Three Bright Stars

What comes to mind when I think of the three stars lost is human vulnerability out there for all the world to see. Last year, Ed McMahon told of feeling optimistic, but also embarrassed that his home was in foreclosure, and he reached out in heartfelt solidarity with the millions also facing this trauma. In her NBC documentary, Farrah Fawcett shared her agonizing ordeal with anal cancer (how humbling is that). After reflecting on her success, she poignantly said she felt like a blond nothingness. And then there's Michael Jackson, with his huge talent and physical-psychic fragility.

All were just a little wacky, vulnerable and had an endearing kindness that shined through. Astrologer Eileen Grimes sees their passing through the veil now as a collectively experienced event courtesy of the Chiron-Neptune-Jupiter alignment in Aquarius. Says Eileen, "As these three energies combined, all being extremely transcendent - we lose three people that were perhaps, larger than life and mythologized."

She continues, "And the Aquarian/Uranian energy was there in each; Uranus was within a few degrees of Jackson's midheaven; Fawcett was an Aquarian, and McMahon had Uranus/Sun conjunction in Pisces. We can certainly say that Chiron’s energy of the wounded healer would apply to Michael Jackson; his energy and talent developed in spite of the woundedness in his soul. His story was almost a Chiron story that went off the deep end - his obsession with the perfection of his life and his person, the antiseptic approach to life he took - trying to keep it all so clean, and perfect. Michael’s 6th house south node, and being a Virgo certainly points towards the Chiron energy. And most recently, he did have his Chiron return. Michael also had Neptune and Jupiter conjoining the north node!

Farrah Fawcett was the embodiment of the all-American Jupiterian woman with a grin as big as that planet. Clearly she’s the Jupiter factor in this trio - positive, agile, sexy. She became the epitomy of the 70’s version of the Ultimate Woman. Her chart shows a significant influence of Jupiter - the south node in Sagittarius. Although other forces were present in her life that were pretty daunting - she kept a positive outlook on life, and kept going, even in the face of terminal cancer.

Finally, Ed McMahon, who, having south node and Sun in Pisces - was the Neptune representative. He sacrificed being the First Banana to Johnny Carson; he had issues with addiction throughout his life."

When celebrities that have been part of our lives for decades pass away, that loss is like a wave through the collective. Particularly, Michael Jackson's passing was a Uranian shockwave that came out of the blue. They each showed us that behind the Hollywood smile is a human struggling to heal and learn from mistakes. That money and fame doesn't mean you don't suffer from illness, neurosis, bad judgement and conflict in relationships. The wave of collective healing (Chiron) brings faith in life (Jupiter) when we honor the journey of trying to transcend life challenges (Neptune). They have all given us the gift of witnessing their messy, unresolved, indebted (both Jackson and McMahon), perfectly imperfect and very human lives.