Greetings everyone and welcome to the May ChatterBulletin and the sign of Taurus!
Last month we talked all about Aries and Accidents and the planet Mars, which speeds up time, thus making us anxious and more likely to be accident-prone. But as soon as we step into the domain of Taurus, all that changes. Remember, whatever one sign is likely to do the next sign will do it differently. Where Aries sped everything up, Tauruswill now slow it down. But it’s not simply a case of one sign does this, and the next sign does the other, because each sign also takes on whatever the previous sign gave them. With Taurus, it is their job to take all of that unbridled Aries energy and harness it so it can be put to good use. Their job is to stabilize the situation. So our theme for this month is Stability.
What does Stability mean for you – a roof over your head, a steady job, or perhaps simply peace of mind? Interesting to note that we use the word “stable” in terms of housing our livestock, and the animals we domesticate are generally kept in stables. But for most of us, Stability means being able to pay our bills every month. This is also why Taurusis the sign associated with Money, because in our society, money pays the bills and gives us that Stability – or does it? Many of you may have heard stories of how just because someone is has lots of money, doesn’t necessarily mean they are happy. So even if you have Financial Stability, doesn’t mean that you have Emotional Stability as well – that’s a whole other story!
Remember last year we talked about Taurus and the senses – and in this instance, as far as Stability goes, a Taurus will do what makes the most sense. Taurus is the 1st of our 3 Earth Signs, so by nature they are going to be practical and they are not afraid of hard work. Every Taurus I know is a hard worker. Earth likes to work. Taurus may be practical but they are not designed to be flexible, or to embrace change (that comes with our next month’s sign Gemini) – Taurus’ job is to hold on to whatever Aries discarded. This is why they are the sign associated with Possessions. Where Aries was fast, Taurus will be slow, and where Aries’ color was Red, with Taurus it is now Green, which makes total sense, since money is Green, and so is the garden where Taurus grows their flowers, fruits and vegetables. But here’s another reason why their color is Green. The Planet Venus rules Taurus, and the metal associated with Venus is Copper (remember with Aries and Mars, it was Iron?) Now when Copper oxidizes, it turns what color? Yes, it turns Green! And speaking of Green, Aries can be described as the rolling stone that gathers no moss (which happens to be Green in color), whereas with Taurus, that moss will surely be gathered. Here’s an image from photographer Taylor Glenn that fit my thought perfectly!
If we take the ancient sport of Bullfighting, also known as Tauromachia or Tauromachy (see where the word Taurus comes from…) notice it is the color Red that lines the Matador’s cape and makes the bulls crazy! Consider then that the Matador is probably an Aries! Followers of this tradition view it as an “art” (notice the Taurusreference again – Taurus loves art) where the Toreros perform formal maneuvers and that it is not simply a bloodthirsty “sport.” When we were young and went to Spain on our holidays, we stayed near the tiny village of Mijas that boasted one of the only non-circular bullrings in Spain! In fact, it was oval and years later I saw the very same bullring featured in an episode of the television mystery series Rosemary & Thyme!
Now one of the photographers that I did not get the opportunity to review while I was in Palm Springs, but I noticed his work in the Source Book, was California-based fine art photographer Bill Johnson who happens to photograph Rodeo’s, and therefore cowboys and bull riders. So I contacted him to ask if I could show one of the images from his Rodeo series, and he was happy to oblige! Bill said, “I am following the rodeo and creating stories for my website RodeoLife.com. This image is of a bull ride in the Colorado Pro Rodeo Association Finals. The bulls are bred to buck and not harmed in any way. The rider’s goal is to stay on for 8 seconds. The bulls usually win!”
Bulls, and Taurus in general like to eat, drink and fornicate, or shall we say, “Make Love.” They love the finer things in life, beautiful art and music. So while we’re talking about love, here’s a very cool tidbit for you. The Planet Venus is associated with Love, and Vanity. Venusholds the mirror in which to see her beautiful reflection, thus Venus is also connected with Glass. So here is something both beautiful and made of glass that my friend sent me of an amazing and very earnest Duo, who play Tchaikovsky’s The Sugar Plum Fairy on a Glass Harp! You’ve all heard of the expression “A Bull in China Shop” – so let’s hope the bull steers clear of the glasses! Click here or on the image to view the full piece.
But back to Stability – Scientists refer to the Island of Stability in Nuclear Physics, while the economists are seeking yes, you guessed it, Financial Stability; there’s even the Financial Stability Board, headquartered in the ultimate Land of Finance aka Switzerland, that monitors and makes recommendations about the global financial system. Incidentally and not surprisingly, the sign of Taurus rules Switzerland as well as the Vatican City, and let’s be honest, you can’t get much more financially stable than the Catholic Church!
As I’m writing this article, there was literally a story on NY1 about how yet another greedy downtown developer is taking away a community garden on the lower east side of Manhattan. With so little green space in our city, it is ironic that the men who are going after the “green money” are so willing to destroy the “green gardens.” Also ironic and on the topic of “green” (but not in a good way either) is something I mention in my ChatterReport this month on the Palm Springs Photo Festival, where I saw (amongst others) photographer James Whitlow Delano speak about what else is happening on this planet, specifically in Malaysia, where logging companies for example, are totally destroying the local rainforests in order to grow “green bio fuel” – I mean, how messed up is that?
And in closing, Happy Birthday to all you hardworking, possession-loving and garden-growing Taurus!