posted January 04, 2010 07:23 AM         

We have a relatively quiet week ahead of us which will relax and start the New Year off on a positive and relatively good note. We are still in the eclipse period so profound revelations can take place but they were probably either last week or next week. This week is the quiet week, the eye in the middle, the pause before the storm.

Mercury is quite active as he proceeds backwards through the heavens in his retrograde journey. He’s talking to the Gang of Three, Jupiter, Neptune and Chiron who are beginning to separate from each other as well as chatting up Venus, Mars, Uranus, Athena, Ceres and Juno. That means you will find yourself processing information. Process. Process. Process. Or organize. Organize. Organize. Mercury is soliciting opinions from the rest of the heavens ~ but notice Saturn and Pluto are NOT in the mix. He’s not talking to them. However, he is AWARE of them as he is retrograde in Capricorn, Saturn’s sign and the current location of Pluto. Mercury will station within a degree of their upcoming second closing square. The information you gather THIS WEEK will play a large role in your life next summer.

Often Mercury retrogrades come and go with no major shifts in our lives. Not so with this Mercury retrograde. This retrograde is a HUGE indicator of major shifts as it dances with the Nodal axis and because Pluto and Saturn share the degree of Mercury’s station with their upcoming Stations. Even if you don‘t actually physically “change” your life or work under or during the Mercury retrograde, you will find the decisions made, ideas thought or projects initiated/begun will be a very large part of your life down the road apiece, after July 2010, when we finish up the patch of energetic shifts taking place over the spring. And if, like my cousin, you leave your partnership position at a huge law firm to go off with a small boutique firm specializing in the kind of law you love, you already know how powerful the Mercury retrograde is.

The key to remember is Mercury is going to be back in charge of Saturn when he backs up back into Virgo between April and July for the final clean up and organizing before fully committing to Libra‘s outward momentum. While Mercury has his eye on the future, he is also aware of how hard (or not hard) you’ve been working while Saturn was in Virgo since fall 2007.

Mercury also knows if you are actually ABLE to partner with Saturn and Pluto the way they will want and expect you to partner with them. Kind of like Santa Claus, Mercury knows if you’ve been bad or good. Are you ready? Have you gotten clear on what your next path or pursuit is? Do you understand how your past actions and choices have brought you to this turning point moment in time? Do you get how you’ve created the reality in your life right now? Do you know where you want to go now that you know where you are? Do you know what you don’t want to do any more? More importantly, do you know what you want to DO in your future as you move forward?

So this week, as Mercury chats with virtually every one else in the sky, think of it as a cosmic 360 Degree Review. When I worked at Pepsi, when you were being considered for promotion to the next major level, they gave you a 360 Degree Review. Your bosses, your peers/co-workers, your direct reports and your business liaisons in other departments all gave you a review. You were looked at from 360 Degrees to see how you were doing. Having 10 to 12 people review you, anonymously, was a rather eye opening and interesting experience.

This week, Mercury is conducting a 360 Degree Review as he chats up every other planet in the sky EXCEPT the two who are actually going to promote you or pass you over for more remedial work! Listen carefully to what you hear and think about it. Notice where you need to tweak. Notice your confident skills. Notice your not-so-confident skills. How can you brush up or improve the stuff that isn’t polished or very confident? Ask friends or mentors for help if you need it. It is a great week to build support for yourself and revise policies, procedures or chapters in your script that aren‘t working for you. Your promotion isn't until JULY but the data points are being gathered NOW!

It is the quiet before the BIG storm of the next eclipse so take advantage of it!

