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Organization of Professional Astrologers |
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OPA E-News |
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Volume 1 - No. 7 - August, 2001 |
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This month: Member Announcements, Results of Last Month's and previous Surveys, New Survey Question, Results of Last Month's Q & A, More Info about the upcoming OPA Astrologers at Work Conference
Thanks,
Ellen Zucker
emzucker@netreach.net
9 (12%) of you responded with detailed and heartfelt comments. The love of your work comes through loud and clear.
Far and away, the one aspect that gives you the most pleasure is working one on one with clients. Seven of you told me that. Some in quite passionate terms. I'll let your words speak for themselves.
Arlan Wise writes:
"The consultation. I love the way the hour unfolds and those moments when I've explained something or offered an idea and I can see a light go off inside the clients's mind. I like to hear "I've never thought of it that way". There's an intimacy that develops during the session that is so
truthful and special."
Linda L. Zoltnick states:
"Face to face client work with someone who I have been seeing for years, or someone who is open to the material and wanting to make best use of our time together. There can be a certain kind of alchemy with astrology where the client and astrologer 'click', there is a wonderful rapport and
the time together seems extremely intimate and productive."
She continues: "This has happened several times with clients who were in crises, for example, divorce, dealing with death, one young woman with planning her suicide, and we were able to get to the heart of the pain, loss, suffering and the person was able to let go of being 'stuck' or in a
downward spiral."
John Marchesella adds:
"I very much enjoy working with that client that I'm just in tune with. They've worked on themselves to be aware of their dynamics, but they haven't done so much work that then the astrology is obsolete. They might even know enough about their charts to ask intelligent questions, but they don't know so much that then I have no input. These readings are a joy."
Bob Mulligan reiterates the sentiment:
"Meeting one on one with clients is the most joy for me...I really like the interactive side of our work."
Michael Botting writes:
"It is so very fulfilling to give positive advice to a client and to show them how they can direct their lives. Giving support and bolstering confidence in a way that brings smiles and enjoyment to a life is worth the learning given out. And that's what it is - teaching a client that s/he is in control of how they handle any situation in life. Also add, helping someone out, as long as I don't let myself get drained, used."
Cathy Coleman writes:
"I enjoy helping clients sort out the most complicated, challenging, personal life situations (e.g., client before and after prison for drunk driving/vehicular manslaughter; wife of a manic-depressive husband who is having an affair/lost his job/move to another country in the works)--life stories that transport me into very different places with life stories.
Also, I enjoy working with family charts--especially parents and children."
But there is more than the one-to-one interaction. Arlan Wise speaks of the pleasure she gets out of doing chart preparation:
"I also love writing out the chart for the first time. I always copy the computer printout onto a sheet of paper so i can have the feeling of my hand telling my brain who this person is. I love doing the aspects, maybe it goes back to childhood game of connecting the dots. When I look at a chart for the first time it feels like a polaroid picture is developing in front of me, the broad outlines come into sharper focus the more I look. It's such fun."
Bob Mulligan adds:
"Also, there are moments of great joy when I'm studying a person's chart and it suddenly comes together and I understand some new aspect of the person...It's as if the cosmos opens up and some glimmer of a higher reality strikes me."
Working with students is rewarding for many of you:
John Marchesella puts it eloquently:
"However, even better than that (working with clients) is working with private students. They know the ABC's from class, so we don't have to cover basics. They're making an investment in astrology (and in themselves), so you can weigh their appreciation. And I get to see the "Aha!" in their eyes about their own charts. It brings together the best elements of practicing psychotherapy with astrology (and not diluting it), plus there's a very personal and intimate connection with "another who knows." What could be better?"
Maureen Ambrose is succinct when she writes:
"The student represents a yearning soul reaching out to a new world of awareness and growth."
Writing brings the most joy to Carol Devine:
"I enjoy writing the most, but since my background is in journalism, that is not surprising. When I did my Solar Arc book, I was in heaven and wished I didn't have to make a living consulting so I could write all the time. I look forward to writing my newsletter and E-Zine. It's like a vacation when I do them."
And Ena Stanley gets much pleasure out of teaching and promoting professionalism.
She writes:
"I was at party some time ago. I was invited as a friend of the guest of honor. Both the host and hostess were AMA doctors, as were most of the guests. I was a little late arriving (I had to teach a class that night) and when I was introduced to the room full of people, it was noted that I was a professional astrologer. After a noticeable silence, the host spoke. "What makes one a PROFESSIONAL astrologer?" he asked."
"National certification!" I answered, while holding full eye contact...
"I had something within my profession in which other professions could identify: authentication of general knowledge administrated by my peers. From that moment, I was the focus of the party guests and held court the rest of the night."
