Softening my Desire

A poem for Venus in Aries.

Dear relatives,

I recently mentioned in a note that, this year, I am focusing my attention and my devotion to the planet Venus. There are two main reasons for this exploration. The first is that I’ve felt called to embrace and work with the planets in an embodied way. Additionally, I was born with Venus in Aries and, in my experience, this placement can be a challenging one. In context, Venus can have a rough time in Aries, in part, because of its nature. Venus, according to planetary temperaments, is cold and wet. Aries is a Fire sign ruled by Mars, and, by its elemental association, is relatively hot and dry. Hence, my desire to get to know Venus more holistically and intimately—dare I say more softly.

The process began with the simple intention to make and share more of my art, through the written word, and other forms. I felt, and still feel, compelled to lean more into right-brain activities where creativity, intuition, and playfulness can guide my work and decision-making. Since the Lunar New Year, and through Venus’ retrograde in Aries and Pisces, I’ve come to better understand how I express my creativity by nurturing a relationship with Venus, and the Earth. I’ve also learned to move slowly and deliberately, not to rush or move hastily through the process.

There are other ways that Venus has spoken to me, mainly through my dreams and waking desires. I am craving sweetness and the feeling that it provides. I am calling more of it in so that it can nourish all aspects of my life. The best thing about sweetness is being able to share it. As I experience Venus and listen to her, she asks that I revel in what feels juicy, that I live from the places within me that feel plump and soft and ripe. And, right now, this looks like poetry, and the constellation of connections that feed its creation.

Amid concurrent struggles and devastating loss on a planetary and personal level, and as Venus moves, once again, into Aries, I also desire to know the kind of warrior that I am meant to be. For many of us, to have an intimate knowledge of what and who we protect, and to know who has our back, is essential to our survival. Maybe, like me, you need a gentle reminder that you’re not alone. If that sounds like you, consider joining me for Kaitlin Curtice’s poetry reading and writing circle, which starts in May. This will be my first time participating in the cipher, and I look forward to the experience and connecting with others through poetry.

As a warm-up, here is a poem that I wrote years ago after I became a mother, and recently revised in honor of Venus’ ingress into Aries:

Dear Child of The Great Mystery,

These roots thread
into the moon and
twist upon themselves.
At night, they grow firm 

into the earth connecting 
back to the beginning
of all things. Strands 
become strong as rope,

tied to the moment
of one, weaving the 
story of creation. 
Catching dreams,

these roots awaken and
by morning unfurl in
a deliberate cadence. 
Rites stored in every

follicle, and ritual
protected in each fiber.
These roots plunge 
deep into the terrain 

between branches where 
ancient synapses reach from 
trunks and signal sinews 
to move with the sun. 

Between heaven and 
here dust falls from
stars. And, below the earth
worms cast their magic.

***

As always, thank you for being here.

Until the next one,

Christian