Pluto-Ceres Conjunction

Pluto-Ceres Conjunction- Rebirth

"Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen."

— Winston Churchill

This week begins with a quietly powerful Pluto-Ceres conjunction, which offers incredible creative and regenerative ability. The themes of connection and balance continue to dominate the atmosphere as we head toward the Gemini Full Moon (December 15th 1:01 AM PST 23° Gemini/Sagittarius) at the beginning of next week. Both Mars and Mercury are retrograde this week, driving much of the action 'inward'. When we find challenges or interference, we'll do better to look inward rather than struggle against external blocks and obstacles. In this environment our 'Self Talk' is particularly important. It will be helpful if we can become our own 'Cheerleader', steadying ourselves with nurturing self- care and approval. Especially because we may not find the sort of approval that we are looking for from those around us. What is most important is that we speak our own truth, clearly and directly, without concern for whether or not it is 'heard' by those around us. We will need to be patient, having faith that, in time, recognition will come. But determination and significant ego-vulnerability may keep us from actually backing off, letting go, and waiting for 'the facts to speak for themselves'. Vitality is diminished under the retrograding Mars, while ego-sensitivity is increased. Thursday's Venus-Mars opposition is likely to foreshadow some of the building power struggles that will come with the next two Mars-Pluto oppositions in January and April of next year. This week's challenges give us the opportunity to expand our perspective and our awareness, seeking to balance our own perspective with an understanding of the perspectives of others. Creative solutions are offered if we are able to set aside the ego-challenges and refrain from pushing too hard. Mercury will station direct at the beginning of next week, within less than a degree of trining the retrograding Mars. While the trine does not 'complete', there is significant potential for grasping the potential of a bold new perspective once Mercury returns to forward motion. However, as this week ends, we're more likely to feel mostly overwhelmed by the sense that our progress is being stalled. The Moon conjuncts Jupiter, ahead of the Full Moon, offering a burst of optimism and at least some hope that our curiosity keeps us interested in engaging with others in order to better understand different views and perspectives. Understanding that many perspectives have shifted will help to keep us engaged. The retrograde Mercury has helped us to develop a new 'frame of reference' that allows for creative new ideas to begin to develop. Sharing our new insights is certainly important but so, too, is the need to listen to others as they share their own new perspectives.

Breakthroughs are possible on Sunday but may only come through some emotional turmoil. We reach a turning point toward better understanding of how we fit into a 'bigger picture'. There are important opportunities to follow through on any breakthroughs on Monday. Self-talk is important — we need to become our own 'cheerleader'. There are significant opportunities to express ourselves clearly and directly on Tuesday. However, we may not get the approval or recognition that we're hoping for. Heavy, intense challenges on Wednesday demand extra creativity in order to rise to the challenge. We will do better if we allow time to 'let the facts speak for themselves'. Determination keeps us pushing our perspective on Thursday. Action is slow and methodical and we aren't likely to see a great deal of progress. There is a more expansive, open environment on Friday, freeing our minds and expanding our perspective. However, we are prone to picking at the details, creating unnecessary complications. Energy builds on Saturday with an extra push of optimism. Nonetheless, progress seems to be stalled and we may feel overwhelmed.