March 2012

March is a month when we may be champing at the bit, stomping around, ready for the starting gate to open and wanting to get on with it, although we might not be too certain about what the ‘it’ could refer to. We have a great deal of energy, a broad palette to draw upon and a desire to try any and every thing that is unique, different and appealing to our senses. Unfortunately, we could be impelled more by our fascinations with sparkly things than by our due diligence. This month is a time when we can easily slide by, gloss over significant details, and negate important factors. If it looks good, we might convince ourselves that it is good.

As we begin March, we may feel anxious, a little unsure of ourselves, even to the point of questioning the direction in which we are moving. But the direction could prove irrelevant since we might be more engrossed in the movement, desirous of feeling the wind against our skin and a sense that something is happening. If that something is something different from our normal habitual routine, then so much the better.

As a continuation of late February, we may do a great deal of sighing, even involuntarily sighing. It might not be a sigh or breath of relief, as much as an inadvertent recognition that we are coming to the end of a cycle. And for that, we are likely to be grateful. We may not know where we are going, just thankful that we are going and in movement.

The month begins with a T-Square in the Mutable Signs and a Stellium of three or more planets in the Mutable Water Sign of Pisces. With five planets in Mutable Signs, the T-Square of the Moon in Gemini square Mars in Virgo and the Moon square the Stellium of the Sun, Mercury and Neptune in Pisces, we could be jumping from one thing to another, to yet another. We may always be looking for movement but that movement can often be more reactive, responsive to situations and conditions around us, rather than proactive with a determined destination and enhanced will to achieve our goals.

Fortunately, this month also continues with the Grand Trine in the Earth Element by Sign that has gone on since mid-November with Jupiter in Taurus, Mars in Virgo and Pluto in Capricorn. This month, on the 13th – 14th, this Grand Trine is exact. If we could only get focused, then we could be highly productive and manifest our deepest desires.

The question is whether we can get focused. Our sense of insecurities, wondering whether we have the capabilities and resources to pull off our deepest desires, and a deep-seated fear of waiting for but another shoe to drop to upset our applecart and wreak havoc to our plans could be a severe dampener to our courage, our fortitude and a belief in better days through brighter ways. All of these issues, however, are also related to the old paradigm and old mindset whereby we were conditioned to believe that in order for things to be done, we had to do them.

While we just cannot sit back and ‘wait for godot’, who may never come, it would be important for us to open our eyes, become aware and recognize indications of the paradigm shift and the new paradigm, whereby we do not have to do it all but we do need to be aware and mindful and work with the energies unfolding as co-creators of our future. We have entered a time of magic and miracles, even if the magic does not appear to be earthshaking or the miracles are those mini-miracles of interesting synchronicities and fascinating serendipities of being in the right place at the right time with things falling neatly into place, often in the most inexplicable manner.

The universe works and we just need to adapt our rhythm to the universal unfolding and be flexible in regard to our movement and our plans.

This March provides us an interesting canvas on which to paint our possibilities, always with the recognition that we can change our direction at any time in accord with shifting circumstances and changing conditions. The times call for tai chi moves, being aware and mindful to be flexible and adaptable.

As we come into March, Mercury exits Pisces, ending the Stellium of three planets in the Mutable Water Sign and Mercury enters Aries on the 2nd, briefly creating a Stellium of three or more planets in the Cardinal Fire Sign as Mercury joins Venus and Uranus in Aries. This Stellium is but a prelude to a Stellium in the Cardinal Fire Sign at the beginning of Spring on the 19th-20th, when the Sun enters Aries for yet another brief Cardinal Fire Sign Stellium. Early in March, this brief Aries Stellium comes to an end as Venus exits Aries on the 5th to enter its own Sign of Taurus.

This first week of March, we may be feeling the burgeoning sense of Spring ahead of us. We could be making our plans for our personal renaissance as we come into Spring. Our thoughts can be insightful as we consider how we might initiate projects and engage activities that allow us to put our personal imprint on our daily involvements. Our focus may be on our individual selves and how things impact us. We might have little patience for other people’s needs, much less their demands.

The weekend of the 3rd – 4th can engage us in push pulls. Interactions with other people could be a little dicey. We may not be feeling the love. Instead, we might be hypercritical and have a sense of other people putting a dampener on our personal interests. The Sun opposes Mars on the 3rd and Venus opposes Saturn on the 4th. We may just be feeling out of sorts and not in a sociable mood. Not that we need to go off and hide out in some cave somewhere. It is important for us not to play savior or martyr and not assume the world is against us. This weekend could prove dicey. We may have a great deal on our plate, errands to attend to, with us drawing upon our final reserve of energy as we feel the pressure of what we should do and what others expect of us. Let’s try and slow things down, not feel slighted by other people’s suggestions and cut everyone, including ourselves, a great deal of slack. We might just be exhausted and if we push ourselves, we could find the truth to the saying that ‘haste makes waste’. Not only could we be hasty. We could also be wasted. A timeout to relax and recharge may be called for.

The 5th begins a new week and we may have energy extraordinaire. On the 5th, Venus enters Taurus, its own Sign, and by doing so, Venus ends the Stellium of three or more planets in the Cardinal Fire Sign of Aries. This day also has Mercury conjunct Uranus. Our insights can be revelatory and though we may be solely focused on what we want, our ability to present our case in a most acceptable and presentable package could grease the wheels of winning someone’s acceptance. We may be looking at personal makeovers, putting our best foot forward and presenting ourselves in a perfect light. Certainly, our sense of social decorum is attuned and we could prove the truth to the old saying that ‘you catch more flies with honey than vinegar’.

With Venus moving into Taurus on the 5th, it reinforces the Earth Grand Trine and gives greater impetus to the potential for manifestation, concretizing things and gaining our goals in a largely non-combative manner.

