The Gifts of Mercury Retrograde

I like to think of August as that languid month before September where I can grab the last of the summertime, savoring the sweet corn and juicy tomatoes and viewing my garden so heavy and ripe with gorgeous flowers and watching the newborn chicks hop out of the various nests hidden everywhere around my house.

 

Halfway through August I start to get antsy for September with the smells of fresh paper and pencils and all manner of stationary that says “Back to School”. Don’t tell anybody, but I love to wander around Staples pretending I am buying back to school items for maybe four kids?

I have no kids. But I digress.

 

We are beginning our journey through August, which is a decidedly interesting month this year as we spend the better part of the month in Mercury retrograde which kicks off just after the juicy new moon in Leo.

 

Did you plant the seeds of your desires this weekend? Holding space for your intentions to create, play, and shine? I hope so because you might be tempted to try to hurry things along in your uplevel expansion vision only to feel like a racehorse not allowed to leave the gate. Whoa Nelly! Not so fast! Patience will be a virtue this month.

 

So, sigh, for those of you who freak out when hearing its Mercury retrograde time, I am giving an extra hug because here we are again entering the most dreaded three-week astrological period of back-to-back superstition-laden “Chicken Little” scenarios where some people love to expound on what could go wrong rather than dive into the treasure that this time offers us!

 

Yes, indeed, the sky is not falling, nor are all opportunities going to be withheld from us, nor will every plane be late, nor contract to rent or own something tainted with retrograde juju. Life goes on as always, BUT we have a stellar opportunity to revisit what we think is important or meaningful and determine what needs to be reshaped, returned or discarded.

 

And, because of the specific type of tension in the stars this month, we will experience some momentum but nothing will happen as fast as we wanted. This is not a bad thing. Retiring the edgy energy of I want what I want, how I want, when I want, the way I want is going to genuinely help manage the time.

 

Critical thinking is our friend for the next while, and no I don’t mean complaining about your flappy arms or new droopy eyelids, or your mother-in-law, or the nosy neighbor who thinks she’s the new Gladys Kravitz (for those Bewitched fans—wink). No, it’s about discernment, asking if this thing you say you want is still a good idea or not, if your BIG PLANS could do with a bit of shrinkage, or if you have changed enough that making a thoughtful pivot might be good.

 

We are changing faster than the trajectory of our goals and this is an awesome month to make a necessary shift and learn how to be nimble in a time when preparation, redoing, revisiting, regrouping, renewing and reviewing details is essential. Flexibility will also be important too.

 

Now, just so you know, I don’t always do any of these with particular grace or ease. I will feel all the feelings, experiencing the solar flares, the planetary hijinks and the collective ups and downs, and the only recourse I have is to choose my response as thoughtfully as possible, rooting down into what I know in my heart to be true.

 

Yes! I love retrogrades! But this one? Well, I can already feel the flipping and flopping of my internal wants vs needs vs what’s possible vs what’s really in the highest good vs why nots and more why nots and all the strange mentally exhausting rollercoaster rides that tend to happen in my tiny mind.

 

All of that without my permission—can you believe it?

Hence the need for serious, thoughtful contemplation, paying attention to the quality of my spiritual practice and staying out of my head as much as possible, allowing for “both/and” knowing that surrendering and chafing against the restraints of life often dance together.

24 hours – reminding myself of 24 hours and that Spirit is in all things even when I can’t quite see it in the moment when I look for certainty.

Hmmmmm.

 

So, I will say do the best you can this month as will I, savor the playful qualities of Leo season and practice patience as best you can, as will I.

 

Or, we can all run in circles in the same spot chasing our tails like my little dog Bisou until we receive the proverbial cookie.

She does seem pretty elated doing that.