Highlights for June 7-13, 2021: We Happy Few

We Happy Few

Dates and times are given for U.S. Pacific Time zone.

Whispers from the past

This week’s New Moon at 19.47 Gemini (June 10, 2021, 3:52 am PDT) brings a Solar Eclipse at the North Node of the Moon. Eclipses bring change and often, some agitation. But as we go through the current eclipse spin cycle, we can rest assured that this process will move us in the direction of growth, curiosity, learning, and open-mindedness.

The Sun and Moon at this eclipse are conjunct retrograde Mercury and square Neptune. Mercury Rx reminds us to look to the past for lessons learned or unfinished; in this case, look back to the years with other Solar eclipses on this point, including June 1983 and June 2002, as well as Lunar eclipses in Dec. 1992 and Dec. 2011. And look to the Gemini house(s) of your birthchart for the areas of life affected, and to any planets in your birth chart between about 16 and 24 degrees of Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, or Pisces.

As always when Mercury is retrograde, people from the past might return – and since the (eclipsed) Sun, Moon, and Mercury are square Neptune, we might not be thrilled to hear from some of them. But whether they show up in our inboxes or on Facebook, or only in our dreams or memories, they represent some important link with the past – fateful decisions that were made, and great emotional peaks and valleys. They represent a bygone chapter of our biographies, and now we can see them – and ourselves – more clearly.

The Sun’s exact inferior conjunction with Mercury is on this day at 6:13 pm PDT. Even though we may not have an entirely clear idea of what comes next, a dip into the past can yield surprising clarity and insights based on the past. Even bigger, more permanent changes are afoot this year as Saturn makes a series of squares to Uranus – look for the next one next week, and it’s already coloring the chart for this eclipse.

Read all my eclipse articles, and get information about my eclipse report, Followed by a Moonshadow, right here.

We happy few

Leo’s great gift is its ability to let us see ourselves in a noble light. When Mars, the warrior planet, enters this regal sign (June 11, 2021, 6:34 am PDT), it rallies support for a cause not just because it is worthwhile, but because the fight itself elevates those who support it. Mars is the planet of battles and those who fight them, and in each sign of the zodiac it symbolizes a different style of warrior. As Mars leaves mute, defensive Cancer this week and enters Leo, it’s time to fight like kings.

The classic example is Henry V’s magnificent speech to his troops, badly outnumbered by the French at Agincourt. His essential message? “It’s actually a good thing that we’re outnumbered, because that means a greater share of glory for each of us when we win. This is a very exclusive club we’ve got here. We’re going to kick some serious ass, and as we tell this story for the rest of our lives other men will be green with envy that they weren’t here. We few, we happy few, we band of brothers,” etc.

Henry got lucky that day, and his army won. But from a rhetorical point of view, it didn’t much matter. Simply fighting alongside your brothers made you better than the next man, shinier and more resplendent.

In the interest of full disclosure, Mars in Leo can have an ugly, self-serving, bombastic side. The preening, vain, and vacuous playboy that was Prince Hal of Henry IV, before he renounced his old boozing pal Falstaff and became King Henry V, is the failed, shadowy side of Leo. That Prince Hal could never have rallied the troops at Agincourt. First, he had to become the exemplar of men’s highest vision for themselves.

There’s your struggle for the long, summer days of Mars in Leo: Put forth a vision of yourself that you can be proud of, and apply every ounce of it to each important task at hand; be the example that inspires others to do the same. Mars is in Leo through July 29, 2021.

Sitting Duck

What if you were a duck? You’d be at home both in the air and in the water; that versatility is a tremendous advantage. But you’d also be vulnerable. Have you ever watched ducks floating atop a pond with their beaks underwater, looking for food? They’re literally “sitting ducks,” an easy target for hunters.

As the Sun in airy Gemini aspects Neptune in watery Pisces (June 13, 2021, 4:40 pm PDT), we may not sense the ways in which we’re vulnerable until it’s too late. The Sun in combination with Neptune is often interpreted as weakness, insecurity, and even physical frailty, but under the surface is a deep need to figure out who we are and what we need. When this aspect formed a few years ago, I was exhausted from a conference, wouldn’t slow down, and fell ill with a digestive complaint. I felt rotten, but it gave me an excuse to take to my bed and rest up for a week.

That could well be something we all need right now: a little time out from the pressures, stresses, and speed of daily life. So, lay low, get some rest, and get reacquainted with yourself. And stay out of the sight of hunters.