Monday’s Moon in Virgo has separating closing aspects of an opposition to Uranus. That makes Monday a GREAT day to separate from things you no longer want OR to begin programs that will ultimately separate you from things you no longer want like that roll of fat around your middle. Diets, quittting smoking, divorces and departures come to mind as the Moon is waning and releasing! It is a busy bustling day as Moon has easy aspects to all the Capricorn planets, Pluto, Venus, Mercury and the Sun. You’ll be able to get a great deal accomplished. Sun joins with Mercury so people will tend to think their idea is right and all other ideas are wrong. So don’t argue. Just find the agreement point. You agree on SOME thing ~ that is why you are talking to them. Focus on the agreements. Venus might want to stir a bit of disagreement but you don’t have to agree to disagree. Agree to the vision. Mars joins with Ceres by declination so it is a good time to reconnect with the nurturing energies that you’ve been wanting or craving or needing more of. Schedule them into your life NOW as the rest of the month is going to FLY by. Book the nurturing appointments so you get them loaded. Schedule the nutritionist. Buy the food to cook so you stay on your new food plan. Call the acupuncturist and massage therapist. Connect with the chiropractor.

Tuesday, Moon in Virgo continues to make it a great day to separate and leave various and sundry. Moon goes void at 12:24 pm EST for the rest of the day so the afternoon is all about recreating, visioning and dreaming the dream. Say so long and move on. Mercury joins with Venus so ideas are inspired today and perhaps a bit bigger than you thought they would be. All to the good. You go ahead and dream big. Start with tiny steps but move toward the big vision with those tiny steps. You’ll be surprised how fast it comes in when your intention is aligned with your will and your new vision. Remember Mercury rules the Moon as he goes retrograde interviewing your life about what works and what doesn’t. Think 360 Degree Life Review~ what would "they" say about you? Include those who don't like you too!

Wednesday Moon in Libra answers to Venus in Capricorn. Moon fights a bit with Saturn and Pluto upon awakening so try to remember the difficult part of your dreams. What was the discussion about between the bosses Saturn and Pluto with Mercury? The commute or early morning can be off on a bad note. No worries. The closing aspect of Moon is a trine to Jupiter so it all works out just fine. Things happen for a reason. Sometimes a “bad” result is actually a blessing in disguise. Such is the case with news that is difficult today. Vesta wants to create a partnership while Juno tells her to move on and get over it. Remember “bad” news is actually “great” news down the road. Mercury is retrograde so expect reversals. Mercury is a trickster. He has a biquintile, or fifth harmonic, to Mars, who is also retrograde. Remember how double negatives are actually a positive statement from your grammar lessons? The two negatives cancel each other out and make a positive. It is the same idea here. Double negatives are a positive ~ it looks bad but actually, truth be told, it is great. Partner with the bad news or loss to a new and brilliant result. Roll up your sleeves!

Thursday Moon in Libra fights with Venus, Sun and works with Mars so note or record your dreams upon awakening. Tell them to people. Get feedback on how to work with the images. When Jung was working on reclaiming his soul as recorded in his Red Book, he talked to virtually every creature or critter that appeared in his dreams or trance states. Your unconscious and your dreams are trying to talk to you. It might be hard to understand their imagery but notice it ~ record it. You can mine it later for the rest of the meaning. It will unwrap like an onion. Right now it wants to partner with you. It is a great day to get things written and out the door, good to sign up to partner with people or reach agreements on how to proceed. Make the adjustments that are needed to move forward. Or stop moving backwards. It might feel like the steps are all in reverse today ~ that is fine. Mars IS going backwards you know. Some times we have to go back to go forward. Watch for wounds around the home ~ it is an accident prone day. Notice the repetitive patterns in the speech. Do you see how you or they actually LIKE the outcome the way it is? Do you see how it is hard to change if you like it the way it is? What does the drama or fighting do for you? What does the envy serve? Why be less than you can be? Do you see the envy?

