The Carib people from Surinam quote their mysterious Snake Spirit as follows: "I am the force of the spirit of the lightning eel, the thunder ax, the stone. I am the force of the firefly; thunder and lightning have I created." I realize that what I'm about to say may sound far-fetched, but I suspect you will have access to powers that are comparable to the Snake Spirit's in the coming weeks. In fact, your state of being reminds me of how Aries poet Marge Piercy expressed her quests for inspiration: "When I work, I am pure as an angel tiger, and clear is my eye and hot my brain and silent all the whining grunting piglets of the appetites."

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You can learn to be lucky. It's not a mystical force you're born with, but a habit you can develop. How? For starters, be open to new experiences, trust your gut wisdom, expect good fortune, see the bright side of challenging events, and master the art of maximizing serendipitous opportunities. For more help in attuning yourself to life's blessings, tune in to your EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPE.

"It's always too early to quit," wrote cheerful author Norman Vincent Peale, who first popularized the idea of "positive thinking." I'm an optimistic person myself, but I think his advice is excessively optimistic. On some occasions, it's wise to withdraw your energy from a project or relationship you've been working on. Struggling to find relevance and redemption may reach a limit. Pushing ever onward might be fruitless and even harmful. However, I don't think that now is one of those times for you, Taurus. According to my reading of the astrological omens, it is too early for you to quit.

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Somewhere there's a treasure that has little value to anyone but you, and an intriguing secret that's meaningless to everyone except you, and a frontier that harbors a revelation only you would know how to exploit. Why not go in search of those things? For inspiration, tune in to your EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPE.

"You can be as earnest and ridiculous as you need to be, if you don’t attempt it in isolation." So says author Barbara Kingsolver. She adds, "The ridiculously earnest are known to travel in groups. And they are known to change the world." In my view, this is perfect advice for you right now. If you and the members of your crew focus on coordinating your efforts, you could accomplish blazing amazements in the coming weeks. You may solve riddles that none of you has been able to decipher alone. You can synergize your efforts in such a way that everyone's individual fate will be lifted up.

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When they say, "Be yourself," which self do they mean? Certainly not the self that wants to win every game and use up every resource and think of nobody's needs except your own.

So when they say, "Be yourself," which self are they referring to? Here’s what I think: It's the self that says "Thank you!" to the wild irises and the windy rain and the people who grow your food. It's the creator who's working to make the whole universe your home and sanctuary. It's the lover who longs to express your love of life everywhere you go.

For guidance, tune in to your EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPE.

About 200 years ago, poet William Wordsworth wrote, "Every great and original writer must himself create the taste by which he is to be relished." Now I've come up with a variation on that wisdom: "Every great and original soul must herself create the taste by which she is to be understood and appreciated." That's what I hope you will work on in the coming weeks, Cancerian: fostering an ambiance in which you can be even better understood and appreciated. You now have extra power to teach people how to value you and get the best out of you.

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Take inventory of the extent that "No" fills up your life. Notice how often you say or think: 1. "That's not right." 2. "I don't like that." 3. "I don't agree with that." 4. "They don't like me." 5. "I'm not very good." 6. "That should be different from what it is."

To be clear, I do think a certain amount of "NO!" is healthy. It can prevent people from violating your boundaries. It can steer you away from doing things you don't really want to do. But it's also crucial to your well-being that you have ready access to big supplies of the invigorating "YES!"

For help in retraining yourself to say "Yes!" at least 51% of the time, tune in to your EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPE.

"I hate housework!" complained comedian Joan Rivers. "You make the beds, you do the dishes, and six months later you have to start all over again." I wish I could give you a six-month reprieve from having to attend to those chores, Leo. In fact, I'd love it if I could permanently authorize you to avoid all activities that distract you from thinking big thoughts and feeling rich emotions and pursuing expansive adventures. But I'm afraid I can only exempt you from the nagging small stuff for just the next three weeks or so—four, tops. After that, you'll have to do the dishes and make the beds again. But for the foreseeable future: Focus your energy on thinking big thoughts and feeling rich emotions and pursuing expansive adventures!

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How's your crusade for personal freedom going? Are you making progress in liberating yourself from your unconscious obsessions, bad habits, and conditioned responses? Have you vowed to emancipate yourself from trivial wishes, unwarranted biases, and debilitating delusions?

I'm on your side! I'm trying to perform that magic in my own life! Maybe I can provide you with some assistance and inspiration in your campaign for greater personal freedom. If you'd like to get some of that good stuff, tune in to your EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPE.

A British plumber named Kev Crane worked for weeks to install a new bathroom at a private home. As he toiled, he passed the time by singing his favorite songs. He didn't know that the homeowner, Paul Conneally, was the owner of a music label. So he was surprised and delighted when Conneally offered him a deal to record an album in the label's studio. There may be a comparable development in your life during the coming weeks, Virgo. You could be noticed in new ways for what you do well. Your secret or unknown talents may be discovered or revealed. You might get invitations to show more of who you really are. Be alert for such opportunities.

