Ahh, the Mercury Retrograde, a topsy-turvy time often given a bad name, viewed with annoyance and trepidation by anyone stuck in traffic, or experiencing “unexpected” technical difficulties with their communication tools. :-p
But really, a Mercury Retrograde isn’t so bad. It’s just a little misunderstood. To help you make the best of this period, I’ve come up with a survival guide to get you though with a smile.

1- Rushing won’t work. Accept that.
In a society built around moving ahead, accomplishment and a “time is money” mentality, it’s no wonder that a period of reflection isn’t always wholly welcomed. But that period is here, review is needed, and either way it ain’t over before it’s over, so you might as well work with it. Who knows, you might just have some fun along the way.
Either way, give yourself extra time now. You’ll be glad you did.
• Set your alarm clocks early.
• Leave well ahead of time.
• Have a plan B for transportation ideas.
• Give yourself time to think about things carefully before you speak or act on important stuff.
• If you’re writing anything during this time (e-mails, reports, essays or whatnot), write a first draft (and SAVE IT, often), and give yourself time to RE-READ the final copy before you send it off into the world.
• Don’t be in a hurry to act upon any new ideas; let them ripen in your mind first.

2- Use a review time to catch up on things, and (surprise surprise) review!
Ironically enough, a Mercury Retrograde, and all it entails, is an important part of a productive lifestyle. You know all that stuff you’ve had piling up for a while, which you’ve been meaning to get to but haven’t had the time. This is the time. Get to it!
During a Mercury Retrograde, stuff that WILL flow is the stuff that didn’t flow well before! Now’s the time to…
• Answer unanswered e-mails
• Declutter your inbox or mail bin, and sort other piles of papers gathering dust.
• Have talks which you’ve been putting off.
• Write essays or reports which you’ve procrastinated.
• Read books, reports, e-mails etc. which you’ve put off till later.
• Catch up with old friends, especially if you’ve wondered for a while how they are.
• Take a trip you’ve rain-checked.
• Study (as in, review what you’ve learned), especially if you’re enrolled in any formal education.
• Ponder whatever’s been on your mind lately. You might see new angles you’ve never noticed till now.
• If you’ve failed an exam before, now’s the time to try taking it again!
• Consider your ways of thinking and speaking, and if they’re really working for you. Let go of old ideas that don’t work for you, drop negative or disempowering self-talk, and think about how to speak your truth, and understand/be understood better by others.
• Try meditating—either to quiet your mind or to explore it more, whatever works for you.

See how this is about trying it again, not trying something you’ve never done? that’s an important difference right now.

3- If it ain’t broke, don’t replace it. If it needs upgrading, upgrade it. If it seems to break, don’t throw it out yet…

One thing about the Mercury Retrograde period which can seem tricky is the technological issues which are more common than usual during this time. Sadly, there’s no trick that can safeguard you against strange cellphone reception signals (or lack thereof), or an unexpected flat tire, but, the above rules of thumb are good to consider during this time.
Basically…

• If you don’t need to get your new Cellphone, car or bike right now, then don’t. Postpone till afterwards. Mercury retrogrades are on average about 3 weeks long. Not the end of the world. Use this time to compare prices and research differences between models. Pick it out afterwards. This also applies to the period BEFORE a Mercury retrograde—2 weeks ahead or so, things can already start to get wonky. This is not a rule, but it is an observable astrological trend. Why risk it if you don’t have to?!

• If a vehicle or communication device has been awaiting an upgrade for a while, this is the time when it’s more likely to “remind” you that such an upgrade is really needed. Don’t fight it—it needs upgrading anyway, and if it’s just not functioning how you’d like right now, you might as well…

• If such a device or vehicle DOES break, especially if it’s one of those mysterious “it just won’t work” scenarios, don’t throw it just yet. Give it up to a month after the Mercury retrograde has passed, and then check it again. You’d be surprised how sometimes these things just “fix themselves” afterwards. Strange, but, true story! Same goes for similarly uncharacteristic malfunctions—if it doesn’t need immediate replacing and you can live without it or borrow a replacement until about a month after the Rx ends, try that. Sometimes it literally seems to “fix itself”. Go figure.

