We are all different, that is so obvious! We feel uncomfortable when faced with our differences with others and feel that if one way is right, the other must be wrong. We're not like this when we go out into nature. We can go for a walk on a trail through the woods and enjoy the diversity of the different types of plants and trees. We don't pass judgment on whether a tree should be taller or shorter, greener or fuller; we just accept the beauty of the diversity. Were it only that easy with people! If you could be that gracious and accepting of people, in all their diversity, you would be the most peaceful person on earth! But it is not that way for us in our everyday relationships. People push our buttons--nature doesn't; people do! ___________________________________________________________ Relationships push our buttons because we have buttons! We have issues that only get activated in relationships. Using astrology as a tool for exploring your relationships, at a minimum provides a framework for exploring every nook and cranny of your personal relationship portrait, and every nook and cranny of the combined energy of a relationship. Each planet represents a different aspect of your total being, and exploring each planet's make-up in your chart gives you a framework for understanding how it all fits together--the joys and the sorrows. ___________________________________________________________ And truth be known, love does hurt, sometimes. Many people have the attitude of "Love is a risk, you might get hurt!" I wish they had been taught the truth, that love does hurt and so does not risking love; that hurts too--the hurt of loneliness. It is not a risk that you might experience some pain on this planet; it's a guarantee! ___________________________________________________________ We've been disempowered by the modern attitude that one shouldn't feel any type of discomfort! This neuters us! We are stronger than this! The pain of loss, the intensity of passion, jealousy, anger--these are not new emotions. But all of a sudden we find ourselves at a place in history where many people have been led to believe they can't handle emotional pain! Well, we can, we are, and we will! We become disempowered when we believe we shouldn't have to feel any discomfort! ___________________________________________________________ Astrology is a way to regain a connection with your whole truth! It helps you reconnect with your soul heritage: the skills, abilities, talents, shortcomings, and challenges that your soul came here to experience! Simply studying your birth chart will help you know the complexity of who you are, and this will have a beneficial impact on all your relationships! If you know yourself from the inside out, you will be less dependent on other people's opinions of you! Sharing the whole you, the real you, could only be beneficial in relationships! ___________________________________________________________ Your personal birth chart can unlock the mysteries of what relationships mean to you! Your birth chart is highly individualistic and will give you information about your specific needs, talents, wants, and challenges concerning relationships! Studying your partner's birth chart gives you these same insights into your partner's needs in relationship and provides a tool for understanding why many of the differences between the two of you are absolutely appropriate! ___________________________________________________________ .. ___________________________________________________________P erspective: Signs of Hope for the New Millennium ____________________________________________________________ At the United Nations in September, world leaders met in their largest gathering ever and signed a values-based Declaration upholding the primacy of peace, justice, equality and human dignity. ___________________________________________________________T his was an historic event and a sign of great hope for the world. ___________________________________________________________A lthough cynical observers might say the Millennium Summit was mostly a "talk shop" that resulted in few concrete commitments, the mere gathering together of so many leaders, their resounding support for the United Nations and its principles, and their distinctive emphasis on certain key common values, specifically "freedom, equality, solidarity, tolerance, respect for nature, and shared responsibility," make the event an important milestone in humanity's progress towards a peaceful, prosperous and just world civilization. ___________________________________________________________ Likewise, in the companion Millennium World Peace Summit in August, the gathering together of more than 1,000 religious and spiritual leaders and their concurrence on a similarly values-oriented Declaration, calling for peace, tolerance, equality and religious freedom, is another historic event and sign of hope for the world community. ___________________________________________________________I ndeed, in some respects, given the history of conflict and dissension among many of the world's religions and their various sects, the success of the religious Summit in reaching common ground on many issues is perhaps more surprising than the agreements reached at the Millennium Summit by world leaders. ___________________________________________________________W hen fully realized, this new stage would fulfill ancient prophecies in all religions for an age of peace and enlightenment, and be marked by the wide acceptance of the following principles: the oneness (or interdependence) of humanity; the common foundation of all religions; the