On May 6 for Western United States and May 7 -1:01am (EDT) for the rest of the world----Mercury will retrograde in the sign Gemini.
I mentioned back in February during the Aquarius retrograde that I think the Mercury Retrogrades in Air signs are not nearly as painful as the retrogrades in the other elements. Yes, it is wacky that everything that can go wrong will go wrong. Yes, that most important piece of paper that you drive across the city to give to someone will be left on your dining room table. And yes, your computer that has been a bit slow lately will implode when you turn it on one morning. Yes, our technological issues will be stretched like tight jeans on Thanksgiving. But it is technical. How we respond will be a test on our emotions but it is not that the retrograde itself is about emotions. It is not. It is about our minds and mental abilities. Especially given this retrograde is in Gemini which is ruled by Mercury.
When double checking the Sabian symbol for 01 Gemini 44 ---it is “Santa Claus filling stockings furtively.” In the Edmund Jones book it reads: “The key word is prodigality. When positive, the degree is an unusual capacity for bringing man’s possessions into a wide acceptance and for heightening every proper joy in worldly goods and when negative, a childish or clandestine futility in seeking any normal richness of living.”
The text for the Sabian symbols is a bit ethereal but in my mind when I think about a Mercury retrograde in Gemini in a powerful Taurus lunar cycle that has a pronounced Pluto aspect, I gotta tell you ---if it breaks, really ask yourself if you really need to replace it. Sure if it is really necessary go ahead and get a new one. But if you are on the fence, “Maybe I need it, maybe I don’t?” Then consider letting it go.
Also, if you find your schedule going bonkers-- work with it. Perhaps you always meet someone for tea on Monday but for some reason during the retrograde everyone’s schedule goes cuckoo—well don’t fight to fit that routine in. Let it go. See how your life fares without that ritual. Perhaps a new routine is supposed to come. Heaven forbid if you skip the tea and replace it with meeting with a trainer at the gym!
Remember we are coming up with skills and disciplines during this lunar cycle that will help support our dreams and goals of Treasure Map or even if we didn’t make a map, we are learning how to polish ourselves so that our inner diamonds finally come out. Use this cuckoo Mercury retrograde to serve you in a bigger way. That doesn’t mean you should be sloppy. You should copy your hard drive before the retrograde, do all your big business stuff before it. Try to avoid signing contracts during the period. That is part and parcel of a Mercury Retrograde. But when all the craziness hits, don’t have a huge break down, consider that it came up to help you. I can’t say how only you know that. After the retrograde it will be more clear.
BY THE WAY--- A BIT MORE ABOUT MERCURY RETROGRADE.
It has been awhile since I reminded everyone how a retrograde works. Take a moment to read this:
How long is the influence of the retrograde?
The best way to understand the influence is by setting up a visual.
Imagine Mercury is a car and this car is leaving Seattle and heading for NYC. So, the car leaves Seattle and heads East… this is called MERCURY DIRECT. The car continues on its trip and it goes by Chicago continues on the road but as it gets close to Indianapolis it starts to slow down…and just as it hits Indianapolis it stops and turns around. The Slow down is called MERCURY STATION and the Turn around of course is called MERCURY RETROGRADE. Now the retrograde car is heading west again and heading back to Chicago. When it finally gets back to Chicago it slows down and turns around and now heads east again returning back on its journey to NYC this is MERCURY DIRECT. The car will continue on its journey and this time when it goes by Indianapolis it doesn’t stop it just continues on its merry way to NYC.
What is significant is that the road between Chicago and Indianapolis will be seen once, then twice (going backwards) and then a third time (when it goes direct again). This road between Chicago and Indianapolis is the SHADOW PERIOD. This means the very first time we see Chicago we are put on alert that there is a Retrograde ahead and so be prepared we may see this landscape again.
23 April - 01:53:32 UT - Mercury shadow begins (22 ta 52' 6")7 May - 05:00:26 UT - Mercury stations retrograde (1 ge 44'32")31 May - 01:21:54 UT - Mercury stations direct (22 ta 52' 6")15 June - 19:25:02 UT - Mercury shadow ends (1 ge 44'33")
To continue the analogy: On April 23 we drove by Chicago. We will be turning retrograde on May 7 (reaching Indianapolis) and then going all the way back to Chicago until May 31 where it will turn around and head again for Indianapolis and finally passing it on June 15th. As you can see from shadow point April 23 to shadow point June 15 is about 2 months. That doesn’t mean it will be all rocky during that time. No, not at all. The rockiest times will probably be during the actual retrograde (June 15th – July 9th) but we will most likely revisit topics that come up in the time between the two month shadow dates.
