By Amanda Painter

These next few days look like they could have a “push/pull” or “hurry up and wait” feel to them. With the Sun, retrograde Mercury and Mars all changing signs within three days, you may find that it pays to move slowly, consciously and with as much awareness of your decision-making processes (and impulses) as possible.

Snail at dawn; photo by Amanda Painter.

The Sun was the first of the three to change signs, which it did yesterday (Wednesday) when it left Aries and entered Taurus.

This puts us in the heart of the season: spring here in the Northern Hemisphere, with the days noticeably longer and warmer finally — and tree buds, flowers and allergies popping up all over. Yet one of the main benefits of having the Sun in earthy, sensual, don’t-even-think-about-rushing-me Taurus is that it may offer some needed grounding for the movements of Mercury and Mars.

This is not about getting stubborn. It’s about being able to feel both of your feet (or all four of your hooves) on the solid earth, and letting that sensory contact help you to stay present, focused and in your body.

This physical grounding can feel especially helpful when Mercury is in a particularly “quick” sign, or when it’s in retrograde motion. Both are key factors as we head into the weekend.

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By Amanda Painter

By now, you’ve heard about (and likely watched a video of) the man getting forcibly hauled off a United Airlines flight, as well as the public outrage surrounding it and United’s initial defense of the action. You could say that this incident, and the mass awareness of it, is one way that the Sun passing through the Uranus-Eris conjunction in Aries is being reflected. But it’s not the only way this astrology can manifest; and indeed, it’s related to another important current astrological event.

Dahlia, blue vase and salt lamp; photo by Amanda Painter.

Since Uranus is separating from Eris, the Sun made its exact conjunction to Eris on Wednesday, and will make its exact conjunction to Uranus on Friday at 1:30 am EDT. Yet the aspect is still in force.

For sure, the Sun (which represents consciousness) seems to be heightening collective awareness of the current environment in this country: one marked by a kind of militancy. We see it in reactions to the launching of tomahawk missiles in retribution for the use of chemical weapons in Syria. We see it in how eager everyone is to jump into attacking or defending of almost any event on social media.

With Uranus often representing revolution and Eris often representing a subversive element, this can have its constructive side. Historically, consumer actions such as boycotts of a company needed significant time to have an effect, if they had any effect at all. These days, “we the people” seem to wield more power than ever thanks to social media. When a corporate misstep is brought to attention online, backlash can snowball at astonishing speeds.

Does that backlash have an effect on the company in question? Frequently yes; but how deep does the reform go? An apology is great; monetary compensation to an injured or aggrieved party is helpful. But once that happens and makes the news, how often does it lead to systemic reforms, or to a sustained, multi-level, intersectional movement?

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By Amanda Painter

Have you ever been involved in some sort of group project that lacks a clear leader within the group, though there might be an external authority to answer to when the project is done? And maybe you feel excited because you just know that you have the right ideas and could totally direct your team to success, if only they’d listen to you — even though nobody has vested you with the position of leader or ‘authority’? Well, a major aspect pattern between now and the weekend looks a little like that.

Photo by Amanda Painter

The Sun is moving from mid to late Aries right now. As it does, it enters the loose cardinal grand square that’s been hanging out for a while.

This grand square involves planets in all four cardinal signs: Uranus and Eris in Aries; Vesta in Cancer; retrograde Jupiter in Libra; and Pluto in Capricorn. The pattern is beginning to separate, but all the major players are still resonating with each other. Between Friday and Saturday, the Aries Sun makes exact contact first with Jupiter (an opposition, exact on Friday), and then with Pluto (a square, exact Saturday night into Sunday).

Oppositions usually signal energy coming to a peak of some sort, possibly a confrontation. Yet Jupiter is known for putting a positive spin on most aspects — even the more ‘challenging’ ones. As notable astrologer Robert Hand describes, Sun opposite Jupiter can give a real boost to optimism and confidence, enabling a person to project very positive energy to those around them.

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By Amanda Painter

When someone asks, “Who are you? Tell me about yourself,” people often reply with their most public labels — things like job titles and occupation descriptions (including “parent”). You might flesh that out with the hobbies and non-career pursuits you’re most passionate about, or descriptors such as political affiliation, ethnicity and religion, or where you grew up. But, apropos of current astrology, how often do you answer with a straight-up description of your values?

Photo by Amanda Painter; from the 2016 Sacred and Profane festival on Peaks Island, Portland, Maine.