equality of women and men; the equality of all races and ethnic groups; the elimination of extremes of wealth and poverty; the importance of individual dignity and human rights; and the need for an international institution to bring all nations together in the safety of collective security. ____________________________________________________________ At the Millennium Summit, for example, world leaders stated that "the United Nations is the indispensable common house of the entire human family, through which we will seek to realize our universal aspirations for peace, cooperation and development." ____________________________________________________________ As noted, the final declaration by world leaders emphasized the importance of certain key values. "We recognize that, in addition to our separate responsibilities to our individual societies, we have a collective responsibility to uphold the principles of human dignity, equality and equity at the global level," world leaders said. ____________________________________________________________ At the religious Summit, religious and spiritual leaders proclaimed that "no individual, group or nation can any longer live as an isolated microcosm in our interdependent world, but rather all must realize that our every action has an impact on others and the emerging global community" and that "religious and spiritual traditions are a core source of the realization of a better life for the human family and all life on Earth." ____________________________________________________________ Of special significance, religious leaders further stated explicitly that "men and women are equal partners in all aspects of life" - a view which has not historically been a teaching of most world religions. ___________________________________________________________ And at the Millennium Forum, civil society organizations proclaimed that "we are one human family, in all our diversity, living on one common homeland and sharing a just, sustainable and peaceful world, guided by universal principles of democracy, equality, inclusion, voluntarism, non-discrimination and participation by all persons…" ___________________________________________________________ One could argue, of course, that many of these same principles are largely embodied in the United Nations Charter and in documents like the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. And one would be correct. Certainly both of these documents are visionary in nature. ___________________________________________________________ But what makes these Millennial events so dramatic is the concurrent unfolding of events in the world over the last decade: the end of the cold war, the spread of democracy, the integration of the world's people and cultures, the widespread advancement of women; the steady victories of the new human rights regime, and the increasing prosperity of many people in many countries. ____________________________________________________________ Of course, there remains a gap between the rhetoric on the mountain top and the reality in the foothills and plains below, where the majority of humanity dwells. It will undoubtedly be some time before all peoples are truly free, before all racial, religious and ethnic tensions are utterly eliminated, and before the world's poor have access to adequate food, water, shelter and health care, let alone a sense of genuine prosperity. ___________________________________________________________ And, on the peace front, there is ever the sense of "two steps forward, one step back," in as much as some world trouble spots continue to boil and the threat of wider conflict in some regions still remains. ___________________________________________________________ Yet the trends toward peace, freedom, justice and prosperity are dominant. And the resounding affirmation of the United Nations and its principles by world leaders, gathered in the largest Summit meeting ever, brings this into focus. ____________________________________________________________ It is now possible to say that peace is the norm in the world, whether within or among nations. The use of war to solve differences is now seen as abhorrent, a violation of human rights and, even, an ineffectual means of settling disputes. Consultation, arbitration and mediation are now the accepted means of resolving differences within and between nations. Moreover, the promulgation of peace is now understood to include an emphasis on justice and actions to promote development. ___________________________________________________________ We see great hope, then, in the proclamations issued by the Millennium Summit and its companion meetings. When they are set alongside the clearly emerging trends in world affairs, they offer signs of hope that, the world is moving inexorably towards an age of peace and prosperity for all humanity. ____________________________________________________________ _"The Great Peace towards which people of good will throughout the centuries have inclined their hearts, of which seers and poets for countless generations have expressed their vision, and for which from age to age the sacred scriptures of mankind have constantly held the promise, is now at long last within the reach of the nations. For the first time in history it is possible for everyone to view the entire planet, with all its myriad diversified peoples, in one perspective. World peace is not only possible but inevitable. It is the next stage in the evolution of this planet - in the words of one great thinker(Dr. Javier), 'the planetization of mankind'."__________________________________________________ _________ ..