The Blooming Grove Studio Network

Hi Friends,

On our December home page (a 7 Metal Month in a 7 Metal Year) we said:

".... The cycle of support flows from 3 Tree to 9 Fire. Doubled, 7 Metal receives no major support but it overrides 3 Tree, and so reduces 3's support of Fire .... In this case, all energy states are strong, but double-7 predominates. And, as in all of 2011, considerable antagonisms remain. Fire controlling Metal. Metal controlling Tree.

As we look ahead, we see that this is the first of two Metal months and then, in February we will enter a 6 Metal year. This is a cooling down, consolidating process that is similar to autumn as it moves towards winter. Cooler, darker, more solid and compact....

.... As we discussed in March, every 10 months we encounter a month where the ki of the month and the year are the same number. The exception to this rule is when there is a "same number" month in February, March or April. In this case, the next "same number" month is 9 months later. December is such a month....

.... This is a fairly intense period. This doubled condition accentuates certain moods and characteristics, while diminishing others. Because of the lack of diversity in this combination, there is a tendency for everyone to develop a certain tunnel-vision; to get locked into a singular outlook and mode of operation. But, this same continuity of energy can provide a sense of clarity, when applied to world events. Since the ki of the annual and monthly houses are the same, this is an excellent opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of the mood of the times. If you have been following world events all year, December's ki can really boost your understanding of 7 Metal.

Unlike March, 2011, this "cooling" trend will bring some changes to the general mood. December and January are both double-Metal months. In February, we enter a 6 Metal year. While, there will be many great opportunities, the capacity to bring about constructive change is now diminished. Yet, this does not diminish 7 Metal's joyful, creative and beautiful qualities, this December.

In summary, we have a mixed bag, but look for events primarily associated with 7 Metal; such as giving and receiving support (bailouts, humanitarian aid), the initiation of new styles and traditions, the retirement of people and organizations, new treaties and charters, colorful spectacles, and simple but heartwarming events. (Five Soil now moves to 3 Tree, so the mood of political conciliation is likely over -- yet good progress can be made)....

Double 7 December was a relatively quiet month. We navigated the holidays with warmth and joy. We hope you did too.

Dec. 8-
The EPA officially linked the process of natural gas fracking to water pollution in Wyoming. 65% of Wyoming's tax revenue comes from the oil and gas industry, so the governor, Matt Mead (R), stated that he's skeptical of the EPA's findings. Still, this is a positive first step.

Dec. 9-
Europe took historic steps. 26 nations agreed to take on stricter financial control. We hope this agreement comes to fruition.

Dec 10-
Declaring the recent national elections invalid due to fraud, 50,000 Russians called for a new vote and Putin's resignation. As the month closed, Russia remained in a state of political unrest.

Dec. 12-
Protesters chanting, "Whose port? Our port!" attempted to blockade shipping ports in Oakland, Los Angeles and Portland. Because so many in congress consistently support only the 1%, we can sympathize with the Occupy movement, but we wonder if disrupting the work of the 99% is an appropriate move?

Dec. 15-
The War in Iraq is officially over. We hope the different factions work together to find common ground; to rebuild from the rubble. Perhaps a good place to begin, would be to realize that they're standing on top of an ocean of oil that could bring prosperity to all Iraqis.

Dec. 17-
On the first anniversary of the Arab Spring, government forces crushed demonstrators in the streets of Cairo. (See Dec. 29, below)

Dec. 17-
North Korean television announced in a "special broadcast" that its leader Kim Jong-Il had died in Pyongyang, the AP reports. Reuters reported that the country had begun transferring power to his son, Kim Jong-un, who is believed to be in his late 20s. Jong-Il's birth date is assumed to be some time after February 4, in 1941. If so, he was a 5 Soil and passed on in 3 Tree by both the month and the year, on a 3 Tree day (Tree overrides Soil).

Dec. 29-
Egyptian forces cracked down on freedom forces, once again. So far, the demonstrations have provoked some positive responses. As the month closed, the ruling military council moved up the scheduled elections for the upper house of parliament by nearly three weeks. With any luck, voting will begin this January.

General-
Arab League observers entered Syria after the United Nations estimated that 5,000 people had been killed. Over 70 A.L. monitors have entered six cities and their ranks will soon exceed 100. We pray that they can bring peace and stability in 2012.

General-
As during last July, the United States Congress turned a simple economic bill into a standoff that was narrowly averted at the last moment. Taxes for the working class were almost raised while the wealthiest Americans remained untouchable.

From Nameless - This Adobe Reader® (PDF) file may be shared freely.

SODIS® Flyer- describing a safe way to purify water in emergencies.

Articles Below:
'Precession of the Equinoxes' Link updated October, 2009.
The Global Perspective is updated early every month.
Annual Commentary is updated every February.
9-Year Cycle Commentary is updated once every nine years.
New Links and other articles are updated as they arise.

2011 is a Number 7 Red Metal Year

February 4th, 2011 through February 3rd, 2012 is a 7 Metal year. As traditionally described, 7 Metal appears to be a very positive and beneficial energy state, and it is in many ways! Yet, as we shall surely see, every coin has two sides.

The Year

This is the final month in the annual house of 7 Metal. This annual ki is quite different than the 8 Soil ki of the previous year. In 2010, one of our primary themes was "New events that lead the world in startling new directions." Signs that would initiate long-term trends. As 2010 began, we witnessed the tragedy in Haiti, and the Global response, the new Bloom Box fuel cell, unprecedented anomalies in the weather, volcanoes that shut down air travel, the oil spill in the Gulf, a world market in peril and held down by its weakest links, social breakdowns in Pakistan, Thailand and Tunisia, the discovery of an extrasolar planet that is Earth-like, the rescue of "doomed" miners, and mindless mayhem from North Korea. As the year closed, in a 9 Fire month, Cairo was burning (fire and revolution).

Eight Soil defined our "new world". All of those trends will now continue to unfold. But 7 Metal isn't so good at generating profound change. Instead, it tends to lock in trends from the past; adding continuity to previous trends. Seven, itself, brings change of a milder sort. Being the ki of pleasure and creativity, the "changes" will tend to be more modest. Looking to the past, 7 Metal years have brought us the first television commercial, scotch tape, frozen foods, Miss America, nylon stockings, the Wizard of Oz, Batman, Porky Pig and Betty Boop. A far cry from 8 Soil's revolutionary change.

Still, the new trends born in 2010 (along with the old trends from before) will keep us quite busy and don't think, for a minute, that I'm suggesting that 7 Metal will be an uneventful year. There are definite exceptions to the rule. For example, although it was not founded in a 7 Metal year, the actual outbreak of World War II began in 7 Metal 1939, when Germany invaded Poland. And the fighting remained in effect until 1945 (1 Water- darkness, dissolution). 1939 was the next step in a massive trend that was already under way.

Here's another example. 1776 (8 Soil- revolution)- Declaration of Independence. 1777 (7 Metal- sustaining previous change).

Seven Metal is relatively unyielding. Tension can rise.

Seven Metal is associated with beauty, joy, creativity, emotional wealth, organization, pleasure, elegance, eloquence, persuasion, early evening and early autumn. In the Nine Star Ki lexicon, 7 Metal is called the "youngest daughter". That is to say, the most beautiful, sensitive and delicate one, requiring devotion and attention.

Perhaps this is because, according to the 9 Star Ki cycle of support, 7 Metal is the most widely supported ki. Fully, 2 Soil, 5 Soil, 8 Soil and 6 Metal sustain 7 Metal energy.