Aligned for Mercury Retrograde

During our last alignment of Mercury retrograde Feb 16-Mar 10, my long awaited knee surgery was scheduled for February 27 -a day past the mid-point of Mercury Retrograde. The general advice is to avoid surgery during this period if possible but let common sense prevail.  Julie’s thoughts that being past the midpoint at least by a day helped the cause.  My knee had deteriorated rapidly in 3 months prior so I decided to go ahead and felt okay with it all.

The good news is that despite some challenges the surgery was a success and I was home the next day.  Serendipitously, who could have predicted that the world would be shut down, and surgeries like mine cancelled indefinitely just 2 weeks later? That was also a blessing.  The very next morning, I found that I had more strength and movement than I thought possible so soon after surgery. It was very encouraging.

The Mercury retrograde challenge was not catastrophic – just irritating and annoying. I will name a few….

Unlike arriving for surgery, which was nurturing and attentive, being discharged from the hospital was veiled in confusion. No one seemed to know when I was to be released.  When finally known, I was expected to leave within an hour.  The ‘going home’ instructions were contradictory and confusing. Luckily, family and friends took care of it all.  In the last 2 weeks of retrograde energy, I experienced an allergic reaction to the bandage dressing as well as the coating on the prescription drugs.  Both were low grade, hard to detect and lingered for the entire shadow of Mercury retrograde. Lastly, the crucial post-surgery exercise routine had a bumpy start.  Due to the Pandemic shutdown, the six weeks of in person physiotherapy was delayed until they figured out how to do sessions via video conferencing. Everyone knows that doing the exercises post-surgery is very important.  There is a short window of time to get a full range of motion back before scar tissue sets in.  I was working with the initial set of exercises for 3 weeks – officially putting me behind. However, I seemed to have caught up to myself since then.

In hindsight, given the condition of my knee and the necessity for surgery, the post-surgery healing setbacks were nothing compared to not having surgery at all.  Today, I have the joy of movement and I am so glad I went ahead with it – aligned as much as possible with a positive outcome.

Thank You!

Perhaps the greatest healer of all for me during these past few months, have been the well wishes, prayers, and healing energy sent by family, friends and colleagues and so many of you.   I feel blessed to be surrounded by so many caring people and deeply appreciate everyone’s kind thoughts.

With love and light

Carolyn W

If you’re following along with astrology these days you might think you are weary of so many retrograde planets, and now Mercury comes along to join the fray. Outer planets are retrograde for much of each year. But this year, 2020 we also have Venus retrograde (now) and Mars to come (September – November). Last month Venus Jupiter and Saturn all went retrograde within days of each other. Astrological front page news! What it seems to mean is that we are on shaky ground (no surprise) and we can’t really tell where we are  headed. As Mercury adds the trickster touch we have two choices (as they often say..) We can panic, feel out of sorts, and worry anxiously about things we can’t control or we can do something else. We can tune in to the fact that Mercury is retrograde in Cancer and that is a sign of security. We can think about what makes us secure and insecure. We can think about what we can and can’t do about this. Most importantly we can do what we can to help those we resonate with feel more secure. That might be about your family but it may also be about people suffering in a particular way that calls to you; homelessness, food insecurity, children, women, refugees; the list is as long as the circumference of the earth. The trick, if there is one is to stay afloat. Not to drown in problems but to reasonably consider what you have available that might nourish someone. Maybe you have heard the parable of the long spoons. In each of two locations people are given access to food, but the utensils are too unwieldy to serve oneself with. In hell the people cannot cooperate, and consequently starve. In heaven,  the diners feed one another across the table and are sated.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allegory_of_the_long_spoons

As Mercury journeys through its retrograde phase it will make only one strong aspect to another planet which is a square to Mars on July 8. This is easily a time of contention. Choose your battles. No tilting at windmills. It will also conjunct the Sun as it always does when retrograde, June 30^th. An excellent day to listen and see what messages call to you from the deep. 

Mercury will go direct on July 12^th  as the Sun trines Neptune. A good day to move ahead with a sense of how you can care for those around you as well as yourself. By this time Venus will be moving away from whatever her retrograde lessons were and Mars will be moving into to his. Mercury direct suggests that it’s time to see what gives.

Warm regards, 

Julie 

Shadow begins: Feb. 03 until Februry 16 2020
Mercury is Retrograde February 17 – March 10, 2020
Shadow Fades: March 11-Mar. 30 2020

This Mercury retrograde starts in Pisces but ends in Aquarius. These are the two most overarching and collective signs, suggesting that all of humanity are one. We like to think of that spiritually and in terms of political or social well being not to mention all humanitarian considerations. At this time we seem to be experiencing our collective oneness in anxiety producing ways, the most obvious being the virus which is slowly spreading throughout the entire world.

This retrograde period offers us an opportunity to step back and remind ourselves about all the good ways that we are one: one human family but also one living planet. It’s a perfect time to dive deeply into our connections with others and to acknowledge our hopes and fears of the future. As we do that we might consider how compassion for ourselves as well as others is the most peaceful and secure way to move into the future.

It also may be a good time to delve into your favorite flavor of science fiction or fantasy. We are the future of someone else’s past.

Julie Simmons, Astrologer

What area of your life will be affected by this retrograde energy?   Align with the best of Mercury Retrograde this year andjoin our alignment sessions at the webstore.