The Value of Retracing Skipped Steps

I feel like the retrograde phase of personal planets, such as the upcoming Mars Retrograde (April 17 - June 29) offers us an opportunity to retrace steps we may have skipped. After all, when a planet is in retrograde motion, it re-covers a territory through which it had previously traveled.

When we go back over something we have already experienced, achieved, created, or pursued, doing so thoughtfully and with awareness, we may see parts of our journey that we didn't recognize the first time. And with that awareness we may be able to build a more solid framework for what we are constructing in our lives.

In this culture where we are focused on progress and progressing, retracing already charted territory seems, at first blush, as if it's backward thinking and regressive.

And yet, if you think about the fact that through re-covering your steps, you may discover and uncover valuable information that can fortify the value of what you are creating, then you can see how in fact it's a formula for progress, great progress.

Thinking about the Mars Retrograde: If you know the area of your chart that captures 9 Sagittarius to 23 Scorpio, the range that Mars will travel in its retrograde cycle, you'll be able to hone in on the area of your life (i.e., if it's the 10th house it may be about your career, the 4th house about who/what have you feeling at home, et al) where this current retracing can take place. Yet even if you don't, if you align yourself with this perspective, you may naturally see what you are being called to re-examine. re-evaluate, re-discover , as you re-cover your steps and find wisdom that can carry you forward in your life.

Given that it's Mars that's retracing its steps, the insights may notably revolve around such things as your desires and how you go after them, what you feel is worth fighting for and how you do so, your energy and how you use it, the way in which you do conflict, and how you relate to anger and passion.

{If you would like personalized insights into this upcoming Mars Retrograde, here's some information on the mini-sessions that I'm offering.}