One thing I haven’t spoken of much is the role that the sign plays in the constitution and effects of any retrograde planet; with Venus in the Cardinal Fire sign of Aries, we should have both a desire to act, to do something about the Venusian subjects that come forward, and a certain fiery conviction: we can do it, and do it we must!

That’s something of a hard line to take in a period where re-assessing and perhaps experimenting with tastes and aesthetics is about as active as we should be; and we all know this is as bad a time as a Mercury retrograde to sign on the dotted line (worse! even, as what’s involved here is an asset of some kind, easily lost, rather than a bit of information we’ve yet to acquire). Looking back at my own history, I realized that Venus retro in Aries (which for me means it’s retro intercepted in the 2nd) evolved from centering on Self-image and Self-worth, to gifts (the arrival of my first daughter) and personal assets (my health and how that affected Self-image) to financial and lifestyle questions; all of these subjects were strongly connected with a Cardinal doing energy, one that demanded I take charge within my own life, and look squarely at who I am (Aries).

So, it’s worth considering that an active stance might be more appropriate than we think in this instance; at least, an active mental stance, that spends the retro sussing out the possibilities for Venusian themed subjects related to the House in the natal chart where the retrograde is occurring. Taking full responsibility for ourselves may be the ultimate expression, in this case, the success of which shines back at us through our Venus-connected losses and rewards for the retrograde period.

And finally, the most recent report I heard on the NFL players missing off Florida brought some mysterious elements forward, such as, why is there only one survivor, who had only mild hypothermia (despite supposedly being in the water, and on top of the overturned boat, exposed to the weather, for 40 hours)? And this person allegedly claims that the other three individuals all removed their life vests and just drifted away. Now, experts on survival at sea say that, in choppy, 60 degree ocean, which is what those people were in, loss of reason can happen relatively quickly, within an hour–but still, all three of them behaving the same way, having the same ‘delusion,’ if you will? I don’t think so. And to top it off, the relatives of the other three have not yet spoken with the survivor–whether this is by police design or simply allowing the individual time to recover, I don’t know–but I do know that that’s where I’d be, in that person’s hospital room, wanting to find out everything I could about my loved one’s disapperance.

I drew a horary at the time my suspicions were first aroused; I won’t be sharing it just yet, but will continue to look into the situation, and see what I can see, as my initial impression is: there’s something fishy here.

And everyone, have a great weekend!