Mercury Goes Direct

On June 1, 2009, Mercury swings back into his normal flight path. If you’ve been plagued with misunderstandings, communication problems, computer problems, or transport or travel problems, thankfully now everything will go back to normal.

Mercury rules the mind, thought and all forms of communication; as the wing-footed messenger of the gods that also rules transport, transmission and travel. As a small planet that whips around the sun in a tight orbit, Mercury symbolizes the speed of thought and the mind’s gifts: analysis, reason, logic, knowledge, learning, education and even intelligence itself.

Today’s world
It’s the planet behind Gemini’s reputation for witty, lively and amusing conversation. In today’s world where communication, transportation and travel are so important, Mercury is a god with greater influence than it had in ancient times. Today, it affects the mail, UPS, FedEx, the Internet,
email, e-commerce, cell phones, telephones, television, music sharing and even data transfer. So any number of complications can occur in our life when it goes retrograde.

Mercury still presides over non-technical forms of communication like conversation, gossip, speeches, all forms of writing, comics, people watching and has sway in documentaries and even movies. All the ways we “speak,” personally and culturally, are within this planet’s domain.

Your Mercury
The sign Mercury was in at the moment of your birth reveals your personal communication, thinking and learning style. For example, Mercury in Scorpio would be an intense communicator who gets to the heart of the matter with sometimes brutal directness. A Mercury in Pisces might try to communicate all the rapidly shifting emotions and thoughts that course through their mind, making them sometimes confusing and confused. If you were born with Mercury retrograde your style of communication is often quite different from those around you. This gives you the benefit having startlingly unusual, interesting ideas and the problem of having those ideas understood and appreciated.

Reflection time
Retrograde Mercury is simply a change in course that demands reassessment, review and reappraisal. In order to get our attention, Mercury has disrupted communications forcing us to notice things that were done haphazardly or sloppily and to set them right. If you’ve experienced communication issues with loved ones or co-workers the Mercury retrograde revealed where you need to correct matters or acknowledge problems. If you haven’t had time to reflect on how Mercury has revealed what needs to be addressed, now is the perfect time to do so.

Mercury makes a retrograde transit three times a year, for three weeks at a time. Its fast pace and huge responsibilities demand periods of rest and rejuvenation time. Whenever possible, we should try to work with the planet’s rhythms to make these trasitions smoother.

Mercury Direct
With Mercury again available to get communication going clearly and effectively, the planet lends all its quickness and clarity to fix any areas that were affected. If these times are used properly – first during the retrograde slow down to notice problems, then afterwards to correct them – then communications all year long will go more smoothly.

The problem is that in the modern world we hate to stop pushing forward – all the time. To plan for a Mercury Retrograde, schedule time with as little important communications and travel as possible. Then afterwards (like now!) make necessary readjustments. This careful use of Mercury will put you into touch with the natural astrological rhythms of your life. Think of it as the Music of the Spheres.