We had another fabulous dinner in
Maia on the waterfront. Again, just really nice to be with other astrologers.
I arrived at the auditorium raring
to watch other speakers. First up was my buddy Glenn Perry who was so calm, so
informative and just so experienced that I really learned an awful lot from him
on presentation skills. I loved the content of his lecture too on “Present
Centered, Purpose Focused Prediction” and a lot of the psychology I studied at
university began to return. Luiza Azancat (an amazing polyglot) spoke on “The
Astrology of Twin Siblings” which demonstrated how one twin acts out one half
of the chart and the other twin acts out the other. Absolutely fascinating
research. Next was my good friend Christian Konig who did an incredible presentation
on the different types of stars (“Between Heaven and Earth—Helical Rising and
Setting Stars”) that was visually appealing thanks to his wicked skills on
powerpoint (yeah guess who’s getting a phone call when it’s time to prepare the
next lecture?). Like Glenn, Christian was incredibly calm even though I knew he
was very nervous.
After all that sitting and
listening, I had worked up a bit of an appetite so we found a local restaurant
and indulged ourselves in some Portuguese cuisine. Fab company with Rod,
Christian, Carla and Monica and a few others. Oh I had codfish which is the
local speciality. Yummy.
I watched Glenn again for his
workshop and again was just blown away by his calmness, experience and
professionalism. His topic was “Venus-Pluto Dynamics: Transforming Fears of
Intimacy”. I just loved the way he took a few case studies and made quite complex
points very simple. Then I went to watch Roy who did a good job of making key
mundane points easy for beginners (I’m not a beginner but it was still good to
learn from an experienced speaker). Roy certainly taught me about how to plug
my own material in the future (one can’t be shy about it!).
The talks at this conference went
on quite late—almost as late as in India (and you KNOW how much I love India).
But what made it all so enjoyable was that there was so much to do outside of
the auditorium and if anything was needed, one could just wander out to get it.
So the last workshop I went to was Margaret Gray’s astro-drama which was a lot
of fun and I think we made a pretty good tag team. By the end of this, both of
us were knackered.
Sunday morning and it was time to
catch Mark Jones in action. “The Destiny Line: the Nodal Axis of the Moon as
the Key to Personal Evolution” was the title of his workshop. Now Mark is a
very popular speaker so I really wanted to see what I could learn from him. And
I think the key to his success is that he makes one point and keeps reinforcing
it. He also has an incredible, measured voice (he’s also a hypnotherapist) that
was very pleasant to listen to.
After lunch with the astrologers,
it was time to watch Margaret in action again. Her topic was “Understanding and
Transforming Compulsive and Addictive Relationship patterns with the help of
Psychological Astrology” which she delivered in heels! What I found quite
striking was the crossover between her talk and Glenn’s. They didn’t work
together on their lectures but they made a lot of the same points. Fascinating.
My attention span was dwindling so
a few of us gathered to chew the fat. And I learned something else about
myself:
I’ve said before I don’t attend
conferences with the expectations of making money. I go to conferences for the
connections with other astrologers, to learn about what’s going on outside of
merry England (LOTS!!) and to pick up opportunities for collaboration. If I do
make money, it’s almost exclusively in book sales, private consultations and
future engagements outside of the big conferences. There’s a part of me that
really dislikes discussing finances and a different part of me who is very
reluctant to focus on astrology full time in the hopes of being able to leave
teaching (for goodness sake, I just got the teaching/practising astrology
balance just right!). I know I would miss teaching if I ever did discover the
key to making tons of money in astrology so there’s a real reluctance to talk
turkey about money. Having said that, it is nice to have a bit of jingle in the
pocket (mainly through book sales) at the end of the conference (even if there
were a few misunderstandings around EU taxes).
With the old finances in order, it
was time to enjoy the last lecture. “Turning Lead into Gold: Planets in
Detriment and Fall” was delivered by Lynn Bell. I’ve seen Lynn lecture a lot
and she is one of my astro heroes for her really well considered examples, her
knowledge of mythology and her consistent elegance. And she didn’t disappoint.
It really was a great conference
and as it was the first one for the Portuguese astrologers, I thought it was
absolutely bloody marvellous. The generosity of the hosts, the central location
of the event and just the experience of being able to enjoy the setting was
nothing short of glorious. Oh and guess who is going to have a few articles
translated into Portuguese?
My last dinner in Portugal was
spent with the Brits. Lynn (like me, she’s an honourary Brit) gave me some
great advice and Carole Taylor (I’ve seen Carole lecture a lot too so I had to
make the decision to see speakers I hadn’t seen before) gave me some
encouragement about the lecture circuit. It is a great feeling to know that I
am now experienced enough as a speaker that I can step back and get a better
feel for what I enjoy in a conference, how I can be a better speaker and just
to enjoy observing the masters. What a terrible teacher I’d be if I thought
there was no room for improvement!
My sincere thanks to Isabel
Guimardes and team for a wonderful conference.
For part 1, click here
For part 2, click here
For part 1, click here
For part 2, click here
About the Astrologer
Alex Trenoweth was voted Best International Astrologer, 2015 for her dynamic presentation on her innovative and original research into Astrology and Education. Her book, "Growing Pains" is an exciting development in astrology as it combines classroom teaching experience, sound investigation and the potential to have a positive impact on struggling adolescents, parents, teachers and those who have been labelled "at risk". She writes the weekly and monthly horoscopes and other articles for the Cosmic Intelligence Agency, one of the largest astrological social media groups on the web and was also a speaker for the AstroSummit, a guest lecturer for the London School of Astrology and has spoken at several UK local astrology groups. Upcoming international events include Breaking Down the Borders, the Kepler Conference, Congresso Internacional de Astrologia (Portugal), Kepler College, the Mercury Internet School of Psychological Astrology, NORWAC and the San Francisco Astrology Society. Alex is also Vice Principal and Secretary General of International Affairs for the Krishnamurti Institute of Astrology and will will be taking up her residential post in India 2017. For queries, consultations or syndications, please contact Alex via www.alextrenoweth.com or leave a message in the comment section.
"Growing Pains" can be purchased in paperback or kindle format on Amazon or can be signed and posted directly to you by Alex.
About the New Book
There are two wolves fighting inside of me, the old story goes, one wolf is good and the other is evil. “But Grandfather,” asked the child, “Which one wins?” The Grandfather answered, “The wolf I feed.”
We might like to think that being good is a natural instinct. In fact, doing the right thing takes a conscious decision. Every day, we are met with temptation to get ahead at the expense of someone else, to get away with something we know is wrong or to cut corners if we think no one is watching.
Following on from her powerful book on astrology and Education, “Growing Pains”, Alex Trenoweth explores the benefits of using “the bad guy” of the solar system: Saturn. Often avoided and seldom understood, if we understand our own Saturn then we can help others to understand theirs. Using case studies of highly successful people contrasted with convicted serial killers, Trenoweth deftly demonstrates the dire consequences of feeding the wrong wolf.
