Horoscopes by Holiday

Sunday, Dec. 21, 2014 Winter Solstice Older than Stonehenge and the Egyptian pyramids, the prehistoric monument Newgrange was built to receive a flood of light with the rising sun on the winter solstice. Does your heart have a chamber such as this? Open up and let the love flood in as the sun enters Capricorn. May the long night be filled with hopeful dreams for the future.

ARIES (March 21-April 19). The ones who seem extremely different from you are not really. Relating to others is simply a matter of staying clued in to your surroundings and to what people are doing in the moment.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20). People in their right minds don’t usually forget details about what and whom they love, though such a thing may happen today. If so, don’t take it personally. Let the small grievances go.

GEMINI (May 21-June 21). It’s a beautiful day when you experience reciprocal energy, as you will today. You can’t help but treasure and admire those who treasure and admire you!

CANCER (June 22-July 22). It doesn’t matter whom or what you love; the effect is the same: Loving makes you beautiful. Your whole being becomes a graceful testament to your adoration.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). You weren’t trying to make yourself happy; you were just following your interest. And yet the pursuit of that made you very happy indeed. The pursuit of happiness is rarely direct.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). Security, quite simply, isn’t. The ability to feel secure in uncertain circumstances (and pretty much all circumstances are uncertain) is a talent few possess. Celebrate this part of yourself.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). It’s easier to be critical than it is to be creative. When the work is done by someone else, you give credit. When it’s done by you, you’re hard on yourself. Don’t be.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). Mark Twain said that a lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes. Today it won’t matter how true or false the news is -- it will spread.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). Don’t worry about how useful your afternoon efforts are. Playfulness is function without purpose. What you do in the moment that doesn’t matter will train you for the moment that does.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). Success isn’t about winning every medal. Today, more than likely, it’s about awarding medals to others. You have a way of making the moment more important and special, and you’ll love their reaction.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). Not a lot of good will come of thinking your work is very important. This evening, logic will prevail, and in a strange way life will prove, for once, quite fair.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). Doctors take an oath to do no harm, but occasionally it happens that the remedy is worse than the disease. This is a metaphor to take quite seriously this week, as you’ll be weighing options that are more complex than they seem.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAY (Dec. 21). There’s a different kind of life on the horizon, a chance for you to be more of who you really are inside. The next six weeks bring exploration and a sense of breaking free from limitations. February will introduce a strong female adviser. March opens a new part of the world. Don’t underestimate your role. Taurus and Leo people adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 4, 41, 2, 22 and 17.

FORECAST FOR THE WEEK AHEAD: The week opens with the winter solstice, a special time on the planet that has been celebrated by the ancients for thousands of years. Monuments have been erected, sacrifices made, rituals repeated to celebrate this momentous annual cosmic happening. The experience of it depends wholly on your location. In the northern hemisphere, it’s the longest night of the year. South of the Antarctic Circle, the sun will shine at midnight. Physically, the balance of light and dark changes everything -- the way things grow, the feel of a place, people’s moods and habits. But the most important effect may be metaphorical. Pause to contemplate the personal meaning to you.

This year the solstice is made more poignant by a new moon in Capricorn and the directional shift of Uranus. The planet of surprises and rebellion goes direct today, promising to straighten out some of life’s inconveniences.

On Tuesday, December 23, Saturn moves into Sagittarius, which is one of the most encouraging places for this stern taskmaster of a planet. The spirit of optimism will be palpable. Join it and celebrate.