 2021
Oh, boy, the first year into the new decade has taught people… better hygiene? How to be considerate of other people’s boundaries by not forcing to shake hands or hug? How intricately connected everyone is to one another? Taking time out once in awhile instead of always working?Understanding the importance of personal space?? Most of all, it casted a not-so-gentle reminder of the long way we have to go to achieve social and political equality.
I literally hear the buzz of fellow Aquarius suns nodding their heads, as if they’ve been waiting their whole lives for this moment. For just once, the rest of us can see things how they do. Aquarius are often known for being aloof, distant, and sometimes accused of being selfish- and don’t get me wrong, some of them are that stereotype. But for the good ones, are they really selfish, or do most people just lack a sense of self?
I’m not saying that Aquarius invented boundaries, but as the water bearer, the real reason why they have to be a little detached at times is because they naturally have a broader understanding of humanity’s needs. Where Saturn goes, so too do our responsibilities. In Capricorn, he taught us how to be responsible with finances, emotions, and work. He also taught us to be our own father figure by making us accountable for our actions, which some people still like to bend, but I digress. In Aquarius, where he’ll stay from March 2020 to March 2023, he kicks it up a notch but with a touch of humanitarian lightheartedness. He teaches us how we can be responsible for others, and how the only way that can happen is by being responsible for ourselves first.
Most of us were taught two ways of doing things: either put yourself first and forget about others, or be a martyr and sacrifice your well-being. Narcissism and Codependency 101. This time calls for blending the contrast and learning how balance works. Aquarius is ruled by eccentric Uranus (with Saturn as its ancient ruler), which is all about thinking outside the box. That’s also why 2020 and onward won’t be pinned as good or bad years, because they’re going to be a bag of everything! Now that we’ve spent learning how to adult the right way, Saturn is gonna teach us how to adult while being considerate about the planet, about our communities, our people, our actions, and it’s about damn time. This is the sign of the visionary, and with so much being on hold, it’d be wise to imagine for yourself what you want your life to look like. With less distractions on hand, this is a chance to think critically about the larger vision for yourself. While having fun is well and good, is the way you spend your time efficient? Do you just think your hopes and wishes will magically fall into your lap? Do you spend hours on social media, only to wonder why you never have time to write that book? While this doesn’t sound fun, in the long run it sure will be, because Aquarius has a secret: it overrules the eleventh house of social circles, friendships, and… wishes.
That’s right. And this means that the sign on the cusp of your eleventh house gives an idea as to what wishes have the potential of being fulfilled during Saturn’s stay in Aquarius. For example, if your eleventh is on the cusp of Cancer, this is a great transit to imagine what you want your home and family life to look like, what your role within the family structure is, and to even conceive a baby. If your eleventh is on the cusp of Taurus, you’ll have a chance to develop creative projects and get a better hold on your finances, or even win the lottery. If your eleventh is on the cusp of Capricorn, you’re likely to get promoted or have issues regarding your father or the men in your life.
Saturn in Aquarius Folks: Social Pariahs or Misunderstood Heroes?
The last time Saturn was in Aquarius (1991–1994), the US was involved in the controversial Gulf War, while Croatia was fighting for independence. George Bush Sr. was President of the United States, and Jeff Bezos founded Amazon. Rioters took over LA streets after police officers were acquitted for beating up a black man named Rodney King, mirroring the series of Black Lives Matter protests and anger amidst the death of George Floyd at the hands of police officers in May 2020. A Guns N’ Roses concert in Montreal turned into a riot when singer Axl Rose walked off stage complaining about laryngitis, after showing up to the concert two hours late. As if that isn’t enough, during this time, members Axl, Izzy, and Duff were all in the middle of their first Saturn Return, which explains the challenges and disagreements the band was going through. Murphy Brown gave birth on tv as a single mother, which was almost unheard of at the time, even for a fictional tv character. And life as we know it was on the verge of a technological revolution, with the rise of the Internet slowly becoming our “new normal”.
