Star Struck Style

I was just reading the “Guardian,” and I was reminded of the Japanese tradition of burning Daruma dolls this time of year. While I’ve never participated in the tradition, I have a fabulous Gitman Vintage shirt that is decorated with Daruma dolls. I should wear it this weekend while I welcome the first new moon of 2026. If you’ve never heard of Daruma dolls, the AI summary on Google reads as follows:

“A Daruma is a hollow, round Japanese wishing doll modeled after Bodhidharma, the founder of Zen Buddhism, symbolizing perseverance and good luck; users draw in one eye when setting a goal, and the other when it’s achieved, marking success in goals from business to personal well-being, with different colors representing various fortunes.”

The Capricorn new moon occurs in my fourth house just after noon this coming Sunday. Mercury and Mars will be nearly conjunct in Capricorn at the same time. Venus is just a few degrees away — still in my fourth house — but it enters Aquarius the day before. With those placements in mind, I declared my new year’s resolution to the universe a few weeks ago: I want to make my own little world a place that I want to live in.

Since I made that resolution, I’ve been inching toward the day where I actually put it into practice. I had a little extra time off over the holidays to initiate developing some new habits, including enjoying myself more in my own home, but also venturing outside my neighborhood more frequently. This shift in behavior has already begun to pay off because I’m feeling much less stressed-out about everything, and far more comfortable with the world-at-large. I currently have transiting Jupiter in my ninth house, so being a shut-in just isn’t in my stars at the moment.

That might change by the end of this month as more planets slip into Aquarius. Perhaps I’ll start to expand my horizons through electronic media like I did back in the late nineties when I first got a home computer? In the meantime, however, I’m going to focus on the practicality of this Capricorn new moon to state my intentions for the rest of 2026. I might not have a Daruma doll to burn in a symbolic gesture to the universe, but that’s no big deal. A couple of years ago, I resolved “to make the most of what I already have,” and that was probably the most-successful resolution I’ve ever made. I have confidence that this new one will be just as successful.

Wish me luck!