Of course, like everything else in the intricate system of astrology, how exactly each Mercury retrograde affects you personally can only be figured out by studying your personal chart, but this should be a great general guide for just about anyone during the 60 or so days of the year when the winged messenger planet demands reviewing of its’ themes.

Those most likely to be strongly affected during any such period, are people with Virgo or Gemini rising, and/or other strong emphasis in those signs. In many cases, strong emphasis in your 3rd astrological house will do it too.
Either way, remember that any time is only as good or as bad as you make it. Hope reading this helped you make it a good one.
Happy transits, folks.

© Bella Agronik
OpalSkyCreations.com
Permission is given to share this article in full or in part, so long as proper credit and linking to OpalSkyCreations.com is provided.

Chiron, asteroid in charge of our collective (and individual) wounds and healing, shifted into the sign of Pisces yesterday, February 9th, 2011.
Don’t give me the “who cares?” just yet, you wanna hear this!As a relatively slow-moving little bugger, it’s staying there until April 2018… and that means, it’s gonna be playing/indicating a major part in the events we are about to see coming about in the world. Ahh, got you attention now, haven’t I?!

All this talk of 2012 (no, the world isn’t ending! Cut it out you melodramatics!) has a lot of us wondering about what’s to come. Myself included (except, ya know, as an astrologer, I have the perks of just looking up the themes and not wondering anymore :-p)

Well, here’s one of the key themes, coming to the fore:

Chiron’s energy filtered into Pisces allows us (collectively, notwithstanding how it’d act in each individual’s personal chart) to heal ourselves and others via practicing transcendence, deep compassion, and creativity, which expands our awareness beyond the ego’s reach.

All this, while navigating around a tendency to play (or become) the victim or martyr, or engage in unhealthy escapism (especially via substance abuse… a bigger no-no then usual these days).

Chiron in Pisces can do WONDERS in terms of healing the spirit and reconnecting with the greater whole.

Chiron’s transit of Pisces can draw out the compassionate nature of our society and breach many of the divides that apathy and ego have built up.

People and societal branches that most rely on such apathy to continue their ways of life, are very likely to get a wake-up call or 10.
There is no disconnecting from the greater whole, from the fact that what we do affects others, and Chiron in Pisces is likely to serve up some major reminders of this over the next 7 years.

That’s where the possible themes of victim-hood, martyrdom or escapist can come into play and be especially troublesome.
Acute sensitivity (shame, guilt, pain) is not something one can hide from, and wearing your own suffering as a cloak only keeps you suffering longer. The keys to our own healing, which Chiron in Pisces tries to make us aware of enough to grasp, is TRANSCENDENCE!

As Ghandi said, “the best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others”. Whatever you feel you lack, try giving to another… you’ll find that you always have more then you thought you did.

Just make extra sure that whatever compassionate service to others is being undertaken, it does not go overboard and turn you into one of the victims as well…
as they say, throw a drowning person a rope, but do not jump in where you will also drown.

Within these next 7 years, whatever happens, consider adapting this quote as your personal mantra:

“I am only one; but still I am one.
I cannot do everything, but still I can do something;
I will not refuse to do something I can do.”
- Helen Keller

There is nothing to fear, only things to understand.

Fresh off the presses: These beautiful Apatite earrings, wire-wrapped with Bali accents and faceted Kyanite rondelle beads, on sterling silver french hooks.

This lovely type of Kyanite is almost aquamarine in color, and matches the Apatite stones, which shimmer beautifully.

Kyanite is coveted for its’ instant calming and chakra-balancing effects, as well as its’ assistance in building empathy between people. It’s helpful with Throat Chakra issues such as speaking your truth, or simply building understanding.

These lovely earrings are 1 3/4″ long, and only $30

It’s time for a some Astrology love.
Venus, planet of values and all things value related
(money, love, appreciation, social circles and beauty)
is currently in Retrograde motion… which means it seems to go backwards in the zodiac for a while.

A retrograde is always a period of review, reevaluating all themes having to do with the planet in question.
Venus, is currently doing its’ little backward dance in the sign of Scorpio, who’s added themes are depth, resources, sexuality, passion and deep transformation;
All these themes are currently under review in all our lives, undergoing redefinition at this time for us all, to each of us in our own personal ways.

