From Retrograde To Renewal: A Practical Guide To Spring Energy

Feeling heavy from late winter blues and nonstop collective noise? We open a door from rumination to renewal by pairing a Pisces new moon release with the clarity of the spring equinox and the bold spark of Aries season. The Five of Cups sets our theme: acknowledge what spilled, then choose what still fills your cup. From there, we get practical. I share simple rituals for the equinox.

We widen the frame to real life: spring cleaning linked with energy cleansing, family walks to spot early buds, and kid-friendly nature altars. Then we map a whole self check across mind, heart, body, and spirit therapy touch points, scheduled friend calls, gentle movement to undo winter stiffness, and a refresh for spiritual routines that have gone stale. If your daily card pull feels flat, we offer ways to bring back meaning through timing shifts, new tools, or playful novelty.

With Mercury moving forward and Aries urging motion, we choose one clear step toward a year we design on purpose. Picture your December self work backwards towards what you want. 

 Subscribe, share this with a friend who needs a reset, and leave a review to help more seekers find their spring start.

Check out my new book: https://www.jennycbell.com/divergent-witchcraft

Transcript

New Moon In Pisces: Release

Five Of Cups: From Regret To Gratitude

Anticipating The Equinox And Aries Energy

Rituals For Letting Go

Creek Journaling Story And Practice

Equinox Renewal Ideas

Spring Altars, Grids, And Herbs

Family Walks And Nature Altars

Spring Cleaning And Energy Clearing

Reclaim Your 2026 Intentions

Whole‑Self Check: Mind, Heart, Body, Spirit

SPEAKER_00 0:12

Welcome back to another Cozy Coven Chat. I am your host, Jenny C Bell, and this is for the week of March 15th. The Ides of March. Be aware. That's from Julius Caesar, by the way. Um, so this week we have a new moon in Pisces on the 18th, and we also have on the 20th lots of things. We have the beginning of Aries season, we have the spring equinox, we have the energetic new year or the astrological new year, we have Ostara, and Mercury gets out of the microwave. Mercury goes forward, and that's in Pisces. So we have a lot going on on the 20th. I anticipate that leading up to the 20th, we'll feel a little wonky because there's a lot going on in the world and in the sky, in the universe, in the collective, everywhere. So let's start with our card, which we are still pulling from Elemental North Tarot. And I pulled for us the Five of Cups, and this is a picture of a raven, or it looks more like a raven or a crow, and it's sitting on a glass of wine, and it's knocked over another glass of wine, and that wine is flowing through the eyes of a skull and pouring out its head. And then there's one glass that's upright. There are three grapes, there's a mountain with a river, and there's also a horn that is allowing kind of the wine to flow through it. So that's the five cups. It's the horn, the skull, and the three wine glasses. Very unique. Um, so let's read about it. The five of cups represents emotional loss and resentment. The raven, I was right, focuses on the spilled wine of the three vessels instead of taking note of the two glasses still full. This card shows an example of someone who's focused on remorse, losses, and failures instead of focusing on the stability and abundance within the full glass. The runes are Iwas, which is connected to a yew tree, and a formidable ally to the Nordic people. This rune often represents affiliations with friends or family. And Issa is connected to ice. It is firm, strong, and unwavering. It can be difficult to move, but is mutable under the right circumstances. And that, by the way, the issa, which is connected to ice, is just like a straight um vertical line. So probably could use it in spells for something as well, connected to ice. Just saying. Okay, so we have this card that is saying, like, you're focusing on past regrets and mistakes and problems. Very Mercury and retrograde in Pisces. And if you've been there, if you've been focusing and rehashing and just been in the fields, I think you're not alone. I think the end of winter is often really hard, depending on where you live. Like it may not be showing signs of spring yet. And so that's difficult, that adds to the depression. The news and the collective energy is depressing. Um and it talks about emotional loss and resentment. And that could be due, that could be personal, that could be global, um, that could be all kinds of things. So what I'm thinking is seeing that card and knowing that we're looking at a week where we're gonna celebrate Ostara and the Equinox, whatever you want to call it. So you won't like the term Ostara, it has an interesting history. Um I think that to me, it's like we gotta really focus on the equinox being