29 (saturn return)
A definition - In horoscopic astrology, a Saturn return is an astrological transit that occurs when the planet Saturn returns to the same place in the sky that it occupied at the moment of a person's birth.
A feeling - The intention was put in the process of this piece, using symbolism to begin to translate my feelings of this space and time I am occupying. I wanted to describe the duality of self that I have experienced and have begun to learn from. For the past decade or so, I have felt immense internal and external pressure to fall in line with society's implemented timing of life. Which includes when to graduate, have an acceptable career, marriage, house, family, etc. Society's rigid book of how one's seasons of life should look are to mainly keep them, in a sense, feeling comfortable and us trapped in the box. This left me feeling incomplete, like there were greater things out there I was missing out on. These past three years, I have really been rebelling against the notion, slowly breaking down the framework that was binding me. The moment I began to let life ebb and flow with me and me with it, I felt like I was coming into myself. I know that there is always room for growth and learning, I welcome that. Ironically, at the completion of this sculpture, I came full circle and realized that I would like to plant some roots soon. The deeper my roots can go, the farther my branches can grow.
In a strange way, I feel fortunate to go through the final bit of this 29th year and beginning of my 30th isolated in my home, studio, and garden. I want to bring in more soul satisfying habits into my daily life to carry with me after this is all over. This period is solidifying the people, places, and things that are important to me and how I would like to spend my time more wisely in the future.
Despite all the complications (and strangeness and sickness) I feel like this is a beautiful time for us all to nourish the soul and let go of the framework of what we think we have to do to get by and fit in. ....which should be easy to do because that's one thing this virus has given most of us, time. It really is a gift. Let us all come together in isolation and reimagine a more soul filling life and lifestyle! We are, after all, about to enter a new age of Aquarius when Saturn moves away from Capricorn tomorrow. (for all you astronerds out there, it does retrograde back through Capricorn for some time later on in the year but sounds fitting given where we are, right?) Love and light.