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Whatever your plans may be for spring break — traveling, relaxing, catching up on work — the universe will always have its own plans in store for us, plans which sometimes compliment and uplift, and other times run completely opposite to ours. The stars can be a great ally here, helping us to discern this cosmic scheme and to prepare for whatever archetypal weather may come. Truly, rain is not so bad for those who carry an umbrella.

What do the stars have in store for this spring break?

With the moon traversing its watery home sign of Cancer, and a stellium of Mercury, the sun, Jupiter and Neptune swimming around in Pisces, spring break gets off to a soft, gooey, hazy start.

The moon — a general astrological signifier for home and family — ingressing into its home temple early on Friday, March 11, suggests that those who choose to rush home right at the end of classes are likely to receive a tender hug, a hot meal and all the wonderful nourishment which home life brings.

The build up in Pisces, on the other hand, gives us fertile ground for deep self-exploration. Notably, the sun moves to conjoin Neptune on Sunday, March 13. The sun, signifying awareness, life direction and prominence, meeting Neptune, the mystic dissolver of boundaries, may bring us on a journey deep into the psyche, possibly through a meeting with a great teacher, an illuminating dream, or an intense period of quiet reflection. Jupiter in the mix suggests this will be a fruitful journey, while Mercury’s presence warns us that getting too caught up in the nuts and bolts of spiritual lessons puts us in danger of missing the bigger picture.

Sunday afternoon, the moon leaves its home sign for the sun’s fiery temple of Leo. Over the two and a half days that follow, she will oppose Mars, Venus and Saturn in Aquarius.

Venus, just now separating from the heat of her prolonged conjunction with Mars, has recently entered into a unique and distinctly unpleasant condition known as malefic enclosure. Until Venus conjoins Saturn on March 28, she is caught between a rock — Mars — and a hard place — Saturn. Although the moon occasionally and briefly interrupts this condition, we are likely to find attempts at harmony, pleasure and fun thwarted by Martian strife and Saturnian constriction during this time. The Pisces stellium suggests here that, rather than chasing after our desires with even more intensity, we might be better off taking a nap or going on a quiet walk by ourselves.

On Thursday, March 17, Mercury, now acting as host to the waxing Virgo full moon, receives an energizing jolt in the form of a sextile with Uranus. Use Wednesday and Thursday to write, debate, experiment and explore as the planet of thinking, systems and communication shakes hands with the planet of revolution. The lightning bolt of inspiration is likely to strike at any moment, so be prepared.

In the wee hours of Friday, March 18, the full moon in Virgo blooms. Full moons are times of climax and great activity. See how the seeds you planted at the Pisces new moon of March 2 are now mature and may even bear fruit. Full moons, with the sun and moon exactly opposed, are also times of contradiction. Perhaps at this time, the real-life concerns of earthy Virgo are calling you out of your blissful and enchanting Piscean voyage. Indeed, at this point, the end of break and the return to the daily grind of classes looms.

Our pleasures, relationships or attractions may receive a shock Friday through Saturday as Venus, now host to the moon in Libra, perfects a square to Uranus. We may find ourselves encountering harmony and connection suddenly and unexpectedly, perhaps as an oasis in a desert. With Venus still copresent with Mars and applying to Saturn, beware of the potential for toxic individualism to corrode what pleasure we may find, and be sure to stay at least partially rooted in the concerns of the real world, as Saturn tends to demand of us.

Although the moon’s ingress into Scorpio on Sunday, March 20 may bring an especially brooding flavor of the ‘Sunday scaries,’ the sun’s ingress into Aries, marking the zodiacal new year and the start of spring, offers us a glimmer of hope and an injection of Martial vigor needed to make the end of the semester a success.

Published on March 14, 2022 at 10:08 pm

Astrology Columnist