Walking with Saturn: A Life Told in Cycles

The Spiral Path of Becoming

We all carry a Saturn story. Not just once, but in cycles. Like the Moon’s phases, Saturn speaks to us through beginnings, tensions, climaxes, and reckonings. But where the Moon dances through Her cycle in 29 days, Saturn takes 29 years to complete His orbit. This is the long game. The work that takes time. The slow becoming.

Saturn doesn’t just show us who we are. He reveals who we’re here to become.

The Saturn Cycle – A Life in Four Movements

Let’s think of it like the Moon cycle:

• The Saturn Return (New Moon) – Something begins. You are being born into your own authority.

• The First Square (First Quarter Moon) – Challenge arrives. You’re tested. It’s time to act, shift, respond. You can’t avoid the tension. You must grow.

• The Opposition (Full Moon) – The story peaks. You’re face-to-face with what you built. Does it feel aligned? Or are the cracks showing?

• The Final Square (Last Quarter Moon) – Something’s ending. The work here is clearing, distilling, and integrating. You don’t yet know what’s next—but something must go.

  
  

Saturn asks us not for perfection, but for responsibility. Not for ambition, but for alignment. Not to succeed in the eyes of the world, but to become more fully ourselves.

My Saturn Story – From Mother to Me

My own cycle began with Saturn high in the sky, right at the top of my chart. The call was always about who I’m meant to be in the world, how I define success, and what legacy I’ll leave behind.

Saturn Return (Age 29)

I was desperate to become a mother. Not just vaguely ready. Desperate. And yet, my partnership wasn’t a steady foundation. Saturn stood at the door and said: Choose. I did. I said I wanted children—and if he didn’t, we had to go separate ways. He came round eventually. But it didn’t land clean. When my son was born, I felt the rift beneath us. We weren’t on the same page, not really. And Saturn doesn’t ignore what’s unspoken.

First Quarter Square (~Age 36)

The cracks became chasms. The house of cards fell. Within two years I had left the marriage and moved into my own home. I had to learn to manage it all alone. This was the square: the time of action. Not a tidy beginning. A break.

Opposition (~Age 44)

Then, the peak. The moment that changed everything. I met someone—and it felt like fate. Like a mirror. Like madness. My twin flame, though I didn’t know that language yet. It was the start of my celibacy, the start of turning inward instead of outward. I began the real work of self. The marriage had brought my children. This brought me… me.

Final Square (Now, as Saturn Enters Aries)

And now—another turning. Another gate. Saturn steps into Aries and I feel the shift again. My children are grown. One’s already flown, the other preparing to. My responsibility is changing shape. And this time, I’m not desperate. I’m not clinging. I feel ready for what’s next, even if I don’t yet know what it is.

And isn’t that the essence of this phase? The final square isn’t about doing more. It’s about doing differently. Knowing what you’ve carried. Letting go of what you no longer need. Preparing the ground for a new cycle.

Reflections for Your Own Saturn Story

So… where are you in your Saturn cycle?

🌓 Are you around 29? Feeling the press of maturity, the weight of decision, the call to step into something more?

🌕 Are you mid-40s, facing the harvest of what you’ve built? Are you proud? Or are you being called to change?

🌗 Are you approaching 52? Letting go of roles you’ve long identified with? Starting to feel the whisper of a new dream forming?

🌑 Or maybe you’re on the threshold of your next Return, ready to step into a brand-new chapter with the wisdom of experience behind you.

Wherever you are, Saturn walks beside you. Not to punish—but to make real what matters.

An Invitation to Listen

This isn’t about having it all figured out. Saturn doesn’t demand perfection. He asks for presence. For discipline. For a commitment to truth.

What chapter are you in?

And what might change if you met it with grace?

How to Track Your Saturn Cycle (and What It Might Mean for You)

To personalise your Saturn journey, start by finding your natal Saturn sign. This tells you when your cycle began and sets the tone for what Saturn is helping you build across your life. Then look at your age to work out what phase of the cycle you're currently in.

🔍 Step 1: Find Your Saturn Sign

If you don’t know it, you can generate your birth chart online or message me with your date, time, and place of birth and I’ll tell you your Saturn sign (and your current phase).

Each sign offers a flavour of the Saturn story you’re here to live.

Some quick sign meanings:

• Saturn in Aries: Learning to lead without aggression. Building inner confidence. The courage to begin.

• Saturn in Taurus: Learning self-worth. Building something slow, steady, and lasting. Making peace with the material world.

