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It’s that time of year again! Our favorite planet is going retrograde, and if you’re curious about what Mercury retrograde means for June 2020, I’m happy to break it all down. Before you chuck your phone or laptop out the window and run for cover, just pause for a moment—what if I told you Mercury retrograde isn’t as bad as it seems? What if I even told you that by the end of this article, you won’t ever dread Mercury retrograde again, and that you might even begin to look forward to this quarterly astrological phenomenon? Don’t believe me?? Well, let me state my case.
First, let’s go over the facts and talk about what Mercury retrograde actually means. In astronomy, the term “retrograde” is used to refer to a planet that appears to be moving backwards in the sky from the vantage point of the earth. This is an illusion, as no planet actually stops and changes direction; planets merely pass one another at different speeds, and they appear to stop and change direction as they pass the earth. Astronomers consider retrograde movements as simple observations— it’s astrologers that associate retrograde time periods as key emotional influences.
Moreover, astrologers believe that when a planet is retrograde, it is in a weakened state, not operating at its full potential and therefore unable to support us in its traditional ways. In astrology, each planet’s goal is to encourage some sort of self-development and evolution. Mercury in particular governs communication, transportation and mental processing. When Mercury is direct (or appearing to move forward), astrologers believe the planet is supporting us in outward momentum and propelling us forward. On the other hand, when Mercury is retrograde, it is asking us to look within and revisit processes, habits, thoughts, systems or even our own ways of understanding and communicating information.
OK Cool, But Why Is It So Freaking Stressful?
Fortunately for Mercury (and us, too), its retrograde only occurs three to four times a year. This particular retrograde will take place from June 18 through July 12. As it triggers the process of looking within, Mercury has a naughty tendency to shake things up a bit, which is why its retrograde gets such a bad rap. Here’s the thing: As humans, we aren’t always proactive about making positive changes in our lives. Generally, we need something to trigger us or make us aware that something is no longer working before we feel incentivised to consider altering it.
For instance, if you have a habit of responding to emails without fully reading them through, when Mercury is direct, you might be able to get away with this. When the planet goes retrograde, however, your unwillingness to read thoroughly could seriously backfire. Perhaps you Reply All back to an email in which your boss specifically requested not to do so. Oops! Things like this happen all the time during retrograde, as reminders to slow down and be more thoughtful.
I Just Don’t Get Why Mercury Is Trying To Ruin My Life
Mercury retrograde is not trying to ruin your life. To the contrary, this momentous quarterly experience exists to help you become more efficient, more thorough, a better communicator and a more detail-orientated person. When you take the time to stop, question what Mercury is trying to show you, and adjust your approach to make positive change, you’ll start to view this time as a golden opportunity for growth. It’s almost like the universe gives us a quarterly three-week pause to revisit, review, reassess, re-approach…all the other “re” words you can think of, so that we can be better than ever when retrograde ends and Mercury is back in action.
When you take the time to reflect, you might find yourself met with the opportunity for a dozen second chances. Retrograde is a great time for reaching out to former employers or coworkers, rekindling a romance, reevaluating a business strategy from a new angle or revising your budget. It is not a good time for starting new relationships, businesses or jobs, nor for buying new appliances or electronics. Basically, don’t commit to anything new! I mean, you can, but the universe isn’t focused on the new during Mercury retrograde. Because of this, you might find that anything new you begin will fizzle out when retrograde winds down.
Fine, But Retrograde Is Still Super Inconvenient For Me
Think of Mercury retrograde like a little rainstorm. You can sit on your bum and complain about it, or worse, try to rush and get things done while waiting for the sun to come out. You’ll only be met with delays, contention and frustration! The best option is to tune into retrograde’s energy. Clean house, take care of forgotten tasks, be productive. Either way, the sun will eventually come out again.
With this in mind, let’s all try to use this Mercury retrograde’s energy to get our lives in order. The end of July and all of August will be better for it, I promise!
