July 2011: The Importance of Relationships

The importance of relationships is emphasized throughout the month of July. The solar eclipse which occurs on July 1st has both the Sun and Moon in Cancer. When Venus enters the sign of Cancer on July 4th, you start feeling the cardinal grand cross that Venus will create with Uranus, Pluto, and Saturn between July 7th and July 13th. Even the full Moon, with Sun in Cancer and the Moon in Capricorn, which occurs on July 15th, directs your energy to think about the needs of your family vs. your job.

The partial solar eclipse which occurs on July 1st is the fourth eclipse of the year and the third partial solar eclipse of the year. The first eclipse occurred on January 4, 2011, and the other two occurred last month. Once again this is not an eclipse that will be seen by people in the United States. Fred Espensk, who writes the eclipse columns on the NASA website, believes that this may be the eclipse that no one really sees.

Yet, this could be a very important eclipse not only for you but for the United States. If you haven’t seen one of the many USA charts floating around, it doesn’t matter. It’s just important to know that in each of these charts there are three planets in the sign of Cancer: Venus at 2 degrees; Sun at 13 degrees; and Mercury at 24 degrees. This solar eclipse, which occurs at the time of the new Moon, has both the Sun and Moon in Cancer indicating that it will impact at least Venus and the Sun in the USA chart. Since Venus rules financial matters and the Sun rules leadership, you need to pay attention to USA’s economic situation. The eclipse will obscure information that you receive about America’s financial matters. You’ll feel like President Obama is an absentee leader during this time since the eclipse will obscure information either from or about him. Since the United States is grappling with the issue of whether or not to raise the debt ceiling, it may be a good idea that other people in Congress, led by Vice President Joe Biden, are trying to come up with a compromise solution. However, whatever the final outcome is, people will wonder if President Obama really had any leadership role in the final outcome. You may even feel that the United States is slipping as a world power.

Personally, you may be concerned that life around you isn’t as secure as you once thought it to be. It’s very important that you communicate with your family about situations that impact all of you. Silence is not the best strategy here. It’s also important not to get sucked into various discussions you hear from media pundits. They have their own private agendas so that doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll hear the most accurate news. At least Mercury forms a trine to Ceres on the same day indicating that it’s easier to feel compassion towards people who are not doing as well as you are.

You may feel more optimistic on July 2nd as Mercury enters the sign of Leo, but you still need to be careful because Mercury also forms a quincunx to Neptune retrograde and Chiron retrograde forms a sextile to Jupiter. When Mercury is in Leo, you want to see the best in situations and other people. But, when Mercury forms any type of aspect to Neptune, you don’t always see things clearly. Rather you may see what you want, not what’s really there. Chiron forming an aspect to Jupiter also brings out the most optimistic thoughts. But again, you need to be cautious. You may feel so good about things that you start overdoing things. Try to move slowly with any negotiations. And, try not to give too much information away.

When Venus forms a square to Ceres on July 3rd, you need to take a look at your relationships, especially those with your mother or other women in your life. Any unresolved conflicts will surface at this time. But if you try to respond in anger, nothing will be resolved. Actually, the conflict is something that comes from inside of you, not something the other person started.

When Venus enters the sign of Cancer on July 4th, you feel the start of the cardinal grand cross energy. A cardinal T-square means that you need to understand there may something missing in your life. When a cardinal grand cross occurs, it means that you need to make changes because if you don’t, other people will make them for you. You won’t start to see how this impacts your life until July 7th when Venus forms a square to Uranus, however, you’ll sense that something is about to change in your relationships.

Venus will form a trine to Neptune retrograde and Mercury will form a trine to Uranus later in the day. While these energies are different, they do have one thing in common. With Venus forming a trine to Neptune, you just want to let things happen without any thought. With Mercury forming a trine to Uranus, you have so much information coming at you that it’s difficult to think. These energies combined indicate that it’s going to be very difficult to stay focused. So, be careful when driving. Try not to get involved in conversations where you need to debate an issue.

The weather patterns in the United States will be very extreme today. It will involve thunder, lightening, and even major winds. You may want to take that into consideration as you plan your activities for the day.

Mercury is very active on July 5th. The morning, Eastern Daylight Time, starts with Mercury forming a quincunx to Chiron retrograde. In the afternoon, Mercury forms a square to Jupiter. By evening, Mercury forms a quincunx to Pluto retrograde. You may feel fatigued mentally. You may feel out of sorts and have difficulty focusing. You may feel slighted and start needless arguments. You’d be better off if you kept quiet about things because any arguments started today will generate a lot of hurt and be difficult to recover from. At least you’ll feel a little better on July 6th when Mars forms a trine to Saturn.

