June

June… swinging from the rafters…

June has a little of something for everyone. This month may seem like a wild metronome, swinging from one extreme to another. By now, we should be used to the volatility of these times, and this month is likely to ratchet up the volatility severalfold.

Although June brings the end of Spring and the start of Summer, many of us may find ourselves juggling various activities, trying to keep up with the vagaries of change, and making decisions at the last moment but recanting our decision before we’ve initiated action.

The month starts off with the Mercury retrograde already entrenched. This second of the year’s three Mercury retrogrades began back on the 26th of May and continues into the 19th of June. Akin to Murphy’s Law whereby ‘whatever can go wrong will’, we have already witnessed some Mercury retrograde incidents during the early stages of this Mercury retrograde cycle before June even begins. One occurred on the 28th of May when an elevated train in Chicago derailed, followed several hours later by two commuter trains outside Boston colliding and derailing. On May 30th, a jetliner overshot a runway in Honduras killing several people and in New York on the same day a building crane collapsed killing two.

With Mercury retrograding through its own Sign of Gemini and with the early part of June having a Stellium of three or more planets in the Mutable Air Sign, we need to watch our communications, our travel plans and our ideas. Computer problems can be an issue and already I have experienced Internet problems with emails sent but not received.

Retrograde motion asks us to go back over issues and situations that we might have thought completed but may still need some reworking, reconsidering and reformatting. Yes, the ‘re-s’ are en vogue with retrograde motion.

Another retrograde cycle in operation, this one having started back at the beginning of April, is Pluto which entered Capricorn at the end of January and has been a significant contributor to the question as to whether we have ‘built upon rock or built upon sand’. Already, we have seen structures of society shaky at best as financial institutions have reeled from credit crises, a sense of constriction in energy and food supplies with a consequent exponential increase in costs of both, and the questioning of whether the global community is moving into an economic recession akin even to the Great Depression of the 1930s. Not only have society’s structures been rocked during this initial transit into Capricorn by Pluto. We have also seen the extremes of earth activity with devastating consequences highlighted by the cyclone in Myanmar and the earthquake in China. Our stability and security have been rocked.

During June, on the 13th, Pluto retrograde backs out of Capricorn and re-enters Sagittarius. In turning direct in September, Pluto will come back into Capricorn at the end of November for its multi-year transit of the Cardinal Earth Sign.

As Pluto re-enters Sagittarius, we shall have the opportunity to look at what we consider to be our philosophy of our lives and our living, see what we consider to be the quality of living and recognize that we are not islands unto ourselves. The world community will once again become a major focal point and this Pluto retrograde through Sagittarius incorporates the period of China hosting the Summer Olympics, providing China the opportunity of truly presenting their emergence on the world stage as a major, if not the major, player in the global community.

Towards the end of June, on the 26th, we have another shift in direction as Uranus turns retrograde until the end of December. Many of the changes we might have initiated or sought to incorporate in our lives may have to be put on the backburner. Much of this year has by Sign the opposition between Saturn and Uranus, an opposition that first becomes exact on November 4th, Election Day in the US.

This battle between old and new is engaged, and for each of us the question is raised as to whether we shall rely on the past for solutions to the present and for the future, or if we are willing to find different ways of operating, recognizing that the ‘tried and true’ may have been tried but may no longer be true. This push pull between old and new can also be seen as the process of inventory-taking and, similar to the Pluto energy that will be going back into Capricorn at the end of November, seeing where we have built upon sand or upon rock with the recognition that the ephemeral and superficial are likely to be washed away and a realization of the importance of us focusing on building upon rock that can withstand the volatility of these times.

Volatility, as we all may have well discovered, is the keyword of these times.

As already mentioned, the month of June begins with a Stellium of three or more planets in Gemini and the Mercury retrograde. The month also begins with a Grand Trine in Earth, thanks to the month beginning with the Moon in Taurus trine Saturn in Virgo and trine Pluto in Capricorn.

June begins with one planet in a Fire Sign, four planets in Earth Signs, four planets in Air Signs and one planet in a Water Sign. There are two planets in Cardinal Signs, three planets in Fixed Signs, and five planets in Mutable Signs. Five planets are in Positive Signs, and five planets are in Negative Signs.

With an emphasis on Earth, Air and Mutable Signs, June starts like a tornado with things whipping around and with us scurrying about even to the point of swinging from the rafters.

While we have the ability of inventory taking and focusing on the practical basics, we also must recognize that we all might be dealing with a sense of A.D.D. [attention deficit disorder]. We all have plenty to do, many irons in the fire and an activity list that never seems to quit. No rest for the weary is the way we may sometimes feel about our lives at this time.

