NorthPoint Astrology Journal  Your guide to planetary energies for January 11 to 17, 2016 By Pam Younghans

  Highlighted Aspects This Week
MON: Mercury semisquare Saturn
TUE: Mercury conjunct Pallas Athene, Venus trine Uranus
WED: Sun semisquare Neptune, Sun trine Jupiter, Venus square Chiron
THU: Sun conjunct Mercury, Mercury trine Jupiter, Mercury semisquare Neptune
SUN: Venus semisquare Mars, Venus square Jupiter


 OUR NEW LUNAR CYCLE began yesterday with the New Moon in Capricorn (at 5:30pm PST on Saturday). Technically, a New Moon in ambitious Capricorn should help us set our sights on the mountain peak we have been wanting to climb. But, we may not be feeling as grounded or focused as we would like, since the Sun and Moon were conjunct Pluto and square Uranus at the time of the lunation.


The desire to attain a longed-for goal may be amplified now, but we are probably also aware of restlessness, uncertainty, and tension associated with deciding how to achieve that goal. No doubt having Mercury retrograde contributes to the lack of ease -- but it is also our reminder that it's OK not to have this all figured out yet. We are, after all, in a time of review and reassessment until Mercury goes direct on January 25.


OUR EXPECTATIONS are high with this powerful lunar cycle, which can make the regularity of "normal" life seem like something is wrong. This may be especially true on Monday, when Mercury and Saturn are in disharmony. This aspect often indicates a time when we tend to be more pessimistic than usual.


Thankfully, Mercury's alignment with the asteroid Pallas Athene on Tuesday may help refuel our sense that all is in order, even if moving more slowly than we would ideally like. A Venus-Uranus trine on the same day also frees us up a bit, helping us see life as the adventure it is meant to be.


WEDNESDAY is a mixed bag, energetically. The Sun-Jupiter trine can lift our spirits and help us see the positive perspective, but with Venus square Chiron, feelings may be easily hurt, especially if we've been distracted and paying less attention to the well-being of our relationships lately.


Thursday's aspects -- the alignment between the Sun and Mercury, the Mercury-Jupiter trine, and even the Mercury-Neptune semisquare -- make this a good day for writing down our thoughts and feelings, and taking stock of where we are with respect to our long-term goals and dreams. Given that Mercury is retrograde, however, it's not yet the time to take action on those notes. We'll want to save them and review them later, to assess which ideas truly make a contribution to our life journey going forward.




THE FIRST QUARTER MOON on Saturday is in Aries at 3:26pm PST. The tension of this Sun-Moon square may stir us to take action, especially if we've been feeling edgy since the New Moon. As always, the First Quarter Moon is a good time to review the past week, to see if we want to make any changes in our trajectory as we head toward the Full Moon on the 23rd -- but we'll also want to stay centered and make sure that any decisions we make are coming from a grounded place, not out of anxiety or fear.


A similar restlessness continues on Sunday, when the Moon (now in Taurus) opposes Mars in the morning hours, and Venus and Mars have a spat in the afternoon. It will be easier to relax in the evening hours, due to a Venus-Jupiter square that challenges us to find pleasant activities and friends to share them with, and to let go of being so goal-driven for a while.


In peace,



Pam


Copyright Pam Younghans 2016. All rights reserved.