a fresh start. We gotta let all the shit go. And it seems like there's a lot of shit coming up. A lot of shadows, a lot of nastiness. But we have these full cups and we need to focus on them. And so this is a week to focus on gratitude. This is a week to focus on what you do have, this is a week to focus on what you want more of, fresh starts, renewal, what you're looking forward to, what brings you joy, putting things in place for yourself to have future joy. You know, now we're now that we're going out of Mercury retrograde, it's a good time to start making plans for travel again. Um it is really hard to make those plans under Mercury retrograde and really hard to travel during that time. So we're getting freed up. I feel like the 20th is gonna give us some freedom. So that uh before that, we have the new moon in Pisces, which Mercury has been retrograde in Pisces, and Pisces is always very dreamy. And this new moon is has like the renewal and release vibe. So I've talked about, I think, on here how new moons can be either the end of the old moon or the beginning of the new moon cycle, depending on how you want to look at it. And we're getting an opportunity here to release those resentments and whatever's coming up, and then focusing on our own renewal, like our soul renewal, a spirit renewal, a renewal of our home, of the year, of our hope, a rekindling. So it's very um, it's very interesting. So that new moon then leads us into the 20th, which is the spring equinox. And the equinox is remember, is you know named so because the day and the night are equal. And then after this, on where I on this side of the hemisphere, then light grows longer and we start to move into spring and summer and sunshine and energy and doing and action and fertility and manifesting and uh community, socializing, all of those things. And then in the other side, right? So if you live in the other side of the hemisphere, it's starting to go within, it's starting to get quiet, it's starting to reflect. And so the 20th, you know, also beginning of Aries season, and Aries is the baby of the zodiac. They begin the zodiac, they are uh a little hot-headed because they're fiery, they are trailblazers, they go and do stuff and then ask things, ask permission later. Like, you know, it's very much this like headstrong energy. And you know, we need that sometimes. We need that. We need to like just be like F it, I'm gonna go for it. We need that. And so I think let yourself release on the new moon, and then this is what I would do. I would do some kind of release on the new moon. I'd either write, um, I did this recently uh for the last eclipse. I went to my favorite creek spot. Well, first of all, I'm just gonna be like petty right now. So I go, we have this really beautiful park, and it's often got a lot of people, but there is like a lot of parking spots and a lot of different spots to it. So I drove purposely further away from where it's usually crowded, and I found this area that had four picnic uh benches. It's a weekday, so it's not that crowded, and no one's around, no one's really even parked in the parking lot. And so I found a picnic bench and I was doing tarot reading. A lady walked by, she looked at me and realized, like, oh, she's got a vibe, I'm gonna let her be. But tell me why. Then a man shows up to eat his lunch. He sits right behind me and proceeds to play videos on his phone at full blast, and I couldn't even hear the creek anymore. Just like the entitlement, I and the audacity. I couldn't, I couldn't. So I was like, okay, and then I left and I decided to walk and see. Um, we have a beautiful Japanese garden, did all that, then it came back, he was gone, no one was there again. And so what I did is I sat down right next to the creek and I journaled all the fears, worries, anxieties that were rising and that were collective, that were for the collective, that were personal, that were mom-related, that were work-related. Like I tried to get into all the categories. And then I spoke them into the creek and asked the creek to take them away from me, and then I scribbled them out. So it was really powerful. So I think this new moon, since it's about release, and we're getting this card about having resentments and icky things come up, it's time to just like let it go. Whatever is hanging on still from winter, the winter blues, the shadow work, just let it go to the best of your ability. So you can write it down, you can speak it aloud, you can speak it onto a candle, burn that candle, you could speak it into you can write it on paper, you can burn that paper safely. Um, or you can put it in water and watch the ink run off. Whatever. But you I think it's a ritual where we just like release would be so empowering and so cleansing. And then moving into the equinox, that would be a day for the renewal, like to fill that cup