You were more than generous in sharing your experiences. I'll let your voices speak:
Arlan Wise writes:
"There are sessions where I know I've been effective in helping the client. There was a sick little boy who's parents called me to find out when he would have his attacks. It was useful for them to know when his weaker periods would be. He's still alive today. I also remember a
session where a client called me to do a relationship comparison for her and her husband. He sat and listened and asked questions. Later in the week he asked for a divorce.
...Another memorable session was one spent discussing how the client wanted to have a baby. Her clock was ticking and she was running out of time. Her husband had already had a family from a first marriage and had no interest in starting another one. She was quite adamant on wanting to get pregnant. When I asked her, at the end of the session, if she was going to stop using birth control, she said,"Oh, He's had a vasectomy." She was planning on becoming artificially
inseminated which changed the story big time, especially as the husband is a Scorpio. We were out of time so I never got to tell her in enough detail how a Scorpio, of all signs, might object to having another man's sperm create the babies he would have to take care of for the rest of his life. (She never had the child.)
And there was the session where a tree had fallen down blocking my driveway. i had to take a saw and cut up the tree after the session so she could drive away. I laughed about my astrologer/woodsman role, truly a full service astrologer."
Michael Botting writes:
"The experiences most fun for me are when clients get so excited to see me again. But it is necessary to let many know again that they are in charge.
One particular experience involved choosing a time to marry - that was a fascinating one as the couple had already chosen one, in another state, and there was no changing it. It was definitely not a good time for a marriage, not even that day. Then it was feasible for them to marry beforehand, with the one mate flying to this state. I had to pick three different dates and times before the one person could work in the date for the flight to meet the partner for the marriage. Thus they had two weddings in two different states. The first one is still the one I figure is important. It would be something very interesting to follow up on with the clients. It is time for me to do so."
From Maureen Ambrose: "In consulting, to be dramatically told that I saved a couple's marriage
was a stark situation. I just did what I do with natal charts. Once the husband understood how he tended to operate to everyone else's dismay, he began to own and manage his unruly behavior patterns and to look beyond himself.
Another involves a client I've been working with for many years who has had to steer around some very major turning points in her life during the past few years. I know it has helped her to see the bigger picture, to accept that change is necessary and to know that the future can hold new and exciting choices that will enable her to become more whole.
Maureen describes the process:
"Once the owner of the aspect becomes aware of a particular conflicting behavior that is a strength but also disastrous for relationships, the result can be likened to examining a virus under a laboratory microscope. The result can neutralize the negative part of this behavior and use it in a more beneficial direction. However, once the client realizes that the conflicting aspect can create havoc in the lives of loved ones, it becomes a trait that is examined and placed within more protected boundaries only to be called upon when desired.
This process is called managing your dynamic aspects. It's called "knowing yourself."
Maureen continues:
"In other situations, some people have a greater fear of the unknown. The owner can focus on the task at hand and be prepared to meet the challenges with more confidence when he or she has her eyes wide open and aware of particular landscapes in the chart. I usually give a client the good news with the not-so-good news. Yes, you will likely be having certain encounters or you will have a certain confrontation of energies, but you have help from this transit or that progression. Then I explain those situations where the person is able to deal with what's on his/her plate at the time because it coincides with a particular period representing clarity of thought, extra mental toughness or being in a place where that person can reach down to a
place of stability that will hold fast when the seas get a bit choppy. We all go through rough patches. It's like traveling down a road where some of the pavement has been removed. You just keep going until you get back on the pavement. The chart will usually tell you when that will be.
Usually it's a case of when the going gets tough, there is supportive energy from other places. If it's there, I make sure to point this out. In those cases where it is better to keep a low profile until the storm passes, just knowing this can help clients to manager better. In other situations, when opportunity is there for the taking, a little encouragement sometimes is all the client needs to move forward.
The upshot for Linda Zoltnick is: "When astrology really works my clients say it saves them years of therapy."
One of Carole Devine's more memorable experiences show a lesson learned for her:
"A small experience that stands out was in connection to parties. Since 1980, I've done little home parties as a way to introduce astrology to skeptics. I still do them although it isn't necessary for business any more. A guest suggested that I start taping them, so the first time I tried that, I gave the guests an option of taping for $2 extra. The very first person at the very first party where this was an option, decided to forego taping, but after I had done the whole 20
minute synopsis, he said, "Would you say all that again and tape it this time?" Since I have Venus and Jupiter in Pisces and a full 12th house, I did it again, but from then on, I raised the price $5 and didn't give them a choice."
Carol discovered that asking can elicit the unexpected.
"When I was living in Ft. Myers, FL, I wrote columns for the Ft.Myers and Ft. Myers Beach Observers and also the Pine Island Eagle. The editor suggested I try syndicating. In the preparatory stages, we had to contact peers for endorsements. I sent one request to The Mountain
Astrologer, and in addition to an endorsement, I was asked to write their daily forecast column which I did for 16 months starting in mid-1994."
Michael Botting's observation is a truism: "Everything has it's own story. Every person has their own life."