I mentioned back in February during the Aquarius retrograde that I think the Mercury Retrogrades in Air signs are not nearly as painful as the retrogrades in the other elements. Yes, it is wacky that everything that can go wrong will go wrong. Yes, that most important piece of paper that you drive across the city to give to someone will be left on your dining room table. And yes, your computer that has been a bit slow lately will implode when you turn it on one morning. Yes, our technological issues will be stretched like tight jeans on Thanksgiving. But it is technical. How we respond will be a test on our emotions but it is not that the retrograde itself is about emotions. It is not. It is about our minds and mental abilities. Especially given this retrograde is in Gemini which is ruled by Mercury.
When double checking the Sabian symbol for 01 Gemini 44 ---it is “Santa Claus filling stockings furtively.” In the Edmund Jones book it reads: “The key word is prodigality. When positive, the degree is an unusual capacity for bringing man’s possessions into a wide acceptance and for heightening every proper joy in worldly goods and when negative, a childish or clandestine futility in seeking any normal richness of living.”
The text for the Sabian symbols is a bit ethereal but in my mind when I think about a Mercury retrograde in Gemini in a powerful Taurus lunar cycle that has a pronounced Pluto aspect, I gotta tell you ---if it breaks, really ask yourself if you really need to replace it. Sure if it is really necessary go ahead and get a new one. But if you are on the fence, “Maybe I need it, maybe I don’t?” Then consider letting it go.
Also, if you find your schedule going bonkers-- work with it. Perhaps you always meet someone for tea on Monday but for some reason during the retrograde everyone’s schedule goes cuckoo—well don’t fight to fit that routine in. Let it go. See how your life fares without that ritual. Perhaps a new routine is supposed to come. Heaven forbid if you skip the tea and replace it with meeting with a trainer at the gym!
Remember we are coming up with skills and disciplines during this lunar cycle that will help support our dreams and goals of Treasure Map or even if we didn’t make a map, we are learning how to polish ourselves so that our inner diamonds finally come out. Use this cuckoo Mercury retrograde to serve you in a bigger way. That doesn’t mean you should be sloppy. You should copy your hard drive before the retrograde, do all your big business stuff before it. Try to avoid signing contracts during the period. That is part and parcel of a Mercury Retrograde. But when all the craziness hits, don’t have a huge break down, consider that it came up to help you. I can’t say how only you know that. After the retrograde it will be more clear.
BY THE WAY--- A BIT MORE ABOUT MERCURY RETROGRADE.
It has been awhile since I reminded everyone how a retrograde works. Take a moment to read this:
How long is the influence of the retrograde?
The best way to understand the influence is by setting up a visual.
Imagine Mercury is a car and this car is leaving Seattle and heading for NYC. So, the car leaves Seattle and heads East… this is called MERCURY DIRECT. The car continues on its trip and it goes by Chicago continues on the road but as it gets close to Indianapolis it starts to slow down…and just as it hits Indianapolis it stops and turns around. The Slow down is called MERCURY STATION and the Turn around of course is called MERCURY RETROGRADE. Now the retrograde car is heading west again and heading back to Chicago. When it finally gets back to Chicago it slows down and turns around and now heads east again returning back on its journey to NYC this is MERCURY DIRECT. The car will continue on its journey and this time when it goes by Indianapolis it doesn’t stop it just continues on its merry way to NYC.
What is significant is that the road between Chicago and Indianapolis will be seen once, then twice (going backwards) and then a third time (when it goes direct again). This road between Chicago and Indianapolis is the SHADOW PERIOD. This means the very first time we see Chicago we are put on alert that there is a Retrograde ahead and so be prepared we may see this landscape again.
23 April - 01:53:32 UT - Mercury shadow begins (22 ta 52' 6")7 May - 05:00:26 UT - Mercury stations retrograde (1 ge 44'32")31 May - 01:21:54 UT - Mercury stations direct (22 ta 52' 6")15 June - 19:25:02 UT - Mercury shadow ends (1 ge 44'33")
To continue the analogy: On April 23 we drove by Chicago. We will be turning retrograde on May 7 (reaching Indianapolis) and then going all the way back to Chicago until May 31 where it will turn around and head again for Indianapolis and finally passing it on June 15th. As you can see from shadow point April 23 to shadow point June 15 is about 2 months. That doesn’t mean it will be all rocky during that time. No, not at all. The rockiest times will probably be during the actual retrograde (June 15th – July 9th) but we will most likely revisit topics that come up in the time between the two month shadow dates.
