THE YEAR AHEAD 2018

This New Year of 2018 promises to be an interesting one with a variety of experiences. 

We started the New Year on January 1 with a Supermoon, meaning that when the Moon is Full it is closer to the earth than normal. This was very powerful as the Moon was in its own sign of Cancer, which could have easily produced a very emotional time for many of us. It was coupled with the fact that Uranus, the planet of chaos, unexpected events and genius turned direct from retrograde on January 2. All of these aspects may have created new circumstances in your life that enabled you to move forward. It may have felt a little shaky for a few days as well, as Uranus stabilized after shifting direction. 

On January 9th, we had a triple conjunction of Sun, Venus, Pluto in Capricorn at 19° and this aspect will last all week. This is an extremely powerful aspect, because it’s the three planets coming together. Both the conjunction of Venus and Pluto and the conjunction of Sun and Pluto are annual events. Since they are all happening together, this is an event that will transform our relationships with one another and with ourselves. This is powerfully creative and a wonderful time to be inspired and do work that brings people into their feelings. The aspect receives a blessing from a Mars/Jupiter conjunction in Scorpio and therefore helps us connect with an experience that could transform us. This is the best use of this energy, rather than get into Plutonian power struggles and jealousies. 

The first of 5 eclipses of 2018 will occur on January 31st, a Lunar Eclipse at 11° Leo. This is also a Supermoon and the 2nd Full Moon in January. Eclipses are always powerful and this one is no exception. Remember, it’s a Full Moon, so the Sun is opposite at 11° Aquarius, so if you have anything at these degrees, you will profoundly feel the effects of this eclipse period. The North Node of destiny in in Leo, while its equal and opposite point, the South Node is in Aquarius. the closer eclipses are to these nodes, there powerful they are in our lives. Eclipses always bring emotions to the table, so whatever has been brewing in your life may reveal some new feelings or show you emotions of which you were not necessarily aware. The second eclipse occurs on February 15, a Solar Eclipse at 27° Aquarius. 

The third eclipse will be a Solar Eclipse and occur on July 12th at 20° Cancer, which will oppose Pluto at 20° Capricorn. This eclipse does not occur close to the Nodes, but can be potent because of its relationship to Pluto. The fourth eclipse on July 27th is a Lunar Eclipse at 4° Aquarius. This is extremely powerful as it will be very close to the Nodes, with the Sun in Leo at the North Node and the Moon in Aquarius at the South Node. An additional kick of energy in this eclipse is the presence of a retrograde Mars at the lunation point and South Node. This is one of those times when I will be reminding people to keep their head and not lose their tempers, as we will all have our patience tried. The fifth and last eclipse is a Solar Eclipse occurring at 18° Leo, which is still in the sign of the North Node, but not too close, so it will be less potent than the eclipse of July 27th. 

We will have three Mercury retrogrades this year, March 22nd – April 15th in Aries. This will trigger and help us recall a lot of what we have been experiencing and learning in the last 7 years with Uranus in Aries. Especially since Uranus is finishing up its journey in that sign.  The second retrograde will be July 26th to August 19th in Leo. This will help us connect with the energy of this year’s eclipses and what information they hold for us. Mercury will direct itself at 11° Leo, which is where the eclipse of January 31st will occur. So, whatever you are experiencing on that eclipse will come back to give you new information in mid-August. The third retrograde is November 16th until December 6th from mid-Sagittarius to late Scorpio. This could also bring reminders of Saturn’s journey through Sagittarius, which will have ended just a year prior.  

The personal planets Mars and Venus will each retrograde this year, which is unusual to have both happen in the same calendar year. Mars only retrogrades every two years and this time is particularly interesting because it will retrograde in Aquarius. It has not retrograded in this sign since the summer of 1971, due to Mars’s unusual orbit, it retrogrades the least in the signs of Aquarius and Sagittarius. Two years ago in 2016, we had the retrograde in Sagittarius, now it’s Aquarius’s turn. This retrograde will begin at 9° Aquarius on June 26th and continues until August 27th when Mars turns direct at 28° Capricorn. Remember when we are dealing with Mars retrograde, we are dealing with any dormant energies ruled by Mars: anger, frustration, aggression, passion. Anything that has been laying under the surface of our life that is Mars-like in nature will come forward for expression at that time. Additionally, Mars will retrograde at the South Node of destiny, which means that whatever comes forward will be almost inevitable and have a karmic feeling to it. 

Venus retrogrades on October 5th at 10° Scorpio until November 16th when it turns direct at 25° Libra. A retrograde Venus happens every 18 months. When Venus performs this cosmic dance, it usually brings forth issues of money, love, friendship and anything very social. We know Venus and Mars retrogrades are not the best times to initiate new love relationships, but best to work on ones already in existence. It is also good to note what comes forward during these times, what surfaces in your personal life. 

Jupiter is in Scorpio for most of the year, before it enters its own sign of Sagittarius on November 8th for a year. I have written about Jupiter in Scorpio here. We will then have Jupiter, Saturn and Neptune each in their own signs that they rule. We know that Saturn has recently entered Capricorn and I have written about this here. 

The big news is that Uranus will enter Taurus for the first time in 84 years on May 15th. Uranus stays in a sign for 7-8 years and therefore will begin to create a new path for each of us where we have Taurus in our charts. It will retrograde on August 7th and then bounce back into Aries from November 6th for the rest of the year into 2019. Taurus is a fixed earth sign and a force such as electric Uranus will be exciting, foreign, bring upheavals and unexpected events. This seems like earthquake energy to me. Where it’s possible we have become complacent in the Taurus house in our charts that needs an earthquake to refresh and restructure what’s there. If we are not so complacent and are looking for and inviting changes in that area of our chart, we may be weeding our garden – Taurus rules gardens – to make room for something new. 

There will be a period during the August and September months where Saturn and Uranus, both in earth signs, will be making a smooth aspect to one another. This is a continuation of how they were aligned in fire signs in 2017, but now in earth signs, therefore bringing crystallization to creative ideas that were initially sparked last year. Neptune will remain in its own sign of Pisces while Pluto stays in earthy Capricorn. But they will still play parts in the stories of 2018 as they make their stations and retrogrades. Fortunately there will be no yearlong continuous harsh aspects as we have had in the past. 

The year ahead will not be dull. On the contrary, we have a lot of exciting moments ahead, especially around the eclipse periods, particularly the summer ones. I will continue to write about what we can expect in 2018 as the aspects come forward. So, please continue to join me here for new information.