Venus sextiles Neptune on the 6th and we may find that we are adept at presenting things in an appealing, even seductive, manner. The liability towards buying into the appearance without fully considering the substance of the situation could fuel a tendency to go overboard in our expenditures. In our desire to look good and create a magical impression, we could easily overspend and do too many ‘overs’ whereby we even move into a garish presentation.

The Virgo Full Moon on the 8th might trigger the engagement of tricksters, whereby what we see is not necessarily what we get. While we can think outside the box and entertain alternatives we might not have taken into account earlier, we do have to be careful not to be led by our impressions, our desires and our beliefs rather than our critical, analytical reasoning and a discerning attitude. We could easily get hoodwinked. An enticing mystique could cast a pall over due diligence, and we might find ourselves engaging activities that might seem all so together but like a Hollywood set is strong in the image and the façade but with no real depth or substance.

The more we can accomplish in the first two weeks of March, the better it is. For on the 12th, Mercury turns retrograde through the rest of the month and until April 4th. And we all know what that means. Communications can be off, misunderstandings rampant and things getting bollixed in the works.

With Mercury turning retrograde in Aries on the 12th, our thoughts can be self-focused, and may revolve primarily around how we see the world and how we want to see the world. We could also be too nonchalant about factors beyond our control and beyond our personal realm, thereby missing salient points and contributing to a ‘my way or the highway’ type of attitude.

Following Mercury turning retrograde on the 12th, Jupiter and Venus both trine Pluto on the 13th. On the 14th, Venus conjuncts Jupiter, and Mars triggers the Earth Grand Trine exactly by Mars in Virgo trine Jupiter in Taurus and Mars trine Pluto in Capricorn. We may feel as though we have a Midas touch with everything within our grasp turning to gold. Excess, in expenditure and optimism and indulgence, can be strong during this mid-March period.

This mid-March period can seem like we have entered into paradise on earth. Equity markets could ratchet up and all might seem right in the world. We are likely to sense the burgeoning of Spring coming forward. We would all like to feel as though the worst is behind us with the hope of change that we are entering a golden age. Some commentators and pundits will acclaim that the best is not only yet to come but that we have crossed the threshold into a new world, a world of bounty and abundance. But to borrow from Aldous Huxley, we might also feel and even be encouraged to accept the concept that we have entered a brave new world.

All this ballyhoo and likely good news also occurs under Mercury retrograde. What we hear might only be hype or miscommunications that contribute to misunderstanding. Despite a likely upbeat attitude, we might be wise to take things with a grain of salt and maintain a grounded approach. Let’s take things slow, have a slightly jaded eye to any good news and embrace the Missouri state slogan of ‘show me’. And even if shown, we might still allow the jury to be out before we make a definitive decision as to what is really going on. Awareness and mindfulness are key components of these times, both in regard to negative news and to positive news. Reading between the lines and always being mindful of the law of unintended consequences would serve us well during these volatile times of paradigm shift.

On the 18th, retrograde Mercury conjuncts Uranus. We can have some startling revelations, especially if we are open to possibilities and not rigid in our concepts or fixed in our beliefs. The sense of serendipity could be strong and the nudge of change as a natural unfolding of conditions might be felt. Let’s keep in mind that during these times we do not have to make things happen as much as being in the right place at the right time and allowing ourselves to receive new opportunities and unexpected situations to arise.

This configuration of Mercury conjunct Uranus occurred earlier in the month, on the 5th, when Mercury was direct. This same configuration, albeit with Mercury retrograde, on the 18th may be reminiscent of whatever unexpected event or incident might have occurred at that time. We may experience startling insights and sudden awareness and things coming out of the blue.

On the 19th – 20th, we enter the season of Spring, the beginning of the astrological New Year as the Sun ends its cycle through the zodiac wheel, exits Pisces and enters Aries, the Cardinal Fire Sign. The Aries Stellium of three or more planets in the Cardinal Fire Sign that we had earlier in the month is re-created with the Sun joining Mercury and Uranus in Aries.

The Sun conjuncts Mercury on the 21st, followed by the Aries New Moon on the 22nd, with the Sun Moon conjunction also conjunct both Mercury and Uranus.

Spring has sprung, and we may be concentrating on the renaissance that the season promises. Change, autonomy and launching forward with projects that speak to us and allow us to stretch our wings are all in the works. We may be impulsive, spontaneous, but all with a sense of new beginnings and initiations reflective of the changes we are seeking to incorporate in our lives.

Mercury exits Aries and retrogrades back into Pisces on the 23rd, ending the Aries Stellium. We may feel more moody, prone to a sense of being victim to circumstance, wondering whether the impulse of making changes to our lives can come forward or stillborn.

The Sun Uranus conjunction on the 24th may have us emphasizing our individuality, possibly with little regard as to the impact of our actions on other people, and even to the extreme of our feeling like a law unto ourselves. While we are impelled to be free, to accentuate our individuality and do our own thing, we could find ourselves butting heads against our responsibilities, those things we have to do and even obstacles placed in our way as the Sun squares Pluto on the 29th. Even if we feel blocked in our actions, we could find our way around the restrictions and limitations. With the Mercury sextile Venus also on the 29th, we can present ourselves in a socially appealing manner.

While actions taken may go against the grain and be in opposition to traditional ways, the ability to calm people’s concerns can mitigate any sense of real impediments and might only create a sense of delay.

All in all, this month of March is an energetic one and like a snowball going down the mountain, the energy gathers momentum and then can become the avalanche. We just have to be able to work with the energy, do our tai chi moves and not become buried by our impetuousness or a rush to judgment.

March… the lion roars…