A quiet day, at least on the inside, where we seem to be alone with our thoughts, and too prone to concentrate on the negative and hurtful. Though where we’re damaged may seem an unavoidable focus of our attention, we can lift ourselves out of this rut by mustering ideals, what matters to us, and applying the full extent of our strength and authority, in whatever sphere we hold this. Showing our own competency and ability to affect circumstances to ourselves will both take our minds off what is weak, and prove to our doubting mental faculties just how well equipped we truly are.

Communications with others may take an uncomfortable turn, as well, since we are ill-suited to comprehending the intent in the message–and we are particularly unable to know whether they meant to hurt us or not. Withholding both words and judgments until we gain some perspective is recommended (Vesta semi-sq Ceres, Merc contra-parallel Chiron and the Sun)

Today’s word image is the stranger who approaches you and asks you for something it’s clear you don’t have (in my case, in the past two days, this included cigarettes and the time, though I was dressed in such a way it was clear I wore no watch, held no phone, and had no place to keep cigarettes). It seems obvious what they asked for was not what they wanted; but what then did they want? Contact, to bring my guard down, to draw my attention away from something else, to get attention themselves, to blend into the scene if someone was looking for them? I can’t begin to guess. The message may be that what others ask of us isn’t at all what they are trying to get–so don’t take anyone’s words at face value.