January looks off to a good start: a slow first week to get us into the groove of 2017, with the pace gradually quickening as Mercury moves direct and exits its post-shadow phase by the end of the month.
We have lots of exciting Jupiter-Uranus activity this year, which will impact all of us. The Cardinal signs (Aries, Cancer, Libra and Capricorn) will be especially reactive. For those of you with birthdays around the 8th to 14th of April, July, October and January, things are really happening in your life! The positive side of Jupiter-Uranus is quick and unexpected ideas and (often travel) plans, while the challenge is to avoid exaggeration and over-reactive responses. And with Pluto in the mix, all of us, but in particular those with planets or angles in the 16 to 20 degree Cardinal sign range, will experience the need to let go in order to grow.
The Mutable signs of Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius and Pisces might be feeling the regulatory effects of Saturn at this time (especially those of you born in the latter half of your sign), as well as the idealistic dreams of Neptune (in particular those born around the turn of the month). How much you have all accomplished in 2016! Remember this as you focus on what you want for 2017. And use January to set these dreams in place. There will be lots of support from friends old and new – don’t hesitate to reach out to them!
The Fixed signs of Taurus, Leo, Scorpio and Aquarius, keep doing whatever you’re doing as it seems to be working out for you. Taurus, move forward with your plans this month and work hard until March, when a break will be in order. Leo, there’s a lot of opportunities out there for you this month but you need to grab them with your own two hands. Scorpio and Aquarius, bide your time until February.
For all of us, whatever our birth date and time, the key is on staying grounded and using the energies of early 2017 in a practical and non-extravagant way. Think twice before you spend; planning now will reap rewards later in the year.
On a different note, I’d like to encourage all of you, my readers, to make some kind of commitment this year to setting aside time to read and think deeply. We are living in the Instagram and Facebook age, where most Internet users can hardly sustain their attention to ingest an email longer than a few lines. As Richard Tarnas in ‘Cosmos and Psyche’ so aptly describes the gestalt of our times:
“Whether in politics, business, or the media, the lowest common denominator of the culture increasingly governs discourse and prescribes the values of the whole.”
Create an intellectual, innovative or spiritual reading list which you actively pursue this year.
