Everything You Need To Know About This Mercury Retrograde In Aries

Did you know, dear reader, that people born under the sign of Aries are often known for putting their own foot in their mouth? Aries people can be in quite a rush to get to where they want to go, and that pertains to everything from their own personal goals to the outcomes of their conversations. While this pedal-to-the-metal approach to life can give way to more than a few lucky breaks and quick accomplishments, it almost always winds up leaving lots of roadkill and a few abandoned passengers in the rearview. When Aries season is upon us, we might find ourselves growing impatient. We might find ourselves becoming irritable and saying things we shouldn’t say just to get someone out of our way.

Well, it should come as no surprise, then, that Mercury Retrograde can get especially tense when it transits through the sign of Aries. And, to layer on the push-me-pull-you magic of the moment, Mercury has been conjunct Venus in Aries since March 6! Venus in Aries aims to seduce now and ask questions later; she wants what she wants, and she sees no reason why she shouldn’t get it. Plus, the Sun is giving Aries all kinds of (unsubstantiated) confidence. LOL, what could possibly go wrong?

Listen: A lot could go wrong. Fun fact: Mercury is not the only planet retrograding this month—Jupiter has also decided to join in on the Rx fun, and every Scorpio on this flailing Earth knows it since, all of sudden, their sexy feelings of expansion are mixed with unforeseen emotional and even professional limitations. What a time to be alive—and to examine the intention behind each and every one of your actions, just in case something else you agreed to do will conclude in a 2am weeping session with subpar bubbles in a never-deep-enough bathtub. Or, since it’s Aries season, a temper tantrum equivalent to that of a toddler letting their favorite balloon go and watching it get stuck to a supermarket ceiling.

The Sun in Aries is trine Jupiter Rx in Scorpio and square Mars in Sagittarius, so basically, what we’re looking at is a campfire in a forest. And in case you forgot what Smokey the Bear said about starting those: don’t. What’s needed, it seems, is a few responsible guardians (and possibly a scolding bear in a forest ranger outfit) to avoid burning everything down. Yes, there are times in our lives when we must build ill-advised fires to survive the cold night and wake into the new dawn, but just because we need to break a couple rules doesn’t mean we’ve got to be stupid about how we break them. The Aries drive to act and attract is powerful, but it begs to be tempered. Imagine a puppy that loves freedom but craves discipline. Perhaps mixing metaphors won’t serve. Perhaps I should return to snow. It seems the weather mirrors what the stars announce. March wants to be the month when life springs from the cracked earth like a fount, but March is not about getting what you want.

As I’m writing this, a nor’easter blows down over NYC and the Eastern seaboard. The night sky is alight with snow, the moon bounces off each billowy glob that flops on her fellow crystalline globs. The snow won’t let light sink into the ground, it catapults it back at the moon—and at us.

We’ve got to stay up a little later, learn to look for a few more answers in the dark. So bright and wet, it’s hard to imagine a world where any fire could last, much less spread. But, it’s our job to imagine both the beauty and danger of fire, to behold it and prepare for danger accordingly. What I’m saying is, Pisces season is over, and the time for crying unreasonably has passed. Aries has waited all year for spring, the violent burst of flowers from the deep dark earth announcing themselves, and none of us are immune to the kind of wanting. Let it stir in you, but don’t give it reign, not yet.

Be mindful then, reader, of what you call desire. Be mindful of the myriad ways we, human beings, create escape hatches to avoid fighting for something we don’t believe we deserve. Be mindful of how we choose to self-destruct rather than face the outermost limits of our powers. With so much of this Aries activity happening in the 4th house (which is private, protected, intimate), there’s a chance that the risk of impulsive (destructive) decisions far outweighs the pleasure (escape) of reward.

So, you better make sure you know what it is you want before you write a check you can’t cash—and wouldn’t want to. Otherwise, Mercury Rx will be more than qualified to show up, show out, and put you back in your place.