The astrology for this week of December 16th through the 22nd of 2024 takes us out of the autumn season and into the winter season with the winter solstice on Saturday.
This is the first full week since Mercury turned direct this past Sunday. We are still in the ‘shadow’ of the Mercury retrograde until the 3rd of January when Mercury returns to the degree at which Mercury had retrograded back on the 25th of November.
Caution is suggested as we proceed through the holidays. Apart from the Mercury retrograde ‘shadow’, we also have to contend with the influence of the Jupiter Saturn square and the Mars Pluto opposition.
Finding ourselves in the holidays frenzy, we shall need to be nimble and quick to avoid people acting haphazardly with the liability of reckless behavior or intense confrontations.
This week starts pleasantly enough. Preparations for holiday gatherings, decorating for family get-togethers, and enjoying the spirit of the season can offer us comfort and nurture. We may be able to shut out the drone of craziness of world affairs and concentrate on our own personal world.
Community festivities, tree lightings, and parties with friends could keep us in the holidays spirit.
We do need to maintain awareness, be mindful and attentive to what is going on around us. While the holidays emphasize good cheer and the family of humankind, there can be bad people with ill intentions that may try to take advantage of any absences or distractions.
The second half of the week is primed for good times with good friends. We want to enjoy ourselves, and the holidays provide license to have a good time to the max.
The weekend has us coming into the winter season and ratchets up the energy severalfold. With Christmas coming on the Wednesday of next week, some people may be heading out of town for their Christmas holidays, and others may be rushing around pulling things together for planned celebrations.
Welcome to the delirium of the holidays.
In truth, the light is born out of the darkness.
Monday, December 16th – Getting a Grip – Saturn. Monday begins this week with the Moon continuing its transit of Cancer with the Cancer Moon today trine Saturn. Yesterday had the Gemini Full Moon and Mercury turning direct. This Monday may be slow starting but allows us to get a grip on the energy shift. Instead of being dazzled and caught up in a vortex of activities, fluctuating feelings, and social engagements, we may slow things down on this Monday and be far more astute as to how we wish to proceed. Whenever Mercury turns direction, things take a day or two for us to adjust to the shift and change in the rhythm and pace. Let’s take our time today, eliminate the superfluous, and focus on the truly meaningful. We might be involved with holiday events, but it would be wise that we be selective with our energy. No need to waste our energy on silly participations and tire ourselves out. Putting a game plan together today for our holidays would help concentrate on the most meaningful and avoid those that are just a waste of our time.
Tuesday, December 17th – Crossing the Threshold – Uranus, Neptune, Moon Void-of-Course, Pluto. Tuesday has the Moon finishing its transit of Cancer with the Cancer Moon sextile Uranus and the Moon trine Neptune. The Moon then goes Void-of-Course for five hours with the Moon making no further connections to the planets as the Moon finishes its transit of Cancer and before the Moon enters Leo where today the Leo Moon opposes Pluto. As we have experienced in recent months, the Moon connects with all three of the transcendental planets. This is a day for us to streamline our operations, utilize new methods to accomplish our tasks, and feel the spirit of the season in everything we do. Yesterday provided the energy to strategize and effectively plan, and hopefully we did so in pencil with a large eraser so that we can alter and change as conditions warrant. This Tuesday may offer us some exciting surprises if we don’t get stuck in our own willfulness of trying to force things to the ways that we want them. Everything can go swimmingly during the day but might hit the wall in the evening hours. As the Moon moves into Leo, we may be focusing on all the fun events of the holidays. We do need to avoid people grandstanding and making celebrations all about them. Some plans may come together, others might fall apart. Let’s go with the flow with the recognition that unexpected developments could be far more thrilling than what we had planned for ourselves.
Wednesday, December 18th – Out and About – Mars, Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Sun, Neptune. The Moon continues its transit of Leo on this Wednesday with the Leo Moon conjunct Mars, the Moon trine Mercury, the Moon opposed Venus, and the Moon sextile Jupiter. The Sun squares Neptune. Wednesday and Thursday of this week are two days when the energies suggest we enjoy the holidays with social gatherings and community festivities. We could be fast out of the gate as we start this Wednesday. Some people may get out of town for a long holiday vacation. Others might have lunches and dinners with colleagues and good friends. With the two ‘good guys’ of the planetary realm, Venus and Jupiter, in play today and tomorrow and augmented by the Leo Moon, social interactions can be fun events. We are in the holidays spirit and looking to get the most out of them. It would be wise for us to budget our time and our monies, for otherwise we could get caught up in the holidays whirl with little regard to the costs involved. Let’s enjoy ourselves without overly indulging.
