AstroJourney is written for adolescents and young adults; we focused on, but did not limit ourselves to, 14 to 24 years of age. There are a lot of transit reports out there. Why write one for youth?
Survival is tougher today. Astrology is like a road map. Your road map. Your destiny. Today, more than ever before, we live in a world of choices. Your fate isn't set in stone. From the looks of things, we don't have too much to say about who our parents are, where we're born, how many siblings we get, whether our parents are rich or poor, loving or mean, rigid or liberal. Spiritual astrology teaches that you got the best deal you could get in terms of your karma. Your karma is the picture of your past, your debts and credits from many lifetimes, for better or for worse. Whether you believe in karma or not, you still have to work with what you've got!

CHOICES
The older you get, the more you're going to want to have a say, the more what you say is going to make a difference, and the more you're going to have to account for the consequences. Growing up and separating out from your parents, and making it on your own is about making decisions, taking responsibility for your life. This happens in stages. Some stages of maturation are gradual. Others are dramatic. Many things are hard to understand until later when we can look back on our experience with wiser eyes. Your personalized AstroJourney can help you understand what's going on while you're in the middle of it. AstroJourney can help you pinpoint various possibilities to help you make the best choices.

THE FIRST SATURN OPPOSITION
Some challenges we face have to do with stages in life. For example, between the ages of 14 1/2 and 16 everyone lives through the first Saturn opposition. This is usually a tough time, because you may feel quite capable of making it on your own, but somehow you're not ready yet. You're probably still financially dependent on your parents and you need to finish High School. You may need, love and respect your parents, but chances are you don't totally agree with the way they do things. This is the age when you really start to see things in a different way. It's necessary. Everyone goes through it. Your parents went through it. It's usually a time of tension.

YOUR PERSONAL DESTINY
Other happenings in your life have to do with the day and the moment you were born. Some of these cycles last for a couple of hours, others last for as long as 14 years! Going through Uranus conjoined your Sun, which happens only once in a lifetime and can totally turn around your life, is going to be different at 16 or 22 than at age 40 or 80! In writing this report, we want you to know what this transit means for you, at your age, at this time in history. A transit like Neptune squaring Mercury, which lasts a couple of years, would be confusing at any age in any time. But today the danger of getting wasted with drugs or alcohol or dropping out of school during this sensitive period is going to be more than it was a generation ago. It's also a great time for self-discovery, creativity, getting into music and art, meditation, Tai Chi, exploring spiritual concepts.

EVERYONE'S LIFE MATTERS
One thing I've discovered by working with thousands of people is that everyone, without exception, no matter how better off they may appear to be, has tough issues to work out. Some kids are in more deeply than others. Maybe this has to do with your relationships with parents, school issues, or feeling good about yourself, your body, your friends. In writing each entry we had to cover a lot of ground to speak to many people in different situations but at the same time hit how a certain influence works for you.
If you're 16 and living at home, stuff about looking for an apartment, buying a car, getting involved in serious relationships and filling out job apps may not be relevant to you yet. But, then again, it might. Many of you are sexually mature, if not necessarily ready. We decided to treat you as older rather than younger. You'll know what relates to you because it fits!

CONTRADICTORY INFLUENCES
On some days you'll hit a mixed forecast. For example, transiting Mercury might be Square your Mars, warning you that you could get into arguments or get a ticket for speeding. At the same time Mercury might be trine Jupiter, telling you it's a great time for communication of all sorts and short trips. When you think about it, in a single day, we deal with sometimes contradictory energies. If you put the two together, they'd read, "a great day for short trips as long as you watch your speed; you have a lot to say, but be willing to listen to someone else's point of view. " You can often make the good better by taking note of the precaution or you can blow a positive breeze by letting your ego be too large.

