Above & Within: Cloudette & Carson Coughlin Invite Us to Look Up Before We Look It Up

There's a particular quiet that settles over Sedona after dark, when the red rocks fade into silhouette and the sky opens up overhead. It's the kind of quiet that makes people ask bigger questions — not just about what the stars mean, but about what they actually are. That's the spirit behind Above & Within, a new interview series that opens with a conversation between Skystrology founder Cloudette, known to many as "Granny Ishka," and writer and filmmaker Carson Coughlin.

Their talk isn't a debate between believers and skeptics. It's something more grounded: a shared curiosity about what happens when we return astrology to its roots in direct sky observation, rather than relying solely on charts, apps, or secondhand interpretation.

A New Conversation for the Sedona Astrology Club Crowd

Sedona has long drawn people who want to slow down and pay attention — to the land, to the energy, and to the sky. For anyone connected to the informal sedona astrology club scene, whether that means a monthly meetup or just a habit of checking the moon phase before bed, this episode offers a fresh angle. Cloudette and Carson trace how conventional astrology drifted from actual astronomy over time, and what gets lost when we stop looking up and start looking things up instead.

It's a conversation that respects both traditions — the symbolic language of astrology and the observational discipline of astronomy — without forcing them into agreement. Instead, it asks a simpler question: what changes when we watch the sky ourselves?

Egypt, Skystrology, and the Roots of Looking Up

Carson shares early sky-watching experiences from Egypt, a place where the relationship between humans and the heavens has been documented for thousands of years. Those experiences, layered onto Cloudette's work developing Skystrology and its companion practice, Skystronomy, form the backbone of the episode.

Skystrology, as described in the conversation, isn't about replacing astrology with astronomy. It's about weaving them back together — using real, visible sky events as anchors for reflection, rather than relying purely on ephemeris data or app notifications. It's a subtle shift, but one that changes the relationship between observer and sky from passive to active.

Why This Resonates in Sedona

Visitors and locals alike come to Sedona partly for its reputation as a place of energetic convergence, but the more understated draw is simpler: clear skies, minimal light pollution, and a community that's genuinely interested in what's overhead. A conversation like this one fits naturally into that culture. It doesn't ask anyone to abandon their existing practice — astrological, astronomical, or otherwise — but it does offer an invitation to add a layer of direct observation back into the mix.

• A grounded look at the split between astrology and astronomy
• Personal sky-watching stories from Egypt
• The origins of Skystrology and Skystronomy
• An invitation to observe the sky directly, before consulting a chart or app

For Podcast Listeners and Stargazers Alike

Whether you found this through a general interest in astrology, a habit of following the sedona vortex podcast circuit, or simply a love of clear night skies, this episode offers a low-pressure entry point into a bigger conversation. It's not prescriptive. It's an opening move in what looks to be an ongoing series, and it sets a tone worth paying attention to: curious, respectful of multiple traditions, and rooted in the simple act of looking up.

If this kind of grounded, sky-focused conversation appeals to you, we invite you to Watch the replay on humankind.