During the first few days of this trecena flags on all public buildings across the U.S. will fly at half-mast in recognition of the passing last week of the celebrated astronaut/ senator John Glenn. As he is heralded as one of that country’s greatest heroes, many important end-of-life events will take place in his honour during these days, including his burial at Arlington National Cemetery.

As always, the Maya Calendar reveals intriguing parallels. As this trecena begins at this time it will be one Calendar Round (52 years) plus four Tzolk’in cycles precisely since the One B’en day in 1962 when Col. John Glenn was launched into orbit aboard the space capsule Friendship 7 (the first Mercury-Atlas flight) to become the first American to orbit the Earth.

Zooming along at over 17,000 miles per hour, he made three orbits before concluding this historic mission with a splashdown in the Atlantic. He was greatly celebrated throughout this trecena at that time, with a ticker tape parade being given in New York on the tenth day. (Click here for an overview of photos from that timeframe). And now, once again during the B’en trecena, his life as a whole is being honoured.

Marking the start of the second 52-day period within the 260 day Tzolk’in cycle, One B’en often makes its presence known in powerful ways. Represented by robust growing corn, symbolic of strong self determination, this is the energy that was in place two years before John Glenn’s famous flight when John F. Kennedy announced his candidacy and initiated his campaign for the presidency in early January of 1960.

Significantly, this was also the energy in place in 2011 when President Obama announced that he would be running for a second term as U.S. president. The year before that the first official Nelson Mandela International Day occurred under this same One B’en influence, on the day when Mandela celebrated his 92nd birthday. Early in 2014 it was a One B’en day that brought the opening of the Sochi Winter Olympics, the most expensive Olympics ever, involving athletes from 88 countries.

One B’en is also Michael Moore’s Maya birthday. Moore is an Academy-award winning documentary filmmaker and writer who critically probes topics of national concern such as the ownership of assaut weapons, the health care system in the U.S., problems in the voting system, issues associated with large corporations, and issues associated with Presidents G. W. Bush and Bill Clinton.

He has been a leading voice in the anti-Trump movement and plans to lead a national protest against Trump when (and if) there is an inauguration. (Click here for further info.) In 2005 Time magazine named him one of the world’s 100 most influential people.

Historically One B’en has been a force often associated with huge shifts in the balance of power, as when Hernán Cortés and eleven Spanish galleons arrived on the east coast of Mexico in the early 16th century and kicked off the devastating events that so dramatically changed the whole of Mesoamerica. Several centuries later this same trecena brought forth the start of the Mexican revolution when the revolutionary Francisco Medero led strikes to denounce the dictator Porfirio Diaz.

As always, that strong “personal authority” aspect continues its influence throughout the thirteen day period, working in conjunction with all the remaining days. Three cycles ago (in October of 2014) that “push” coincided with midterm elections in the U.S., bringing a major shift in the balance of power. It also coincided with the parliamentary election in the Ukraine and the election of a new mayor in the city of Toronto.

The day before that power shift, another historic turning point took place – the “opening for business” of One World Trade Center in New York, the tallest building in the Western hemisphere, at 104 stories and 1776 ft., as the Conde Nast magazine empire moved into their new offices. That momentous day 10 Ik’ day (“foundational wind/breath/spirit”) arrived precisely one Calendar Round and one cycle after John Glenn’s ticker tape parade.

This was the same energy under which Nancy Peloshi made history (in 2007) by becoming the first woman Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, the highest ranking female lawmaker in American politics, and third in line to the Presidency. During her speech she said that “the sky is the limit”.

During the B’en trecena two cycles ago the Three Men Burner Day got our attention with the close flyby of Pluto by the New Horizons space probe after its nine-year journey to that planet. A few days later, on 9 Imix, NASA released the first image of Earth from its Deep Space Climate Observatory satellite, showing Earth from one million miles away. That was also the launch day for the Breakthorough Initiatives endeavour, the $100 Million 10-year search project designed to accelerate the search for life beyond Earth by harnessing the world’s largest telescopes to mine galactic data.

And now during this current trecena we will have the U.S. Electoral College votes, the memorial ceremonies for John Glenn, meteor showers, the last Supermoon of the year, and the start of the winter holiday season. The Classical Maya patrons of this trecena are highly oriented around the idea of cleansing and “purification”, the shifting of energies to clear out stagnation, so it is possible that some major adjustments will be made during this time frame.

This is the last full trecena of 2016, so it is an opportune time to do some end-of-year personal stock-taking. A good time to examine one’s values, endeavors, and desires in the interest of making adjustments that might better lead towards the attainment of personal goals. To assist in this endeavor these are the energies that will come into play:

1 B’en (Dec. 13th) – the “initiation” of personal authority, this time in conjunction with preparations being made for John Glenn’s memorial, on a Maya Calendar anniversary of the historic day in 1962 when Col. John Glenn was first launched into orbit. This also coincides with the peak of the Geminids meteor shower, associated with the 3200 Phaeton asteroid – named after Phaëton, the son of the Greek-named sun god Helios – that travels closer to the sun than any other asteroid. Michael Moore’s Maya birthday. A good day to make important personal decisions.