Thanks you all for responding. If you like to add your own story or wish to comment on any of the responses, please email me and I'll continue to publish them.
I strongly encourage you to submit your questions. The OPA E-News is a vehicle for connecting with your fellow Astrologers. What would YOU like to know about your fellow astrologers?
Ellen Zucker asks:
1. What was your most vexing experience connected with your Astrology work?
2. How do you deal with it?
Ellen Zucker writes:
A talk show radio host of a small local radio station showed some interest in having me as a one-time guest on her program to discuss Astrology. I met her at a networking luncheon at a local Chamber of Commerce of which I'm a member. At this point I don't know how serious she is. But, never having been on radio, I'd like some pointers so I can be prepared to talk to her if this goes anywhere.
What kind of information do I want to have? What questions should I ask? What conditions should be in place before going ahead? What should I or could I expect?
Thanks in advance for your help.
Arlan Wise writes:
Ellen, I've never had radio experience but I know that a lot of astrologers have been asked to speak on radio and TV and then been attacked or ridiculed. Be careful. Always take the high road in your answers. You can talk about the history of astrology, it's many uses, and maybe do a plug for OPA so people know we exist. You could talk about what to expect in an astrological session. and how useful a knowledge of one's chart can be.
Misty Kuceris writes:
Ellen. Being on the radio is fun. Try the best you can to talk in "sound bits," small snippets of information that can be made into commercials later, if necessary. Be direct. Avoid words like "you know," "hum," and other things that make you sound evasive. Get the reporter's birth data before the show because they always like talking about themselves. Visual that you're there to educate and that you're wanted there for your expertise.
Hope this helps.
Michal Botting writes:
Have never been interviewed so all that seems reasonable is to suggest that you not be defensive with comments. Be political and present your positive thoughts. My best to you.
Smiles, Michal
Update from Ellen Zucker. To date, I haven't had further contact about the proposed show. If something develops, I'll keep you posted.
Dear Members,
Additional thoughts? Send your comments to Ellen Zucker at emzucker@netreach.net. Comments will be published next month.
It's your Q & A.
Let us direct our collective energies towards brainstorming about YOUR dilemma.
Send in the details. One question will be chosen and posted in next month's OPA E-NEWS.
Travel and Destination Information
I decided to share information I gleaned in researching a question by one of our attendees.
This information is from our hotel.
Air Transportation:
Delta, Continental and American fly into Ft Meyers. Another option is to fly into Ft Lauderdale, (US Airways flies there) or Miami. Driving time is an hour and fifteen minutes from Ft. Lauderdale and an hour-and-a-half from Miami.
Nearby Conveniences:
There is a 7-11 and a drugstore across the street from the hotel. There is also a shopping mall containing some clothing stores, movies, and a deli. So it sounds to me like you don't need a car to access basic food and conveniences. If you come by public transportation and later change your mind about having access to a car, you can rent a vehicle on the premises from Enterprise (they'll pick you up).
Fitness:
The hotel has a full fitness center on its premises for those who want to keep up with their work out regimen. There is an outdoor pool (but it's not a lap pool). That's not really necessary because you are right ON the beach where you can swim in the Gulf. Runners and walkers usually use the beach as their course. Alternatively you can use Collier Blvd, fronted by the hotel. People can also rent bikes.
There is a recreation program for children.
Water Sports and Other Activities:
If you have extra time and want to partake in other activities, there is lots to do. Golf and tennis is available. Shelling and fishing is very popular as are all kinds of water sports including parasailing, water skiing, waverunners and even scuba diving. (PS, I'm a certified scuba diver and I'm going to find a way to get some in-anyone interested in joining me?)
Offsite:
Tours of the Everglades are available. The Salvador Dali museum is two hours north in St. Petersburg as is the Florida International Museum. Boat tours in a manatee sanctuary are available as well.
Postings for Rideshares and Roommates
As a courtesy, I'll post your arrival information on the website and in the OPA E-News. This way you can contact each other if you'd like to hook up to share transportation costs to and from the airport.
You'll need to furnish the following: Name and contact information (email, phone, etc), and arrival information (airport where you'll be arriving, airline, flight number, scheduled time of arrival).
I will also post roommate requests. If you'd like us to post your roommate request, furnish the following: Name and contact information, gender, smoking/no smoking preferences
Contact me at: emzucker@netreach.net
Roommate Request:
Van Golay, Hollywood, FL looking for a roommate for Friday, Saturday,and Sunday night, preferably from the Fort Lauderdale area.Tel: 954-431-7659 Email: van@manafoods.com
I have a room available to share (Thursday evening through Sunday) with another male. Contact Richard Smoot at smootfish@aol.com. My phone is 734-484-1897. I will be staying over for Sunday night as well and I'm a non-smoker.
Check here for rideshare postings
Check here for roommate postings
To write to OPA E-NEWS, send to: emzucker@netreach.net. Articles, contributions are welcome. No attachments, please.