This week we may feel like Dorothy in the poppy field scene from The Wizard of Oz. We’ve been running, running, running, and now something forces us to slow down. Yawn … I’m falling asleep just thinking about it and struggling to write a coherent sentence.

Monday wakeup is going to be a challenge – especially if, like me, your alarms goes off while it’s still dark. Have you ever slept through a blaring alarm, so soundly out of it that a nuclear blast wouldn’t rouse you? Literally or figuratively, watch for events that fit that pattern on Monday, when Mars in late Leo opposes Neptune in Aquarius. Being off daylight saving time will help, but the bigger problem is giant Neptune, ruler of sleep, at a dead stop. Of course, planets don’t stop or move in reverse; that’s just what it looks like from our perspective here on Earth. You’ll feel this more if you have Sun, Moon, or Ascendant in Pisces or if Neptune currently is moving through your twelfth house.

Neptune has been retrograde since early June and returns direct on Wednesday, the day before Chiron returns direct in Pisces. These two have been tracking fairly closely for the past few years and are associated with awakening consciousness on a planetary scale. While they’ve been retrograde, we’ve had a chance to assimilate information we received while they were moving forward from early November 2010. Now it’s time to wake up and start putting that new information into practice. You may or may not be totally aware of how this is happening or that it’s happening at all. However, I think many of you will notice, because this shift in planetary motion is happening during a broader, macrocosmic shift in consciousness. I’ve been receiving detailed reports from clients about sweeping changes that have taken place in their lives and how they suddenly see themselves and the events in their lives with more clarity.

Once Neptune returns direct, we begin the countdown toward his re-entry into Pisces in February. He spent a little over three months in his own sign earlier this year before turning retrograde and returning to Aquarius. This is just what happened in 1848, two years after Neptune was discovered. In the years that followed, the Transcendental Movement was born in the United States, led by Emerson, Thoreau, Whitman, and others. Spiritualism became a trend, with séances to contact spirits of the dead. You can find more information about Neptune in Pisces in my April 4 weekly forecast.

Thursday is the most happening day this week, with the Full Moon at 18°04′ Taurus, Chiron’s return direct in Pisces, and the entry of Mars in Virgo. That sounds like a big shift, doesn’t it? You’d think our heads would be spinning with all that activity. Fortunately, Taurus is a laid-back, slow-moving sign, and Chiron in Pisces isn’t exactly a speed demon. Moreover, Mars in Virgo, while given toward nervous energy, is more methodical and measured than Mars in fiery Leo. When you add Neptune’s sleepy station into the mix, I think we’re going to feel more slow and sleepy that fast and furious. Mars opposes Chiron on Saturday, which could fuel insensitive remarks and hurt feelings. Please try to keep your criticism constructive and helpful. Likewise, if someone hurts your feelings, give them the benefit of the doubt just this once. They probably didn’t mean it. Even if they did, this isn’t the best time to address the issue.

Also keep in mind that we’re officially in Mercury’s pre-retrograde shadow period. I’m already seeing the effects, none of which have been comforting. The consolation is that I was reminded of my own admonition to back up computer files early and often. Doing so saved me from a near disaster over the weekend. Otherwise, I’m hearing reports of alarms going off and springs popping. Stay alert out there this week, folks! And if you start seeing blatant early retrograde effects, take that as your cue to wrap up current business without delay. That includes major purchases, especially electronics.

Despite the rumblings of Mercury retrograde, this week’s Full Moon should be quite lovely. The Full Moon typically brings endings, culmination, or resolution to circumstances that began at the previous New Moon. The previous New Moon, on October 26, also was nicely aspected, so I think that most of us will feel this Full Moon as an event literally coming into its fullness or reaching a logical conclusion. Taurus is an earth sign and is associated with finances, and there are no challenging aspects to this Full Moon to indicate complications. You might have them in your personal chart, of course, but overall, this is a “friendly” Full Moon, so whatever transpires should be to your benefit.

This week also brings us to the numerologically significant date of 11/11/11. I’m not the best person to discuss the meaning in this extremely rare event, so I’ll leave that to others. It does seem to me to be a remarkable occurrence in a period of remarkable events, yet another sign that we’re experiencing a major shift in consciousness that will have implications far into the future.

Wishing you all much love and courage,
Pat