Astrology that Feeds the Soul
For me, astrology is about getting to know your soul: who you are when you pull off all the layers of who the world wants you to be. Knowing your birth chart helps you understand where, when, and how you blossom in the world. Astrology also lets you see how you are likely to get stuck and where you may experience challenges.
There is also the very real magic of having a reading and seeing yourself reflected in the way the stars and planets were aligned at your birth. If you work with astrology over time, you begin to experience the rhythm of the universe and your own deep connection to life. That, in turn, can provide you with a profound sense of grounding and security that you need to live your life more fully—to take a “leap of faith” and to step into life.
In the words of one of my favorite artists: “You live you learn, you love you learn, you cry you learn, you lose you learn, you bleed you learn, you scream you learn.” –Alanis Morissette
About Me
I’m a Virgo sun, Capricorn moon, and Scorpio rising. I use she/her/hers pronouns. I live in St. Paul, MN, on Dakota land with my spouse Michael (Scorpio, Aries, Pisces) and my dog Winnie (Aries, lol)
With Mercury, Uranus, Pluto, and the Sun on the midheaven, my life has been full of twists and turns and constant transformation. My first love was the law. I practiced as a law clerk for a Federal Judge and later as an associate and partner at a large law firm in Minneapolis. Eventually, in 2000, I realized corporate law was not a good fit, so I quit my job and worked to raise my children and learn more about who I was.
Since then, my life has centered around the spiritual path. I entered a lengthy Jungian analysis, obtained a Master's in Clinical Psychology, and became a spiritual seeker. I began reading and studying different thinkers who explored their inner lives and asked questions about who we are beyond what we know of ourselves from our family and culture. I began working with divinatory practices, including Tarot and the IChing, to deepen my connection to the Self.
As part of my path, I discovered astrology, and my life changed. My first reading led to significant changes in my life and led to my becoming an astrologer and political activist (a story for another day).
Over the years, I have studied with a variety of different astrologers: Adam Elenbaas (2-year training program and 1-year Horary Astrology Course), Demetra George (Uncovering Life Purpose, Solar Returns, Progressed Moon Cycles, Asteroid Goddesses, Hellenistic Astrology, Time Lords), Chani Nicholas (Moon, Career/Karma, Relational Astrology ), Lynn Bell (Solar Returns), Austin Coppock (Lunar Nodes and Decans Course), Kelly Surtees (Solar Returns, Firdaria, and Relationship Astrology), Bernadette Brady (Fixed Star School), Steven Forrest (Nodes), Robert Hand (Solar Returns), Chris Brennan (Zodiacal Releasing, Chart Rectification), and Kay Taylor (Evolutionary Astrology).
I’m a certified Hellenistic Astrologer and am a member of the Board of Directors for The OPA International Astrology Foundation, Inc. (OPA).
Camino de Santiago, Ventosa, Spain (2022)
My Spiritual Practice and Joy
My chart ruler is in the 9th house of travel, philosophy, spirituality, and higher education, so learning, traveling, and sharing what I learn are part of my “dharma,” my life purpose. I had the great joy of combining these loves when I walked the Camino Francés in September of 2022, meeting people from all over the world, sharing deep conversations, and taking time to reflect and connect with nature.
My spiritual practice includes yoga, meditation/chanting, and studying non dualistic spiritual teachings. My current teachers include Adyanshanti and Mukti (Open Gate Sangha). I’ve also studied with teachers from the Shaiva Tantra, Kashmiri Shaivism, and Advaita Vedanta traditions.
I enjoy spending time with my spouse, my amazing children Julia (Leo, Sag, Libra) and Roger Bek (Aquarius, Aries, Libra) and their kitties Beana (Scorpio) and Gustav (Scorpio). I love learning new languages, meeting people from different cultures, eating great food (Jupiter in Taurus!!), drinking tea, reading, watching movies, and getting into good trouble with my badass activist friends, my witchy astrology friends, and my eccentric Jungian friends.
Acknowledgments
I am grateful for the teachers in my life who have, in their various ways, always led me back to myself. I’m grateful for what I’ve learned from my friends in the queer and immigrant community; through my trans son and my work as a volunteer attorney helping LGBTQ immigrants who are seeking asylum in the United States. I am grateful for the land that I live on and acknowledge the past and present harm done to Dakota, Anishinaabe, and other Indigenous nations through the systematic forced removal of communities and the unjust seizure of their lands. I work to understand my privilege and acknowledge the past and present harm against Black people in our nation that began with violent kidnapping and enslavement, was perpetuated in the very founding documents of our nation, and continues to exist as a result of various iterations of Jim Crow Laws enacted from the founding of our nation to present.
Hellenistic Astrology
I practice “Hellenistic Astrology” or “traditional astrology.” This is a complex, highly developed system of astrology based upon principles formulated in Ancient Greece between the first and seventh centuries CE. Much of the theory behind Hellenistic Astrology was lost to the world until the early 1990s when a group of astrologers formed Project Hindsight, and began translating ancient astrological texts. Relying on these translations, a core group of astrologers, including Demetra George, Robert Hand, Robert Schmidt, Chris Brennan and others fleshed out the ancient teachings for modern practice. In fact, today’s astrology “renaissance” can be directly traced to the group at Project Hindsight as my own teachers (Demetra George, Chani Nicholas, Austin Coppock, Acyuta Bhava-das, Chris Brennan, and others) share the wisdom they have learned from these ancient texts.
Source: Chris Brennan, Hellenistic Astrology, The Study of Fate and Fortune, p. 16; p. 139 (Amor Fati, 2017).