PREVIOUS THOUGHTS FOR THE DAY December 14 2015 to December 20 2015 Monday December 14 Spirit of the Season Many, this week, are preparing to celebrate a festival. Some call it the Solstice. To others, it is Saturnalia. It has also long been known as Yuletide. Just a thousand years or so ago, followers of one particular faith made a conscious decision to attach, to this tradition, a celebration of their founder's birthday. Not that he was actually born in December. I'll say more, soon, about how eager they also were to attach, to the tale of his birth, cosmic credentials involving a special star. But what is the true spirit that excites so many at this season? Tuesday December 15 Free Lunch Dear Jonathan, In a recent forecast you asked, 'Where is the invoice for all the air you have breathed? Shouldn't a corporation, somewhere, be charging for that?' I'm writing to tell you that there is, in Poland. In some cities tourists must pay 'fresh air fees' to local goverment offices. Apparently, also, a Venezuelan airport charges passengers a fee of £12 to pay for their new air-conditioning system. Graz Dear Graz, I was referring to entrepreneurs finding new things to sell us. The ability of authorities to find new ways to tax us has never been in doubt! Wednesday December 16 Like an Egyptian Dear Jonathan, Are any special alignments coming into position for the impending opening of what is believed to be Queen Nefertiti's hidden chamber? Paul Dear Paul, Do you mean like in some Fifties B-Movie when, as the Egyptologist reveals a false wall in a pyramid, an astrologer bursts in shouting, 'Not yet! Wait for the Moon to oppose Jupiter lest you unleash the dreaded curse of the Mummy?' Actually, next year's Transit of Mercury across the solar disc does make this an apt time to learn more about the Queen of Akhenaten, the pharaoh who worshipped the Sun. Thursday December 17 Point of View Dear Jonathan, I hear two heliocentric Grand Crosses (Earth, Venus, Pluto and Uranus; and Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn and Neptune) are due in January. What do they mean? C. Dear C, You'd have to ask a heliocentric astrologer! Such practitioners draw up charts as if they were outside the solar system in a spacecraft. Their view places the Sun at the centre. That's astronomically correct, of course, but perhaps like trying to direct a car by remote control from an overhead helicopter. Geocentric, Earth-centered, astrology provides what (I feel) is a more useful view through the actual windscreen! Friday December 18 The Sun it Swings Like a Pendulum Do The Sun, each day, rises from a slightly different point along the eastern horizon. Over six months, it traces a kind of 'path'. Eventually, it seems to get as far as it can go in one direction, then starts retracing its steps. If you were to film the process over several years with a stop frame animation camera, you'd get a video that looked like a giant pendulum, wildly swinging across the sky! The change is marked by three days in a row when the Sun rises from precisely the same point. This weekend brings us to the Solstice! Saturday December 19 Your Week Ahead Expect a week of social gatherings, family interactions, eating, drinking and gift-giving. Given how close we are to Christmas, I could correctly predict all that, yet it would hardly make me Mystic Mike! The planets, of course, know nothing of the festive season. They aren't aware of the joy it brings to some and the stress of 'expectation' it creates for many more. Yet, by an odd quirk of coincidence, two significant celestial events do occur on December 25. Uranus changes direction and there's a Full Moon. Whatever sign you are, it will be a powerful, positive, week. Sunday December 20 Your Week Ahead - Love Focus Remember, your Love Forecast today does not just cover romance. A love forecast may also have something to say about your family life, your closest friendships and even some of your most important working relationships. Back to Index   Jonathan Cainer's Daily Zodiac Forecasts