Speaking as someone who has Saturn in Aquarius, I honestly like the current new normal that is social distancing and don’t see why a stranger should have the audacity to be close to me anyway. It’s not that people with this placement hate other people (though I do often feel like an alien), it’s just that we’re naturally outcasts. Regardless of how much we try to fit in, there’s always something about this placement that makes us stands out. Those with Saturn in the sign of social circles and humanity are often dismissed, labelled as “weird” or “uncool”, and get bullied, even rejected for not fitting the mold. Think of Allison from The Breakfast Club, and how her character gets cast aside for her being different. Often, these are the kids who like to clean up trash at recess or read a book while their classmates are playing sports, and tend to have a deep concern toward worldly issues. I remember as a kid walking outside with my mother and smiling at homeless people like they were just anyone.
The problem is, because the education system was originally made to mirror a typical workday and about conformity, many with Aquarius anywhere in their chart, Saturn included, are often high school or college dropouts. For example, actor Avan Jogia, an Aquarius sun, Mercury and Saturn, asked his parents if he could drop out of high school to pursue his career. His parents told him that he could go to LA for awhile, and if he got hired, he was an actor. If he didn’t get a role, he had to return home to Vancouver to graduate. Of course we all know what happened.
Admittedly, even I dropped out of university, because as much as I love class and my teachers, the education system is no bueno for me. I’ve felt like I had more to learn from the school of life than conventional school. Not to mention, it caused a blow to my self-esteem. Often, I thought I wasn’t good enough because I didn’t ace sports or science or any of the favored subjects, despite being praised for my writing and other strengths. Besides, I wanted to direct films and was only able to work on a set after leaving school.
What this Era Means on a Social Level
Home, one can only dream…
Since Saturn rules karma, like Santa, he’s checking his list and keeping tabs on whoever is dodging those responsibilities. He’s also about restriction- surprise! So with Covid, it makes sense that people feel “restricted” by the idea of having to think about other people. The idea of not being able to travel and do whatever whenever seems unfair, while there’s other people who would love to travel but can’t at all due to finances or family obligations. Think of all the homeless people who weren’t able to go shopping, go to the movies, eat in a restaurant, get a job, or do a number of relatively normal things long before the pandemic, either due to not having access to showers, or simply for being outcasts of society (there’s that word again). And because I’ve both lived in a shelter and now work in one, I can tell you that yes, this is a reality. For the homeless community, very little has changed since the start of the pandemic, aside from occasionally being unfairly arrested for sleeping outside or living in tents, thanks to certain areas having curfews and not enough shelter space or housing. In fact, recently in Toronto, Mayor John Tory decided to file an injunction against a carpenter named Khaleel Seivwright, for building- get this, tiny houses for homeless people to live in. Talk about being out of touch with reality, Tory.
Apparently a few of us need to be reminded that something as simple as toilet paper is a privilege.
When looking at family dynamics, still today mothers are often expected to care for the household AND work. I’m sure there are plenty of great dads, but honestly as a woman I can’t help but resent people who want me to do their job for them, when they’ve only tried to take and take. And this isn’t about keeping score or being a nag, this is about boundaries. With Saturn in Aquarius, men taking on tasks associated with the women in their lives won’t seem as unusual or sexy anymore. So many times we’re told we’re supposed to put others first, but we forget that we can’t pour from an empty cup. Aquarius in astrology couldn’t be the water bearer if he didn’t learn to pour his own water first. Otherwise, he would just be a panhandler shaking an empty cup at strangers outside. This is what Saturn will be teaching us for the next few years: to not only think about others, but to think about how the way we treat ourselves impacts everyone. When you thrive, everyone can thrive.
Side note, it is definitely a little humorous that Elon Musk, known for Tesla Motors, currently has an ongoing program he’s developing with SpaceX that aims at having the first humans to live on Mars, and Elon just so happens to have Mars in Aquarius conjunct his North Node. As time goes by, it wouldn’t be a surprise if we were to finally get one step closer toward living that Jetson lifestyle.
