April

PLANET REPORT: Venus entered Gemini at 03:19am (NZT) this morning (April 4th) and tonight, at 10:12pm, Mercury, the ruler of Gemini turns direct.

Mercury - the planet of communication and thinking - is very weak because not only has it been retrograde since March 12 but it is in the sign of its fall, Pisces. Things get a little better for those of us who have had Mercury travelling over planets in our chart, but it requires greater brainpower to sort through facts and focus on detailed work. The devil is in the details but oh how those details slip and slide everywhere. There are a lot of red herrings amongst the pearls but as always it’s may be the angle we view situations that makes the difference. Use the mercurial energy to look at life from top, bottom and sideways.

From here on in, we can expect those situations that have become wedged against a rock or that have sunk to the bottom of the sea to come loose and re-surface. The trick now is to guess which way the tide will take these situations rather than drift along hoping for the best. A skilled sailor knows how to read the currents and tides as well as keep an eye on the weather and instruct his crew.

With Mars also adrift in opposition to Neptune, those of us with planets around 3 degrees of mutable signs: Virgo, Sagittarius, Pisces and Gemini need to learn to navigate deceptively calm seas with as many tools, maps, lifejackets and information guides as can be mustered up. The first tool in the kit-bag for this turbulent journey is to be highly conscious of any information that floats past and to research as much as you can. The second is to keep in contact with whoever mans the radio on the shore. If we allow communication to break down, there is little hope of navigating a straight course away from treacherous rips. This means taking little at face value and if something seems odd, pull back and check it out. At the same time, remain open and honest in all dealings.

Mars has been floundering in Virgo since January 24th but is now preparing to turn direct on April 14th. Because it will come to a standstill and turn around on this day in opposition to Neptune, whatever we initiate is likely to flounder. Keep the lifeline firmly in place though until we get through this phase towards the end of April. Highly creative solutions are there – it’s just that we won’t know which solution or direction is the best until we come out the other side.

The headline "Mum who hired killer saw herself as a victim" reminded me of the another side effect of the coming Mars/Neptune opposition. If this transit is affecting our chart we may find that our reasoning processes are faulty and our judgement off-centre. For much of April, hyper-sensitivity may open the floodgate for strange feelings as Mars stations direct in opposition to Neptune (14th). As we are now entering Neptune’s oceanic territory, it is easy to become lost in a sea of self-pity, especially if we discover mistakes, rather than take constructive steps to fix problems in a practical way. It is tempting to justify our own, or another’s, actions with impossible reasoning processes, but this will only lead to further complications. If there was ever a time to wash the slate clean, it is now. Nip any delusions in the bud. Even if there is no obvious solution, or even if we feel embarrassment at past indiscretions, it is better to act now. Take one truthful step at a time until integrity and trust is restored to full capacity. To help put Mars’ influence over relationships into perspective at this time, we might have to ask if we are willing to risk relationships for the sake of avoiding conflict.

2012 seems to be a year where mutable signs – Gemini, Virgo, Sag and Pisces – are highlighted. Venus waits in the wings to have her turn at retrograding through Gemini between May 16th and June 28th (NZT). Again, it will be those people who have planets between 7 and 23 degrees of the above signs who will feel this transit most. Venus always brings relationships and money into focus so prepare to work harder at these areas of life. Saturn is already highlighting this area as it travels retrograde through Venus’ sign, Libra, and the trine from Venus to Saturn as she turns around, suggests that it’s the situations that we are already aware of that will go through a surge of activity. It’s significant then that Saturn also turns direct two days before Venus, on June 25th.

Lunar activity this month also underlines Venus with the Full Moon in Libra on the 17th at 07:20am (NZT) and the New Moon in Taurus on the 21st at 7:20pm (NZT). A lot will surface around the 17th that will bring situations to a head. The New Moon though bodes well for those of us who can see the spiritual nuances that connect us to our possessions and the people who provide stability in our lives. They are the gems that we need to look after with greater care.  

The Sun travels into Taurus on the 20th – Happy Birthday Taurus. With Jupiter in your sign as your birthday year begins, you have a great head start for growing even further than you have since last August. Keep an eye out your annual New Moon on the 21st.