Proof
I studied Communication in college and had a liberal arts major’s typical fear and suspicion of mathematics. But in all my years of school, one of my favorite classes was the one that fulfilled my math requirement: symbolic logic.
How elegant, this system of statements and proofs! They looked beautiful, dancing neatly across sheets of paper on my dining table. And although I found them sorely difficult and frustrating, I worked on them night and day, determined to master them. And in the end, I did. I received one of only two A’s in my class of 40 students. It remains one of my prouder achievements.
This week’s Mercury/Saturn square (June 15, 2023, 9:09 am PDT) calls back to the conjunction between these two planets on March 2, 2023. Since then, perhaps you’ve been working on something that’s really stretched you intellectually. You’ve already gotten your A, but you’re haunted by a concept that only you are aware that you never really grasped. So you’re cracking open your books this week, and by Aug. 1, 2023, when Mercury opposes Saturn, you’ll see the results of your diligence.
The World on a Swing
Mercury sextiles Venus (June 17, 8:29 am PDT) at 10º49′ Gemini and Leo this week. And although it’s a light, fast-moving transit, this is an enormously creative and playful combination, pairing Mercury in Gemini’s delight in language with Venus in Leo’s performative flair.
Maybe you grew up like my siblings and I did, putting on little plays in the back yard, pretending to be rock stars, inventing complicated games that took place on our bikes. There’s something satisfying, inspiring, and restorative about this kind of creative play. Consider the Sabian symbol for Venus, 11 Leo, Children on a swing in a huge oak tree. What could be a more idyllic position for Venus on a late spring Saturday? Mercury, meanwhile, is on 11 Gemini, A new path of realism in experience. This is the ultimate “learn by doing” symbol – and in this case, learning by having fun and playing.
This little transit, light as gossamer, is a magic moment for a good talk and a day of light, unstructured fun with your partner; use it to open lines of communication that will be helpful next month, when Venus turns retrograde (July 22) and it’s time to dig deep into important relationship patterns.
The Tasks Meant for Us
Saturn turns retrograde this week at 7º12′ Pisces, on the Sabian symbol, A girl blowing a bugle. If you’ve been sleep-walking a bit since Saturn entered Pisces in March, this station will wake you up! As Saturn’s turning retrograde or direct, it’s best to avoid taking on new responsibilities. Instead, focus on commitments that you’ve already taken on – especially the ones you assumed reluctantly – and renegotiate them. This retrograde station calls back to Saturn’s journey since March 7, when it entered Pisces; maybe you took on more than you bargained for, or your personal circumstances have changed since you signed up for duty, making it necessary to back away.
That’s not to say you should use this as an excuse to give up on something simply because you’ve lost interest. Persistence is a Saturnian virtue. But some challenges simply aren’t ours to undertake, and as Saturn turns retrograde, we are better able to recognize them. And then, once Saturn turns direct (Nov. 4, 2023), we’ll be in a better position to take on the tasks that were meant for us.
A Different Story
There’s a bonfire burning on the beach, and you’re sitting around it with a small group of fellow travelers and campers. Everyone is far from home; in some cases, you don’t share a common language. You take turns introducing yourselves, and when it’s your turn, you begin to recite the usual details – your name, your job, the place you call home.
Instead, you find yourself telling a different story. One about sitting around a similar fire with your family, back when you were too young to have much of a biography. How you and your sister got up and entertained the adults with a silly song, and your older brother made shadow puppets against the background of the tent. How mom and dad leaned into one another and laughed; how you all toasted marshmallows. Around your present-day campfire, this odd collection of strangers relaxes and smiles, perhaps remembering childhood camping trips of their own.
It’s often harder to tell the story of who we are now, than it is to remember where it all began. Maybe it’s because we’ve told the old stories for so long that we know them by heart; we’ve even learned how to pause at the right moments for effect. Or maybe it’s because who we are is always shifting, and the ongoing story needs time to find its structure. As the Gemini New Moon (June 17, 2023, 9:37 pm PDT) squares imaginative Neptune this week, there’s an opening to become someone a little bit different, and to tell a new story around the campfire.
Writing and images © 2017-23 by April Elliott Kent
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