Secret of my success? Star power!
Losing weight, moving house or even choosing a partner, astrology fan CHRISTINE CHALKLIN explains why she only makes a big decision after consulting the stars
CRANING OVER her mother’s shoulder, Christine Chalklin was fascinated by the astrology chart, despite being only five years old. “My earliest memory is watching my mother Ditiane draw up a birth chart. It was a serious hobby,” says Christine, 65, from Pontefract, West Yorkshire. “My grandmother Melita also believed in this ancient practice.
“Growing up, it was normal to hear my mum and grandmother discussing the planets and their influence over tea.”
When she was 11, her mother taught Christine the basics of astrology – the meanings of the sun signs, the 12 planets and the houses.Astrologers believe that each planet has a particular energy and where it’s placed in the sky at your moment of birth influences your life.
“I see the birth chart as a cosmic map, a way to navigate through life,” says Christine. “The planets can suggest the best times to do certain things and offer guidance for change and transformation.
“I don’t make any big life decisions without first consulting the planets. I’ve been living my life this way since the 1990s when I took an in-depth astrology course.”
Now a professional astrologer, Christine is so hooked on horoscopes that when she wanted to overhaul her diet last year she checked her birth chart first. “I had been feeling sluggish and put on a few pounds,” she says. “I had Jupiter in Sagittarius as well as my moon.The moon is all about emotions and connected to eating habits, while Jupiter is a big heavy planet, anything it touches expands including your waistline.”
WITH guidance from the stars, Christine cut down on carbs and sugar and lost seven pounds without really trying. Besides diet, astrology can also reveal the best exercise for your star sign.
“I’m a Libra, the sign of the scales, so I started doing yoga. Yoga is about balance, so it’s ideal for me.”
When Christine met her partner Alan at an astrology conference in 2002, again she relied on the planets for insight.
“Alan seemed nice, but I did ask about his birth sign to make sure we were compatible,” says Christine. “He’s an Aquarius and I’m a Libra, both air signs, so there was lots of chatting and a connection.”
The couple started dating, but at the time Christine lived in Surrey and Alan in
Pontefract. After
seven years, Christine decided to relocate to be with him. “I looked at the planets and it was a favourable move for us both. Now I have my own home office where
I do readings for clients,” she says. “I use astrology to help people decide the best time to make big life changes, to resolve
issues or make career decisions. I see myself as an astro-life coach.” Alan also has his own office where he does his astrology work although he writes about football. He looks at players’ and managers’ birth charts to see how the planets affect their game.
“If we’re looking at a joint life issue, we do our own astrological calculations in our offices,” says Christine. “Then we print out the charts and chat in the kitchen before making any decisions.”
Christine believes in planetary power so much that when the couple moved house, four years ago, she delayed picking up the keys, choosing to wait for the planets to align perfectly instead. Although it may sound extreme, Christine even consults the stars before booking holidays to find the ideal destination.
DURING the pandemic, Christine has been busier than usual. “Lockdown has given people the space to examine their lives and clients are asking questions about their jobs.They want to discover their true life paths, the focus is no longer on money,” she says.
Christine explains that the planets even revealed the chaos of coronavirus and lockdown. On March 22, Saturn moved into Aquarius, which is rare.
“Saturn restricts and creates boundaries and Aquarius is the planet of freedom.The next day on March 23, freedom was curtailed and boundaries were put in place with lockdown,” she says. During
April, Jupiter was conjunct with Pluto and both planets were in the sign of Capricorn.
“Capricorn is all about the establishment, government, finances,” says Christine. “Pluto breaks everything down, while Jupiter focuses on travel and individualism – so you can see the energy at this time suggests a massive breakdown in the norm.
“Astrologers have been looking at these planetary movements and predicting a huge upheaval during 2020.They just didn’t know how it was going to manifest.”
Christine says that Jupiter and Pluto conjunct again on June 30, but adds they’re in retrograde – moving backwards making the influences weaker.
“We may have another small wave of infections then or a mini-lockdown, and again on November 12.”
“People who doubt the stars can ignore the planets if they wish. I’ve found it’s much better to swim with the cosmic tide rather than against it.”