Granted, some of the categories listed above carry some level of implied shared values, because the labels describe a self-selecting community. But there are always exceptions, and it can be dicey to make assumptions.

Often the declaration of things like closely held moral, ethical and philosophical values come with a certain level of familiarity — which can include really connecting with someone you’ve just met. Or we demonstrate our values simply through the daily choices we make, though those actions are typically witnessed by very few others (what kind of food we buy; how we treat partners and family members; the level of attention we give our work on the job, and so on).

Occasionally — and perhaps more frequently — we make certain values known very publicly: by attending a rally; or giving an interview or writing an opinion piece for the local paper; or displaying a bumper sticker on our car.

Even so, it’s rare that someone will ask, “Who are you? Tell me about yourself,” and you’ll hear in response: “Oh, well, I’m someone who values my time more than that of others. But I’m also a person who highly values thoroughness, so anything I do I do completely and well, and I reward that in others. Oh, and since I value how people feel, I never ask ‘How are you’ unless I have time to truly hear their honest answer.”

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By Amanda Painter

In the midst of a political landscape that keeps getting weirder (and, for many, ever more unnerving), have you noticed any strange glitches, bloopers or unexplained tech issues this past week? No, Mercury is not retrograde. But it’s possible you might be experiencing a bit of a copycat effect.

Photo by Amanda Painter

The culprit? Dear, sweet, named-after-the-goddess-of-love Venus, believe it or not.

Don’t panic if you have not noticed anything amiss — and don’t panic even if you have. Even though a period of Venus retrograde (which we’re experiencing until April 15) can sometimes mimic Mercury retrograde, the effect is not necessarily going to show up for everyone. If you have, however, noticed things going a little wonky, rest assured that you are not losing it. You simply might need to make a greater effort to stay focused on what you’re doing, and be patient while you work things out.

Better yet, Venus retrograde — including any SNAFUS you experience — can offer valuable reminders of the things that matter most to you, and what you need to do about them. As with any retrograde, this experience is likely to come in the form of taking an internal inventory or review.

That internal review reaches its midpoint this Saturday, as retrograde Venus conjoins the Sun in Aries (exact at 6:17 am EDT/ 10:17 UTC). A Sun-Venus conjunction can indicate “self-seeking” behavior, which can mean selfish. Yet I’d say it’s possible to interpret “self-seeking” in a more productive, helpful way:

What does it really mean to seek one’s Self?

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By Amanda Painter

Tomorrow (Friday), we’ll experience the last of the three exact contacts in the Uranus-Eris conjunction in Aries, at 2:44 am EDT (6:44 UTC). Uranus-Eris is the overarching event that we can look to as representative of much of the surprise, chaos (political chaos and identity chaos) and upheaval we’re currently experiencing in our digital age. So what does it mean to have the third and final exact conjunction between these two unpredictable planets?

Total presence: baby and saxophonist connect in front of the NYC Library in 2014. Photo by Amanda Painter.

On one level, it’s yet another reminder to expect the unexpected. That has been the theme of the last year-plus, and it’s clear we’ll need to stay on our toes as this astrology ripples out and its repercussions take new shape.

So one mission, should you choose to accept it, is to keep striving to adapt to what the world throws at you, without getting jaded, exhausting yourself or going numb. Because once you give in to total cynicism, burn out or simply tune out entirely, you also lose touch with the passion and awareness necessary to create something new and vital with your life.

Some days, “new and vital” might simply be the ability to get up in the morning and do what must be done. Other days, “new and vital” could very well be something that refreshes your commitment to serving the highest good of humanity, or something that brings joy and inspiration to others.

Along with Uranus-Eris, tomorrow the Pisces Sun makes a square to Saturn and the Galactic Core (GC) in Sagittarius (just like Mercury did last week). The Sun equates to ‘conscious awareness’, which is a close cousin to the ‘intellect’ that Mercury represents. So I suspect that the Sun-Saturn-GC configuration plays a similar role in this week’s astrology.

That role is to remind you to get your facts straight in the face of all that’s happening around you — especially as you encounter it via online environments. Or perhaps more accurately, get your focus straight. Understand where your awareness gets drawn to; notice how you situate yourself (and your ego) in relation to the world around you. Own your perceptions, biases, blind spots and projections as best you can — and be open to how new information might necessitate a shift in any of those factors.

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