Under Construction

Examples of Relationships - Me and Mrs Jones

Me and Mrs Jones, we've got a thing going on - Billy Paul - Me and Mrs Jones

Index

Me and Mrs Jones's background

What makes Me and Mrs Jones such a great example?

Me and Mrs Jones's background

This example has to be something of a confessional, on account of it being about a personal relationship of my own. But, the astrology of it is too good to ignore, and anyway it was the significant immediate cause of me writing, and discovering the Mandala of the Zodiac, the Alethiogram as I may even take to calling it, after the truth meter in Philip Pullman's books. Well, Me and Mrs Jones, we did have a thing going on, and it was remarkable for so many reasons, many of which I was to discover in hindsight. The relationship is not to be judged so much as a relationship, rather as an interaction that included many coincidental facts, and I expect that it will be seen that these facts support the premise of Astrology, i.e. don't be concerned about us and the way it turned out, but do be interested in the facts and what they tell us.

I'm not trying to dox Mrs Jones [not her real name], but some years ago I became romantically involved with her, for about a year, in the middle of a two year period of off and on contact. It was, as these things always are, an intense and emotional period for us both, complicated by pre-existing relationships, and so was doomed to be short lived from the start. But despite the brevity, there were a number of exceptional moments, added to which this relationship, and coming to terms with its ending, were the major motivation in my discovering the Mandala of the Zodiac - the Alethiogram, the golden compass that opened the gates to Virtualism, Iconism, and all the explanations of Existence, Space, Time, Gravity, and Consciousness, as well as Gods, Alchemy, and Astrology, that derive from the emergent tale pointed out by it. If that sounds a bit grandiose, it should be - the door unlocked is the door to heaven, the key is the Holy Grail, so you'd expect it to be a bit grand.

The story started with events that happened many years before we met, for instance on the day of the wedding of Charles and Diana in 1981, I very nearly came a cropper on a Mike Hailwood Replica Ducati 900SS motorbike, riding too fast down the very road that Mrs Jones lived on during the time of our contact. It may seem unrelated, and had it been the case that we both lived in the same city, or even same region of the country, then it may not appear to be such a coincidence. But, where she lives is hundreds of miles from me, and I have only ever been there a handful of times in my entire life.

The chart shown is my birthchart, with the Royal Wedding Day ride as transits. What is significant are the transits of Uranus opposite my Mars, Neptune conjunct my Saturn, and Pluto conjunct the North Node. Also, the Sun trine my Mercury, Venus conjunct my Pluto and square my Mercury, and Jupiter and Saturn together sextile to my Mercury. Not only is this appropriate of the bike ride itself, but Mercury is the significant planet for Mrs Jones. The time I rode that big Ducati past her house has transits that are as astounding to me now, as the bike ride was all those years before. It is once in a lifetime stuff, and by no means in everyone's life. Saturn and Mars, the main themes of this relationship, are traditionally considered malefic influences, but I think that they deal in reality, and that if it is sometimes reality that is bad, also it is sometimes good, and always educational.

A Ducati Mike Hailwood Replica.

Launch of Facebook - Mars at 1 Taurus

Another significant event was the launch of Facebook in 2004, without which we would never have started communicating. It is notable, given that much of our interaction was on Facebook, and given the later significance of Mars at 1 degree of signs, that Facebook was launched on a day when Mars was at 1 degree of Taurus. There were other earlier events connected to 1 degree, such as my first divorce, without which it is unlikely that a lot of other things would have happened. Also, the time in 1991 that I became friends with the mutual friend through whom I met Mrs Jones - another 1 degree moment for both Saturn and Mars. However, 1 degree does not loom large in my chart, though it does in hers; a factor that proves quite important, I'd say.

