Rethink

Maybe I need to revisit what I think about this.

The next significant Astrological event just over the horizon is when Mercury Stations Retrograde on Tuesday November 6, 2012. Mercury has nearly reached its furthest lead ahead of the sun and will soon retrace his steps back toward it.

When Mercury is in retrograde, a bunch of other ‘re’ words start to pop up: revisit, redo, rethink, retry, and relax. I added that last one in there just to see if you were paying attention. Relax is not a true ‘re’ word, and yet it does apply. Mercury retrograde is not a time to forge ahead, and so it can be a break. One simply needs to figure out how to harmonize with the energy.

Now most interestingly, Mercury stops and changes direction on Election Day in the US! This has never happened before in a Presidential Election! And the last time Mercury Stationed Direct on a Presidential Election day was in November 2000. We all remember what happened that year.

Before I get into the more personal, consider this: Mercury and Mars are currently in the same sign: Sagittarius, which places them in the same house (for all generic horoscope charts). However, Mars is ahead and will continue moving forward while Mercury slows, stops, and backtracks.

Sometimes in life, the only way to learn is the hard way. That’s when you make a choice because you have to, and only later get to find out if it was a good choice. We can never know for sure what the other choice would bring, but regardless, having made a choice we then learn something.

It’s like when taking on a house project for the first time. We tear out the old and put in the new not completely knowing how to do it. We make mistakes, and learn from them. It is actually a great way to learn, provided you don’t mind redoing things now and again.

With Mars ahead of Mercury, our actions come first, and our understanding lags behind. We have no choice but to cast our vote before Mercury turns. That’s the timing. But right after the election, Mercury is going to have us revisiting the subject – and for a while. In this case, we won’t be able to redo because that’s not up to us. Things might not run smoothly, but we’ll just have to go with the flow, willingly or not.

Now I would like to consider the Mercury show from the perspective of a particular horoscope. Since Mercury rules Gemini, I have chosen that one.

Horoscope Highlight: Gemini, Gemini Rising, and Progressed Gemini

In the Gemini Horoscope Chart shown here, we see that Mercury is just above the western horizon (the right side) at the time it stations.

Mercury was just getting into all sorts of thoughts about partnerships when the impulse to stop and rethink hits. For a week, Mercury will revisit those thoughts, then realize it’s time to go further back. On Wednesday November 14, 2012, when Mercury slips back into the sign of Scorpio, he will move into the Gemini house of jobs, work, and service.

Mutable Air (Gemini) is good at setting things aside in the middle. If it weren’t for Mercury retrograde, a lot of things would not be revisited, redone, and properly completed. Mercury will travel backward until Monday November 26, 2012, giving us ample opportunity to check our work and make adjustments.

After the Station Direct, Mercury will not re-enter Sagittarius until Monday December 10th and will not reach new territory (just beyond his Election Day Station) until Thursday December 13, 2012. That’s a delay in forward progress of 37 days, but is it a waste of time?

As mentioned, Mercury’s time in Scorpio will pull Geminis’ thoughts back to the subject of work and service. For some of us, these are the same. For others, one’s service is given, but not in a way that pays the bills. In either case, the twins will need to rethink how they serve before exploring partnerships further.

Now this makes a lot of sense. The 6^th house of service comes before the 7^th house of partnerships. That’s because one ought to refine what it is they have to offer before seeking suitable partners to help them. This applies to romantic relationships and business partnerships alike.

Think about when you fill out a personal profile; you are asked to write about yourself. If it’s a dating profile, you will want to state what you have to offer. But you will also describe yourself in your own view. In this way, you identify yourself.

One who writes is a writer, but notice how different it is to say, “I write” versus “I am a writer”.

Mercury in the 6^th house has us Geminis saying what we do: I write. I cook. I run. I play golf.

The 1^st house, to compare, is where and how we identify ourselves. This is always an “I am” statement: I am a writer. I am a chef. I am a programmer. I am a football player.

I bring this up because while Mercury revisits “I do” thoughts in the Gemini 6^th house, Jupiter will be retracing his steps in the “I am” 1^st house. In fact, on November 6^th when Mercury Stations, the sun, also in the 6^th house, will form an exact inconjuct aspect to Jupiter! Often, the sun represents how the world sees us. There is a difference between me stating that I am a writer, and you seeing me as a writer. With this sun-Jupiter aspect, Geminis will have to consider how the world sees them with their self view, and then weigh in what they do, and what they want to do. All of this precedes the subject of partnership.

So while Geminis prefer to do and say and then move on quickly, life is pulling them back some. The universe is asking, “Are you sure?” again and again. “Do you really think that about yourself?” “Do you really want to do that?” “Is that the person you want to be relative to your partner?” or “Is that the kind of partner you want to work/play with?”

Incidentally, very near the Mid-heaven in the Gemini chart are Neptune and Chiron. What this means is there’s more to the conversation. Hopes and fears must also be weighed and considered. These are things that are felt more than understood, but they ought not be denied. Since these two are not moving very fast, Geminis won’t be able to deny them, at least not indefinitely.

So, through 1^st house Jupiter, Geminis are re-evaluating their own identity. And through Mercury Retrograde, they will revisit the subject of service, which participates in this process. Then after mid-December, they can get back to seeking suitable partners to help them in their becoming. If their partnerships are unchanging, then the opportunity will be to work with them differently, or see them with new eyes so as to have a better experience with them.

And for the record, Saturn will remain in the Gemini’s 6^th house for the next 2+ years. This can be productive, assuming the right service has been selected. That’s what this time is about – revisiting subjects to ensure a smoother sail through the future.

The Journey of the Fool is from where you are to where you want to be. The entire Universe conspires to help you along, but you still have to make the journey.

With Venus moving through your 5^th house, creativity is abundant, so Gemini, take advantage of that too!