Many people at this time are redefining their approaches to money, re-evaluating what their skills are truly worth, how they can provide more/better value to the world, or how they want/deserve to be treated by their partners. Perhaps one’s sex life can be getting a review as well.

Venus doesn’t retrograde for very long, its’ Rx cycle being about 42 days long (Compared to Saturn’s 5 month hiatus for example). It’s also the planet that retrogrades least frequently (only once every 18 months!), so you really want to seize this opportunity to do some redefining while the season is ripe for it.

It’s retrograde cycle started on Oct 8th, and will be continuing until Nov. 18th, at which point the Retrograde ends and the planet turns “direct” and starts heading forward again.

With the double themes of Money and resources being addressed by the Venus-in-Scorpio combo, this is an AMAZING time for redefining your values and approaches to anything money related.

Not a great time to try to push forward in all those value/love/money issues until that period is over though (unless you’re re-doing something you planned before, such as considering an ex flame, so that it is not an attempt to cover new ground).
Strictly speaking, this is a review time.

Towards the end of the Rx period, namely November 7th-18th, this might also call for a redefinition in relationships and business partnerships, and all things having to do with balance, as, during that time, Venus, who seemingly “moves backwards”, will be slipping back into the sign of Libra, who’s themes will then be under review as well.

Think of it as a quick look back to make sure you’re on the right track in all your partnership issues (and a valuable time to make changes if you’re not!)… and we’re all set.

I’d love to hear what your individual experiences have been with these themes at this time. How has the Venus Rx affected you?

In my case, a major redefinition of my approach to money, and the value I and other people are offering, is clearly underway. Positive changes abound.

How about you?

Have a happy Venus Rx.

A while back, a dear friend of mine felt the call to create a lovely music video, featuring an (at that time) obscure Japanese singer,
and as the creative vision dictated, the music video ended up exclusively featuring Opal Sky Creation’s jewelry pics!

This was such an exciting project to collaborate on.
And I am just as excited to share it with you.

For more information about the ever-talented multi-disciplinary artist, (and visionary) Jason Fonceca, check out his much recommended site,
Spiritsentient.com
or his personal site at JasonFonceca.com

Happy listening.

That’s right, if you haven’t been invited just yet, head on over and follow Opal Sky on Facebook.

I’ll be updating about new jewelry designs, planetary happenings, Reiki specials and blessings, inspirations and much more. All of the above I hope to share in this blog as well, of course. But as we all know, for many of us, the world revolves around Facebook. And so, to Facebook I go.

The little Facebook box has now been added to the sidebar.
Also in the works, a Paypal button and hookup… and a few wonderful collaborative promotions courtesy of SpiritSentient… and perhaps, in time, with the wonderful Think-With-Your-Heart as well.

Namaste’ and much love to whatever lovely souls are reading.

Τhis post marks the beginning… of what, I will not yet define. The beginning of truly breathing life into this site of mine, perhaps.

I share much in my daily life, about the topics which are dearest to my heart… I share astrological tidbits. I share inspirations and observations, love and joy, and any beauty which is on my path and is deserving to pass on, so that it may touch others close to me.

I want to share all this, here.

I’ve taken much time to think, what this blog section is really going to be about. We all need moments of contemplation, sometimes. Being-ness.

This society of ours has often placed the emphasis on doing, moving, achieving. It is a driven world… but it is also, slowly but surely, becoming a more balanced world. We are remembering, are being reminded in countless ways, to honor beingness. “Stop and smell the roses”.

Whatever we create, inspiration must proceed it.

That is why this site has been given as much time as it needs, to be born fully. The inspiration here is huge, and gorgeous, and I knew that to honor it, it’ll need to be done right… from the heart, and in harmony with universal timing (as an astrologer, this will likely be a topic I’ll write about repeatedly)

And it seems that now is one of those times.

Welcome. I’m so glad you’re here, reading this.I’m glad our paths crossed, even if just for the length of your reading this post.

I hope you’ll be back again.

Much love,

-Bella