Aries Warrior Spirit Lives by Holiday Mathis on Creators.com

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Aries Warrior Spirit Lives

With Mercury joining the astral influences in Aries now, it's good to remember what a warrior is and to embrace those qualities in yourself and others. Here's one definition: A warrior is a person who deeply needs the same things we all need (sleep and love, for instance) but will go without those things for long stretches for the good of the group.

ARIES (March 21-April 19). Mercury joins the conglomerate of astral influences in your sign, lending you the gift of gab at a level usually reserved for rappers and auctioneers. You'll put your internal tempo controller to use.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20). Victorian poet Robert Browning was the Taurus who said, "A minute's success pays the failure of years." This peculiar math will make sense to you today.

GEMINI (May 21-June 21). With your guiding planet, Mercury, on the move, you'll be in the mood to collaborate even more than usual. Choose your partners carefully, though, because their ways will rub off on you!

CANCER (June 22-July 22). A wave of nostalgia washes over your life. You're still processing what happened in those long-ago yesterdays. You're still accounting for someone's passing influence on you.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). A little forethought will save you a lot of trouble later. While you're happily planning ahead, you will find a way to carry the traditions you grew up with into the future in a new form.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). The change of Mercury, your guiding planet, gives you an edge of assertive energy. You'll feel like saying what's been on your mind, even if it's a bit risky to do so.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). You're excellent at taking initiative, and people love that about you. Initiative shows spirit and guts. It also indicates a high level of self-confidence, and because you trust yourself a lot, others will, too.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). When you check in with yourself, with whom exactly are you checking in? It's something to ponder, and doing so will have meditative and enlightening effects.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). You can't trust theoretical knowledge right now. Get in, and get your hands dirty. Better to do a task incorrectly than not to do it at all. It is only through action that the real lessons can be learned.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). You'll get information that validates a decision you made recently.

It's nice to know that your intuitive sense is on target. You'll trust it even more now.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). Your love life is a subject of interest to others. They can't help themselves. So try not to get too annoyed as you take extra measures to ensure your own privacy.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). You may put your feelers out in a professional way. You're not ready to make a move just yet; you just want to know what's out there. Bonus: Secret explorations can be thrilling.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAY (April 13). You design your life in a way that gives you freedom, choice and fun. It takes some doing. You'll plan, change the plan, refine the changes and never give up trying to make it better. May brings destiny in a phone call. Extra spending money in June is a payoff for your hard work. Family additions happen in August. Cancer and Taurus people adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 7, 23, 41, 19 and 44.

ASTROLOGICAL QUESTIONS: "You write a lot about mindfulness, but I don't feel like I really know what you mean by that. Can you elaborate?"

Mindfulness is simply awareness. Most problematic situations you encounter can be improved with greater awareness. But we only know what we know and see what we see — and even that is suspect. Mindfulness is the willingness to observe our own thought processes as we live and to open them up for inquiry. It's sometimes hard to do this in the moment, which is why reflection is such an important part of mindfulness.

I like to think of mindfulness as gently parenting yourself inside your own head. Be sure to do this in a kind voice. Realize that there is no perfect way to live. Life is a lot like walking. You stand up and lean forward, and the rest is a kind of organized fall. The only thing that keeps you on your feet is a series of corrections. Ask yourself these three magic mindful questions to bring yourself back on task:

What you are doing?

What are you supposed to be doing?

What are you going to do now?

CELEBRITY PROFILES: Happy birthday to one of the most beloved presidents of the United States and the third to hold office, Thomas Jefferson. The main author of the Declaration of Independence was born under the independent Aries sun and an idealistic and pioneering Sagittarius moon. Jefferson's Mercury was in Pisces, which is a sign of intelligence, wisdom and an empathetic style of communication.

If you would like to write to Holiday Mathis, please go to www.creators.com and click on "Write the Author" on the Holiday Mathis page, or you may send her a postcard in the mail. To find out more about Holiday Mathis and read her past columns, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.