Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1173846
16 wholelifetimes.com spirit Mercury Retrograde PERILS AND WONDER By Leslie McGuirk W hen people realize that Mercury is retrograde, many start to anticipate bad things, and a sense of fear and dread sets in. What people don't realize is that without Mercury retrograde periods, we would all be worse off because these periods force us to slow down. In our digital and high-speed world, these forced "breaks" in our forward movement are important for our mental health. Mercury retrograde periods help us deepen our consciousness. Without these few weeks each year, we would be caught in constant forward motion. Think about what retrograde means — "going backward." Is this a bad thing? Not if you are trying to pull your car out of the garage! Then you are thrilled you have that reverse gear. If we change the way we think about Mercury retrograde, we will find that these weeks might not always be the easiest of the year, but they are super useful for very specific reasons. These are the great times to think about all the words that start with "RE" — REVIEW, REFLECT, REVISE, REINVENT, REIGNITE, etc. Each of these words represents what Mercury retrograde periods are all about. You have to stop and put your car into neutral before you shift into another gear. If we didn't have neutral or reverse, our lives would become a monotonous hum. Everything moving at the same speed and in the same direction can be not only boring but also dangerous. If you only go forward at a fast pace, you will not notice anything going slower than you. Mercury retrograde weeks only happen a few times a year and they are something to be grateful for and not feared. However, just as when you drive a car, and it is in neutral or in reverse, you can get frustrated if you expect to move forward. If you try to force things during Mercury retrograde, it will be more difficult to endure. The trick is to be with the energy of what is. You don't have to avoid signing contracts or buying a new computer during Mercury retrograde. What you need is to be much more conscious and slower, but don't stop living your life. You can't make rash decisions, but you can make decisions. You just have to think twice as hard before you act. Just to make Mercury retrograde even more interesting, everyone needs to know if they were born during Mercury retrograde (I have a Mercury Calculator on my site www. lesliemcguirk.com.) Only 20% of the population was born during Mercury retrograde. These people are meant to go forward during Mercury retrograde because this is their good time. "Damn the torpedoes and full speed ahead" should be their motto. And then when it goes direct, they feel the way 80% of the population feels during Mercury retrograde for the majority of the year. These Mercury retrograde "babies" are the ones that are totally fine during Mercury retrograde and are basically immune to the so-called ill effects of Mercury retrograde. Have some compassion, because when Mercury goes direct, they feel exactly the way you do when it is retrograde, and that means they have that reverse feeling for most of the year. But remember, this also bestows an innate creative sensibility, a quirky sense of humor, and a unique way of seeing the world. This so-called troublemaker planet, Mercury, goes retrograde next on Oct 31st and goes direct on Nov 21st. These upcoming weeks deliver a lot of gifts if we are willing to look at them. You will have a heightened sense of taking information in with a different kind of awareness. This can be very useful for problem- solving any issue in your life that has been troublesome. You will also have the opportunity to explore your connection to the natural and unseen worlds. So rather than worrying about what might befall you, think of all the miraculous things that can enlighten your life during Mercury retrograde! Leslie McGuirk is the author of The Power of Mercury. Visit www.lesliemcguirk.com. REVIEW REFLECT REVISE REINVENT REIGNITE