Reviewing the Review

We've had a few days since the Mercury retrograde moved forward, or actually our perspective has moved forward. Retrogrades are symbolic time cycles where we perceive a planet moving backward from our earth perspective. With Mercury, we think about issues we've already covered so that we can deepen our personal perspective and move forward with greater clarity. This often involves fixing things that need to be fixed, like your computer hard drive which obviously needs more clarity itself!

I was pretty smug as I approached the end of the three week retrograde. Nothing had broken, no obvious errors. I'd made as many travel plans and commitments as I could for 2012 the week before. I had managed to submit my Canadian passport for renewal just a few days before the retrograde, knowing I was taking a risk with its Fedex arrival in Gatineau on the actual retrograde station day, November 23rd. Yet, I was delighted to receive the passport without a hitch a week later. Whew! 

With the retrograde in the sign of Sagittarius, there was a noticeable focus on people's grand plans, travel ideas, educational goals and philosophical leanings in session after session during the three weeks. Some people experienced major equipment and auto breakdowns, but in general a Sag retrograde won't indicate as much of that as when it's in Virgo or Aquarius or in your 2nd, 3rd or 6th house in your personal chart.

As the Retrograde period came to its end and began to station forward around the 12th and 13th of December, just last week, that's when its mischief came to light. For me I discovered I had written my rent check with the wrong checkbook and my rent had bounced twice in an unused old New Mexico account. I'd forgotten to pay a couple of bills and hadn't checked some other numbers that came back to haunt me. The big picture review of Sagittarius seemed to have a corresponding deleterious effect on the opposite sign of Gemini, the indicator of details, the ADD sign of the zodiac.

Why am I still talking about a Mercury retrograde that is technically over? Because it's not over until it reaches the 'Shadow Point' -- the degree at which it initially went retrograde. We're still in the integration phase and it's useful to continue pondering and rethinking our values and beliefs and how we'd like to integrate them mentally as we move forward. Mercury will be back to that point on January 1st, an auspicious new start day for us energetically -- and -- Jupiter, the ruling planet of Sagittarius moves direct from its long retrograde on December 25th, so it will be just picking up steam around the 1st.

Energetically I continually read December to be a great downtime period as we get ready for the dynamic potential of 2012. And, since most of us don't take enough downtime periods without help, colds, flu and other viruses have been mowing us down into downtime these past few weeks, haven't they?!

2012 is almost upon us. Being ready spiritually, mentally, emotionally and physically will be at the heart of our lives during the next year. No time to waste -- let's approach it with joy and a deeply centered spiritual awareness.