What dreams may come

Annabella Sciorra

My favorite film is what dreams may come. In the movie Annabelle Sciorra plays the leading female role. Here is the summary of the movie by Wikipedia. 

Annabelle Sciorri plays the role of an artist and a woman who loses her two children in a car accident and is sent to a psychiatric hospital. Eventually she regains some of her strength to cope with the help of her husband, but is totally devastated again when he also dies in a car accident. The trauma leaves her in a tormented state, and she falls deeper and deeper into depression and despair. The pain becomes unbearable and she takes her own life. Instead of seeing her husband and children in heaven, she goes to Hell because she can’t accept her life gone wrong.

Lets look at her natal chart and see what she brought to the role.

Anabelle Sciorria’s chart

Pisces Planets, with Neptune in Scorpio, Chiron in Pisces opposed Pluto

Mercury, Venus, Chiron and South Node are all placed in Pisces. This would give Sciorra the ability to empathize with the role she is playing, the pain, anguish and the emotional exhaustion, the tormented artist. The South Node in Pisces can symbolise patterns of behavior where she feels weakened, possibly through escapism, illusions, oversensitivy. Piscean depression and sensitivity to the environment can hinder the ability to focus on the mundane world. The North Node in Virgo is learning to function on the earth plane. 

Mercury/Venus/Chiron in Pisces all trine their dispositor Neptune in Scorpio, looks like a very healing, emotional and transformational combination but maybe Neptunian feelings can be carried too easily. Venus exalted in Pisces gives empathy in love and this is emphasised by having Venus trine Neptune. This is a beautiful aspect and she may have a longing to find love in the divine, and be swept away in Neptunian fantasy.

Chiron in Pisces is on a critical degree and shows deep sensitive wounds on the emotional level. Chiron opposition pluto, can show a great deal of intense pain, a wound which cannot be healed. Annabelle’s portrayel of the suffering mother/widow left behind to cope alone, shows us the cruel blows which life can deal and in particular which death can bring. The most devastating loss in life is the death of a child or spouse. How do we carry such suffering, and wounding, how could you heal this kind of loss. How does one move away from this unbearable pain and reach the point of transformation. Pluto is a collective planet and if Annabelle has the Chiron in Pisces opposed Pluto emphasized in her chart. I believe she brought something to the collective in the role she played.

The book

I have not read the book but from what I have been reading online the children are not killed in the novel, only the parents. Here are some of the elements of the book which did not appear in the movie.

The details of Chris’s life on Earth also differ strongly in the novel. Only Chris and his wife (called Ann) die. Their children, who are grownups rather than youngsters, remain alive, as minor characters. Albert and Leona are exactly the people they appear to be, and the character played by Max Von Sydow does not appear in the book at all. Albert is Chris’s cousin and not African American as in the film, while Leona’s ethnicity is not divulged. Chris and Ann are rural, country types rather than the urbanites portrayed in the film, and he is not a pediatrician, nor is she a painter. He’s a Hollywood screenwriter, and she has a variety of jobs.

The afterlife imagery is based on natural scenery rather than paintings. The Heavenly environment doesn’t automatically mold itself to people’s thoughts, as it does in the film; some practice and expertise is required to build things. There is more explanation of how the afterlife works, and we get more of a sense that a functioning human society shares the space. The novel’s depiction of Hell is considerably more violent than in the film. Chris finds it difficult to move, breathe, or even see, and he suffers physical torture at the hands of some of the inhabitants. He does not encounter ships, thunderstorms, fire, or the sea of human faces that he must walk upon in the film. Instead, he and Albert climb across craggy cliffs and encounter such sights as a swarm of insects that attack people’s bodies.

Ann is consigned to Hell for only twenty-four years, not eternity. Chris’s meeting with Ann in her private Hell is much longer and more complex than in the film. At the end, which resembles an alternate version of the film but not the standard version, she escapes from Hell by being reincarnated, because she is not ready for Heaven.

Flatliners

I was reading a story in the newspaper a couple of days of ago about scientists who are trying to prove life after death. They are trying to do this by following a group of Cardiac patients over a three year period, images will be set up in the hospital that can only be seen from the ceiling.  And therefore the people in the study who are resuscitated will be asked if they saw any images and to describe them. I do hope some proof can be found, it will be interesting to see what happens with this study. I am not totally convinced it will be proved. 