On July 7th, Jupiter forms a trine to Pluto retrograde early in the day, Eastern Daylight Time, and Venus forms a square to Uranus in the early evening. This is a day where you really need to take care of yourself. You may want to reconsider some of your goals. Or, you may want to re-evaluate some of your relationships. Basically, you need to look at those situations in your life where you feel you have little control. If people are able to manipulate you, you need to see if they are worth having in your life. If the person attempting to manipulate you is a family member, you may not be able to extract that person from your life, but at least you can change your reactions to that person. Maybe you’re giving that person permission to have all that control. If that’s the case, see how you can change your behavior so that you no longer give approval.

It’s also important to note that the square Venus forms to Uranus is the first planet which really kicks off the cardinal grand cross you started feeling on July 4th. Unexpected events can happen which force you to look at situations in your life. You may not be able to hold on to some of those relationships you thought were secure in your life. Or, one of your friends may have a crisis where you need to help out.

Venus is very active on July 8th when it forms a trine to Chiron retrograde and an opposition to Pluto retrograde. With Venus forming the opposition to Pluto retrograde, the second planet in the cardinal grand cross is activated. You may try to help others who are going through difficulties, but now it’s time to ask yourself: Are you enabling the person by helping? Perhaps you need to let the other individual go through the difficult time without your assistance. You don’t want to be manipulated into a situation where you become a victim.

Life seems to become easier on July 9th when Venus forms a sextile to Jupiter and Mercury forms a sextile to Saturn. Opportunities for the truth present themselves to you. People are more open. You’re able to find common ground.

When Uranus turns retrograde on July 10th, it’s time to re-evaluate some of the changes that you’ve been making in your life since Uranus entered Aries on March 11, 2011. Perhaps you tried to make too many changes in your life and it’s time to slow down. Or, perhaps those changes didn’t bring you the happiness you sought. In that case, it may be wise to go back to some of the old things that you were doing. This period of reflection may not give you all the answers you seek today because Uranus will be retrograde until December 11, 2011. However, between now and December 11th, you’ll have insights surfacing from your subconscious mind which will be very valuable.

As Ceres enters the sign of Aries on July 11th, you may be more willing to fight for your beliefs, especially those which involve your children as well as your environment. However, fighting may not lead to success. Instead, see how you can compromise to get your viewpoint across to other people.

When Venus forms a square to Saturn on July 13th, the energy of the cardinal grand cross created by Venus is over. There were a lot of questions about your relationships with other people. There were also questions about your financial security. Even though this is creating tension, you are actually feeling more in control over the intimate aspects of your life. You may feel a little alone, but try not to let that feeling control you. What it really means is that you have to find a way to solve problems on your own right now. You can’t rely on others. It also means that you really can’t help other people with their problems. They need to come up with their own solutions.

The full Moon, with Sun in Cancer and Moon in Capricorn, which occurs on July 15th, is a void-of-course Moon. Usually this is a time period to evaluate your goals as they relate to family and work. However, with the Moon void-of-course, you may not be able to take any actions. The timing is a little off. What’s more important is to start some research into new jobs possibilities and prepare for changes in your life.

July 23rd can be a very confusing time for leaders as the Sun enters Leo and forms a quincunx to Neptune retrograde and a trine to Ceres. You’ll see this on the national level as various politicians vying for power send out confusing messages. You’ll see this in your work environment as your supervisors can’t seem to convey what they need from you. The best thing is to take any information with skepticism. You’ll get a clearer picture over the next few days.

With Ceres turning retrograde on July 27th, you need to re-evaluate various relationships in your life to make certain that you’re not doing all the work while other people are just sitting back and watching you. You may actually have to go back to some old agreements that you made with other people and re-negotiate them. Imbalances need to be corrected at this time, especially those imbalances that exist in relationships.

July 28th is going to be an intense day which centers on how you communicate your needs in various relationships. Both Venus and Mercury enter new signs. Venus enters the sign of Leo and Mercury enters the sign of Virgo. As they enter their new signs, they both make aspects to Neptune retrograde. Venus forms a quincunx to Neptune retrograde while Mercury forms an opposition to Neptune retrograde. This means that communications can be very cloudy. People aren’t willing to tell the truth. Perhaps this unwillingness is based on a desire to please you: Perhaps this unwillingness is a desire to deceive you. Either way, you need to be very careful. And, because communications is unclear, this is definitely not a time to try and negotiate any major contracts or resolve any problems.

The month of July has its second new Moon on July 30th. Although both the Sun and Moon are in Leo, you may not feel the usual optimism that occurs during this new Moon. Instead there are tensions caused by unknown factors, such as economic occurrences throughout the world. Other people may seem to be frustrated but they don’t know why. The best thing to do right now is spend time with friends and try not to get let tension get you down. This is especially true since Mercury also forms a quincunx to Ceres retrograde a little before the new Moon and Venus forms a quincunx to Chiron on the day following the new Moon. If you can be gentle with yourself and various people in your life, you’ll find out just how important relationships are for you right now.