Mercury stations on Friday for its retrograde phase, while exactly square Uranus, which stations direct on January 18th. And between these we have the Full Moon in Cancer on Monday, exactly opposite Pluto. It seems the universe is conspiring to bring us on course with fulfilling our destiny, whatever that might be for each of us.

We’re already in the throes of the upcoming Mercury station on January 14th, so expect a few twists and turns and changes in plans even now. However, it is the conjunction of Venus that needs paying attention to this weekend. For this is the beginning of the New Venus Cycle.

The New Moon in Capricorn launches us into the New Year on January 2nd. If you like to make New Year’s resolutions, you might want to wait for the New Moon to do so. This will give them greater strength and staying power. Capricorn is a sign of commitment and longevity, so what better time to make our resolutions for the New Year?

Saturn and Uranus make the last of 3 squares on December 24th. This was one of the prevailing transits of 2021, sowing division and stress. But we are not yet through. There is more to come in 2022. On the 25th, retrograde Venus will make the 2nd of 3 conjunctions to Pluto increasing the intensity over the weekend. And finally on December 28th, Jupiter returns home to its own sign of Pisces for the next 5 months, carrying us into the New Year on a magic carpet ride of idealistic hope and aspiration. And none too soon. May it successfully carry us over the divide.

The Solstice is one of the 4 cardinal corners of the solar year. Here in the North we are shadowed in the dark at the Winter Solstice, even as the Sun stalls at its southern-most station bathing the South in light. Meanwhile Venus stations for its retrograde phase this weekend, and Chiron stations for its direct phase, all within the rays of the Gemini Full Moon. May we all stand in awe at the sacredness of this glorious season.

Due to a confluence of events, Venus will be conjunct Pluto for the full month of December. It is rare for these otherwise fast moving inner planets to be slow enough to keep pace with the slow moving outer planets in this way. But now that Venus has slowed for its retrograde station on the 19th, we have this unlikely but intense duo daring to dig up all sorts of scandal and corruption, as they languorously stroll through the heavens together.

The Solar Eclipse on December 3rd (or 4th depending on where you are in the world) is the last of the series of eclipses on the Gemini/Sagittarius axis. Solar Eclipses occur at the New Moon, which are times of new beginnings. The difference being that with an eclipse those new beginnings can have much more far reaching effects. In fact they can act as turning points that can transform our whole lives.

Betwixt and between the eclipses, Neptune will station for its direct phase, and Saturn will complete its last sextile to Chiron. These sextiles have been winding their way through the background of our lives all year. This is their last hurrah. That and the profound influence of Neptune this week are beckoning us all to pause, take notice and breathe in this space between the eclipses.

Within only degrees of the Lunar Nodes, the Lunar Eclipse on Friday (or Thursday, depending on where you are on the earth) is almost, but not quite, a total eclipse. It is also the longest eclipse to be seen in centuries, giving us a much broader window of visibility, weather conditions permitting. It is also the first of 7 eclipses that are going to be on the Taurus/Scorpio axis bringing all things (and people) Taurus and Scorpio to the foreground of our lives.

Uranus transits can be unpredictable. They can strike unexpectedly from out of the blue, catch us off guard and change the landscape. But they can also allow us to see things from a whole new perspective.