There’s a lot going on this week, and while we initially may feel disoriented and even a bit sore, we’ll be feeling more settled and comfortable by the weekend.
Mercury is slowing down (that’s what it looks like from down here, anyway) in preparation for returning direct on Thursday. Expect all Mercury ruled activities – including communications, commerce, and traffic flow – to be slow all week. If you need to have an important discussion with someone, hold off until the weekend.
Normally, the Full Moon in Sagittarius would be a time for exchanging big ideas and setting lofty goals, but with Mercury at a dead stop, the energy of this Full Moon will be more subdued. That’s not a bad thing, though. The Moon’s conjunction with the Galactic Core and Pluto (now back in Sagittarius) likely means that we’ll be “beamed” from a higher place, and if we’re too busy talking, we won’t hear the incoming messages. Neith will have more about this lunation shortly.
A few hours before the Full Moon on Wednesday, Venus enters Cancer, with the Sun following on Friday, the Summer Solstice. I was up at 5:30 this morning, unable to sleep because it seemed like the day was in full swing already. These long days are so amazing and such a blessing after the dismal winters we have up here in the northern latitudes. Our readers in Canada, Ireland, and the UK know exactly what I mean (there are lots of you!).
Mars remains on the South Node, opposite Chiron and Neptune. There’s a huge opportunity for healing here, individually and collectively. However, dredging up old stuff is almost always painful, and we may feel tired as the processing takes place. My past two posts on The Pisces Chronicles have addressed this subject. If you haven’t already joined the discussion, come on over. I’d really like to hear how everyone is experiencing this extremely rare transit.
Before entering Cancer, both Venus and the Sun will oppose Pluto, who’s now back in Sagittarius. Both of these oppositions are about power struggles, in different ways. Venus-Pluto transits often correspond to manipulation through sex, while the Sun and Pluto can bring confrontation in general. Not all confrontation is bad, however, as it can clear the air and clarify where you stand with another person. It’s also good for making deep inner changes, so in that regard, it could help us reorient ourselves following our individual and collective healing process.
After all of this, the shift to Cancer will be a welcome relief, like coming home to rest and recuperate after intensive surgery. And once Mercury is direct, we won’t have to waste so much energy on stop-and-go, but can start moving steadily forward.
I don’t know about you, but I’m more than ready for a little R&R.
Much love and many blessings,
Pat
Image: The Sun rising over Stonehenge on the summer solstice, June 21, 2005. Photo © Andrew Dunn.
RealAstrologers 
I for one can’t wait for the retrograde to end. It’s really upsetting me.
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I can tell we are at a merc transition point -lots and lots of merc happenings – and they’re hitting one after the other. Feel like I’m threading a set of rapids – hoping for calmer waters ahead.
Oh and a book order has been delayed – whats the bettiing it will post once merc has gone direct?
Why are shadow periods / stationing points worse than actual Merc RX?
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You and me both, DM!
Last night I went online to check my bank balance and found a pending charge for an Internet order that was shipped last month and that I already paid for! It might have set off a chain of bounced checks, but fortunately they took care of it right away (it was close to midnight when I called them last night and complained).
Incidentally, the company is Swanson, and they sell top-quality vitamins and supplements at great prices. I’ve been a customer for three years. The few glitches I’ve had with them (all during Mercury Rx!) were addressed immediately.
Also, I registered to vote in mid-May (in the shadow period) and got someone else’s card in the mail. When I tried to call the elections board, I got the voicemail from hell and a constant busy signal. This morning I tried them again and it was taken care of in less than five minutes.
So it would appear that things are starting to clear up.
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Mandy, I would not bet on that any more than I’d take up Neith’s offer to bet that that Astro-Twitter will be back up this week. :-)
As for why stations can feel worse, my experience is that when Mercury is stopped (remembering, of course, that this is just the illusion created by relative orbits of Mercury and Earth), activities associated with Mercury also come to a grinding halt. Traffic jams are especially bad.
However, I’ve noticed that communications mix-ups tend to start happening in the pre-retrograde shadow period and “settle in” during the retrograde phase. The post-retrograde phase typically is easier, as the glitches rectify themselves. The exception was the previous one, back in February, when Mars was out of bounds in Gemini after a particularly vicious retrograde over the winter. From an astrologer’s point of view, it was fascinating to watch that set of complications. Fortunately, we didn’t have that this time.
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Pat, I’ve entered the site to find that it’s already direct, so hopefully things will get back to some normality.
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….soon. ;)
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DM, I noticed lots of glitches yesterday — servers down, connections broken, etc. This morning some things are running slow. But everything appears to be getting back to normal. Keeping my fingers crossed here…
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