SPRING EQUINOX 2026: In this time of collective darkness, can I, personally, shine light? Can I hold my own center, balanced between extremes?

March 19, 2026

Two aspects stand out in the chart for tomorrow’s official Equinox date (March 20) and time (10:46 AM EST), when light and dark momentarily balance each other, just as light begins to overwhelm the dark:

First: that seemingly chronic Saturn/Neptune conjunction, now beginning to separate, but still potent, will feature the Sun, always of course at 0°00 Aries on Spring Equinox, and yet in near exact conjunction with Neptune, at 1°46 Aries. That dreamy, delusionary, absent-minded, constantly mutating planet, but now in fiery Aries — new beginnings! — still has us all flummoxed (doom-scrolling much, eh?) on a daily basis, even as the Sun declares that it’s time to rise and take charge of our own individual lives, no matter what!

Because, as you well know, in the internet age, and especially as AI and fake everything comes on-line, who or what can you trust? So why pay attention to any (so-called) “news” at all? What is real? Are you real? Am I? What IS “real”? And by “real,” are we talking Saturnian scientific materialism, or something more waffly, imaginary, idealistic, delusional? — Neptunian.

 

Then there’s the other aspect that leaped out at me: And notice that this one features a totally exact, to the degree, conjunction, between fast moving Mercury and the north node, signifying the direction of the path into the future, but . .  both in Pisces! That final sign of the zodiac, that sign that was finally overcome by both Saturn and Neptune, after, literally, years. Yep, we still have a great deal of work to do, to become conscious of, and articulate, all the ghastly sodden gunk that has poisoned the collective unconscious of humanity — wars to the death, child trafficking, blackmail, greed, on and on —

 

Out walking this morning, as the sun rose in the east directly in line with the path, I was reminded of all the those years in the past when I walked that same path on this date, with the same experience of the sun equidistant from north and south, at the midline. (I’m a day early, but the difference tomorrow won’t be noticeable.) So, wow, there are some experiences we can still trust to repeat on an annual basis? That, frankly, makes me feel utterly grateful.

Because, as you well know, in the internet age, and especially as AI and fake everything comes on-line, I repeat: who or what can you trust?

On the other hand, it does appear that the Neptunian fog of war in the Mideast features ghastly horrors, from anyone’s point of view. Except for chronic TDS’ers, the difference between opinions seems to be mostly centered on whether or not it is necessary.

Inside the horrors of our war on Iran, which yes, some say is utterly necessary (and well it may be, in the 80,000 foot view), I came across this post this morning, by friend and neighbor Margaret Menge, who reminded me that death by murder has been normalized.

(Ever since February 28, when this horror began (closely following the Saturn/Neptune conjunction on February 20), I haven’t wanted to even glance at what Charles Eisenstein has been posting, knowing the despair that would follow.)

How to maintain my own balance during these darkest of times? During these times when I find myself forcing my mind into an 80,000 foot view in space and time that utterly agrees with Trump’s policy to take Iran out “by any means necessary.”

 

This IS Spring Equinox however, so in our earth-centered cosmic view, light shall overcome dark, little by little, from now until Summer Solstice, and then retreat, also little by little, until Autumn Equinox, when again dark shall pull us under for another six months.

Dark and Light. Dark and Light within myself. Dark: unconscious or barely conscious, or utterly ignored because of cognitive dissonance, or just plain denied — “beliefs” (sourced from where? who knows where? Everywhere, in this chaotic media atmosphere), swirling through awareness, threatening, at any second, to overwhelm the light, that part of me that aims to link above and below, grounding my embodied self through feet on ground with head aimed directly toward the sky, sending energy up and down, up and down, both, over and over again, until they meet, in the middle, in the chest, the heart, which hopefully, can remain open and in love with continuous creation, no matter what or who presents itself in the ever receding, ever enlarging, present moment.

“Holy holy holy, lord god of hosts,” say the religious ones. And even I, who gave up on Catholicism, and all organized religions, nearly six decades ago, am tempted to pray, to pray that this world begins, at some point in the very near future, to move into the pulsing presence of peace on earth.

Meanwhile: Got this from old friend Carol Rosin today . . .

Carol, like me, is a crone who devoted her life to preventing the placement of weapons in outer space. Obviously, she didn’t succeed.

 

 

 

GRIFFY TRAIL PHOTOS as we near Spring Equinox: A Walking Meditation

March 18, 2026

Two days from now, after a number of failed early attempts, Spring will officially have sprung. Several times, in February and March, local temps have sheared from over 70° to below freezing. OVERNITE!. These shifts driven by strong cold winds. And when it’s that cold out, Scampi simply refuses to walk; in which case, I set off on my own.

So, finally, this morning, we drove ten miles north to Griffy Lake loop trail, into the wild after the tumultuous weather of the past three days finally calmed down.

Yes, after two full days of refusing to walk in the extreme cold, Scampi leads the way.

But then, within a few minutes, I got preoccupied. By ice over frozen mud, indicating just what we’ve been through this past week. And especially, the graceful curving patterns made by the ice!

And oh wow, look! — a single human footprint in frozen mud under ice.

Not all who wander are lost. At least not all rivers or streams of water, indeed, not any! Since when did nature run in straight lines? Or turn 90° corners? Our geometry is but an abstraction upon the fertile suchness of this wandering trail, this wandering stream. The map, folks, is never the territory.

Scampi’s had enough of my peregrinations. Come on Mom, let’s go!

Okay, okay! But I couldn’t stop myself from stopping again, at one of the “beaches,” to see if I could spot a geode, and of course, directly in front of me! Didn’t even have to look around . . .

Nature constructs bridges here and there, all of them temporary, like all of us are temporary . . .

From the front . . .

from the back.

In nature, especially before spring has sprung, I am continually reminded of death. Once a tall, straight, stalwart denizens of the forest, wind brings trees down, one after another, after another.

Aside: I’m reminded of one day in a car with my new in-laws, whom I was meeting for the first time. Jeff Joel and I lived in a yurt in Teton County, Wyoming; they lived in a giant house in northern New Jersey. Jeff was a wanderer by nature; Amos was a entirely civilized, and not only civilized, but lauded globally.

So we four were together in the car, heading into Yellowstone, when Amos, looking up from the map finally, and out the window into the forest, wondered, out loud: “Why is it so messy? Why don’t they clean it up?”!!

We come up over a rise. Aaah . . . the place where I always take a photo, whenever on this very familiar trail.

Okay okay. Finally we are on our way back, with Scampi very far ahead. I asked him to please stop, so I could take a photo, with him centered beyond the place where a newly uprooted tree has fallen across the path, only to be cradled by a smaller one on the other side.

I never did see any real signs of spring . . . until, stopping by the side of the trail and squatting down to pee, this! Tiny flowers!