Mercury rx in Sagittarius || Venus direct in Libra || Friday, Nov 16

Greetings everyone!

I hope you all are doing well today. The astrological configurations today had me laughing from the time I woke up this morning- days like today are a cosmic joke of epic proportions. On the same day even around the same time, Mercury moves in a retrograde station while Venus stations direct. We were almost out of the woods!

What is Mercury and what does a retrograde station even mean?

- Mercury is the planet of communication, technology, short-distance travel, movement, work and media. A retrograde station is where the planet in question moves away from us, which makes it look like it's moving backwards from earth. Whenever a planet moves into this kind of station, it can feel like whatever the planet deals with is "backwards," but its influence is actually harder to find for us. Whenever Mercury goes into a retrograde station, technology seems to not want to cooperate, communications seem to go haywire and we run into problems in our environment. The purpose of any retrograde station is to review and reflect on whatever the planet represents. Here, we can review our word choice, the urgency we feel when interfacing with technology like computers and cars. Maybe there are extra verbal boundaries we can set. If we own a business, we can look at the systems that are in place and how they can be improved. These changes can be planned during this time and then implemented when Mercury turns direct. This is a great way to take advantage of this transit.

Mercury retrograde as a societal problem -

- Part of the reason why people go batty when Mercury "turns around" is because we live in an exceedingly Mercurial society. Mercury is a very outward, linear and logical planet. I see Mercury as an archetype at a big table with all kinds of technology and papers, flinging everything about and working really quickly and on multiple different projects at once. Honestly, this is the kind of thing that most of us do regularly. We're at work, usually on some kind of technology and then use our car to move around and pick up our kids, go to the grocery store moving quickly while the cashier actively uses technology to complete your transaction so you can go home, cook dinner and do the whole thing again the next day. This is the day in, day out framework that Mercury actively seeks to disrupt. Simply put, there is no way that we can operate at the same level of productivity every day, day in, day out. There is a need for some self-compassion when we don't make the impossible demands of our society (especially for us sensitive folks).

Mercury retrograde in Sagittarius (November 16th - December 6th)

- Generally, Mercury doesn't really like to be in Sagittarius. Mercury is in the details and Mercury doesn't typically have much of a sense of humor. Mercury is concerns with facts and datum rather than beliefs and faith, which is what Sagittarius is more concerned with. Mercury wants to stay and figure it out while Sagittarius wants to go on its next big adventure.

As with everything else, the felt effects of this transit are going to depend on your individual natal chart. If you are typically preoccupied with the details, obsessed with the ins and outs of every day life, goal-oriented and hard on yourself when something doesn't work out for you, this Mercury retrograde transit in the big-picture, eyes-on-the-horizon sign of Sagittarius. There, you can lighten up, embrace the humor of the situation and laugh when something doesn't go your way. If you are typically a person who shirks responsibility, tends to miss some of the details and acts upon faith alone, maybe this is a great time for you to really round out your tendencies by making lists, setting tangible goals and reflecting on what you want to accomplish. Sure, it's good not to take this human experiment so seriously - sometimes it can be downright ridiculous (like these two transits occurring on the same day). In order to embody your purpose in this world, however, it's okay to develop a knack for accomplishment and growth.

This is how you make this transit work for you!

What is Venus?

- Venus is the planet of love, leisure, play and value. I also feel like Venus has to do with receiving. Look at your birth chart Venus and evaluate the relationship whatever sign it is in to the ability to take up space and receive with grace. Whenever Venus moves in a retrograde station, it's a time where our love relationships, our relationship to taking up space and receiving comes into question.

Venus retrograde through Scorpio & Libra (October 5th - November 16th)

-I've seen more breakups during this Venus retrograde cycle than I can count- this is the end of a karmic cycle where those relationships that are meant to fall have fallen. What we were all doing was letting go of certain mal-adaptive ways of being that were drenched in self-sabotaging and self-destructive behaviors. Some of the relationships in our lives came together because of some of those behaviors- those are the relationships that fell apart. The relationships that are still standing, generally, are tribe. Whenever Venus moves retrograde in Libra, the emphasis is switched from receiving to giving - Venus is at home in the sign of Libra and gracefully and graciously takes up space and receives boundlessly. This is where we are balancing our innate tendencies of giving and taking! It's important stuff. For me personally, I found that I was actually able to be inward and say "no" where I would ordinarily say "yes" out of being polite and I would give to my closest people because they're the ones that uphold me when things go sideways. Today, celebrate those in your life!

Thanks for reading - for a personal, private reading on how this Mercury retrograde transit may affect you, e-mail me at meredithsluckystars@gmail.com or hit the "bookings" link on this page for a 15 minute reading! Be sure to have your time of birth handy!