up and to like do something that feels good. So I haven't decided fully. So the equinox, you know, astara is really like a lot of Easter comes from this, like they're really similar. So it's like eggs, it's I always have a red egg because that represents Mary Magdalene. And if you're like, what do you mean? Look it up. I don't want to tell the story right now. I want you to read the story because it's very interesting. Um, snakes, and I like to have baby animal like statues. I like to do, I really like to do a crystal grid for spring, the beginning of spring, spring equinox. It just feels fresh. And so usually what I'll do is I'll just do it intuitively. I have some videos on YouTube, I have some things in our coven. It's they're in my book. Um, so I'll do uh spirit crystals that is not divergent, witchcraft. So I'll do um like a crystal grid, but I usually put like a wooden egg in the middle, I'll put the crystals around, and then I'll add flower petals from that I've collected outside from my yard. So that's really empowering, and that's a good renewal, uh a spiral, and where you build the grid from the outside and work in would be very renewal, very spring. And then I usually leave um crystal grids up from the new moon to the full moon, and then I'll take them down after the full moon. So that would be something that would be really empowering. Um, this is a good time to maybe make your first tincture or start grabbing some herbs to dry for tea, um, making an outside altar, making a mandala with flowers outside, uh, going for a walk with your fam and just looking for signs of spring. That's such a good activity to do with kids. Like eight times a year, like I take my kids out hiking and whatever more, but eight times a year, like we would go out for every single Sabbath. Okay, let's look for signs of change. And like when they're little, they really like love it. And then I would let them collect things and we'd make like little altars out, and they have to be all natural things, let me clarify, out in nature. So like collect flowers and pine cones, whatever time of year, make like a little altar and say a little prayer, welcome the changes into Mother Earth, send Mother Earth some love, and then move on. And you're not too old to do that. So just because I did that with my kids isn't mean you can't do that. We're all kids, we all need inner child healing. Spring is about fertility, it's about play, it's about refreshing. If you, you know, do things with your beauty products or your shower rituals. This is a good time to refresh those things. Get yourself some new essential oils or a new crystal for the shower or you know, things like that. Um, it's a good time to do spring cleaning and cleansing. So double duty, like clean the house physically and then cleanse it spiritually. Bells, love bells. If you can't do smoke and you don't want to do a summer pot, and you're like, I don't want to do any of that, grab a bell and ring that bell, just like this song. I'm not gonna sing. I'm really tempted to, but I'm not. Um so ring that bell in all the corners of your house with your windows open and get fresh energy in, right? Um that it's a vibration, it's vibrational energy. So a good time to start a money bowl. It's a good time to revisit your new year's resolutions or ideas. Um, we did the um Yule Wishes, so it's a good time to renew that, review it. It's a good time to write affirmations. Like it's just a really good time to emerge. That's our theme in our coven. Get out of your little cocoon or your cave and be like, okay, what 2026, despite everything going on in the world, the news, whatever. What do I want? What do I want from 2026? What do I you like? Think about yourself in December. What do you want? You want to sit in December and be like, I did X. Like, I started saving money for a vacation. I updated my resume, I'm looking for a new job. I'm I eat I ate healthier. I loved my body for what it was. I drank tea every day. I collected rocks. Whatever. Now big, nothing's too big, nothing's too small. But this is a time to really think about that. Like, what do you want from 2026? Because if you don't stay, then 2026 just happens to you. And then when you get to the end of the year, you can't complain because you didn't say what you wanted. You know, and I'm not saying that you're gonna get exactly what you wanted. Hopefully you get better. But, you know, what do we want from this year? And so also with the equinox and you know, spring in general, it's a good time too to take stock of yourself on all the ways. So take stock of your mental health. Are you needing to return to therapy? Are you needing to change your meds? Are you needing some, you know, to see your friends once a month, to schedule a phone call with your best friend who lives far away, Myra? Um, you know, what do you need mentally? Then