Ted Kennedy

After Jack and Bobby Kennedy, Ted always seemed to me to be a bit of fluff. I figured he got elected on his brother Jack’s coattails. He looked so vulnerable while lying flat on his back after that plane crash and then there was Chappaquiddick. I didn’t think he had it in him, whatever “it” was. He was elected to the Senate on November 6, 1962 and he held that seat for 47 years. This just goes to show you how wrong a girl can be. That 1962 election was the year of Ted Kennedy’s first Saturn Return which occurs around the ages of 29 years to 31 years. This is a person’s astrological coming of age, when you put aside childhood things and venture into adulthood. If you want longevity, Saturn is a good planet to have around. At 6 AM that day, the time the polls opened, the Moon was at 28 degrees Aquarius, right on Ted Kennedy’s Mars, Mercury, Sun conjunction. Jupiter, the Greater Benefic, was smack dab on Teddy’s Sun, a gift from the Gods. In Mundane Astrology, the Astrology of events, the Moon rules the people. In Aquarius it is all about the brotherhood of man, revolution and power to the people. Kennedy, an Irish Catholic, running against George Cabot Lodge, a member of Boston’s blue blood society represented those Aquarian ideals. I don’t think I ever fully appreciated all that Ted Kennedy went through all these years. First was John F. Kennedy’s assassination. I know, Oklahoma City was shocking, the Twin Towers were frightening; but I don’t think anything will have the capacity to stun the way the assassination of John F. Kennedy did. I mean, stop dead in your tracks stunned. It was such a loss. The following June, Ted breaks his back in a plane crash, barely escaping with his life. Four years later in 1968 Robert F. Kennedy is assassinated. Another shocker. The following year was Chappaquiddick. A horrible tragedy where a young woman died. The common perception is that Ted Kennedy got drunk and drove off a bridge. And we will probably never know what happened during those missing ten hours. I don’t condone bad behavior nor do I judge. As an Astrologer, for me, it all comes back to Saturn. Ted Kennedy has Saturn in his first house, the house of the personality, the physical body and how you present yourself to the world. It’s a strong position to have in a natal chart. Saturn brings you the harsh lessons of life. Saturn rewards you when you do the work and makes life hard when you don’t. Saturn gave him that first election but you can be sure that he worked hard for it. A long slow recovery from a broken back, restriction of movement, and a long period requiring patience is classic Saturn. Cheating on an exam, cheating on your wife and getting caught is Saturn’s way of keeping you in line. With Ted Kennedy, Saturn kept at it until he got the message and when he got it right, Saturn rewarded him. In his later years he was happily married, had the respect of his colleagues, the love of his constituents and a good relationship with his children. And that’s my next blog, comparing the natal charts of Patrick and Ted Kennedy. What was their relationship like? Stay tuned.