• Saturn in Gemini: Learning to speak your truth. Creating clarity in thought. Holding duality with wisdom.

• Saturn in Cancer: Learning emotional maturity. Parenting yourself. Finding safety inside.

• Saturn in Leo: Learning to shine responsibly. Owning your gifts without needing applause.

• Saturn in Virgo: Learning discernment. Bringing order to chaos. Making the mundane sacred.

• Saturn in Libra: Learning boundaries in love. Balancing self and other. Choosing with wisdom.

• Saturn in Scorpio: Learning to trust transformation. Facing fear. Walking with power.

• Saturn in Sagittarius: Learning truth from experience. Committing to belief. Walking the talk.

• Saturn in Capricorn: Learning integrity. Taking full responsibility. Becoming the elder.

• Saturn in Aquarius: Learning to be your own authority. Building for the collective. Daring to be different.

• Saturn in Pisces: Learning to trust the intangible. Holding the dream and the boundary. Making the unseen real.

⏳ Step 2: Locate Your Phase by Age

Here’s a rough guide to help orient yourself. Saturn moves slowly, so these are approximate. The exact dates depend on the degree of your natal Saturn:

Phase	Approx Age
Saturn Return	28–30
First Square	36–38
Opposition	43–45
Final Square	51–53
Second Return	58–60

If you’re in your late twenties, you’re being born again into adulthood. If you’re around 37, life may be testing the foundation of what you built. At 44, you might be looking back at what’s grown—and what needs to shift. At 52, you’re being asked to simplify and prepare for something new.

💡 Example: Saturn in Cancer at the Midheaven (My Cycle)

My Saturn cycle began at the top of my chart in Cancer. My work in the world was always going to be connected to care, parenting, emotional responsibility.

• My Saturn Return (age 29) was all about becoming a mother. I had to take action even though the relationship wasn’t solid.

• The first square brought the collapse of that relationship—and the building of a new life.

• At the opposition, I met someone who triggered a full inner transformation. I stopped looking outward. I began the real work.

• Now, as Saturn re-enters Aries, I’m stepping into the final square. My children are grown. The role of mother is evolving. I can feel another self forming.

Knowing this cycle has brought me clarity, grace, and the ability to meet each phase with reverence instead of resistance.

🪞 Want to Know Where You Are in Your Cycle?

If you know your Saturn sign, I can tell you where you are. If not, send me your birth details and I’ll work it out for you.

If you’re feeling the stir of change, the weight of something shifting, or the call to become more of yourself—Saturn might be knocking.

🏔️ The Mountain and the Moment

If Saturn’s cycle is a mountain, then the return is where the climb begins. The first square is steep. The opposition is halfway up—when you look around and think, is this it? Is this really where I thought I’d be?

And the final square? Maybe that’s the top. Or maybe it’s just another ledge with a clearer view.

That’s where I am now. Somewhere near the top. Or what feels like it. My children are nearly grown. The home I built with my own hands is quieting. My role as mother is changing. It’s not over—but it’s not what it was.

I’ve walked a long way to get here. Alone, mostly. Not because I wanted to be, but because life asked me to stand on my own. To grow up. To stop waiting for someone to catch me and learn how to hold myself.

And I have. Mostly. Enough. I don’t feel triumphant. I feel… tired. Stronger. Wiser, maybe. But also more aware of how little I know.

There’s no ribbon at the top. No gold star. Just a moment of stillness. A knowing. A sense that something is shifting. That what comes next isn’t about climbing anymore—it’s about carrying what I’ve learned. Living it. Maybe sharing it, if that feels right.

Saturn isn’t clapping. He just nods. Quietly. Like He always does.

And then we keep walking.

If you’re somewhere on your own mountain—at the start, at the middle, or near the top—and you’re wondering what this part of the path is asking of you, I’d be honoured to walk alongside you for a while. My astrology readings are a space to pause, reflect, and listen in. I offer online sessions and in-person appointments at Essential Therapies in Sidmouth. Come and sit with me. Let’s find the shape of the road ahead together.

Book online with me here.

A note on AI & my writing:

I use ChatGPT as a writing assistant—not as a writer. These are my thoughts, ideas, and words, shaped by my lived experience and deep love for self-work, self-awareness, the spiritual journey, and astrology. AI helps me refine, structure, and nudge me toward better phrasing, but the voice you’re reading is mine. I use it as a tool to help me put into words everything I believe is valuable in sharing my insights. Honesty matters to me, and this is simply one way I bring my thoughts to life.