Celestial Gossip for
April, May, and June 2008

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In the last episode, we followed Venus and Mercury off into a sentimental liaison in Pisces, and left Saturn having a rather lonely, uneventful time in the office. Jupiter, having provided gifts of productivity and motivation early in the year, had lost some of the energy behind his efforts as his planetary helpers turned their attention to other matters, although he did received a little boost of insight from Venus and Mercury at the end of the month.

Now, as April comes, the most important news is that the wayward couple of Venus and Mercury are seeking a more independent approach to their activities, and leaving Jupiter irritated and perplexed. They head off into Aries together during the first few days of the month, becoming quite sure of themselves and forceful in their dealings. Mercury, in particular, is moving full-speed ahead, and has his own ideas. He's energized in Aries now, and starts to lose touch with Venus, who was his constant guide through the Piscean waters. Mercury's new ego-focus culminates in a major row with Jupiter in mid-month. The confrontation begins on a verbal level, as Mercury finds it all to easy to articulate what is wrong with Jupiter's business plan. Venus joins in toward the end of the month, echoing Mercury and adding emotion to the dramatic words he had spoken earlier.

April also finds the Sun square with Mars, but it's a struggle the Sun easily prevails at, Mars being almost helpless in Cancer. There may be some moodiness and uneasiness, though, about life choices and the difficulty of implementing them with sufficient energy and assertiveness. This background struggle contributes to a difficult time around the 10th of April, when the Sun and Jupiter find themselves at cross-purposes. Jupiter's ambitions, which seemed so clear and useful just a few months ago, now seem to be getting in the way of a more immediate mission.

For the last half of April, Saturn suddenly finds himself with a host of new allies: Mercury and the Sun enter Taurus and become more grounded. They are eventually joined by Venus as well, in early May. She's delighted to tend to her beautiful garden and be everyone's provider of material pleasures. It's a short-lived party, but it presents some fine opportunities for an otherwise murky and uncertain Saturn to accomplish some things. He confides gently about the virtues of follow-through and dedication, and his three younger pupils put some serious efforts into laying a groundwork for future efforts. Mercury, however, unable to stand still for long in his relationships now, quickly tires of plowing Saturn's fields, apologizes to Jupiter, and chips in on his behalf, briefly, during the last week of April.

Mars escapes from his Cancerian purgatory on May 9, taking on a Leonine machismo that delights him tremendously. All the other planets have been ignoring him for so long that his new energy may come as a surprise. His outbursts of boastfulness and well-meaning competition are not always well-received, as he hasn't yet taken the time to place them into the big picture.

By mid-May, the Sun and Venus are following Mercury's example and befriending Jupiter again. It's somewhat ironic, though, since he has just gone retrograde, and his usually buoyant personality is somewhat subdued now. Still, this is a relatively happy time, as things seem to fall easily into place and produce perhaps a bit more than we might expect. The spring air and blossoming Earth have everyone feeling that life can be pretty gratifying after all.

The final week of May, though, sees the Sun and Venus leaving Taurus for Gemini. They seem to have quite lost track of Saturn's sage advice about getting things done, and instead take to substituting idle talk for actual accomplishment. They've become traveling companions now, and will be through the end of June. Together, they tend to approach goals from an esthetic point of view, which is not always pragmatic or rational, but it feels good. Mercury goes retrograde on the 26th, having gotten so far ahead of himself that he's become dizzy and needs a break. The Sun and Venus are looking to him for advice on presenting their ideas, but he's not a good speech coach at the moment. This is a particularly awkward retrograde for Mercury, as he is in the sign of his rulership and should be sailing through in splendid style. He's feeling like a great intellectual who has lost his ability to articulate his thoughts.

The retrograde does give poor Venus a chance to catch up with her erstwhile companion, however, and provides a welcome opportunity to bring poor Mars back into communication with others. The approach is tentative at first, but Mars learns to listen to the grand plans that the Sun and Venus have been carrying on about, and finds ways to promote them and bring new attention to their ideas. Mercury is still not saying much, but he welcomes the company and finds that he can safely delegate some of his role to his three allies.

The end of June finds Mars's collaboration with the Sun and Venus running out of steam. The Sun and Venus have entered Cancer now, and turn to more domestic interests. Both are content there, and Mercury is happily back to himself again, with his retrograde ending on the 19th. The Sun turns a sympathetic ear to Saturn once again, and finds his advice useful for maintaining stability and safety at home.

*

The larger life issues presided over by Saturn and Jupiter are less in the forefront this spring, becoming a sort of stage against which more transient passions and motivations play themselves out. It's a time of vitality, daily pleasures, and waves of different energy, passing away almost as soon as we get used to them. Career is probably not uppermost in our minds during these months, and need not be. In May, Venus in Taurus presides over a sensual enjoyment of the warm weather and flowering Earth. When Mars enters Leo, we will enjoy opportunities for physical activity, and by June the Gemini energies will be encouraging us to spend more time with friends and thinking of ways to make life more fun and appealing.

Although no period of time is without its issues and concerns, these months invite us to live lightly for awhile, and gently process the lessons that seemed more intense during the long winter.

 

 

Celestial Gossip is a regular feature of Starweaver's Gems from Earth and Sky

Copyright © 2008 Tom Waters