It Was the Best & Worst of Times

An Update From Anya

I’ve always resented the waning optimism of my elders. As a passionate, young idealist I found their “Well, what are ya gonna do” attitude to be dull, lazy and irresponsible.

However, at thirty-four, despite my best intentions, I find myself inching closer and closer toward the same hopelessness I’ve worked so hard to resist, and I’m not quite sure how I should feel about it. Angry? Relieved? Humbled by my own naivety and arrogance?

At the moment, mostly all I feel is the heavy, crushing weight of disappointment.

I’m disappointed by people I trusted, and by own tendency to trust others so readily. I’m disappointed by the polarized ideologies we adopt, keeping us apart from one another at a time when we need each other most. I’m disappointed by those who call themselves leaders and teachers, and by our collective lack of discernment that perpetuates uninitiated “mentorship” for the masses. I’m disappointed by the energy suck and distraction of identity politics, by the capitalist takeover of environmentalism, and by the irresponsibility and selfishness of “rugged individualism”.

I’m also disappointed by how unprepared I was for the complexity and loss that’s accompanied my pursuit of building a home, and a community.

But here’s the thing about loss. True loss, the kind we let run through us like tenacious tributaries headed toward an ever thirsty river of grief, contains mineral deposits in the shape of love, joy, and gratitude.

Love and loss, forever hand in hand, the ultimate paradox.

Chris and I have been on the road for only a week, and already I’ve met and hung out with so many magnificent humans that have come into my world via the podcast. This feels like the ultimate blessing. A gift that keeps on giving. Meeting you all in person, and helping to facilitate you all meeting each other is something I will never take for granted.

The support you offer me, and the sense of belonging you offer each other, makes living through the grief of these troubled times far more manageable.

We aren’t meant to go at it alone, folks.

I’ve been getting to know Isabel online for the past few years, and finally got to meet her in person at the Ancestral Health Symposium in LA.

I met Adrian at a gas station in Colorado for a sketchy drug deal handoff of his delicious homemade goat cheese.

Ilona and Lilli stopped in Crestone on their roadtrip through the Southwest and I got to show them one of my favorite places in the world.

On that note, I’m looking forward to meeting more of you this fall. Chris and I are back in the van, and will be co-hosting podcast meetups over the next few months. You can find out more about our route here, plus help us find a place to gather near you!

Also, this weekend I am co-facilitating a retreat with Chris, and Cameron and Melayne Shayne at their beautiful home in Whitefish, MT. Our focus is relationships, sexuality, communication, and movement, and I am beyond excited.

This will be the first retreat I’ve helped to lead, and I am looking forward to doing many more of these in the future. After years of communicating with all of you remotely, I’m ready to move into a phase of more in person connection. Despite the difficulties and frustrations of the last few years, I still feel passionate about creating a physical, tangible world somewhere, and inviting you all over for dinner. And laughter. And learning. And dancing. And crying. And all the things.

Day by day, slowly slowly, one step at a time…

While I continue trekking through the muck of my own hero’s journey, Whitney Will and I will be co-leading our Retrograde with Intention course for the second time. Mars is about to go retrograde in the sign of Gemini, and for the next six months, we will be leading a group of you through the complexities of your own hero’s journeys. Mars is the planet of self, autonomy, and individuality. Mars represents our capacity for action, will, and engaging in the battles and conflicts life throws our way.

As Mars retrogrades through the sign of Gemini, we will all be wrestling with the warrior in each of us. This workshop offers a container to go deeper, connect with yourself and others, and explore the psychological and mythic archetype of Mars in Gemini.

There are five classes/lectures and all of them will be recorded. In addition to this, we will also have four group discussion calls and six additional office hours where you can come for extra support, community, and learning. There will also be a What’sApp group to connect with other participants and an official collaborative playlist.

Click here to learn more, and to sign up. Registration closes September 15th. No previous astrology knowledge is required and beginners are encouraged to join us.

(Please feel free to send me a note if you have any questions or need a payment plan.)

As I mentioned in the intro of my latest podcast episode, this will be the last astrology course I teach for a while. I’m not planning to offer The Lunar Circle again in 2023, and am feeling called to offer courses that address mythology and archetypal psychology more broadly, without the framework of astrology.

That said, if you’ve been wanting to learn astrology from me… now is the time.

It’s just about 6pm in Whitefish, golden hour is fast approaching, and I hear voices beckoning me outside to kick off the first official night of our retreat, so I will leave things here for now.

I promise to keep on keeping on, despite the sadness, and the pitfalls, and I hope you will too.

Until next time…