Stellar Insights: November 12 – 18, 2018
Photo by Laura Ockel via Unsplash
As this week opens, we may likely feel like we are still digesting the landscape shake-ups of the previous one. While the Scorpio New Moon opened us up to a new chapter when it came to digging down into the substrata of feelings, desires and even fears to which we may not often given voice, with Uranus playing a starring role in the kairos—shifting into Aries, squaring the Lunar Nodes, and making an inconjunct to Jupiter—surprises and didn’t-see-it-comings seemed to abound. Uranus is now back in the fire sign of Aries, and upsettingly some of the Uranian shocks seemed to come through Aries-related realms, that of conflagrations, and that of weaponry. (I truly hope that through its revisiting of this sign through March 6 that we are able to make progress that helps us to begin to rein in gun violence and the out-of-control fires that have been devasting lives and the landscape).
With the environment—socially, politically, ecologically, et al.—shifting so rapidly, we’ve been primed in the last while to think about things from the perspective of “the new normal.” I’ve been very open to this lens, thinking about how we need to be flexible and adaptive in accepting that so many things are changing and are not as they used to be.
Yet, it didn’t strike me until today, until I read a quote by California Governor Jerry Brown in reflection of the fires that are devastating California, how perhaps in some cases this way of thinking may not always serve us, that it may have us sometimes be too accepting and perhaps complacent. He said:
"This is not the new normal. This is the new abnormal, and this new abnormal will continue, certainly in the next 10, 15, 20 years."
Hmm….
That’s not to say that there aren’t things in our lives, personally and collectively, that have redefined the normal in a way that actually may be quite different but experienced as beneficial. Yet, it reminded me that just because something has shifted, and we find ourselves needing to be adaptive to it, it doesn’t mean that it’s normal, that we need to accept it, that we can’t fight against it to try to remedy it.
I leave this here without more of my commentary/thoughts getting in the way, so that you may just ponder this—the existence of “a new normal” and “a new abnormal”—and see how it resonates with you.
Moving on to the astrological currents of this week….
Venus shifts direct this Friday, ending her current six-week retrograde cycle. Taking time this week to reflect upon the re-evaluations you experienced since early October may provide you with amazing gifts of illumination. What have you become present to when it comes to the relationships in which you’ve invested, what you find to be rewarding and pleasurable, how you connect to and channel the feminine, and the ways in which you claim—or don’t claim—your unique wealth and value? What comes to your attention through this reflection may serve as a strong foundation for the conscious pursuit of things in these realms in the near future.
Now, even though the Venus Retrograde will be complete, the seemingly unending needing to go slow and turn back around for jewels from the past that has been a hallmark of this year since June continues for a bit more. That’s because also on Friday, about 15 hours after Venus moves direct, Mercury Retrograde begins.
Remember that Mercury Retrograde isn’t bad, and that a lot of progress can be made during this time, if we follow the direction towards which it is point us. It’s an exceptionally productive time to go back over recent communication efforts, creative ideas, travel plans envisioned, transportation strategies, and dialogues already undertaken with friends, family and/or colleagues.
We’re able to tap into a new vantage point related to these realms during this time, which can offer us more clarity and help us to build a stronger foundation in the arenas of communication, learning and understanding. Yet, of course, it takes patience…patience to traverse territory already covered, patience to go slow with communication and check that others understand what you’re trying to share (and vice versa), patience to wait just a little bit longer to broadcast your message so that you can discover the pieces currently missing, whose acquisition can transform your sharing from something good to something with more infallibility in its design principles. Mercury Retrograde goes through December 6 and travels from 14 degrees of Sagittarius to 27 degrees of Scorpio. (If you want personalizes insights into what this time period may be offering you, check out the limited availability pop-up mini sessions that I’m doing this week).
With both Venus and Mercury stationing to shift directions on Friday, both Venus themes (love, beauty, diplomacy, finances, mirroring, values) and Mercury themes (bridges, media, communication, transportation) will likely be strong in the collective as we approach Friday and the days right afterwards.
Also, on the horizon, we’ve got Mars floating into Pisces on Thursday, where it will swim through New Year’s Eve. Mars in Pisces inspires us to galvanize our spiritual warrior, to orient to pursuits that invoke compassion, to fuel ourselves by tapping into artistry, and connect to our dreams, imagination and the world of symbology when it comes to gaining additional insights on how to be more strategic.
Given that Mars unites with the Moon on Thursday as well, it feels like a day to open to our intuition and sensitivity and see where we go when we go with the flow. That said, Pisces can be so dreamy that a head-in-the-clouds feeling can cause us to disconnect a bit from having our feet on the ground; so be inspired, and filled with promise, while watching that a spaciness—or heightened sense of idealism—doesn’t have you feel unmoored or ungrounded.
Wishing you a wonderful week,
All my best,
Stephanie
Astrological Highlights
November 15
Mars/Uranus Sextile
Mars enters Pisces
November 16
Venus Stations Direct
Mercury Stations Retrograde
Dates noted reflect Eastern Standard Time