Clear to Courage

I recently wrote about fear as the root of being stuck.  Certainly that's not the place to leave the conversation, it's like saying “watch out for the alligators over there, good luck and mind the door doesn't hit you on the way out.”   Let's bring discourse up to the level of “here's how to cleverly avoid alligators and door-on-butt-syndrome and get the heck outta here.”
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You may have gotten the idea from previous posts I'm a fan of Yin and Yang. Inseparable, distinct, they manage and engender one another. Essentially, if something's got a front, there's most assuredly a back. Outside comes complete with inside. You know what is hot because you've experienced cold. Water and fire each control the other. Polar opposites create attraction and action.
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​These times, these crazy chaotic and polarizing times at hand, remind me of the bio-process in cellular division (mitosis). Internal structures migrate to opposing poles before dividing into two new versions of the original cell. I imagine it's a bit chaotic in the cell before everything sorts itself out. Sound familiar? There's a cycling from whole to polarized then to whole again and so on. Remember, the Yin Yang symbol is curved to indicate it's always cycling. Similar in spirit, the lemniscate, symbol of infinity implies cycling motion.

So while “these times” may be overall somewhat less than fun, we know it won't always be like this as cycles come and go. However, there are alligators to be navigated and it's easy to be afraid. Take heart: if there's fear there's courage around somewhere. If there's no fear, courage is not needed, it has no context. Erik Francis, an astrologer based in Kingston, NY, wrote, “Aspects in the Saturn-Pluto cycle tend to manifest fear, contraction, negativity, and at the same time steely, stalwart heroism, often without a name... The correct response is courage. And it is available.” i Italics mine, to emphasize Yin Yang component.

Yeah, easy to say, harder to do, I know. I'd like to add a couple more words to the discussion on how to go from Fear to Courage: Trust and Clarity. Trust was an insistent presence as I turned these ideas over in my mind and heart (ooh, more cycling!). Trust yourself, you've gotten this far. The more we are Clear in ourselves of who we are, what we believe, what our capacity is, the more we clearly face what terrifies us, see through fear's distraction and initiate effective change.

​There's an associated emotion in each of the Chinese Five Elements; Fear belongs to Water. You may remember from previous posts each element engendering the next is one of the special distinctions of this system. Courage belongs to Wood and is the child of Water. Wood, as you remember from the previous post, is about initiating action, having the courage to act. Action moves us on to the next element, Fire, associated with Joy. So Courage moves us out from Fear and on to Joy. Energy from Water moves into Wood and on to Fire. Water and Fire are in an archetypal Yin-Yang relationship. Courage is an antidote to Fear and takes us on toward Joy at the other pole. Clarity clears the pathway for smoother sailing. Recently I read (and sadly cannot remember who) the recommendation to clear out that which weighs down, is no longer useful so as to run lean into 2020, taking but one suitcase holding that which serves best. Clarity. Trust. Courage. Joy.
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Good luck and mind the door as you head out into the next round. The runway to 2020 is cleared!​ Happy New Year!

I'm new to author, mythic storyteller and heartfelt deep thinker Michael Meade. Find out more at his website and find him on YouTube. ​He is so much more eloquent than I even think I am.

i (https://planetwaves.net/take-heed-plus-your-january-monthly-horoscope/ accessed 12/28/19)