Beyond this, there’s going to be a major shift in relationships: a high probability of breakups, or people getting together that seem like odd couples (age differences, cultural differences, common law over marriage, etc). Relationships will be built more on standing together, instead of trying to hold on tightly when you can’t even hold your own. Aquarius is gonna force people to work interdependently, so don’t even think of trying to date people if you only want them to fulfill you. Relationships will no longer be simply for sex, money, companionship, feeling like a complete person, or narcissism. That was the old paradigm. In the new paradigm, you learn to fish, and share the plate, but you don’t get others to fish for you unless you’re struggling. The collective mentality that teaches people to “pull yourself by your bootstraps” is what empaths have felt since forever. A lot of us have been suffering in silence, feeling like nobody else cares about doing their fair share, and it just can’t be that way anymore. You have groups of people who are overburdened, tired- many who are doctors, nurses, social workers, artists, and teachers, that continuously pour into everyone- and you have groups profiting within the status quo who haven’t given nearly as much (Jeff Bezos, cough cough). The recent shocker with GameStop, which resulted in billionaires losing millions, is just one of many ways we’ll see this levelling of the playing field roll out, especially as Saturn and Uranus meet up in several squares throughout 2021. With Saturn-Uranus, there’s a lot of tension between wanting security and wanting freedom, but believe it or not, we can achieve both. It’s time to see a world that really benefits everyone. Food, shelter, education, and safety are rights not privileges. So yes, compassion and working together is in. Pointing fingers and blaming others is out.
We’re also likely to become more “picky” when it comes to dating, and not in a shallow way, but in a way that’s discerning. During isolation, I bet a lot of you have realized how many times we stay in relationships or friendships for the wrong reasons. You may even come out of this perceived nightmare feeling like you need to stay single for awhile, or focus on friendships instead. On the flip side, for those of us like me who might suck at being vulnerable (thanks Capricorn moon), this is our chance to pull down those walls brick by brick and learn to be open to connecting with someone. So when restrictions are lifted, the right person may actually show up!
Of course, I still want certain people to stay six feet away from me. Please and thanks.
Another thing we’re going to see, is a complete restructuring of what’s considered the status quo. Until early last year, it was the daily nine to five, with shortened meals and looking at our phones at dinner in front of our families. Where we experience the most autopilot is within our safe space- the home. The home will be completely revolutionized, with more people working from home (which in large part already started thanks to the pandemic), to people starting home-based businesses, to more kids being homeschooled or even teaching conferences in their living rooms via Zoom and FaceTime. A lot of jobs will be made obsolete and replaced by machines, which may seem scary and cause many job losses at first, but on the upswing this can give more people freedom to travel, work for themselves, focus on hobbies, go back to school, or look at jobs they actually want. We may even find that constantly spending time at malls or clubs won’t be as important, and take in more nature and serene environments. Social life will be based on quality than quantity. Better yet, we might as well finally start appreciating tasks that have been labelled as “hobbies” or “too feminine”, such as designing, baking, drawing, painting, sculpting, and anything that isn’t necessarily related to benefitting the economy. Through that, a different kind of economy will be born.
For power structures, we’ve already seen the issue with landlords threatening people for not paying rent when really, how many can actually pay their rent right now? Not many. Unless we FINALLY implement Universal Basic Income, which I predict could happen in more and more countries anytime between this year and as wild Uranus continues its trek in stability-loving Taurus. We’ve also seen a lot of politicians taking advantage of vulnerabilities by excusing extra surveillance or certain law enforcement, laws aimed at “encouraging” wearing masks, which have more to do with imposing power than actually making anyone safe. Wearing masks for now is obviously a public health issue, but that doesn’t give the right to having people’s privacy infringed, especially since we already live in a society that’s wired 24/7. It’s all well and good to look out for each other, but we need to remember that we’re all different, and that you can work together and still have your identity. Interdependency is the answer, not codependency. Your well being is connected to my well-being, but I won’t purposely make myself unhappy when your unhappy. Dimming my light in a time like this is a huge disservice, especially for artists or anyone who works on social media. Now more than ever do we need to be reminded of each other’s greatness, so our work can be poured as inspiration for the collective.
Be radical enough to stand out, radical enough to share your truth, and that will lead others do the same.
This article was originally published on Medium in March 2021.
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Karina xo
Persephone and Co. 
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