But the energies now also allow us to work with our myriad of activities in spurts of time. If we can realize what our productive time cycle is, no matter how long or short it might be, the more we can both juggle the various activities in which we participate and also work at our optimum. The days of singular focus from nine to five or beyond are long past. These days we are juggling and often adding ever more activities to the mix. The best way to handle all that which is on our plate in today’s world is to spend some time on one activity, then some time on another activity, and then some time elsewhere. It is far better that we play the xylophone, hitting the various notes of our activities, than try and play a one-note samba.

What we do have to watch for during much of June is being sure that whatever we do, we do in pencil with a large eraser in hand. We may find ourselves chopping and changing. At times, we might feel like Alice’s Mad Hatter, ever late, ever hurrying.

Prioritizing during June is an essential requisite to dealing with the energies.

The month also begins with Mercury square Uranus and Mercury trine Neptune both aspects becoming exact in July on the 5th and the 6th respectively. Our thoughts can by flying around, embracing possibilities and impossibilities as if they were the same. Unexpected communications could disrupt our plans. Although we may get knocked off center at times, our intuitive sense is likely to be strong if we can tune out the dissonance and cacophony of the world around us.

This month of June is a good time to think of possibilities, consider our plans and entertain prospects we might not normally take into account. It would be wise not to act on some of our startling revelations until after the 19th, but the exercise in letting our mind roam and explore can also provide a greater sense of autonomy and help us feel less at the mercy of forces beyond our control.

The Gemini New Moon on the 3rd can have us focusing on relationships, making plans for get-togethers, and considering pleasurable activities for our summertime. Already, as a result of increasing basic living costs, a new word has entered our vocabulary: staycation. While often the summer is a time of travel and get-aways, more people are discussing enjoying time off spent in their home environs, enjoying the benefits of their local environment and finding fun activities that do not cost a bundle to enjoy. Increasingly, we may discover or re-discover the simple pleasures of recreation and re-creational activities. We may have gotten used to the distractions and diversions of expensive toys or distant trips, but we now have the opportunity of appreciating the simple pleasures of life in the summertime.

Champing at the bit may be part of the energies operating around the 12th and 13th when Venus squares Uranus on the 12th, followed on the 13th by the Sun square Uranus and Pluto retrograding back into Sagittarius. We may want to engage in changes, do things that are unfamiliar to us, and stretch our parameters. At the same time, Venus trines Neptune on the 13th and the Sun trines Neptune on the 14th. This time can be one of various parties and social interactions. Some get-togethers may be for a specific cause or movement, and some might be reunions with friends we have not seen or been in contact for a while. Let’s enjoy, for the following week with the Sagittarius Full Moon and the energies around it could prove quite dicey.

The Sagittarius Full Moon on the 18th could be a doozey. Whatever we have planned around this time might have to be postponed or could be disrupted. There is a Moon Pluto conjunction with the Moon opposed Sun, and the Sun opposed Pluto exact on the 20th. Venus moves into Cancer on the 18th, but before it does so, Venus opposes Pluto. The Full Moon presents a Grand Cross by Sign in the Mutable Signs with the Sun Venus conjunction opposed the Moon Pluto conjunction. The Full Moon is also close to a square with Uranus in Pisces and by Sign square to Saturn in Virgo. The intensity of this time is likely to be ratcheted up severalfold and added to by Mercury turning direct on the 19th and the Sun entering Cancer to begin the Summer on the 20th. On the 21st, Mars opposes Neptune.

This mid-June period can be rather extreme, with unexpected situations challenging us and even threatening disruptions and disarray. Nothing is likely done in half measure now. Even a domino effect could be in play whereby one situation triggers various reactions and responses that may be extreme in nature.

To paraphrase an often mis-quoted Bette Davis line in All About Eve, this mid-June is a time for us to fasten our seat belts for it’s likely to be a bumpy ride.

We may be looking at letting go of certain things or we may find that things are being eliminated. One cannot rule out the potential for assaults and attacks during this period, so it would be wise to be vigilant and recognize the liability of people flying off the handle without a moment’s notice. A sense of hair trigger responses can be rampant during this mid-June period. Even our relationships can go through turmoil with possible break-ups and endings going on.

The latter part of June seems to have the intensity settling down. The Sun in Cancer, Venus in Cancer can have us looking at family matters and things around our home. The staycation may be a greater draw for us than the travails of travel. Day trips, short trips may be far more intriguing than the hassle of flights and the high expense of distant travel.

While the month of June starts off with us engaged in many different things, the intensity of the mid-month may force us to slow things down and have a greater appreciation for the simple things in life as we close out the month.

June… swinging from the rafters…