The Mardi Gras parades have been called off, but many will uphold the tradition of decorating in vibrant color and light, as well as carrying a festive spirit in heart. Tonight, the moon moves into Taurus, the sign of appetite, hitting home the point of being richly satiated before the season of Lent calls for the sacrifice of indulgences.

ARIES (March 21-April 19). You value sportsmanship and will reflect it regardless of what others do, which will require more self-control given some unusual circumstances. You'll get a chance to practice the fine art of gracious winning.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20). The needier you are in a particular area, the more fear you'll have in that area. It comes in many forms — resistance, anxiety, aversion... all noise. What cuts through is the courage to be vulnerable.

GEMINI (May 21-June 21). While you can't go wrong following your heart, you first have to make sure you know its voice. Sometimes the ego plays vocal tricks, pretending to be the voice of your heart. This calls for careful discernment.

CANCER (June 22-July 22). People expect more of you than they do of others, but it's only because you've raised the bar so high. Make your life easier by managing those expectations on the front end of every interaction.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). Movement creates mood. Manual labor, especially the sort that makes your environment look better, is a quick route to good vibes. Clean your space and your mind sparkles, too.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). You'll notice that the universe is serving up sentences today. To avoid redundancy and wasted effort, step aside, clearing the way for justice to have its due.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). You'll witness the act and suddenly know you have to do it, too. Inspiring moments such as this are nudges from destiny and don't come along every day, so move forward without hesitation.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). The game isn't designed for the purpose of friendship, and yet, you're making friends anyway. Working together creates bonds that will be the true gift no matter what else comes of the endeavor.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). Are people trying to make you happy on purpose, or is it just that what you want happens to line up with what they have to give? Either way, you win. Enjoy it!

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). Your social instincts are on point today, and you'll have an excellent sense of what relationships are about, what everyone involved needs and where to take things from here.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). Most people don't enjoy lying; they just do it when they are afraid to tell the truth. You cultivate an atmosphere of safety around you, and this is why you'll have honest, intimate and fascinating conversations.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). The friendship between you and you is truly the cornerstone that all other relationships are built on. What have you done lately to nurture and support it? Not mention inject some fun into it!

TODAY'S BIRTHDAY (Feb. 16). Someone you meet and befriend over the next 100 days will earn a special position in your life. A new sense of constancy and purpose gains purchase, and suddenly, you're on an epic quest. Complicated situations will be oddly lovable, and you're honored and strengthened by the challenge of solving problems. Libra and Capricorn adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 8, 10, 4, 44 and 16.

COSMIC QUESTION: "I experience crushing anxiety on occasion. My thoughts not being my own is a primal fear that seems to negate my selfhood somehow. My thoughts, it seems, are all I have that I should have full ownership of. My actions are dictated by responsibility, duty and care and are, accordingly, a partnership. If my thoughts don't begin and end within me, though, then where? And why does it bother me when you suggest that thoughts can be in my head that do not originate there?"

There are many potentially disturbing aspects of living in a human body. Some are unsettled by the reality that the human body contains trillions of microorganisms, outnumbering human cells 10 to 1. So you are not alone in your resistance to the idea that thoughts ride in your head from a variety of sources, such as social conditioning, parental influence, media absorption, the collective unconscious and more. Could you see this as a liberation? Just because a thought comes to mind doesn't mean it belongs there, is true or is correct. You get to pick and choose which thoughts to act on. More on this tomorrow.

CELEBRITY PROFILES: Grammy Award-winner The Weeknd played at the 2020 American Music Awards and won awards for soul/R&B male artist, soul/R&B album and soul/R&B song. Known for both his philanthropy and his business savvy, the Aquarian Star Boy (as his last album was named) has a natal chart that reflects this, with a well-aspected Venus, Mars, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune in Capricorn, the sign of moguls.

Write Holiday Mathis at HolidayMathis.com.

Photo credit: PhotoMIX-Company at Pixabay