Friday Moon in Scorpio has a closing square with Jupiter as the last aspect so passions are large and flowing. There can be a tendency to over do but still, on some level, you WANT to over do! Mercury struggles with the imagery and sleep tonight. Not a good sleeping night. Too much stirring around in your psyche and unconscious. Eclipses do that. Mars has a brilliant aspect to Uranus at dawn so leap out of bed, slightly wiped out by all the action in your sleep. Record the dreams. Mercury is doing that 360 Degree Review! Fights are possible as Venus argues with Mars about the most basic things. Mars, not in the mood or particularly able to fight, will retreat. Don’t push too hard. People can take offense at the weirdest things today. Watch for energy shifts and address them immediately when you feel them. Otherwise you’ll be fighting about it next week.

Saturn’s day Moon in Scorpio makes for intense energy, again following a restless and dream filled night of sleep. Note the dreams, particularly dreams where you fight or are envious or are envied by the other. Venus pushes you to change and adjust with her connection to Uranus ~ awake like a lightening bolt, you are only going to go back to the same place in the dream. Mercury fights with Chiron today ~ you have the wound you have because you are supposed to have that wound. Instead of complaining about it, denying it, or trying to avoid it ~ why don’t you learn to work with it? Try to think of it as your eye color or whether your hair is straight or curly. Your wound is part of what your soul wanted to learn in this life time. So you were wounded when you were little. It happens. The wound made you who you are today ~ both good and bad. Pull the energy to see the way that wound SERVES you and your soul. See how it helps you on your path? No worries. You are right where you are supposed to be. A bit of a mess on occasion but perfection is completely overrated. Settle into who you are. Lovely aspects today for a first or second or third date with someone you think is very fine. Show them your soul. Take a good long look at their soul too.

Sunday Moon goes into Sagittarius at 1:10 pm and has a lovely closing sextile to Jupiter. Sunday is one of those FINE days where you feel like you have all the time in the world and the sun is bright and you want to sing and be happy, happy, happy. Go for it. No it is NOT a trick of the heavens. Some days are simply wonderful. Today is wonderful AND productive so knock it out of the park. The eclipses are returning next week as well as a bunch of changes but you are in a good and productive place today so enjoy it!

Reader Mail:

Therese B wrote:

I always look forward to reading your weekly forecast every week. I
greatly value everything you put into it. But this week your angle on
Mars in Leo retrograde and all the emphasis on envy was a bitter and dark
pill to swallow. I couldn't help but think there must be a more positive,
more productive interpretation of Mars in Leo retrograde. It just so
happened that I found such an article on the web on December 16, the day
of the New Moon in 25 Sagittarius. This article was published on the web
on November 26 but I read it on the New Moon. I am sharing this with you
hoping that you will glance at it! :-)

The title of the article is "Mars Retrograde in Leo: Reclaiming Our Primal
Creative Force in the Face of Shifting Structures and Changing Paradigms"
and here is the link http://willowsweb.blogspot.com/2009/11/mars-retrograde-in-leo-reclaiming-our.html

Overlapping that New Moon and, to me, dominating it was the Venus in Sag
trine Mars in Leo exact the next day. The trine was at 20 degrees but
Mars in Leo is stationary at 20 Leo from Dec 11 to 31. The Sabian theme
is very telling. For 20 Leo, American Indians perform a ritual to the Sun.
We are talking of Sun worship, restoring spirit, celebrating the inner
fire, shining in one's life, the solar plexus, return to the glorification
of natural energies, sanctification of creative power, priming the Ace of
Wands.

Here are some quotes from that article with no author's name.

"More importantly, in the face of shifting structures and the burgeoning
Aquarian paradigm, this Mars retrograde in Leo coincides with us
reclaiming and harnessing our personal, primal creative force. We're
reconnecting with our deepest heart's desires for love, joy, fun,
excitement and the freedom to express whatever is in our hearts to
express. We're reclaiming the right to be self-directed in these ways, to
use our creative power only as we see fit."

"We need this retrograde time to draw our creative energy back inside us,
to reconnect with our deep, primal creative force and bring it back to our
hearts, energizing and fortifying ourselves for what's to come. "

"This Mars in Leo retrograde will also be a time of strengthening
self-love because loving ourselves fully and truly, through it all, is so
crucial as we navigate the bumps and obstacles of these sometimes
intimidating and frightening times. We can reclaim love and self-love as
our prime motivators here in a world that seems to cultivate self-loathing
as a marketing technique. The revolutionary act of loving yourself no
matter what!