But the immediate prior causal event, without which we could not have met, was when Mrs Jones attended a meeting hosted by a friend of mine, and subsequently came to be in a position to ask me a question via Facebook. Key moments that followed included Mrs Jones sending a friend request, then some time later starting a conversation that went on for a year, after three months of which we met in person, and three months later kissed. I'm aware that this brief outline does not do the relationship justice, but the point is the astrology, and we'll get to that shortly. I'm also aware that some could be critical of this relationship, but I would say that her bloke, Dave*, was not there, and neither was anyone else, so I feel we have nothing to be ashamed of. Yes, it is true that this relationship included many of the factors that would have a psychologist label it limerance, which implies somehow not real, but I would say that this was true both ways, and was an additional factor to the romance and love. In an ideal relationship, just as in an ideal person, each of the planets would connect perfectly to all of the others, however that is a logical impossibility, there are always necessary limitations. With Mrs Jones and I, there were chart connections both ways, between Sun and Moon, and between Venus and Mars, but also between Jupiters, and between Saturns, plus other things. This gave the relationship both depth and disappointment, but ultimately was a growth experience for us both, I think. Was it good? I don't believe good is a helpful adjective; it was special, it produced real magic, and I would not have missed it for the World. Also, as an astrologer, hindsight allows me to see it is an integral chapter in my life, closely connected to prior, and one hopes future, events. That is what I hope to share with you - the deep insight it gives into the workings of both astrology and life, not to mention the spirit that is inherent in both.

* Dave was not her partner's actual name, but a nickname I plucked from thin air, remarkably appropriately as it turned out, and appealing to my sense of humour once it became apparent that as with Cheech & Chong's Dave, and the Dave that emerges from Alice, Bob & Charlie, Dave was not there!

We met, in person, only five times, and one year after the conversation started she called it a day on any further involvement, which although inevitable, was still very hard for me to come to terms with. Some things you just don't get over, they change you as a person, and when they end you miss not only the other person, but the person you were in their company. Even so, there is no regret on my part, quite the opposite, and really I am still amazed at so many of the magical moments that formed that relationship, and only sad that it ended. Yes, there were elements that would be, and I suspect were, frowned upon by mental health professionals, but I would emphasize that life is not always about doing the sensible, responsible, thing. Also, that in many cases, being first into a relationship with someone, as Dave was with Mrs Jones, may seem to confer some kind of privilege, but such is always only the gift of the other partner.

Because of not wanting to give away identities, I can't show her birthchart, nor can I go into relationship synastry, composite charts, nor davison charts, as these would also give away her identity; but I can describe what happened, and when, together with the thoroughly amazing coincidences that arose from where we lived, and where we met, on the St Michael Line, something that is doubly significant given the major involvement of Mars in timing the key events. I would also say that those astrological connections were astoundingly precise and unique, one of which was that she has her natal Mars in exactly the same position as my mother, to the degree, and Dave has his natal Mars exactly the same position as her father, to the degree - these are factors that called to be lived out, and so we each of us played our part in this episode of life - it is just a bit of a shame that I can't reveal the full detail of what is quite an intricate web of connections.

What makes Me and Mrs Jones such a great example?

Mrs Jones Attends a Workshop - Mars at 1 Virgo

As with all the other key dates in this romance, it was Mrs Jones who set the timetable, never me. There are sound reasons for that, which I needn't go into, suffice to say that the astrology stems from a feature in her birth chart, while the life events stemmed from something specific that she needed in order to regain something that she had lost. Hence she was the one calling the shots, and hence the astrology keyed in to 1 degree of the signs, although because this was Mars in transit - famously not a thinker in legend - there are not obvious external events connected to 1 degree of the air signs.

On this day, Mrs Jones attended a pagan workshop run by an erstwhile friend of mine, and as people frequently do, despite not being very well known to one another, they became Facebook friends. In itself, this would not have been very significant, except that without this key step it is unlikely in the extreme that any of the following could, or would have taken place. The notable astrological point is that Mars is at 1 degree of Virgo. Unfortunately, for the reasons mentioned, I can't fully elaborate on why 1 degree is important, but believe me it is.

