The Sign of the Future

When my mom became pregnant with me, she was hoping for a Pisces. I like to think that before I understood anything about astrology, before my brain was even half-way developed, I knew what was at stake. Planning an early escape, I successfully avoided the weight of Piscean emotions, making my entrance in the final days of Aquarius with Mercury, Venus, and Saturn floating ahead in Pisces. Emerging from the womb a watery air sign, my Aquarian experience is a multifaceted one. And call me a narcissist, but I’d be lying if I said the eleventh sign wasn’t my favorite. Even as a child, I felt a special connection to the Aquarius descriptions I’d read in my AstroStyle Children’s Book: creative, offbeat, kind…qualities I was proud to brag to other fourth graders about whenever February rolled around.
 
As an adult, I’m more aware of the negative traits associated with my personality. I can be withdrawn, awkward, and worst of all—cold, but a deeper understanding of what lies beneath these descriptions reveals a multitude of nuances. Nuances that shape not only the Aquarius, but the collective awkwardness we feel on a global scale as we enter the next age of astrology—the Age of Aquarius. For better or for worse, I’m proud to call the sign of the future my Sun sign, and I feel a special responsibility to share what this means for the Aquarians in your life, and for our future as a society.
 
As the eleventh sign of the zodiac, the Aquarian experience is more evolved than that of its ten predecessors. The only universal air sign, the beliefs of this archetype stem from the contemplation of the universe and our place within it. Those born in late January or early February feel the connection among all humans in a profound way. Acting as an example of peace comes as naturally as a cat learning to pee in its litter box. It’s inherent. Aquarius understands, if only a subconscious level, that peace requires unity and acceptance. It would be a mistake to assume your Aquarian acquaintance doesn’t accept you because they appear curt or uncomfortable in conversation. Aquarians are uncomfortable in most superficial conversations, because they are just that—superficial.
 
Concerned with the bigger picture, chats about Instagram and the Lion King remake can feel suffocating to the water bearer. Seeing through superficiality, they loathe uniformity and any aspect of society which promotes it.  Someone on Reddit described the experience like this, “Aquarius: hates humans. Loves humanity.” This sentence cemented itself in my brain, not only for the humor of the paradox, but also the accuracy in its distinctions. It’s hard to pick on a sign who exists for peace within the collective, but even the water bearer can’t get away scotch free. Criticized for appearing aloof or having a god complex, Aquarius is not unhampered by the stereotypes Buzzfeed imposes on it. And to be fair, Aquarians can be aloof. They are guilty of appearing above it all. However, I believe they wish everyone was above it all with them.
 
In the ideal Aquarian universe, everyone would be completely themselves, without facades, performance, or fear of judgment. It is my personal hope that on some level, everyone understands that the masks we wear are far less interesting than the imaginative child within us. Is understanding a strong enough motivation to drop the masks completely? I hope the Age of Aquarius grants us this gift. But for now, it seems people are content where they are, blending in with everyone else…how fun. By now, you can probably understand why Aquarius is the poster child for being weird. But if Aquarius is notorious for any one thing, it’s appearing “unemotional.”

Aquarius isn’t known for its sensitivity. I’ve been told on more than one occasion that I’m bad at comforting. In general, air signs don’t process their emotions in the same way as other signs. And in the Aquarian’s case, it’s an experience more like writing a research paper—coping through hurt by intellectualizing it until a thesis, argument, and concluding statement have been formed on why I started crying at Starbucks yesterday. I once read in a Liz Greene book that Aquarians can run the risk of entering depression without even realizing it, mistaking intellectualization for healing. In this way, I suppose I’m grateful for my contradiction—a douse of water forces me to face the pain. But even if I had the driest natal chart in the world, I would still feel. Emotions are what make us human and no one is void of them, not even the “robot” of the zodiac.
 
Ruled by Uranus, Aquarius is known as the sign of the future, always seeking that which is new and unconventional. I believe there’s much to be said about this in correlation to their detached, mechanical energy. They understand that the planets never pause their orbit, and obsessing over yesterday can easily sink you in yesterday’s emotions. Never living in the past, it prefers to move forward…with a sense of peace that comes from knowing we’re all in this together. ​