2 Ix (Dec. 14th) – a dynamic type of energy aligned with “jaguar” earth mysteries and transformation, this time in conjunction with the Full Moon (The “Cold” Moon), the last Supermoon of the year, which will dim the view of the meteor shower. This is also World Monkey Day and the Maya birth energy of António Guterres who will become the 9th Secretary-General of the U.N. on Jan. 1st. A double New Fire anniversary of the energy in place at the time of the birth of former President Richard Nixon.

3 Men (Dec. 15th) – the “activation of Higher Vision”; a Burner Day oriented around “announcing the fire” at the beginning of the “Eagle” burner sequence, an energy that sometimes heralds the nature of some forthcoming event or challenge. The last appearance of this energy coincided with the opening of the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington D.C., attended by world leaders from more than fifty countries and four 4 international organizations (but boycotted by Putin). It was the the fourth and final nuclear summit initiated by President Obama.

4 Kib’ (Dec. 16th) – a “defining” day associated with the restoration of order; often a “getting down to business” type of force, this time in place on the day when John Glenn will lie in state in the Ohio Statehouse. On its last appearance this energy coincided with the memorial concert for David Bowie at Carnegie Hall.

5 Kab’an (Dec. 17th) – a “blessing” type of energy associated with evolutionary movement, this time in conjunction with Pope Francis’s 80th birthday and the public memorial service for John Glenn at Ohio State University’s Mershon Auditorium. On this day there will be a funeral processional through the heart of Columbus prior to the service. On its last appearance this energy coincided with the seating of the Maya New Year (last April) and the memorial concert for David Bowie at Radio City Music Hall.

6 Etz’nab’ (Dec. 18th) – a “six directions” type of energy that can often be quite attention-getting, this time marking the 100th anniversary of the ending of the Battle of Verdun, one of the largest and longest battles of the First World War. On this day there will be a candlelight vigil for John Glenn at his hometown church in New Concord, Ohio.   Maya Calendar anniversary of the funeral of Abraham Lincoln in 1865.  Opening day for the New Zealand Festival of Lights

7 Kawak (Dec. 19th) – “self-generating storm”, which can often bring a continuation of the weather pattern from the day before (if severe) or could manifest as a “storm of compassion” or a “storm of passion” oriented around a cause. This time this energy is in place on the day when the electoral college casts its vote for the new U.S. president. Given that there is still a strong “Stop Trump” movement afoot, this time through a constitutional “backup” option to stop an unfit person from becoming president, via the Electoral College, this will be the last chance through which an alternative can be elected.  Given the recent findings regarding Russian interference with the election, Trump’s choices for key positions, and his refusal to take national security briefings, it would seem that the need for this stop-gap has never been greater. As there are a number of groups organizing anti-Trump demonstrations, protests are expected in all 50 state capitals on this day. Let’s hope the Maya patrons of this trecena leap in to provide assistance. More information can be found here and here.

8 Ajaw (Dec. 20th) – “resurrection” of the sun and “enlightenment”, this time in conjunction with the UN’s International Human Solidarity Day, and the 60th anniversary of the end of the Mongomery, Alabama bus boycott, that brought about desegregation of the buses

9 Imix (Dec. 21st) – the “outward projection” of birth/the realm of all potential – a force that could have a far reaching influence, at the time of the Winter Solstice, at the peak of the Ursids meteor shower (transitioning to Dec. 22)

10 Ik’ (Dec. 22nd) – “foundational wind/breath/spirit” – an energy highly aligned with Source and with things pertaining to the air, to communication, and to things of a spiritual nature, at a time when the Moon and Jupiter are conjunct. Maya Calendar anniversary of the energy in place in 1962 when New York honoured Col. John Glenn with a huge ticker-tape parade after his historic first space flight aboard Friendship 7. Maya birth energy of George Lucas. Three cycles ago this was the day that saw the “opening for business” of One World Trade Center, the tallest building in the Western hemisphere, at 104 stories and 1776 ft.

11 Ak’b’al (Dec. 23rd) – “inspirational night” or “inspirational temple of mysteries”; this is a force often aligned with deep thought – or even “blackness” (as when Brazil was plunged into darkness under this influence in 2010), but also a good day to enjoy the sanctuary of home or temple. This marks the fourth Calendar Round (New Fire) anniversary of the birth energy of Abraham Lincoln; three Tzolk’in cycles since the midterm elections when Republicans took control of both houses in the U.S.

Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights, begins at sunset, as the Ursids meteor shower reaches it peak in conjunction with a waning moon

12 K’an (Dec. 24th) – a “grouping together” type of energy often associated with youthful vitality and the joyful celebration of life’s bounties, a perfect energy to correlate with Christmas Eve and the first full day of Hanukkah.

13 Chikchan (Dec. 25th) – “transformational lifeforce”; an intense and often impassioned energy, this time in place on Christmas Day, on the 175th anniversary of the first widespread use of Christmas trees (in 1841). Justin Trudeau’s 45th birthday and the 950th anniversary of the day when William of Normandy (William the Conqueror) was crowned King of England at Westminster Abbey.

*********************************

[Please note that the brief descriptions of the days provided above are only “thumbnail sketches”. Much greater detail can be found in Manual for the Soul: A Guide to the Energies of Life.]