I was wondering astrologically what signs, houses, aspects has a fascination with death and the afterlife. And I would say Scorpio along with it’s ruling planet Pluto can be fascinated by death. It has more to do with the transformational side of leaving the body, and losing boundaries.  The sign of Pisces is often attracted to the spiritual side of life, through losing oneself in some transient experience.  A Scorpio/Pisces chart including rulers (Neptune and Pluto) and ruling houses (8th & 12th) may have this strong attraction to death.

Shirley Phelps

Shirley Phelps is a member of the Baptist church, her family are involved in a Law Firm. Shirley has hit the media over her controversial campaigns at funerals with signs saying thank god the soldiers are dead. Most people know who she is, as she is so highly publicized.

Shirley Phelps Astrology Chart

A need to feel connected to the deeper elements of life

Shirley can have great strength, will and fortitude, she is coloured by passion, intensity, and a strong need for self control. Strong willpower and archetypal themes of “crisis and survival”. Shirley can be very loyal to those most close to her. With Sun in Scorpio she finds her vitality through being passionately involved in her life purpose, this means that she can be unflinching in her efforts to achieve what she wants.

An awareness of the darker elements in human nature

Shirley can also feel suspicious and mistrustful of life, and if she feels that others have wronged her she can be ruthless and unforgiving. Scorpio is an emotionally honest sign, but also uncompromising in nature. The deeper undercurrents of life will always be working through her. The darker elements in her personality will have to be brought into consciousness (Sun), and worked with constructively.

Yearning for the ideal life, fusion with father

The Sun is conjunct Neptune, often there is a weak sense of identity and lack of realism. Shirley can be attracted to charity work, or she may try to play the role of savior herself. The Neptune world is often included in her sense of destiny and purpose. The father (Sun) is often idealized with this aspect, and because of this I am not convinced she can separate her own goals from her father’s, and she seems to be following his path in life. Neptune’s waters feel a deep longing to redeem the father. Neptune can sacrifice the Sun, and her life can gravitate towards something higher and aspirational. Shirley has very poor boundaries around herself, she can feel overwhelmed with emotional undercurrents (Neptune) and darkness (Scorpio).

Independent Spirit feels separate from society, a need for rebellion

The Sun squares Uranus in the natal chart, which means Shirley identifies with the outsider, she may feel separate from society. Sun-Uranus is an immensely strong willful and rebellious aspect, and she can take an extreme view of life. It seems the more people challenge her the more willful she becomes. There is a strong resistance to obeying the rules in society, and she enjoys courting the controversy.

Mercury is also in square to Uranus, and this combination has been described in many astrological textbooks as having extremely fixed views. Shirley likes to think differently from everybody else, and can be rebellious in her ideas and viewpoints. Shirley is intelligent, but she uses all her mental energy to create a strong reaction from the public. Activists of all kinds often have this type of chart and violence or shock tactics are often used to create a stir, in order to get their opinions and ideas across, and to get the “people” to listen.

Battles with perceived injustices and fighting for religious view

Mars conjuncts Jupiter Libra and Neptune/Scorpio. Does this aspect speak volumes! Mars/Jupiter has been called the “crusader” aspect, and Shirley as we know enters the battle over religion. Coincedently this is also a good combination for Law (or trouble with the law) to right the perceived wrongs. With Mars conjunct Neptune she pursues her ideals through trying to “redeem society”.

The element of pain, restriction, and loss of meaning in life

Saturn in Sagittarius can work in many ways for Shirley Phelps. Obviously we see a woman on television and at protests who is very verbal on gods message, and believes she is the mouthpiece for his message. People who do not follow her philosophy are sinners, who are going to hell. In astrology Saturn in Sagittarius or 9th has been linked to a dogmatic teaching of religion. In her case her father, pastor of the church has been feeding his child’s mind with his interpretation of the bible. Now she has the task of learning what meaning she alone gives to life and religion, basically her own viewpoint of the world. Wherever Saturn is placed in you natal chart you feel that you have been denied something vitally important to you.The fathers narrow view of religion has now become her own. Maybe as a young girl if she grew up in a different environment her views may be different. This placement can in certain circumstances like Shirley Phelps take a narrow minded approach to life. The task with this placement of Saturn is to come to her own vision of life, and find her own meaning from within.

I get so emotional baby!

