Happy Parent's Day!

Here in the United States, July 25th is Parent's day - which strikes me as a good time to discuss the astrology of parenting versus parented. 

And let's just start with a little comment on how interesting it is that this day falls under Sun in Leo, not Sun in Cancer. 

Why interesting? Because Cancer is the sign of families and 'childhood' as a life period. Leo is the sign of 'things I do for my own pleasure' and creatvity - both of which seem to mesh quite happily with the idea of having kids. 

But then there's that Leo question of risk. Every sign has challenge and one of the big Leo challenges is that pesky question of risk. And no question - having kids is risky!

 You have no idea if your little bundle of joy is going to turn out to be a darling or a pain in the very (very!) low back. You don't know what life holds for you as the adult in charge: will you continue to be able to support them? Will something in your own personal life (say a divorce or whatnot) totally disrupt your child's life?

 When we look at the horoscope wheel and its twelve parts (each called a "house")...

...the 4th house is family and YOUR childhood, the 5th house is having kids. 

What does this tell us astrologically? Well, there's a given order of the zodiac. And when we have a horoscope where the 1st house is Aries (corresponding to Aries as the first sign of the zodiac) and all follows right around, that's known as a 'natural (horoscope) wheel.' This isn't to say this format is better - it just corresponds to natural zodiacal order. 

Granting that most people have something other than a natural wheel however, the 4th and 5th houses of any horoscope still carry an 'underlying flavor' or identity which is closely allied with the natural sign associated with said house. 

Given that Cancer rules the 4th house of family, memories, habits and your own childhood - and that Cancer is an innately emotion (water) sign, good or bad, treasured or despised, hardly any of us are neutral about family. 

As for the 5th house, as we said, it's natural ruler is Leo. Leo is a fire sign and fire signs are all about the ideal and everything we can possibly imagine - the good and the bad, the highest heights to which our kids may ascend (and how scrumptuously wonderful we think they are) to the dangers they may face, the angst we may endure as their parents and the dashing of our hopes kids can deliver in any of a thousand ways.

We may want grandkids - they may not want kids.

We may want them to be an opera singer and they want to be a gardener. The vision was ours - it was our idealized (fire sign) image.

The reality? That's so often something else entirely.  And reconciling ourselves to that reality is not exactly what we want (Leo) to do, especially when it comes to our kids.

You know...those Leo creations of ours. 

Ruled by the Moon, Cancer is a respository for memory - and the habits which are the psychological form thereof, too. Cancer is about culture and heritage, our homeland and how/where we live. Thought of symbolically as the surf zone and tidal surges which are driven by the Moon's phases, Cancer and all things 4th house are a pretty good description of our the daily doings of family life, the classic family squabble and yet how that same family pulls together like a well-trained army when approached by any external entity.

Cancer builds on the past and looks to the future, figuring out what it takes to get where you want to go. Leo meanwhile, is all about what we make in the present. Leo hones its skills. Leo practices its art - whatever the artwork of the moment may be. Leo lives for the moment and makes the most of it. Leo envisions, but the practicalities of that vision and what it takes to get there? That's not a Leo problem. What, you want greatness and brilliance and operative parameters too? 

If you're looking for doing, Cancer is the cardinal sign. Cardinal signs do. Leo being a fixed sign describes its 'fixation' in the moment; don't ask the child to move on, they're busy having fun! They haven't seen where the ladybug is going yet! They haven't finished their imaginary story! 

Ruled by the Moon, Cancer is feeling and nurturing. The Moon being a reflective body, Cancer should reflect on what it does, though let's be real - at times the high tide just sends parents barreling on their way like some giant storm surge. And there are also those moment of New Moon darkness when parents feel emotionally lost and without a guiding light.

Given all that, I guess it's not all that surprising that Parent's Day falls under Sun in Leo. The Sun(ny) side of parenting is all the fun we have playing with our little ones - the way having kids lets you relive your own carefree moments of childhood. So what if the Sun's in your eyes and you're not getting the whole picture? It's a holiday!

So I say enjoy it...that's what holidays are for!