Wednesday, September 05, 2007

Seven Year Cycle

Every seven years, there is an evolutionary spiral. I am fifty-six, just entering my eighth cycle. According to the research I have involved myself with these last few days, going deeper and deeper, until I wondered where or what time it was...at fifty-six, there is often a tendency to let go of the past and begin anew.

This time period is also the second Return of Saturn for me. It is much different for me, now, than during the first Return, when I was around 28. I had a strange perspective on life at that time.

At the age of twenty-eight, I had already amassed a string of crises and life lessons. Because I did not want to face or deal with any of them, even if the opportunity was there to do so, I drowned all awareness in alcohol.

I hardly drank before the age of twenty-eight. Suddenly, in a few years, I managed to become an alcoholic, almost as if it was predestined. This state of affair illustrates what can happen when the seven-year cycles are not treated as opportunities to grow. According to this article, the writer states:

"At each seven-year round, there is an aggressiveness equal to the level of physical energy released. That aggressiveness, if treated with respect and guided, can become a very powerful tool in the life of the individual. If, on the other hand, it is treated as a case of leprosy, if the individuals are shoved aside and not listened to, then there is going to be a buildup of that energy added to the next seven year cycle."

Indeed. It seemed I almost had an intense need to drink myself silly, and then go through the recovery with the same need, all in a required period of time...it took two further seven-year cycles to complete the marathon.

I embarked on a whirlwind of self work, as I headed towards my forty- second year, where I integrated my whole self and stopped drinking. The forty-second year is the polarity of the twenty-eighth year and therefore, is a time of major change once again.

At this time, too, I began serious spiritual work, utilizing my newfound knowledge daily. Wondering why was I here, what could I give, instead of take, from the Universe and those around me...these occupied my thoughts, as well.

Leading up to my forty-ninth year, my daughter died, catapulting me further. My second marriage went the way of the first. These were the doubting years...the questioning years. I continually asked myself...What have I done with my life, where can I go from here...can I go anywhere from here?

My life turned upside down, inside out. I moved out of my hometown; I met and co-habit with the truest partner that will ever exist, for me. I attempted many things I would never have tried, all those cycles ago. I challenged myself consistently, although sometimes in very small ways.

I discovered I could let go of much stuff, both emotional and material, in order to grab a new and different pathway. One where I could find the peace and serenity I sought, but also one where adventure beckons, sometimes just around the corner.

And now, I'm fifty-six, where the next cycle will teach me to value my achievements, to come to terms with the events in my past that are too late to change, and to find new goals or further the old. At least as far as the limits and constraints imposed by body, mind, spirit...and the availability of money.

According to the chart I checked, Saturn will return on approximately October, 2009 to April, 2010. These are the times when the intensity level of my life can become extreme, during this cycle of seven. One thing I have learned...the price of avoidance of these cycles is high. Perhaps the next seven years will be joyous or painful; it is, without a doubt, an opportunity to learn.

This energy cycle I am in already feels better...as if I am settling in to who I am. Where I'm mostly comfortable, but like an old shoe where the seams unravel, sometimes a sore spot or two appears.

Those spots take some tending; I notice, however, that they seem to go away...become less important...as time passes.

And in this cycle, I am reaping the benefits of all those crises and lessons. I have finally learned to enjoy going with the flow.

I am harvesting the first half of my life and preparing the soil for the sowing of the second.

With great anticipation.

19 comments:

  1. Anonymous3:50 p.m.

    Good luck with your transition, Marion!

    "Let go of the past and begin anew": that's what I'm striving to do at the moment, to release the burden of suppressed emotions from the past. It's a massive task. I'm 54 at the moment, so I reckon if I get it sorted by I'm 56 I'll be doing pretty well!

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  2. Well you certainly have had many things to deal with Marion so I hope the next phase of your life will be relatively calm and peaceful. You have the gift of writing, and use it well.

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  3. Yes, there is something to this Marion. I'm 55 and ready for what is next. A reinvention, retooling, renewing of sorts, I suppose.

    This time of contemplanation will, I hope, bring us closer to those new adventures.

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  4. Anonymous8:16 p.m.

    What a great attitude you have for living the rest of your life. What has happened to you has become a way of enriching what will come.

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  5. Thanks for posting, Marion, excelent!

    Marion, the mother of Madaleine was considered suspicion for the Portuguese Policy.

    I continue to think to be lie.