There is another important astrological factor here - Saturn is at 1 degree of Sagittarius. This is the sign of my natal Saturn, so Saturn making ingress to Sagittarius is the start of my second Saturn Return, and along with Mars, Saturn is the other key factor in this whole story.

The chart shown is for when Mrs Jones attented a workshop about some pagan practices.

Mrs Jones Asks me a question - Mars at 1 Scorpio

Time moved on, and a few months later Mars reached 1 degree of Scorpio. I have no idea what may have occurred when it was at 1 degree of Libra, but I would guess that it involved some uncomfortable thinking for Mrs Jones. Now in Scorpio Mars was on traditional home ground - I would say in a position to perform its alchemy from water to earth, to manifest desire as something real. What actually happened was that I had been spouting off about Quantum Mechanics, on the mutual friend's Facebook page, and Mrs Jones commented, asking me to explain entanglement, from which moment we became entangled, although neither of us were to know it for quite some time.

The chart shown is for the time Mrs Jones first asked me to explain Entanglement.

Mrs Jones Sends Me a Facebook Friend Request - Mars at 1 Sagittarius

More months passed, and Mars reached 1 degree of Sagittarius, Mrs Jones had some good reasons for sending me a friend request, and did so, although no subsequent conversation took place for another few months. Mars in Sagittarius is naturally impulsive, but it is not its natural territory, so tends not to contribute anything substantial unless aided by other influences.

The chart shown is for when Mrs Jones sent me a Facebook friend request.

Mrs Jones Starts Chatting To Me On Facebook - Mars at 26 Scorpio

More months passed, and Mars went retrograde, passing the 1 degree of Sagittarius, at which point Mrs Jones commenced a holiday, and during the return journey she apparently experienced some kind of psychic event, during which she had some strong impression about me - so I gather. She was never that forthcoming about exactly what transpired, but it was enough to prompt her to send me a Facebook message a few days later, when Mars was precisely opposite my natal Mars, and in my Seventh House of other people. The message was sharing a painting by Pierre Bonnard, and it made a good conversation starter, for a conversation that went on nearly every day for the subsequent year. During that time I became a changed person, for one thing I started writing regularly, writing poetry, dreaming intensely, and noticing a level of magic in the world that I had become fairly oblivious to.

The chart shown is my birth, with the time she started chatting as transits.

Mrs Jones And I Meet In Person - Mars at 23 Sagittarius

A month after suggesting we meet, it became possible for Mrs Jones to get away, and so on the appointed day I drove across country, picking up a speeding ticket on the way, and arrived in good time at the arranged place, it was a romantic setting, in an old cobble stoned square, and I tried hard to be nonchalent as I awaited her arrival. Bear in mind that at this point I had no idea of what she looked like, and given our conversations, it probably would not have mattered. The scene would not have disgraced Hollywood, and as she approached me, walking across the square, me leaning casually, though feeling anything but, against an ancient pillar, she stumbled a little on the cobbles, almost giving a little curtsy, and she was stunningly beautiful.

At this point in time, that evening, Mars was exactly conjunct my natal Saturn, which was particularly significant, because this whole episode was, for me, the manifestation of my second Saturn Return. One's Saturn Return happens at about the age of 28 - 30, and then again at about the age of 58, give or take a bit. As an astrological event, it marks a significant milestone, usually showing one what can and what cannot be done. Saturn doesn't make these rules, it is just the sensing of reality, which we all do all the time, but at this time we are given to know the boundaries that exist for us, we are shown reality. One very strange outcome was that although I had been snapped by a speed camera, crossing Herriot Bridge, and later received notification in the post, I was never penalised for that, not with points, nor a fine.

The chart shown is my birth, with the time we first met in person as transits. Notably Mars is conjunct my Saturn, as my second Saturn Return approaches.

