Insights for the Month of Sagittarius

A Mercury Retrograde Month: Align yourself!

November 21
Sun enters Sagittarius: 10:05 PM EST
Venus sextile Pluto
It’s been 2 ½ years of serious effort for the Sagittarians of this world. All those grasshoppers corralled by the ant of circumstance, to work harder and be more responsible. Rough or not, now is a good time, as Saturn departs from Sagittarius (December 19^th at 11:48 PM EST), to take stock. Hopefully Sagittarians have been honing their arrows and waxing their bows. They need make peace with the limits they are living with at this time. Once Saturn enters Capricorn it will be time to step up to the task of building your life, using the resources you have (not the ones you wish you had). Be grateful for the scaffolding.
Then there are the Sagittarian issues for the entire world, such as the smashing and reconstituting of cultures from all over this planet. The growing fear of strangers. The relentless battle between wisdom and opinion. Are we ready not to be distracted by false facts and fake news which are, of course the antithesis of wisdom.
Venus, just for today, suggests making a difference in someone’s life, maybe even your own, when you resist the urge to judge and stay instead, connected to your feelings.

November 22
Neptune stationery direct
You could say that as Neptune goes direct it’s taking us forward into the next phase of its journey. 2018 brings us to the middle point of Neptune in Pisces. It entered in 2011 and leaves in 2025. Neptune’s issues are things like the rising coast lines of the world, as well as the rising waters of things like addictions and drug use of all sorts. The legalization of pot and the fentanyl crises for example.  We can talk about how Neptune is ‘spiritual’ but spirituality (whatever it is) pales in the face of drugs; pharmaceutical and otherwise. Drugs being a word to include all addictive substances, even the ones that are ‘only’ mental. Only we, in the way we act and the attitudes we bring to those actions can steer Neptune toward a more positive expression. Things such as art as  an expression of the soul’s longing, and, of course, compassion for ourselves and all others.

November 25 – November 28
Mercury trine Uranus
Mercury conjunct Saturn
These are almost the last days of this trine which was active in 2017: Saturn in the fiery sign of Sagittarius and Uranus in the fiery sign of Aries. Astrologers make less of trines than squares because they seem more passive. What progress has been made in the realm of radical change? Does anything change on account of things like the Paradise Papers? Have we lost the ability to distinguish unethical from illegal? Is there anything that can be done about it? Look at your life and see what has or is changing . Can the structure of your life absorb that change? In 2018 Saturn and Uranus will meet again, only this time in earth signs, and not quite exactly (August and September). Earth always follows fire the way reality inevitably follows vision. Get ready! And use this particular time to check in regarding how you might live into your highest possibilities, on the ground. (Mercury will bring these themes together again when it retrogrades back over this territory December 6 – 9.

December 1
Venus enters Sagittarius
Mars opposite Uranus
Be wary of people who act like they are fighting for a righteous cause but are really just trying to get others to react, so they can say, “See? I have a reason to defend myself.” OR it could be a day for dynamic interactive debate or sparring between equally matched, well-intentioned challengers.

December 2
Jupiter trine Neptune
Forgiveness goes a long way. But you can’t fake it. You really need to feel it. And if you can’t do that, be witness to what you do feel. Maybe Lily Tomlin was right: It means you have to give up all hope of a better past.

December 3
Full Moon 11 degrees of Gemini: 10:47 AM EST
Mercury stationery retrograde
Sun square Neptune
A perfect day for a snafu or two. The full Moon is in Gemini. Mercury (stationery retrograde) is the ruler of Gemini. Makes me think about the 10 million ways we must sort through the wreckage of truth and lies. We are getting smarter. Especially if we know that this full moon is not one to get all bothered by. A sense of humor would be the best tool as we sit in the eye of the windstorm, whirling around us. Contradictions may make us uncomfortable and confused but they can also generate clever and inventive possibilities.

