Astrology by Lauren

August 3rd ~ August 10th

On Tuesday, August 7th, Venus enters the warm protective embrace of Cancer, the sign of home, hearth, mother and country.  On the day after, Mercury will station Direct in the sign of Leo.  For those of us who have just been at the end of our wits with distraction, this news may be anticipated as a welcome relief.  But due to Mercury’s ‘strange’ relationship with Neptune this week, we also find ourselves ‘strangely’ at odds with reality.  Or it may just manifest as an inability to organize one’s thoughts in a useful way.  And being prone to... distraction.  I say there should be a world-wide holiday this week, where we can all soak our feet in the sea, and indulge our minds in feckless daydreaming.  Or try to create sentences in which you can use the word feckless.

Unfortunately, the world does not function this way.  We are all dependent on one another doing their job in order to allow the wheels to turn.  So we cannot take this world holiday.  However, because the following week could be a little demanding, I do suggest taking advantage of the dreamy aspects that prevail, and allow them, when we're not operating heavy machinery, to lull us into this illusion of safe complacency.  This is the quiet before the storm.  

With Mercury stationing, there is going to be an unfolding of seed ideas over the next few weeks.  And the reality of a situation will become clarified, with the possibility of remarkable solutions to problems that may have been troubling you.  So it does warrant some paying attention.  Write these ideas down, keep notes, lest they drift off into the ether somewhere.  Then pull up a lawn chair, and ruminate.

Venus in Cancer is an excellent placement for creative or imaginative work or play, especially since the first aspect she makes is a trine to dreamy and idealistic Neptune.  We will see our relationships drifting into a more emotional, protective, nurturing mode as we all wrap our arms about who and what we love and care about.  My gift this week is my favorite love poem by Venus-in-Cancer poet, Pablo Neruda:

..I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where.

I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride;

so I love you because I know no other way

than this: where I does not exist, nor you,

so close that your hand on my chest is my hand,

so close that your eyes close as I fall asleep.

the above painting “The Kiss” is by Gustav Klimt

the photo “In Late Summer” is by Prozac1 whose work can be seen at freedigitalphotos

For the week of August 3rd thru the 10th, be sure to read your rising sign as well:

Aries

Although you may not have the energy to do as much as you would like, and you’re feeling a little scattered as you first enter this week... do as much as you may, but don’t push yourself too hard.  You may just hit a wall if you try too hard.  However, as Venus the planet of love and money enters Cancer this week, make it a point to spend time either at home or with loved ones and family members this week especially.  It could be both magical and special.  

Taurus

At first, as your ruler Venus enters Cancer this week, it will be accompanied by a sense of magic and wonder. Home, family, country, heritage will be calling you in some way, and the first calls have to do with a sense of love and being loved.  Indulge yourself, and appreciate the support that loved ones, neighbors and friends can bring this week.  Could be even feeling a little romantic.  Surround yourself with beauty, with peace and serenity.  This is the way that Taurus fortifies herself.  And you’re going to need all the fortification you can muster for later on when this lovely veil lifts.  So enjoy it while you may.  

Gemini

Hearing that your ruler, Mercury, is about to station direct will no doubt be welcome news.  Clarity will eventually unfold over the next few weeks.  However don’t expect too much in the mean time.  Neptune prevails like a mystic watcher from above, creating a veil of both confusion and distraction as Mercury adjusts.  Words will only get in the way.  Therefore, seek serenity, peace and stillness in the mean time, letting the busyness and activity of your mind settle down.  You can discuss things later.

Cancer

Venus leaves the chattiness and bustle of Gemini and heads for your domain this week.  Your desire for harmony, for beauty, for grace and pleasance prevails.  This week, pleasure and affection are more enticing than work or obligations.  Allow yourself to drift into a pleasantly cheerful state of distraction.  You will be called back into the fray of reality soon enough.  In the mean time lose yourself in daydream, when you may.

Leo

As Mercury moved back through your sign over the past several weeks, it presented an opportunity for inward reflection, and in so doing, a chance to get reacquainted with yourself.  This has been particularly true over the past week, though it hasn’t always been easy to put into words.  Whatever comes to mind, whatever ideas arise, hold on to these for now.  Let them sit for a bit as Mercury comes around again.  Come the next few weeks, I suspect you’re going to have a lot to say.  We wait with bated breath.

Virgo

Although Mercury, your ruler, stations direct this week, this is still not a week for words.  Rather it is a week for watchful silence and observance from behind the scenes.  Clarity and the ability to make sense of things will arise in due time.  But for the time being, offering too much information can result in gaffes, or misinterpretation as the meaning behind the words gets lost.  And dwelling on the past will not help you with the present.  Rather, this is a week to reconnect with yourself, with that which is spiritual, so seek a peaceful place and wait.

Libra

This week is your opportunity to promote someone or something that is extremely important to you.  Next week you will be coming up against all sorts of forces that are going to be making you feel like you are being pulled in various directions, and that maybe, just maybe, your reputation is at stake.  However, this week is all about creating peace and good will with those at work as well as in the home, even as you kindle some of your imaginative faculties.  

Scorpio

If you are feeling blocked and exhausted... perhaps this is a good time to just acknowledge that.  Until Mars, your ruler, enters your sign on the 24th, you’re probably going to continue to feel this sense of frustration, and that stuff is piling up around you with no time or energy to get anything done to the extent that you would like.  There are going to be opportunities to dispose of things that have outlived their usefulness, such as cleaning out the attic or the garage... but even this will be difficult as each item represents something iconic from the past.  Once you get past the weekend, think about creating a plan, and becoming more organized.  When Mars enters Scorpio you’ll appreciate having a goal to aim for.

Sagittarius

As Mercury stations Direct this week in the sign of Leo, you could also find yourself readdressing your belief system... or perhaps how you feel about an issue.  You’re going to have a lot of time to think because things might not pan out quite as well as you had expected.  If you had travel plans before the 8th, then there could be the requisite Mercury retrograde delays or getting lost, or stuff getting misplaced.  Luckily, things can also turn up again when Mercury is direct again.  However, this is a good time to visit some place that you’ve been before, or going back to hit the books in order to study for an exam, or hone up on facts and figures for work.  

Capricorn

Capricorn, Gabby Douglas, just won Olympic gold in the all-round women’s gymnast competition this past week.  Through the profound capacity for Pluto to effect transformation, this young lady, at just 16 years old, has not only managed to mold herself into a ‘fierce’ competitor, but she has done so in a uniquely revolutionary manner... the first African American, or woman of color to win all-round gold in this competition.  With 5 planets in Capricorn, she is truly a force of determination to be reckoned with!  Give her a goal, and she will achieve it.  Here’s to the powerful transformative possibility engendered through the auspices of Pluto in Capricorn.  

Aquarius

In some ways you may have been feeling like your social life has been kept on hold while Mercury has been retrograde.  Clarity is going to unfold, and many of the ideas seeded over this period are going to reveal themselves over the next few weeks.  In the mean time just allow some of the dust to settle, along with the noise and the commotion in your mind.  This is a time of transition and preparation, and you don’t want to make commitments or say things that you would later regret.  Watch, and observe.  

Pisces

Enjoy the peace and serenity this week, as Venus enters the creative and imaginative realm of Cancer and shines on Pisces.  Dreams and beauty surround you.  And this can be to the point of getting lost.  Be lost.  Let your inner voice rise to the occasion, and be blessed by the love you give as well as the love you receive.  It’s a brief reprieve... and perhaps it’s all an illusion... but aren’t vacations, good books, films, and a walk in the park all about indulging those illusions?  Indulge away.