The Astrologer’s Back Story

Valerie Morrissey, author of Celestial Navigation, has been a professional artist for over 40 years. She is available for commissioned art and graphics. Click here to visit her portfolio site. Here is a bit about her:

I am a self-taught Western astrologer, with a strong background in the school of life. I think all astrologers are self-taught, even though you can take courses and acquire certification by various authorities. It takes years to fully understand the planets, signs, houses and aspects. The same thing is true of Palmistry, Tarot and other divinatory methods.

The first astrologer I ever met was Anne Righter Herbert, a friend of my family, whose uncle was Carroll Righter, the famous Hollywood astrologer. She lived in Bucks County, Pennsylvania where I grew up and was the first to set up my birth chart in 1970. My current favorites are Robert Hand, Stephen Arroyo and Robert Wilkinson. I dabble a bit in Tarot and Palmistry as well.

I have studied the readings of Edgar Cayce and through him I have formulated core beliefs about reincarnation and the path of the soul. I was brought up Quaker and because of that I embrace all religions and keep an open mind. God is inside each one of us. Quakers call this the Inner Light. I never had a problem reconciling religion and astrology. There is nothing evil about helping someone find answers in his birth chart!

I inherited an inclination towards the occult. My father, a well-respected Quaker, is psychic. He has had prophetic dreams and once experienced astral projection. My great grandfather was a phrenologist and a dowser. I am psychic to a certain degree. I think of myself as intuitive rather than psychic. I’ve had prophetic dreams and feelings about people that turned out to be true, much to my amazement.

I have experienced birth, death, divorce, loss, depression, love, anger and miracles, which I’m sure are the workings of the Divine. The experience that only time can bring is equally important. When I was young, each chart looked like a blur. Now I set up the chart and study it briefly. I put it away then go back to it two or three times. By the third time the message appears. If I hit a stone wall it means this is not the right time for the seeker. Even if I see the situation clearly, I have no easy answers. Take responsibility for what happens to you. You have free will! The outcome depends on the choices you make.