Mrs Jones And I Kiss - Mars at 1 Pisces

Three months after we first met, Mrs Jones and I met for the third time. Things had become quite intense online and we were to meet while she was going to be doing some Christmas shopping. I nearly didn't make it at all; Storm Angus had drowned my car, and the replacement refused to start, so a hurried bus ride and train journey brought me to the city where we had first met, with a few minutes to spare. It being Christmas I popped into a convenient shop and bought a gift, a necklace of hearts, nothing extravagant, but nice, and appropriate. Then as I left the shop, into the moving crowd, absolutely immediately I found myself walking behind a young woman, I couldn't see her face, but as we walked along the realisation that she was Mrs Jones dawned on me - it was one of those magical moments when life adopts perfect timing. Anyway, to cut a longer story short, no shopping was done, we spent the time we had together sitting and kissing, like John Betjeman's lovers, we were '...both, for a moment, little lower than the angels.'

The chart shown is for when Mrs Jones and I first kissed, and Mars is notable for being at 1 degree Pisces.

Mrs Jones And I Spend The Night Together - Mars at 16 Aries

It is perhaps not such an astrological moment, at least not in the 1 degree sense, unless you were to count the Sun and the Moon. But there were other, non-astrological, factors that deserve a mention. It is not giving too much away to admit that one of these factors is that both Mrs Jones and I live more or less on the St Michael Line, the ley line that runs from St Michael's Mount in Cornwall to St Michael at Plea in Norwich, taking in numerous Michael oriented landmarks on the way, and running on to a fair few more in Scandinavia, and pointing towards [although not following a geodesic to] Archangel in Russia. It is debatable how wide a line is, but if you were to draw a straight line joining my house and Mrs Jones' house [no geodesic needed, as the distances are not too great] the place where we spent the night together would be found exactly halfway along that line, to within a few metres, and was less than 500 metres from being precisely on the line.

It was a strange chance that led to that location, her suggestion as it was. Because the previous month I had found myself driving through that same village and randomly thinking to myself that it would be a good place to have a romantic get away. It was a strange premonitionary moment, most notable for having been notable enough for me to remember it, and possibly because Venus was, at the time, at 1 Pisces, the degree of Mars when we kissed, and the Sun when we spent the night together.

The chart shown is my birth chart, with the beginning of the night we spent together as transits.

Ley lines are a somewhat contentious concept, and it would be fair for anyone to ask me 'why should it affect you especially?' There are a number of answers to that: For one thing, Mars in my birthchart aligns to a local space direction that is more or less parallel to the St Michael Line, which may itself be a contributory factor in how I come to live on the St Michael Line, such that my current local space chart aligns to the St Michael Line. It would then follow that much of what I do is up and down the St Michael Line, and then that habit, possibly in the manner of Rupert Sheldrake's Morphic Resonance, leads to more significance accruing to that direction, both to and from home.

At this point it is worth remembering that after moving to Wheal Grace, in 1999, I spent most of the years until 2022 commuting weekly up and down the M5 motorway, for work, and from my home that meant up and down the St Michael Line. I can also tell you that Mrs Jones was not the only Mars flavoured encounter that occurred on that line, even heading the other way down into Cornwall.

More explanation of the nature of the St Michael Line

Mrs Jones And I Go To A Restaurant - Mars at 1 Taurus

The following month we met in a city near to where I worked; we went to a Japanese restaurant and had sushi, and afterwards kissed for a long time, just standing by her car in the dark of the street. As it turned out, that was the last time that I ever saw Mrs Jones.

The chart shown is for when Mrs Jones and I had sushi.

Mrs Jones Calls Time On Our Relationship - Mars at 1 Cancer

Two months later, a year after we had started chatting on Facebook, Mrs Jones called time on our relationship.

Actually, it wasn't quite the end, because we exchanged a few emails after this, initially on quite friendly terms, but then a change came over her, and Mrs Jones became quite hostile, in the end.

The chart shown is for when Mrs Jones called an end to our relationship.