Thursday, December 19th – Best Laid Plans – Uranus, Venus, Jupiter. Thursday has the Moon continuing its transit of Leo with the Leo Moon square Uranus. Venus trines Jupiter. Wednesday and Thursday of this week are two primo days for our relationships. We appreciate the uniqueness in the people we know and are grateful that they are a part of our life. Today is a good day to do something different with that special someone. We might want to be spontaneous since our plans for the day could go awry. This is a day to take it as it comes. We may be feeling lighthearted, upbeat and in love. And why not? The two ‘good guys’ of the planetary realm, Venus and Jupiter, are pleasantly engaged. Even if we believe the world is crashing all around us, we may not care on this Thursday, for we are in our own personal world, enjoying the company of other people, and especially the quality time with a special someone. Our best laid plans may not come to fruition, but there can be involvements for us that are far more engaging than we could have imagined for ourselves. This is a day to be open to the magic of the universe and to realize that life is good.
Friday, December 20th – Getting Out in Time – Sun, Moon Void-of-Course, Mercury. Friday begins with the Moon finishing its transit of Leo with the Moon in the early morning hours trine the Sun. The Moon then goes Void-of-Course for nearly two and a half hours with the Moon making no further connections to the planets as the Moon completes its transit of Leo and before the Moon enters Virgo where the Virgo Moon squares Mercury late in the day. Many of us may be looking at this Friday as the beginning of a long holiday Christmas week. We can feel buoyed by the reality that our life is soon our own with no need to report into work, no need to be tethered to our phone or to our watch, no need to answer to anyone but ourselves. If we are able to leave town early, the better it would be. The latter part of the day might have travel and traffic issues. Trying to get anywhere could have us bogged down. Contingency plans may be necessary, so it would be wise for us to have alternate courses of action at the ready. Whatever we are doing in the latter part of the day, we might want to add on extra time and not get frazzled by disruptions or frustration.
Saturday, December 21st – In the Dark – Lunar T-Square, Saturn, Jupiter, Winter Solstice, Sun Capricorn. Saturday has the Virgo Moon triggering a Mutable Sign T-Square as the Virgo Moon opposes Saturn in Pisces and the Moon squares Jupiter in Gemini. The Sun exits Sagittarius to enter Capricorn [4:21 AM EST] at the Winter Solstice. Imprinting the signature for the winter season, the chart erected for the Sun coming into Capricorn highlights the Jupiter Saturn square with the tendency during this winter season of continual expansion – contraction operating with a high liability of anxiety thrown in. By Sign, there is a Grand Cross in the Mutable Signs with Mercury in Sagittarius. Although the light is born out of darkness, indicative of this darkest day of the year in the northern latitudes, nothing is a straight line. Similar to the tree of life in the Jewish mystical system of the kabbalah, energy seems to go from one extreme to another until finally meeting its balance point in the middle at equilibrium. The frenzy of this day, and of the season, cannot be discounted. It will essential that we slow things down, not accept anything at face value, and keep track of the specifics and particulars.
Sunday, December 22nd – All Together Now – Uranus, Neptune, Moon Void-of-Course, Pluto, Sun, Mars. Sunday has the Virgo Moon trine Uranus and the Moon opposed Neptune in the early morning hours. The Moon then goes Void-of-Course for five and a half hours with the Moon making no further connections to the planets as the Moon completes its transit of Virgo and before the Moon enters Libra where the Libra Moon trines Pluto, the Moon squares the Sun, and the Moon sextiles Mars. Similar to the Moon connections to the three transcendental planets Tuesday and days over recent months, we have the opportunity of drawing upon higher faculties and the universe in cooperation to achieve more today than we could possibly conceive. Everything may seem to operate on greased wheels. While the term ‘divine intervention’ has been bandied about, there is something extraordinary going on. Instead of fearing the changes that are occurring, we can acknowledge them and alter both our mindset and our actions to be in snych with what appears to be paranormal phenomena. The dimensions are a lot thinner now than they ever have been. We can be co-creators with the universal unfolding, and today could give us evidence of strange and thrilling incidents. The second half of this Sunday is primed for good times with good friends. We may be especially interested in people who are powerful in their own right and who exemplify taking machete in hand and carving their own path.
