Cosmic Cycle Calendar

~ mapping the creative crops of the astrological growing season ~

i’ve been thinking a lot about the astrological growing season and Mapping my Creative Crops to be more fluid with the forecasted archetypal energies of the cosmic soup in which we float. the astrological year starts around the spring equinox with the beginning of aries season. it is also when the sprouts begin, the yellow daffodils and purple crocuses pop up, pink n white cherry blossoms and magnolias bud. my plant mind is thinking of seeds to gather and sprout for the coming year. the gregorian new year never feels sensical to me. seems to be just the capitalist year’s best time to reset after the lucrative/expensive ‘holiday season’. i feel the beginning/ending threshold of the earths cycle around the sun happen at the change of the seasons between winter and spring. spring feels like emergence, winter like fallow dormancy and death; a time for composting, rest, and regeneration. the shift from one to the other, a glorious bursting rebirth. i’ve always felt this from the perspective of tuning to nature’s cycles. this year i’ve been taking closer note of how the synchronous flow of the cosmic seasons harmonize with the natural growing season. the word month comes from the word moon and was originally the space of time between new moons (source: etymonline). the word year has roots in the word ‘season’ and is thought to have originally meant ‘that which makes a complete cycle’ (source: etymonline). around the spring equinox and start of the sun’s trip through aries is a beautiful time to plan anew for the upcoming year cycle and the vibrant seasons to come. archetypal aries is already juicing us with the magic of impulse, instinct, ignition.

so i ask you dear reader, what would you like to see growing in the garden of your life this year?

i’m defining the astrological growing season as ~mid-march to november. in december thru february i too, like the plants, am resting, shifting, changing, recharging, tending to my roots and the part of the body that is unseen-subterranean. in the fallow months i am alchemizing ideas and incepting dreams into my reality. i’m still creating but in a slower more reflective and experimental way. with a fulfilled resting season, i have the energy and fuel to begin the growing season with aligned actions.

we can not create without rest and replenishment. rejuvenation is as necessary as noticing, imagining, and dreaming to the process of materializing creative energy. noticing my creative, output, and rest seasons in relation to natural cycles helps me to be present with my experiences and phases.

.⋆｡⋆☂˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆. I invite you to map your 2023 growing season! .⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆｡˚☂⋆｡⋆.

begin with a few lists. questions i ask myself in the plotting of my creative growing season:

• what do i want to see fruit/flower?

• what type of energy/magnetism/attraction do i feel vibrating within me currently/lately?

• what are the patterns and themes showing up in my life right now and over the past 1-2 months?

• are there any present patterns and themes that have been orbiting for the past 6-9 months?

• are there any personal practices, core values, or goals i want to invest time into learning, beginning, or growing toward in this growing season?

• are there any practices, archetypes, energies that i want to consciously root into this year?

then, as a spatially oriented person i like to map things visually. i draw a large circle that fills up a paper and divide that into pie slices for each month from (april - november). i add in roughly where the astrological sun seasons fall (aries-sagitarius). i call this a Cycle Circle or Circle Calendar (visual example & instructions at the close of this article).
you could also make this in a timeline, a reordered list, or a visual ecosystem. whatever works best for your brain and body. an example of a visual ecosystem created for times of transition can be found here: threshold ecosystem.

next, i consider my lists. what is already in the works or geared up to begin? where do those fit in with the different seasons? timing of the sun’s archetypes? timing of existing obligations and plans? do any of the goals or plans have a visible long arc? how does that affect the timing of planting and nurturing it’s existence?

some of these answers are more obvious for certain creative projects than others. i first add to the timeline or circle calendar those projects that feel more clear. perhaps a picture begins to emerge. i consider the balance of my practices with the projected flow of the growing season. i color in more details as they become clear and leave open what is still vague.

i accept in advance that not all my seeds that i attempt to sprout will rise; not all the sprouts i nurture will survive changing ecosystems and take root; not all the plants that grow will thrive equally and some will die before realizing their full potential. tending gardens and plants has taught me these lessons directly, and i notice how it brings me peace that my own creative ecosystem is mirroring that beautiful concert of nature.

!important! at somepoint in the creative process, the garden takes form, deep connection emerges, and its character grows more of it’s own volition. i just need to show up, water, prune, converse, and harvest. the timing of all becomes apparent thru deep listening and what looks like/is ritual. for me, when this happens it is key that i do not try to control or force agenda or plans as i thought they might unfold. that is the beginning of a pathological cycle in which i oppress my own creative flow and collaboration with the universe. the plans and mapping act more as portals to possible futures and our unfolding path rather than a direct line of truth. fore we are never separate from our web of entanglements, and how joyous that they bring us futures we can not yet imagine.

　 ҉ ✼　 ҉ ✼　 ҉ visual example of mapping the astro growing szn in a circle calendar　 ҉ ✼　 ҉ ✼　 ҉