Forecast May 11-17, 2020: An Abundance Of Cautious Optimism

If an astrology kitchen existed, Mutable Soup would top the menu this week. Mercury and Mars are moving into Gemini and Pisces, while Venus and Jupiter begin their retrogrades. For Mercury, the May 11th sign change is a delightful one, because Gemini is one of the Messenger’s homes. In the mutable air sign, an adept and agile version of Mercury can bring clarity to commerce, technology and transportation. For feisty Mars, not so much. Restless Mars is all about action, and the nebulous netherworlds of Pisces confuse and confound the impulsive planet. This combo is akin to our imaginary astrology chef using a spice rack in a foreign language, with unfamiliar symbols. This visit will put Mars on course for an exact conjunction with mysterious Neptune, the ruler of Pisces, on June 13th. From Pisces, those two will square Mercury, Venus, the Moon’s Nodes and after May 20th, a Gemini Sun. As I mentioned last week, the mutable signs represent clearing, release and change. Most of you also know that squares bring tensions to the surface for resolution. This pot will simmer for the next couple of months as Mars is in Pisces until June 27th and Venus is in Gemini until August 7th.

Speaking of the planet of possessions and pleasures, Venus begins her retrograde on May 13th, the same day when Mars moves into Pisces, and that retrograde lasts until June 25th. In addition to finances, Venus represents who and what we love. After being cooped up for the past few months, our desire to reconnect with loved ones or indulge in a little retail therapy or pampering will be particularly strong, especially with Venus in sociable Gemini. The squares between the planets in Gemini to those in Pisces will escalate the clashes over re-opening businesses and maintaining public health. Gemini is the air sign ruling the lungs and respiration, and Pisces is the water sign of infiltration and hospitals. Can you say water droplets? Much of the international outbreak of CoVid-2 occurred when Mercury and the Sun transited Pisces back in February and March. A now Gemini-based Mercury has a much clearer head, but an assertive Pisces-based Mars will covertly stir our proverbial pot. The contradicting and conflicting policies of local, state, national and international governments are bound to create a very disorientating effect, especially with Neptune lurking in the background. Warring narratives will also continue battling for supremacy in the news. Mercury’s upcoming retrograde, from June 18th-July 5th, will determine the victor of the information wars. Remember, it will be the final planet of a growing bunch in retrograde motion, review mode. This week Jupiter will join Pluto, Saturn and Venus in the retrograde club.

Jupiter is the planet of good fortune and excess whose standard mantra is “more is better”. In responsible Capricorn however, even jovial Jupiter’s enthusiasm is measured. It will retrograde a full ten degrees, and its May 14th-September 12th journey will include its second conjunction to Pluto on June 30th and a friendly sextile to Neptune on July 27th. January 12th’s Saturn Pluto conjunction at 22:47 degrees of Capricorn is now widely viewed by astrologers as the cosmic event most related to the beginning of the new coronavirus outbreak. The coming Jupiter Pluto connection will be at 24:07 of Capricorn, well within orb of January’s event, so is likely to represent repercussions of the initial Saturn Pluto conjunction. But this time corruption detective Pluto will be retrograde. We can expect to get to the bottom of the origins of the current outbreak and to learn what vested interests have been at work.

As we enter the Jupiter and Venus retrogrades, financial forecasts are running the gamut, from complete meltdown to full recovery. Venus and Jupiter are money planets, and during their retrogrades the various stimulus packages passed this spring will make their way in the lives of citizens, businesses and healthcare providers. So will the impact of the unemployment and historically generous benefits packages spawned from the pandemic. The outer planet support of reforming Pluto in Capricorn (business, governments and systems) and creative Neptune in Pisces (healthcare) awaiting Jupiter’s venture suggest that we can strike the right balance between the economy and public health. Success is paramount for Jupiter and Capricorn. Their pairing implies that an abundance of cautious optimism is the key ingredient for our Mutable Soup.