A SPIRITUAL GENERATION
This report is not religious in any way. But it is spiritual. All of you were born with an astrology that brings you into understanding spiritual dimensions of life not available to previous generations. East has met West, yoga and acupuncture and Tai Chi and meditation, even chiropractors were for the alternative crowd when many of your parents brought these and other "New Age" concepts in a generation ago. Today, they're more and more commonplace; just the beginning of what's to come.
You've been brought up with computers in an informational age where technology and the media are changing our lives so quickly it's not easy to keep pace. It may be harder to plan for the future, when the present moves so fast. Yesterday's model for marriage and close relationships doesn't really work today. In talking about your social and career aspects, we kept these things in mind.

YOU'RE CHANGING THE WORLD
Finally, you're adolescents and young adults at a time in history when major cycles are changing. We've just entered a new Astrological Age -- Aquarius, the age of Love. People have different ideas about what love means but Aquarius is already changing the way we think, work, play, relate. You're inheritors of a new world, one which many people in many lands believe will be a "Golden Age" preceded by incredible turmoil.
In writing to each of you and all of you, we do so with great respect and understanding, and with hopes that this book of changes will make a positive difference on your journey.
The original text of this report was written by Kathie Garica with Todd Henderson (age 24), Indra Garcia (age 19) and Eugene Garcia (age 17).

At the exact moment of your birth, the planets were in certain signs, in a certain relationship to one another. To erect your natal chart, the astrologer takes a picture of that moment, as if the heavens froze! The story of your life is written in the working out of these energies over time. Some are harmonious and others are challenging. Astrologers are able to predict what things happen when and for how long by evaluating the impact of transits. Transits compare the positions of a planet on a given date to a planet or position in your natal chart.
Using AstroJourney is easy!
* In your report you'll read the date on which a transit is exact on the left hand side. This is when its influence is strongest.
* In parentheses you'll see the full duration of the influence, when it comes into play and when it leaves.
* On the right hand side, you'll see the description of the transit which includes a transiting planet in aspect to a natal planet. For example : Merc Sxtil Ven means transiting Mercury is sextile natal Venus.
* Beneath is the interpretation of the influence.

UNDERSTANDING ASPECTS
Aspects are the astrologer's tool to understanding the nature of the relationship between two planets or positions:
Sextile (60 degrees) and Trines (120 degrees) show where energies flow harmoniously. Take advantage of these transits to lighten your load, move forward, get that date, etc.
Squares (90 degrees) are the most challenging of all aspects. Conquering a square can be difficult and requires discipline, but the prize is worth the effort.
Oppositions (180 degrees) challenge you in your relationships with other people. Sometimes you feel a real positive, even stimulating exchange of energy. Other times we deal with conflicts, confrontations, schisms, or separations. Someone else could be mirroring something about yourself you need to deal with but don't see.
Conjunctions (0 degrees) can go either way and depend much upon the nature of the two planets coming together. Venus and Jupiter is a fun, if potentially lazy, combination while Mars and Pluto can be pretty heavy since they both relate to anger and ego.

PLANETS IN HOUSES
Planets transiting through houses are going to highlight a specific area of your life for the duration of the transit according to the nature of the planet. AstroJourney will tell you when a transiting planet enters a particular house in your natal chart. The date on the left hand is the date the planet enters the house. In parentheses you'll see the duration of the transit. It will start a day earlier than the beginning date. This is when the transiting planet is on the house cusp. On the right hand side you'll see the name of the planet and the house its entering. For example, "Merc 4th H." means "transiting Mercury is entering the 4th house of your natal chart."
So, now you've got the pack, enjoy your journey!

Tropical/Placidus NATAL CHARTCalculated for time zone 0 hours
Natal positions:

Sun= 0CN06 Mars= 9LI12 Nep=25SA33 2nd h=12AQ46

Moon= 4CN58 Jup= 0SC29 Plu=24LI10 3rd h= 0AR22

Merc= 8GE58 Sat=15LI30 Asc=27SA31 5th h=24TA11

Ven=25TA40 Ura= 1SA30 MC= 2SC28 6th h=11GE19