Organize, Evaluate, Get to Work
It’s all good and well to collect impressions and ideas; that’s what the Gemini New Moon cycle (which began on May 26) is all about.
But as the Moon in Virgo makes its First Quarter square to the Sun in Gemini (June 2, 2025, 8:41 pm PDT, 12º50 Virgo-Gemini), it may occur to you that just collecting ideas is not enough, that in fact it might be nice to make something of them. And in order to do that, you’ll have to first organize them, then evaluate them, and then roll up your sleeves and get to work.
At this week’s First Quarter Moon, the Sun and Moon both occupy signs ruled by Mercury. The fact that they’re in a relationship of natural tension with each other illustrates the differences between Mercury’s two faces. Gemini is the witty, charming linguist, the traveler, the trickster side of Mercury. But Virgo represents Mercury’s practical side – the businessperson, service provider, shopkeeper, repairman, or merchant. The Sun in Gemini shines with Mercury’s wit, charm, and love of wordplay and ideas; but the Moon in Virgo longs to rent a retail space, and make those ideas a reality.
One Larger Voice
Venus sextiles Jupiter this week (June 4, 2025, 7:32 pm PDT, 28º55’ Aries-Gemini), on a couple of tuneful Sabian Symbols. Venus is on 29 Aries: A celestial choir singing, and Jupiter is on 29 Gemini: The first mockingbird in spring. Venus together with Jupiter in any kind of aspect promises happy moments. And these Sabian symbols encourage us to use our talents to celebrate something more than our own, individual gain – the pure joy of being part of something bigger.
As a young person, I was passionately devoted to singing and spent many hours in a room, alone, practicing, determined to make my voice better and better. But eventually, I joined the school choir and eventually, was named to the school’s premier vocal jazz group. And I appreciated for the first time the joy of being one voice of many, filling a room with the beautiful harmonies and joyous song of one much larger voice.
Venus symbolizes individual gifts, and as it’s moved through Aries, the tendency has been to keep improving our talents just for the sheer gratification of getting better. But as Venus connects with Jupiter, nearing the end of its year in Gemini, we’re invited to use those gifts to contribute to a larger voice, and to share a larger message.
Use Your Words
When she was very young, a tiny relative of mine was prone to the occasional temper tantrum, especially when she was overtired. As little kids are apt to do in such situations, she’d yell and stamp her feet, until her mother firmly insisted, “Use your words.”
Mars is moving through dramatic, passionate Leo now. Mostly, this transit – which focuses our high-energy Mars function on self-expression and play – can be a lot of fun. But just like a little kid who gets tired, frustrated, or hangry from too much playing and running around, our tempers might get the better of us from time to time.
That’s when it’s time to “use your words.” As rational Mercury sextiles Mars (June 5, 2025, 3:10 pm PDT, 23º42’ Gemini and Leo), call for a time out. Grab a juice box or a snack, find a cool spot, and try to engage your brain to think or talk through whatever has set you off – instead of stomping your feet and yelling.
Ours for the Taking
Venus enters Taurus this week (June 5, 2025, 9:43 pm PDT, through July 4). After a long, strenuous transit through Aries, Venus – and we – can be forgiven for wanting to flop down on the couch with a good book and a snack.
There is a time and place for self-improvement and for striving. But Venus in Taurus celebrates the pleasures that are simply ours for the taking. The beauty of a shaft of morning sunlight on a dozing cat; the sound of a loved one’s voice; the smell of bread baking. What need have we of money, when we have such riches as these?
So, take this month to rest up a little – but don’t get too comfortable. Venus’ annual conjunction with Uranus (July 4) is coming soon enough, and it could bring something exciting that’s well worth rolling up your sleeves for.
A Wider Perspective
Mercury and Jupiter are opposites in many ways. Mercury delights in small details, while Jupiter’s purview is the big picture. When Jupiter comes up with a big idea, it’s Mercury that breaks it down into bite-sized pieces and actionable steps. And conversely, when Mercury is so preoccupied with the trees that it doesn’t even remember that the forest exists, Jupiter pulls out its wide-angle lens to remind us what all the minutiae adds up to.
This week, Mercury and Jupiter come together in a conjunction (June 8, 2025, 1:12 pm PDT, 29º45’ Gemini). Look out the window of a plane as it begins its descent, and tidy fields look like squares on a granny quilt, and cars on a crowded freeway resemble a child’s toys in stop-motion animation.
If we look at small things from a wider perspective, they create a kind of pointillistic landscape in which tiny dots of paint create a unified image. But it’s an image that relies on the individual pieces in order to exist at all.
When You Don’t Speak at All
You’ve spent a long, happy few weeks tramping through the countryside. Along the way, you’ve thoroughly enjoyed meeting fellow travelers, telling stories, and enjoying the fresh air, camping under brilliant night skies.
But after three weeks, you’re tiring of the wind biting your face, of never seeing anyone familiar, of eating nuts and berries. One evening around dinner time, you find yourself walking past a cozy-looking cottage, the delicious smells of dinner wafting out of the window and the curl of wood smoke coming from the chimney. Someone calls from the backdoor and the family dog bounds inside. You hear the familiar sounds of children complaining about their baths and a tv murmuring.
And all of the sudden, you’ve never wanted anything as much as you’ve wanted to be sitting in your own little home, with your own little family – secure and loved amongst people with whom you don’t need to say a word. You don’t have to make them laugh or entertain them with your stories. They love you even when you don’t speak at all.
That’s just what Mercury wants as it leaves Gemini and enters Cancer (June 8, 2025, 3:58 pm PDT – through June 26).
Writing and images © 2017-25 by April Elliott Kent
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