April 3rd, 11th, 18th, and 26th may be especially tetchy as all that electricity is easier to discharge in confrontations. Thwarted may be the word of the day in these cases. Ego inflations on the 6th can be exhilerating highs and/or add to the trouble. Power struggles and issues with authority (perceived or real) can have us prone to acting like rebellious teenagers or having the kind of honest conversation that has been overdue. Take your pick!

This first full month of Spring is just charged and ripe for new beginnings though, which is why the energy is so feisty. It takes a lot of energy to create life. Whether you are creating something new or reinventing something, this is a good time for bursts of energy. It's not the plan or the commitment as much as it is the the thrust of action. Just Do It! Tentatives need not bother.

When Jupiter and Saturn hook-up by opposition, the past and the future collide. The consequences of the past catch up to the present and in so doing the edicts for the future are set in motion. The new moon in Aries, April 3, sets to fast task on the new program – perhaps with a vengeance. This new moon is accompanied by an alignment of Mars, newly in Aries, and Uranus. These two can be full of opportune and exciting synchronicity, but they can also be explosive, sudden, unexpected, shocking, extreme, and even violent. Would it surprise you to know that among its many correlations, radiation is attributed to planet Uranus? The day of Japan’s earthquake Uranus (the earthquake planet) was exiting Pisces (water element = tsunami) and entering Aries (heating and steaming, nuclear reactors.)

Adding even more to this intense new moon, note that we are also now into the throws of Mercury retrograde in Aries. The cycle occurs March 31 to April 23. As most of you will know, when Mercury is in retrograde, things do not go according to plan. Mercury in Aries retrograde can keep presenting new fires to battle and/or keep the conflict fresh and alive. As of this writing, the nuclear crisis in Japan brings more bad news. Expect the volatility in the world to continue, and perhaps to worsen before it gets better.

To some extent we are all living it on the razor’s edge. Each moment is flint for the next critical moment. Anything goes and it probably will

Mercury retrograde in Aries is hot, rash, impulsive, reactive, and inflaming, so expect more headaches (literal and figurative), more aggression, conflict, arguments, and war. While Mercury in Aries turns up the heat, its true intention is to become more conscious and courageous, so that behaviour, ambitions, and responses can come into better alignment. Fresh perspective leads to new instincts, new desires, a new expression and a new creation. Apparently Germany’s solar power output supersedes Japan’s nuclear plants. Isn’t it about time we created a new reality? One way or another, Mercury in Aries’ call to arms is about taking the initiative to create the freedom and independence that is your birthright as a living, breathing contributor and co-creator. Mercury in Aries serves to help you sweeping away the debris so you can move forward in fresh new direction. Aries does it best in a simple, direct, and straightforward manner. Try to avoid complications.

On the positive note, our consciousness is raised to a much higher level. It is a time of great awakening now, for the individual and the planet alike. You have great opportunity now – how are you going to use the tools you have been given?

Neptune dips into Pisces, its domicile, April 4 to Aug 4. It’s subtle but potent influence will dissolve barriers and stir that which has been brewing or stewing, but that has as of yet escaped full notice.

Pluto stations retrograde April 9 (to Sept 16). This subtle influence is one that sets the stage of for a karmic replay. It ignites a greater degree of separation, this in order to prompt greater perspective. On the same day, Mercury retrograde conjoins the sun. This is the peak point of Mercury’s cycle. As such the day is infused with great potency and potential. Expect a significant shift and a new consciousness to occur. Hopefully this will deliver a positive advance where it is needed the most. Two days later, Mars squares Pluto and Mercury retrograde aligns with the big planet, Jupiter. April 11 could be a decisive, catapulting, action filled day. Expect see a lot happen, all at once. As thefull moon energizes April 17, Mars builds an opposition to Saturn (exact on April 18.) This full moon is another super moon (an astrological high tide) and therefore is likely to be more potent. At this point, things are likely to be as polarized, pressurized, or as extreme as they can get. When Mars opposes Saturn (traditionally associated with war), it intensifies the battle against external forces or external authority. It is a force-the-envelope, stop at nothing, knock the wall down, or come to the end-of-the-road day.

As Mercury retrograde draws near to completion, the planet opposes Saturn. (April 17 – 25.) We will be down to serious business and getting nearer to the end of the deadlines along this present time-line. Talks get serious, the pressure gets heavier, reality can be sobering or stark, options can become narrowed, limited, constrictive; patience, resources, energy, and emotions can run dry. Markets can fall flat. Delays, slow downs, hold-ups, etc. are also to be expected. When Mercury retrograde opposes Saturn, maximum effort is needed for the smallest of gains. Sound depressing? It can be, but it does not need to be. All planetary energies can manifest in a myriad of ways. This Mercury/Saturn hook-up could prove to be constructive and opportune. The aspect could slow the overly fast pace of one-after-another challenges, which in turn can provide the time to develop a bettered game plan. Let us hope that this is the case, not only for our private life journeys, but also there in the world. Used constructively, the challenges of the month lay the foundation for swifter resolution, accomplishment, and conclusion. Once past Mercury retrograde, we should all move onto the fast-track upswing.

April 3: New Moon, 7:32 am (13 Aries)
April 17: Super Full Moon, 7:44 pm (27 Libra)


April 1: Mars enters Aries: 9:51 am
April 4: Neptune enters Pisces: 4:48 pm (to Aug 4)
April 9: Pluto stations retrograde: 1:49 pm (to Sept 16)
April 20: Sun enters Taurus: 3:18 am
April 20: Venus enters Aries: 9:06 pm
April 23: Mercury retrograde ends: 3:04 am

Dates to watch: April 1, 3, 6, 9, 11, 16 – 19, 23, 27, 30.