Family Matters

LEO IN THE 4TH HOUSE
Leo, the classic sign of drama and creativity, is nestled in the 4th House, the house of home and the mother. It's very likely that we're going to see some interesting happenings from our home lives and especially from the matriarchs. This is also a perfect time to reconnect with parents and/or children. Perhaps there will be some spats, but in the end, the bond between family members is stronger than the insanity caused.


Family is a tumultuous topic and defined in many different ways. There is a unique breed of insanity that's deeply integrated with the familial unit. No one can drive you crazy better than the people who you grew up with. They know your ins and outs. They know what buttons to push, what phrases to use, and can predict outcomes based on mood swings. These are also the people who are there for you when you need comfort, support, or a laugh. They're not necessarily parents or siblings, aunts or uncles, grandparents or cousins, although they may include these roles.

Some define family by blood. "Blood is thicker than water." Quite the scientific assessment. Others by bond. "Friends are the family you choose." I think it's very much the bond. After all, the word family has the same root as familiar, and after all, shouldn't your family be the people who are familiar with you? That's why some people refer to close friends of the family as "Aunt" or "Uncle." Also why we say that some people are more than friends; they're family. We surround ourselves with family, whether we realize it or not.

Introducing a new person into the family can be a trying and nerve-wracking situation for all involved. The irony, of course, is that everyone wants it to work out. Everyone hopes that the group gets along with the new person, especially if there is romantic interest from a member of the group. There are so many questions of when and where and how to introduce the new member and if it should be done with everyone present or just on an individual basis. I think it depends on the family. Some people are better off meeting everyone at once and just ripping the band-aid off. Others prefer to wade in the shallow end before diving in. It's all about the dynamic and the member of the family who is doing the introducing should make the best call with that as they know both parties well. Basically, what everyone's hoping is that the new person's style of crazy gels with their own. That's really what it boils down to.

There's going to be drama no matter what. You just have to find the group that accepts your drama and has drama that you can handle. We put up with a lot for our families, but in the end, they're worth it. Look around you. Who's your family?

Memorial Day With A Twist

ARIES IN THE 4TH HOUSE
Aries, the sign of new beginnings sits in the 4th House, the house of home, of belonging. Time for spring cleaning, for making the home a place for you to live comfortably in again. It's time to revamp and get rid of the old. Packrats, beware!

This is a continuation of the previous post: Memories. After all, I did tell you that a cleanse was just around the corner.

Checking Facebook today (yes, I'm addicted...don't judge), I saw so many status updates about spring cleaning that I sat up and took notice (okay, i didn't actually sit up; it's a turn of phrase - if you keep interrupting, we're never going to get through this). I didn't actually get to do spring cleaning of my own, and believe me, I have quite a bit of cleaning to do. That's tomorrow's project. Still, if you're anything like me (and i certainly hope you're not), you're a packrat who keeps many things out of sentimentality. There's no practical purpose for them. The hard part of cleaning my room is that everything has a memory attached such that it takes forever to clean even the smallest corner of the room. I suspect that's what led to the rush of memory-oriented status updates on the old FB.

In the same vein, while I was addressing wedding invitations (don't go getting excited; they're for a friend), I threw on an VHS tape with shows taped from the 1990's. Wow. Not only did I see Buffy episodes from season 3 (Faith rocks), but there were commercials that I'd forgotten existed. Like Sean Hayes in a Doritos commercial! So random. Granted, this has no sentimentality, but it certainly takes me back to a simpler time in life. No, wait - I was in senior year of high school. It was highly complicated. Why did I want to go back there?

Cleansing is a ritual of life and we need the routine cleaning in order to make a new space for our creation. In a way, we cause death within our own lives in order to bring about new life. It's extremely hard to throw out that old sweater that you wore on your first date back in middle school, but unless it still fits (and boy, i hope it doesn't), get rid of it so that someone else may wear it to their first majorly awkward date. Don't worry, there'll be other sweaters and other awkward first dates. The memory of that first date is going to far outlast the sweater anyway, and really, isn't that the point?

Tomorrow, I create a small death in my own life. I'm getting ready to move and I have to get rid of a number of items so that I move with more simplicity. I already know that as soon as I begin to pack, I'll shake my head in wonderment at the amount of crap that I've accumulated while I was in this apartment. You don't realize it until you have to put it all into boxes. Should be an interesting exercise.

And so the cleaning begins.