 Difficulty letting go of the past may be about holding on to negative emotions, dealing with death, divorce or a relationship that is difficult to get over. The astrological associations for this topic involve all the water signs (Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces), and houses (4th, 8th, 12th), along with the ruling planets (Moon, Neptune and Pluto). Life works in cycles, and astrologically there is a cycle to water and evolving rhythm. The water cycle begins in Cancer our deepest psychological roots, mostly stemming from our childhood home. As we move around the wheel and into the 8th house we reach Scorpio, at this stage we reach a crisis point, and it is here we are faced with some of the most difficult lessons life can challenge us with. The 8th house involves sharing ourselves with a partner, exposing ourselves emotionally. The 8th house is the struggle for survival. The water cycle reaches completion in Pisces and the 12th house. Pisces ends one cycle and brings us to the beginning of another.

Holding on to the past

When we hold on tightly to the past it makes it very difficult to look into the future. The past can often keep us from fully experiencing the present. It seems that in order to move along the water cycle we need to heal our past hurts, and clear some of the emotional blockages. Waters run deep in Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces, and it can be hard to put into words the emotional wounds we suffer. At some point we have to let go of our emotional attachments to family and home (Cancer/4th). We will all face loss/death and painful separations or betrayal (Scorpio) and we will have to make many sacrifices in life (Pisces).

Inspiring words from Larry James on letting go

Letting go is a journey that never ends. It only begins — over and over again — each time I can glimpse something higher than my own painful certainty over who I think I am. There is always something higher; a life beyond the limits of my present sight.

Dare to walk away from all of the familiar but useless mental and emotional relationships that give me a temporary but unsatisfactory sense of self. My true identity is calling me and to hear it I must be willing to endure, for as long as necessary, the fear of self-uncertainty

The cycle of the Zodiac starts with Fire and ends with water. Therefore Fire always starts the cycle and water completes it. Cancer is the first sign where we first experience our emotions and feelings. The element of Water flows, and nostalgic feelings from the past often connect us to present experiences. Water represents the Yin quality and feminine energy in astrology, and naturally reflects on past experiences. The zodiac sign of Cancer has a strong emotional need to bond with others. Cancer is also a cardinal sign and feelings rush to the surface, and their instincts are very active all the time. Cancer has a complex inferiority problem sometimes, so that any hurt, imagined or real, is magnified. Cancer looks back, and holds on to the past.

According to psychology we all contain unconscious memories/childhood perceptions. The Moon in astrology is traditionally associated with memory, everything we have experienced gets stored in our unconscious, and on some level, continues to affect us in the present. Young children are emotional sensors, unconsciously absorbing many of their parents, assumptions and attitudes. Within the Moon lies the beginnings of our psychological patterns that arise from infantile experiences. These dimly remembered emotional perceptions form our Moon personality. The Moon is like our family history book.

Sue Tompkins States in her book ‘The Contemporary Astrologers Handbook’.

The physical and emotional nourishment provided by early caretakers can help produce secure and contented children and adults. Alternatively when the process goes wrong, then individuals may be feel empty, unfulfilled and insecure, with a range of emotional and physical difficulties. Astrologers know that the process is more difficult than simple childhood causes adult problems type of equation, for the individual is born with a birth chart before they have a childhood. Nevertheless the horoscope can provide the means for working through the ways the past has imprinted the individual with behavioral patterns as an adult”. The Moon most importantly symbolizes the fact that everything passes and we cannot stay where we are forever, because we will eventually outgrow it.

Uranus transit has bulldozed my life

Uranus hasn’t really done that much damage to me, but I am dying to get back to normal routine now (my Saturn in Virgo needs it). I haven’t blogged for a while as I had no Internet due to my house move, change in finances, and new job, and my little boy starting school and just generally having my routine change all the time.

I have been glad to have the change in my life, I have needed it. But I want some structure back NOW. I am currently having to blog on my mothers wireless laptop, but I should have my own computer back on in another couple of weeks (hooray). I miss the Internet a lot and I feel like such a computer nerd for admitting to it.

I think I ran out of ideas for blogging, and usually I have a LOT of different ideas, so I might take a more structured and routine approach to my blog in the future like particular days for certain topics . My Saturn in Virgo is smiling and my Venus in Capricorn and Virgo Asc are loving this idea. The rest of my chart is already rebelling .

It’s getting late, I need to go unconscious now. I will be blogging again soon.

Julie.