December 6
Mercury (retrograde) conjunct Saturn
Mercury sextile Mars
Mars sextile Saturn
Focus on the circumstance: Clean up the mess, dial the number, and participate in the project. Don’t worry about the outcome. The die has been cast. The outcome is not guaranteed but the ability to change course is less effective than dealing with the road you’re on.

December 9
Mars enters Scorpio
Chiron stationery direct
Mars loves Scorpio. It loves the ability to sense the undercurrents which strengthens our ability to be strategic in our actions. Reactions are to be witnessed and acknowledged but actions should only come into being when the time is right. In the hands of manipulative people this can be cold and calculating. For the rest – it suggests that mastery lies in knowing where the center is and moving from there.
Chiron is getting ready to leave Pisces today. It’s been there for a while – since early 2011. Chiron’s orbit is irregular. It spends more time in some signs than others. It travels out beyond Uranus and further in than Saturn. We tend to think of it as the mentor, the force that teaches us how to learn from our wounds. It is also considered to be a ‘maverick’ in that it travels far and wide. It will enter Aries in February 2018 and journey there for a while before it retrogrades back to Pisces again and finally takes up residence in Aries for some time to come in the summer of 2019. Aries is a sign of war: the war that kills the young as well as the war that slays delusion. Chiron in Aries may be a time to choose a which kind of war we want to fight. 

December 10
Mercury trine Uranus
Venus square Neptune
Do we actually get to choose between genius and madness? It’s a bit of a high wire act and most of us fear our own brilliance and so touch neither extreme. Even so, we like to be inspired. Given that Mercury is retrograde we might be cautious but nonetheless open to inspiration. By all means, however, watch out for the con: The panacea, the quick fix, the manipulation of your heart strings. It is a strange desire that humans seem to have, to believe the impossible.

December 12
Sun conjunct Mercury Rx.
This is the midpoint of Mercury’s retrograde journey, the turning point: subtle but something of a tectonic shift. Make a time/space and listen for the winged messenger to see if there is a message about a turning point for you.

 December 15
Mercury conjunct Venus
Deep in our hearts we all have poetry. Look and listen for it. Make your own.

December 16
Sun trine Uranus
Scintillation. Energy. Synergy. Revelation. Revolution. Visionary or just a great day to be part of this crazy world? Don’t fight it. You’re alive.

December 18
New Moon: 26 degrees Sagittarius: 01:30 AM EST
There is a point in space; as seen from the perspective of earth called the Galactic Center: The center of our galaxy which some of us call the Milky Way. Our ancestors had different images for the galaxy; some saw a river of silver stars, others a woman stretched across the heavens and still others saw the milk from the breasts of a heavenly mother, so vast she, herself, could not be seen. Nowadays we don’t see the Milky Way so easily. We have lost connection with the sky mother even as we have with the earth mother, and most importantly with our own bodily existence. This point in space has come to symbolize a great wisdom; a vision of truth. Each new Moon is a seed we plant with our intentions. If you could imagine the whole earth with one intention what would it be? Let that be your intention, at least for the next two weeks. Let this intention foster determination rather than helplessness in the face of so much chaos.

December 19
Saturn enters Capricorn
Extra! Extra! Read all about it! Saturn has come home to its own sign. First time since 1991. So many things are written in this hand. For now let us con (with) sider (star) that Capricorn is the sign, not of corporations, but of sustainability. The sign of the ‘right use of resources’. Its true intention is meant to be that it does what it does ‘for the good of all’. Saturn is a planet who means us to make the effort, do the work. So less waste, more conservation of resources. We know the drill. It’s way past time to make it so. These next 2/12 years will drive that point home, one way or another.

December 20
Venus trine Uranus
The voices of women and men have been heard over the last few months, naming names, and speaking out about one of our culture’s best kept secrets. What changes will come from an honest look at a terrible and pervasive form of oppression? Here, in the darkest days of our year in the north, a great light is dawning. An inner light of possibility. We cannot afford to lose heart or simply add to the chaos. What is your vision for your precious life, and the lives of the children?