We are in a Mercury Retrograde right now that ends February 3rd. So the word "retrograde" implies backward motion, right? And while Mercury didn't change the direction it's moving through the universe (to me it sounds like driving down the highway then just slamming your car into reverse without stopping), it does appear to be moving backward relative to the speed we're going (like driving down the highway and passing a car that's driving at a slower speed). Okay, that's enough of my physics explanation. On to the woo...
When Mercury is in Retrograde our communication gets jacked up. Anything related to communication gets jacked up, particularly technology. Does your internet get spotty? Does your cell phone not hold a charge? In person, do you find people you normally talk to suddenly don't understand you as well as usual or vice versa? Are customers crabby right now? Are coworkers not getting along?
This all sounds negative, and I'm not here to tell you that it's not. It can be rough. But what I've noticed is a trend of the trash taking itself out. We have a tendency to keep people in our lives longer than we should. I find that the communication during Mercury Retrograde really brings that to the surface and gives us the ability to finally make the break. Shoot, just yesterday I think three strangers blocked me on social media and I blocked 2, lol.
But here's why I'm saying this is a good thing. Before I started studying the metaphysical, I would take a friendship ending hard. It was confusing to me. Like, we got along great for 20 years, what just happened? And I was torn about how to reconcile it in my brain. Was I foolish to have ever been friends with someone who was capable of being so cruel to me? Or was it a huge loss of something I used to count on and no longer had access to? Thankfully, this journey has helped me see it differently...and the description actually feels very natural to me. People come in our lives when we need them and leave when their job is done. Yep. I think it's that simple.
So the coworker I met in 2016 who I immediately became very close with came into my life when I needed someone with a similar communication style to mine who I could joke and vent with. We stayed in touch after we both moved on to other things. She was my rock during my divorce. I really cherished that friendship. About a year ago she misunderstood something I said, taking what I meant as a neutral statement (and thought could be taken as a compliment), as a complaint that she was never around. Yikes on bikes I didn't mean that AT ALL. But she wouldn't hear anything about it. She said that my attempts to explain were just backpedaling because I'd been caught (see what I did there with the bike theme). She hung up on me and I never heard from her again. I miss her. I'm sad that she's gone. But instead of wondering how I could be friends with someone who would ever think I was capable of being such an ungrateful monster; instead of lamenting over and over where this whole conversation took wrong turn after wrong turn; I've released her back into the universe and wish her and her family all the best. I sometimes think of something that makes me want to call her and remember that my contact is unwanted which stings. But for the most part I remember our friendship fondly, value the strength she provided when I was struggling, and accept that our time was simply over. Neither of us are good or bad.
Want to be more prepared for the next one? Here's the 2022 schedule: From January 14 to February 3, from May 10 to June 3, from September 9 to October 2, and from December 29 to January 18, 2023. Godspeed.