It's the Final Countdown (cue music!)
Yes, I am counting down the days until Mercury and Venus go direct!!
Good morning dear one. Today we are putting one foot in front of the other.
We are in the final days of Mercury’s retrograde. It goes direct on April 7…whew! Venus then follows on April 12th, but both planets are in their retrograde shadow for a while yet. (Mercury leaves its shadow on April and Venus leaves it’s shadow on May 16th.)
In my experience, the last days of a planet’s retrograde are the hardest. We’re all tired. Us and the planet 😂 (but mostly us).
In addition to the wayward energy of these retrogrades, we have been experiencing emotional definition collectively. Emotional defining transits bring incredible amounts of intelligence into our life. They also bring uncertainty, grief, and emotions that have been tucked safely away front and center so that we can witness and process them properly. This transit also ends on Monday!! (More on that in a moment.)
Maybe you’re fine? Venus and Mercury are personal planets, so it’s entirely possible things are smooth sailing for you. If that’s the case, I love that for you! I will say that is absolutely not the case for me. Ha! Most of the people around me seem to be really worn thin right now too, so I’m writing this for all of us…
These retrogrades are pushing us to come to terms with something. Venus represents our values, art, music, communion with each other. Mercury represents our communication and technology. The way these retrogrades are impacting each of us is really distinct. If you know what house Aries and Pisces are in, then you can definitely dig a little deeper into what you personally are being faced with.
Only you can glean the wisdom for yourself that this transit is revealing for you. We often look to modalities like astrology to “explain” things. The truth is they give you a framework and system to help you understand, however only you can decipher the themes and the feedback your life is giving you (which is why Human Design is so differentiated).
For me, these retrogrades have been a fierce wake up call to the ways we have outsourced the tending and care that has always come from the community for millennia. Aries is in my 11th house of community, and Pisces is my 10th house of career. The most rewarding thing I have done this year is set up a community defense network for families at my Kindergartener’s school. Do you see how these retrogrades are weaving a story in my own timeline?
I’ve been working on a series to share some of the deeper learnings around community that will be coming your way in a couple of days.
Make Space For Grief
In addition to the eclipses and retrogrades, for the last few months we have all been experiencing a transit that gives us all emotional definition.
By design, I am extremely sensitized to emotional energy. I can feel transits that give us emotional definition almost immediately. This transit started last fall, and has been an undercurrent during the mars retrograde that took place from December to January, and both the Venus and Mercury retrogrades that are still happening. We had a couple week break from the emotional definition in February, but then Jupiter went direct and we were right back in it!
An emotional transit is going to hit differently depending on whether you are someone with a defined or undefined solar plexus. They happen fairly frequently, but they don’t usually happen for months at a time, especially on the collective level.
What’s different right now is that the north node, which moves slowly, is in gate 36 and connecting to Jupiter which is moving slowly post retrograde through gate 35. Usually when emotional transits happen, it will be because one planet is connecting with a hanging gate that you have. It will be more of a personal transit for those with your hanging gate.
Because of the placement of these planets, this transit is happening for everyone. We are all experiencing a defined solar plexus right now. Everyone on the planet! On top of that, we’ve been in this energy for a long time. Emotional transits take a LOT of energy, and with all of the retrogrades - energy is in short supply!
Channel 35-36 that is defined in the transits right now is called the Channel of Transitoriness and relates to the emotional wave associated with experiences. This collective channel is about the awareness of which experiences we want to have, and the emotions that come with whether we have those experiences and what they actually feel like when they come (and go).
What I’m noticing across the board is this undercurrent of grief of the collective experience that we’re having right now. We are coming face to face with an overwhelming amount of experiences we do NOT want.
It’s so important for us to make space for this grief because it’s revealing a deeper truth about what we DO want that we can only gain through the contrast of the current moment. I am personally having to be very diligent with myself to make space for it. Grief is extremely uncomfortable, and I am no exception to that rule. At various points in this transit, and especially in the last few days, I’ve felt a deep melancholy.
For those of us with an undefined solar plexus, I don’t want us to miss the gift here. We are getting a window into the emotional frequency that our dear brothers and sisters with emotional definition are connected to all day every day. The depth of the low defines the height of the high. We cannot have one without the other.
Am I taking action in the melancholy? No. Am I making decisions there? No. Am I digging my heels in and wallowing there? No. However, I also cannot bypass it. I have to make space for it.
(Additional Resources: In Episode 5 of HDxLiberation, Courtney and I discuss the ways making space and reconciling grief is a vital aspect of a liberation journey.)
How do we make the most of this time?
Between this emotional definition and the retrogrades lingering on for weeks after the eclipses, we need a little extra tending right now.
Literally make space. Try not to pack your days back to back.
Prioritize sleep. Sleep is literally the time when your body processes emotional energy. If you can give yourself some extra zzzz’s, you will notice a huge difference in your perspective!
If you have a defined Solar Plexus (anyone with Emotional Authority): what are you learning about your emotional process? What decisions have these retrogrades had you go back and review? What most supports you when you’re on your emotional wave?
If you have an undefined Solar Plexus (anyone who does not have Emotional Authority): How does it feel to have to wait for clarity? Have you tried to bulldoze yourself into a decision recently? What repair is needed with your Self and Inner Child? (or with someone else for that matter!)
Take some time for yourself this weekend. Journal about the things you are grappling with. Ask your Inner Being for a new perspective. What are you meant to learn with the challenges of this moment that will help you be more compassionate and resourceful moving forward?
While I am absolutely counting down the days (3 days to go!) for this emotional transit to complete, you best believe I’m not going to miss the lessons. My devotion, commitment and resolve only deepen with these intensity of these transits.
My wish for you is the feel what needs to be felt and let it move you towards the solutions we all deserve!
I hope you are getting out into the world today to connect and take a stand. If you’re at Hands Off Atlanta, I’ll see you there!