This Mars in Leo retrograde will allow us to get clear on the specific
talents we hold inside that we simply must share with the world and also
on the most powerful creative avenues to take with those talents."

I needed to reread this article to offset and balance all that horrible
stuff on envy that doesn't seem to be central to Leo. Where is the
sunshine and the warmth, I was thinking?

I know we're in the middle of very difficult relationship patterns, which
you call the Hammer of Thor, but the positive energy of Leo must be accessible!
It is what I am trying to access. And I do not see myself accessing it
through the doorway of envy, of owning envy.

Anne answers:

Thanks Therese for sharing what you found on the internet. Envy DISAPPEARS when it is named, claimed or noted. The CURE for Envy is to see it, name it and either own it or point it out (if you can) to the person sending envy your way. Envy IS the dark side, the shadow side, of Leo! How can Leo be the King-Of-All-There-Is if there is another who has a skill or talent greater than Leo’s own? Mars, the action planet in the sign of Leo says “Look at my unique and wonderful talent” Mars in Leo, RETROGRADE, makes us look at the OTHER person’s skills and talents with a green eye. It can block us seeing our own talents and skills. Or perhaps they look at US with a green eye and do not see their own talents and skills. Either way, the CURE for ENVY is to name it and own it and get it out into the sunshine where it can be seen for what it is ~ the shadow of Leo.

The author above notes correctly that Mars retrograde is about owning our inner talents and strengthening ourselves with love and self-love. But she/he also points out the world seems to cultivate self-loathing as a marketing technique. Some times we find that self loathing through the vehicle of envy. Envy says you are not good enough compared to the other.

And Envy /Jealousy is still in the sky this week with the midpoint of the Nodes to Jupiter/ Neptune/ Chiron surrounding Pallas Athena at 8 Scorpio. Look at the patterns of jealousy and envy and get clear on them. You don’t have to ACT ON THEM. Just OWN THEM! Or NAME THEM!

Mundane:

Rush Limbaugh was hospitalized with chest pain last week while in Hawaii. DOB: January 17th 1951, Time: 7:50 Am, Place: Cape Girardeau, MO

Mr. Limbaugh is having a number of difficult health transits with the 12/31 eclipse on his Asc/ Des axis and the upcoming January 15, 2010 eclipse on his natal Sun as Mercury stations retrograde on his Sun plus the recent Mars retrograde station on his Pluto. He reported that it was “nothing major”. However, his chart seems to indicate a series of health problems over the balance of the year. Or perhaps, Mr. Limbaugh will take this as a wake up call to change his health regime and move toward a new life style using the new beginning promised by the north node eclipse in Capricorn on his Sun. He is having his Saturn return in early Libra too.

The December 31, 2009 Lunar Eclipse’s Moon was on the USA Sun/Jupiter midpoint at 10 Cancer and the Sun on NY City’s Sun at 10 Capricorn. Thus a terrorist with plastic explosive stuff in his under panties was caught before he blew up a plane landing in Detroit and no problems happened on New Year’s Eve (except for a lot of rain!) in Times Square. The Sun/Jupiter midpoint is luck.

On a sadder note, Moon on the South Node of loss was at the top of the Lunar Eclipse chart cast for Kabul, Afghanistan, with Saturn tight on the Ascendant and Pluto next to the IC as CIA officers were blown up in Afghanistan by a suicide bomber they were trying to convert as an informant. The Chief CIA officer was a Moon ~ mother of 3 ~ who was killed with a number of her colleagues. I know women are CIA officers and that many women do dangerous stuff like fight the wars for the rest of us but I must admit it shook me that a mother of three died and now will have a star on the wall at Langley.