what do you need emotionally? Do you need more time alone? Do you need uh time to cry? Do you need longer showers to cry? Do you need times to fight something? Like go and yell and scream, you know? Do you need to go talk to a tree and tell it all your emotional problems? Do you need a journal? And then you want to look at physically. How are you feeling? The winter can be hard on us. Like we sit a lot more. I know my always like end the winter with like really tight hamstrings because I'm just sitting more. So I like always look at string and I'm like, I need to get my ass walking more. Um, and I walk as much as I can, but I need to do it more. Um, so physically, like, how are you feeling? Are you feeling how's your energy level? How's your like your stamina? You know, my goal now that I'm in my 40s is not to be skinny. It is to be like to age well. I want to be an active grandma. You know what I mean? Like, I'm in my 40s. I want to eat well and move my body so that I can be in my 80s and still like be with it mentally and still be able to move around. Like that's where I'm at. I'm not trying to be skinny. No. Like I'm done with that. Done. I am trying to be like healthy. I'm trying to keep my blood pressure low. I'm trying to not have a heart attack. Like, that's where I'm at. Okay. And so we're all in different places, ages, stages. I've looked at the demographics of like my the people that listen to this, and you're most it's mostly women, and it's mostly women around my age. So shout out to you, sisters, and shout out to you that aren't in that age group. If you're all younger or older, and if you're not a woman, even more of a shout out for you listening because how cool. How cool that you want to hear a different perspective. I appreciate that. So, yeah, so we it's it's about that. It's like physical, emotional, mental, and then of course, spiritual. Because here's the thing is we can really get stagnant and stuck in our spiritual practice. Like we could pull a card every day and meditate every day, but that can get boring and it can get meaningless. Like if you find yourself not really feeling it anymore, you gotta stop and you gotta change it up. And so spring's a really good time to like reassess. Like reassess your daily practice, reassess your moon practice, you know, what's missing? What is it is it the you know, because we're humans and newness is exciting. You know, we always we used to joke, like our kids would suddenly like not want to drink water, you would just buy them a new cup, and then they'd be like totally hydrated. Because it's novelty. Like we all like novelty. So maybe you need a new card deck. I'm not saying you do. I'm trying to like de-influence on here, even though I do sell things on TikTok, but I've talked to you about that before. Um, but maybe you do, you know, and that's okay if you do. Like if it's in the budget, get it, please. Maybe you want to work with a new crystal, maybe you want to go find a stone and work with that stone. Maybe you want to read a book. You just you have to decide. Um, I'm constantly changing up my practice. My practice does not look the same from year to year because it can't. It can't. And if it does, I just I don't know. I feel like that'd be so boring. That's why I'm not Catholic. I don't want to do the same thing all the time. I don't want to have the same mass every year. I don't I don't want to do it. So yeah. So change it up. That's my best advice. Um, I'm feeling a little silly today, feeling a little lighthearted. I don't know. I'm sure you can pick up on it. I think it's because spring is coming. It's like sunny while I'm recording this. And let me tell you, like, I didn't know seasonal I knew seasonal depression was real, but I didn't know it affected me until I moved somewhere where it's not sunny all the time. And I was like, oh wow, this is hard. Um thing that got me through though was Kabakava and um box flower remedies. But always talk to health professional. Okay, so let's end with some questions specifically for the new moon and the eclipse and the eclipse. Oh my gosh, the equinox. What are you releasing at this time? What do you need to release at this time? That should come first. What do you need to release at this time and what are you releasing at this time? And then take stock of yourself mentally, emotionally, spiritually, physically. What needs to change? And then what do you need to renew and how are you gonna do that? And that could include your library card, but it might mean something else. All right, thank you so much for listening. Uh, remember, I'm gonna be at Spirit Northwest at the end of April. Join me. I have my book, Divergent Witchcraft. Please pre order it because that really means a lot to my publisher, and then it allows me to write more books. Um, and yeah, thank you so much for listening. Blessed be.