Mercury Retrograde

There is no “me vs. Mercury retrograde”. I am, and will continue to be, a conduit for energy to flow through me. I am Mercury retrograde.

What Is Mercury Retrograde?

Mercury Retrograde: When the planet responsible for communication, learning, and perception adjusts it focus onto our inner world.

When you read the word “retrograde” I want you to think of your experience at a retro diner. One minute you’re parking your car in 2021, and the next minute you’ve stepped into some kind of time capsule that has instantaneously transported you to a precious pastime. Yes, you are still in 2021 and there is a concurrent reality bustling around outside the restaurant, but you are seemingly held in time having a dinner date with the past. It feels surreal, sweet, and a bit nostalgic. This is the kind of experience our minds are having when Mercury goes retrograde. For the next month our conscious awareness has halted all movement forward (“parked its car”) and stepped foot into old territory.

It’s Not Mercury Retrograde, It’s YOU

Now, there’s no way I can continue talking about Mercury retrograde without addressing all its bad publicity. Mercury retrograde is known to bring:

• Technical difficulties

• Miscommunications

• Transportation issues

• All the boys to the yard (aka your exes)

Whilst these are all valid warnings and shared experiences, they are actually symptoms of our misalignment rather than a reflection of the Universe’s “lesson plan” for us during this time.

One of the first (and arguably the most important) decisions we have to make is: Are we going to resist and protest Mercury retrograde or work with and alongside it? When phrased like that the answer seems straightforward, but you’d be surprised to see how many of us are unconsciously sending a message of resistance.

For instance, a key characteristic of Mercury retrograde is experiencing communication with others as cloudy and unclear. Knowing this is the astrological “weather” and seeing that nobody likes being misunderstood, it might seem logical and even helpful to enter this transit chanting a mantra like, “Communication with others comes easily to me.” However, doing so is actually an act of defiance against the structure and flow of this transit.

Remember, the Universe always has its reasons for presenting us with challenging circumstances; and it’s not to make our lives more difficult. Allow us to take a second look.

If there is a strain on communication, on a collective level, for a set period of time, who are we being nudged to talk to? Mercury retrograde wants us to talk to ourselves. Literally. Every ounce of this energy works to support us getting right with our inner guru, our principles, and our individual purpose. It does this by discouraging outgoing communication. The universe doesn’t want to encourage travel, or collaborations and contracts with others. It wants us to travel to the depths of our soul and remember that the most important contract we will ever have is the one with the Universe.

Any event, person, communication, or transaction that does not bring clarity to our inner world will be opposed by the tricks and tribulations that the planet Mercury is notorious for. I call it the

“Mercury Magic Show.”

When we choose to fall prey to old cycles with old foes or opt to bypass this necessary self check-up by forcing forward movement, the universe sends us warning signs that we are falling out of alignment. This is where the technical difficulties, transportation delays, and miscommunications come into play. They are course correctors that arise as a consequence of our misaligned attention.

What’s worse is that no matter how well you entertain those tricks or how excellently you overcome the tribulations, there is no reward at the end. The soul does not benefit by us choosing to waste our energy and attention flirting with toxic patterns and repeating the same cycles (i.e: going back to that delicious yet detrimental relationship that’s going nowhere).

Getting Mercury Retrograde Right

Now that THAT’S out of the way, let’s talk about what happens when you’re in flow and allowing this energy to work the real magic.

Benefits of Mercury Retrograde

• Seeing your inner world with eerie clarity.

• Revisiting old patterns with fresh eyes and deep insight.

• An abundance of opportunities to right your wrongs, and offer space for forgiveness.

• Easily access and communicate with your higher-self.

• Welcome a plethora of opportunities for breakdowns that lead to life changing breakthroughs.

• The ability to course correct with ease, support, and clear guidance from the universe.

Getting Mercury retrograde right can be a delicate dance, and I want to be specific about how to position your mind to get the most out of it. I’ll say it simply. We are to look back, not go backwards. Make sense of and peace with the past, rather than re-enlist in its course. We are asked to stop and consider how our current mindset will ripple through time without attempting to jump into the future right now. This is the dance of Mercury retrograde.

You know you’re getting this right when you are:

• Engaging in an ongoing and honest dialogue with your inner guru.

• Honoring that right now your inner world takes precedence over your external reality.

• Validating your past experiences whilst taking back any power it has over you.

• Revising any and all compromises you’ve made that have required you to compromise your authenticity.

• Working to create a schedule that better balances the needs of your inner world with the demands of the outer reality.

Though the gifts of this transit can’t be seen by the naked eye, they are received deeply by the soul; and have a profound effect on how we will enter this next season of our lives.

As long winded as this may have been, the actual assignment can be boiled down to this: It’s time to go inside yourself and do the work.