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Assume that your drive to experience pleasure isn't a barrier to your spiritual growth, but is in fact essential to it. Proceed on the hypothesis that cultivating joy can make you a more ethical and compassionate person. Imagine that feeling good has something important to teach you every day. For inspiration in practicing this approach, tune in to your EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPE.

It's the start of the Listening Season for you Libras. I propose a full-on celebration of listening: a three-week Holiday of Paying Close Attention to Important and Interesting Words Being Said in Your Vicinity. Make yourself a magnet for useful revelations. Be alert for the rich information that becomes available as you show the world you would love to know more of its secrets. For inspiration, read these quotes. 1. You cannot truly listen to anyone and do anything else at the same time. —M. Scott Peck. 2. Learn to listen. Opportunity sometimes knocks very softly. —my friend Jenna. 3. Listening is being able to be changed by the other person. —Alan Alda. 4. If you want to be listened to, you should put in time listening. —Marge Piercy. 5. Listening is a magnetic and strange thing, a creative force. When we are listened to, it creates us, makes us unfold. —Karl A. Menninger.

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"Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody else, these pages must show." So begins Charles Dickens' novel David Copperfield. I'd like to inspire you to write -- and live! -- a story of your own that begins like that. For help, tune into your EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPE.

"Worry doesn't count as preparation," writes author Lily Akerman. That sounds wise, but I don't think it's true in all cases. At its best, worrying may serve as a meditation that helps us analyze potential problems. It prompts us to imagine constructive actions we might take to forestall potential disruptions—and maybe even prevent them from erupting into actual disruptions. I bring these thoughts to your attention, Scorpio, because now is an excellent time to engage in this kind of pondering. I declare the next three weeks to be your Season of Productive Worrying.

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I invite you to keep a running list of all the ways life delights you and helps you and energizes you. Describe everyday miracles you take for granted . . . the uncanny powers you possess . . . the small joys that occur so routinely you forget how much they mean to you . . . the steady flow of benefits bestowed on you by people you know and don't know. What works for you? What makes you feel at home in the world? For inspiration in this noble effort, tune in to your EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPE.

If I had my way, you'd be a connoisseur of kisses in the coming weeks. You'd make it your intention to expand your repertoire of kissing styles and ask willing partners to do the same. You would give and receive unwieldy kisses, brave kisses, and mysterious kisses. You would explore foolish, sublime kisses and sincere but inscrutable kisses and awakening kisses that change the meaning of kisses altogether. Are you interested in pursuing this challenge? It will be best accomplished through unhurried, playful, luxurious efforts. There's no goal except to have experimental fun.

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All of creation loves you very much. Even now, people you know and people you don't know are collaborating to make sure you have all you need to make your next smart move. But are you willing to start loving life back with an equal intensity? The adoration it offers you has not exactly been unrequited, but there is room for you to be more demonstrative. For help in cultivating this approach, tune in to your EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPE.

"Anybody who has survived his childhood has enough information about life to last him the rest of his days," wrote author Flannery O'Connor. Her observation may be a bit of an exaggeration, but not much. And I'm offering it to you now, as you begin a phase when you can glean many new teachings about your childhood—insights that could prove handy for a long time to come. I encourage you to enjoy a deep dive into your memories of your young years. They have superb secrets to divulge.

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How could you turn your challenges into opportunities? Is there a way to gain power and influence in situations that have confused or frustrated you up until now? Could you use some help in digging deeper, below the surface, to find truths that have eluded your understanding? For clues to mysteries like these, tune in to your EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPE.

"Creativity is the power to connect the seemingly unconnected," said author William Plomer. I agree with that. And I'm pleased to let you know that in the coming weeks, you will have more of this power to connect than you've had in a long time. I hope you will use it to link your fortunes to influences that inspire you. I hope you will wield it to build bridges between parts of your world that have been separate or alienated until now. And I hope you will deploy your enhanced capacity for blending and joining as you weave at least one magnificent new creation.

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Grace emerges in the ebb and flow, not just the flow. The waning reveals a different blessing than the waxing. Where are you in the great cycle of your life? Could you use more guidance in figuring out the nuances of your mysterious story? For inspiration in figuring it all out, tune in to your EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPE.

"I use my intelligence to discover more ways of appreciating you," author Piscean Anaïs Nin told her lover Henry Miller. In the coming weeks, I recommend you activate a similar ambition. Now is a time when you can enhance your close relationships with important allies by deepening your insight into them. What magic is at play within them that you haven't fully recognized before? How could you better see and understand their mysteries? PS: You may be pleased when your deepening vision of them prompts them to extend the same favor toward you.

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Whether it's your time to gather your strength in the shadows or exude your lust for life in the sun, fresh power to transform yourself is on the way. Life always delivers the creative energy you need to change into the new thing you must become. You can count on it! So be alert for it. Be receptive to it. And for more help in understanding your fascinating destiny, tune in to your EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPE.