It is a common temptation when we fall in love to want to give up all to the adventure.  It is as if all the strains and struggles of everyday life disappear and we can surrender to the beauty and joy of the love we have found.  This is particularly true if we have a lot of water in our chart in the form of planets in Pisces or a strong Neptune.  This kind of energy predisposes us to dissolve in the huge, boundless sea of our emotions, luxuriate in the flow of the delicious warm currents that gently tease at our senses and push and pull us where they will.

I am sure you felt a ‘but’ waiting to happen here!  Far be it from me to be grumpy old Saturn, wagging his finger at this.  I have been there and it is all lovely BUT it is not the whole story!  The analogy of the sea is actually a good one because the sea is a most beguiling environment.  It is inviting, tranquil, blue and we imagine sailing the seven seas in full sail, our senses wrapped in the sensations of sky, sun and freedom.

Any sailor will tell you, though, that you often do not a lot of notice when a storm will blow up and when it does, you had better get those sails down quick, lash yourself to the wheel and hang onto that rudder until they pass.

The meaning of the sailing metaphor is pretty obvious:  you must retain a strong sense at all times of yourself as the captain of your own ship, even as you surrender to the ocean currents.  Sailors used to talk of sirens luring men onto the rocks with the beauty of their song, and so it is in love.   In relationship, we are so tempted to give away parts of ourself just at the very time that we need to be most conscious of our own self-hood.  We need to maintain that hand on the rudder, with an eagle eye on the compass and the course so that when storms threaten to cast us broken on the rocks, we can still steer.

With consciousness, though, we can step fully into and out of the energies we contain within ourselves, enjoying the dance of love for what it is, using all the resources that we have, and stay on course, no matter what the weather!

Bon Voyage!