ArcaMax

As much as we despise the idea of having to reject someone, we cannot overlook the fact that rejection is among life's greatest gifts. It inspires us to develop further, try harder and turn ourselves into forces to be reckoned with. Even through the stressed angle to Mars, Mercury offers a balm for the pain -- a rich opportunity inside the ...Read more

It is easier to be nice at certain times of day. It is easier to be nice when particular needs are already met. It is easier to be nice when others have been nice to you. Would you give a pass to people dealing with circumstances that might make it more difficult to go forward in good cheer? Such compassionate affordances are the marks of good...Read more

Active and varied lunar activity portends people trying to convince one another that their particular methods, ideologies and convictions are universal truths that all should adopt. It's absurd, and rarely worth an argument. Meanwhile, the real truth will be non-intrusive. It doesn't try to sell itself. It minds its own business and bothers no...Read more

Togetherness is always a compromise, usually a sacrifice and typically an ever-changing arrangement. It's also an opportunity to accept the many blessings that come with human imperfection. The new moon of partnership encourages us to support one another; give each other the benefit of the doubt; and take a chance on sharing the journey, the ...Read more

Do not doubt that your brain is similar to the brains of other humans, and yet your mind is wired up so uniquely that it would be impossible for another person to have the exact sequence of thoughts and impressions that you experienced in the last hour. In this moment before the new moon, let your appreciation of your own unique thought ...Read more

The reason upbringing matters is not because any upbringing is better than another; rather it's because different upbringings have various focuses, instill a distinct range of values and provide early exposure to a particular set of skills. The solar conjunction to Mercury stimulates curiosity and helps us learn where others are coming from so...Read more

In times gone by, conformity was even more important than it is now. People were ruined for engaging in practices that are now considered typical freedoms of everyday life. The soulful water-sign trine of Mars and Saturn encourages gratitude for our good fortune, which includes the affordances of a modern era, as imperfect as it may be.

ARIES...Read more

The moon in the sign of lionhearted Leo likes to remind us that love and pain are bookends with volumes between them. All those stories hold up because of the tacit agreement of those ends. Love cannot exist without pain, as the risk of pain is what makes love LOVE and not some more transactional arrangement.

ARIES (March 21-April 19). Giving...Read more

The Leo moon at a strong angle to Venus in seductive and stinging Scorpio features the potential for trouble and delight. Much will hinge on the chemistry between people. Personalities can mesh, rub or collide. The balance of characters in a room makes all the difference to the output of the group and the comfort of its members.

ARIES (March ...Read more

As humans, we agree on what a word means, and then we go rogue, twisting and breaking those agreements according to our own agendas, and elevating communication to a level of complexity befitting our cultural and personal aims. Mercury's leap into Libra lends itself to the sophisticated sort of elocution that means nothing and everything at ...Read more

The opposition of Mercury and Jupiter highlights the pull between who we are and who we say we are. It's only natural to feature what we consider our better qualities to those we would like to impress, and perhaps even to ourselves in moments when we could use the bolstering. In today's case, we start to grow into this shinier version of ...Read more

An earth-sign trine of Mercury and Uranus follows yesterday's excellent alignments, furthering the conversation between potential partners of all kinds. Though small signals like word choice and tone clue us into where the other person is coming from, the biggest key to understanding is in the topics we focus on. Choose carefully!

ARIES (...Read more

On the first full day of Libra season, the chatty Gemini moon aligns with lucky Jupiter, portending the kinds of conversations that spark partnerships. Connections will be made in the style of a zipper, one notch at a time. Avoid rushing ahead or trying to fit too much information, conversation or commitment into one meeting.

ARIES (March 21-...Read more

The interplay of light and dark creates the mood and movement of our days. We're used to adjusting to whatever we get on a day-to-day basis. Perfect balance is rare, which is perhaps why humans have for millennia celebrated the two equinoxes of the solar year. Gather wisdom like the last of the summer's sunbeams to use as a guide in the ...Read more

On this United Nations Day of International Peace, Venus squares Jupiter, highlighting what needs work. The hot emotions that run counter to peaceful aims can seem inextinguishable, but they can be contained. A ritual can help. Ritual is like a kettle, containing the boiling water for tea. Were you to throw your water straight into the fire, ...Read more

Some find it entirely feasible to have a good attitude about a bad thing. For others, a bad attitude about a good thing is just as easy to adopt. The sun and Neptune are in opposition in these final days of the season. Mood-wise, people will stick around their natural set-points, and the circumstances will have little to do with it. For the ...Read more

Today feels like a test, but you're not a student in the exam room who has to finish the page before the bell, and there are no high stakes, nor is there a prize for doing particularly well on the first try. As the nurturing sun forms a fortuitous angle to Uranus in earthy Taurus, we are reminded that experience needs time to grow. It's OK not...Read more

With the exception of Marty McFly, Dr. Who and a few others, we in this existence are experiencing time as an arrow that flies ever-forward. Things do not, as a rule, go back to the way they were. As Mercury pulls away from Saturn, aka "Father Time," we are reminded that even when you clear, clean and reset, hundreds of slight alterations add ...Read more

From some vantage points, the lunar eclipse of the full moon in Pisces will give the illusion of a white berry plucked at peak of ripeness only to pop back to the vine, renewed, its sweetness teasing. This omen of having your berry and eating it too begs the question of what other yumminess we might be able to hang onto and savor into the next...Read more

The swollen moon slips into psychic Pisces where she will be full tomorrow and harvested in a lunar eclipse, only to emerge humming the final notes of the season. It's an excellent moment to reflect on the idea of harvesting and what you have grown and sown in your own life. Which seeds would you plant again? What crops would you attempt next?...Read more