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  6. Simon,

    The seven year span of letting go and beginning anew starts at 56...that means you have 7 years ahead of you, in which to let it all go.

    It seems to me you're doing really well right now, already!

    Davem,

    Thank you. Life is rarely always calm, much as I would like it to be. I guess the best I can do is live life as it comes.

    Sheila,

    Exactly. I find a shift in my thinking, with acceptance of the past becoming foremost. It is a very freeing feeling.

    Jan,

    I think if we learn the lessons...come away with a feeling of satisfaction after an event, instead of resentment and pain...then we can carry that over to any future similar occurrences. That's got to lead to a measure of calm, when now the battle becomes familiar.

    David,

    I heard this on the news this morning. It's because of some policy they have, I think...it gives her protection, but I could be wrong.

    Madeleine will continue to be in my thoughts and prayers.

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  7. The rule of sevens has something to it. It seems that my greatest changes have taken place in the seven year time frames. I do think that if we all look back and apply what we have learned in those times then our journey has a new meaning.

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  8. it sounds like you're doing a great job keeping the past where it belongs!

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  9. Anonymous4:36 p.m.

    Marion- Thank you for your kind words on my post the other day! What you said was hard to read, but touching and true! Thank you for sharing that with me!
    Thank you also for this post! I had never heard of seven year cycles. Very interesting! I wish you all the best on your travels through life and look forward to following you on your journey via your blog! Take care and God bless you!

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  10. the beauty of human evolution.

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  11. Marion,

    Thank you for sharing this. You certainly have had many things to deal with, but you have handled them all. I admire you.

    BFF,
    Miss T

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  12. I've heard about the body cells renewing every 7 years as long as I can remember, but this idea of life cycles in 7 year spans is new to me. I'll have to look back over my life and see what I can find that fits this pattern. I do know that I was finally diagnosed with PD at age 63.

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  13. Dave,

    I heard about the seven year cycle, during my own deep search of the soul years ago. Each birthday, now, brings with it some anticipation of where I am on the path of life.

    Jonathon,

    Thank you! and Welcome!

    Barrett,

    Thank YOU for your post and for hosting stories on depression. It is enormously important to me to have this subject opened up, much more than it is, among the general population.

    After reading some of your blog,it seems to me you're right where you are supposed to be, in your own seven year cycle!

    Alison,

    Yes.

    Miss T,

    Handled some of them better at times than others...but I guess that's life! There are certainly reactions to opportunities I had that I'm not that proud of, lol!

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  14. DB,

    I find it so interesting to look back and see how it all fits. There is something so tidy to me about it all, lol!

    There's the seven year itch, where marriages break up. That was the year my first marriage fell apart.

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  15. You are such a great inspiration to us all Marion. You have had so many things to deal with in your life. It so important to leave the past where it belongs and move forward. I think with every life experience there is a lesson to be learnt. Everything happens for a reason altough we don't always see it at the time. Good luck with your transition to the next cycle Marion.

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  16. Dear Marion,

    I stumbled across your blog in my own research of a seven year cycle. I have recently had this profound feeling of change impressing upon me for the last few months; an almost euphoric elation. A friend of mine mention the seven year shift, and although I had heard of the concept prior, I knew nothing about it. I sat back and thought about the pattern of seven and recognized some dramatic life altering shifts of my own hovering closely to those points in time. What you wrote has resonated with me and I wanted to thank you for your post. I am still some time away from turning 28, but what ever change is coming my way, I can sense it on the horizon. Again, thank you for your post.

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  17. Thanks for this little window into your life. Maybe it sounds superstitious to see life-cycle changes using numerology...I don't care. Tonite I just had a talk with my boyfriend about just this. He was dubious. We're a new "thing"...just checking each other out, and seeing much synchronicity in our meeting up. Hahahaha he's 56 and I'm 49. This year is clearly ripe for many changes and shifts in my life.

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  18. Thanks for this little window into your life. Maybe it sounds superstitious to see life-cycle changes using numerology...I don't care. Tonite I just had a talk with my boyfriend about just this. He was dubious. We're a new "thing"...just checking each other out, and seeing much synchronicity in our meeting up. Hahahaha he's 56 and I'm 49. This year is clearly ripe for many changes and shifts in my life.

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  19. Thank you! I am in my first return of Saturn.. and your blog provided me with the information i need! Good luck in the upcoming year.. Yoga and lots of it.. is helping me!

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