Monday again?! It’s true, and this will feel like a very “Monday” week overall, where challenges abound and a persevering mindset will be required. I had to laugh at myself picking along this morning having already pulled the cards for this week’s post, noticing how much what was happening fit in with the messages for the week — I was struggling with the double-stroller and its flat wheels/rust issues which were increased by only having Ori which affected the weight balance, trying to hold an umbrella because it was pouring while steering with the other hand. At one point it crossed my mind that I hoped someone driving by saw me and felt better about their own day!!

At any rate, this is not a particularly busy week astrologically, although the few major aspects that form will have massive clout!

On Tuesday evening around 11:24 pm, Venus forms a Quincunx with Saturn. A quincunx represents a misunderstanding, a need for adjustment, requiring a new approach; Venus in Gemini wants to flit and flirt, while Saturn Retrograde in Capricorn needs order, predictability, and focus on dotting all the i’s and crossing the t’s. No fun for Venus!! Tuesday evening it may feel like your creativity or your affections are being squashed by reality, and your best bet will be to roll with it and try to find some middle ground that keeps the fun alive but also makes room for making solid plans for the future.

On Saturday, Mercury in Aries quincunxes Jupiter in Scorpio around 1:00 pm AST. Quincunx city!! Here we have the planet of war and passion, on its home turf, finding conflict with the planet of luck and expansion in the sign of secrecy and also passion — a recipe for some passionate revelations!! Goodness, this is a good week to share any secrets you’ve been harbouring, because there’s a good chance the lid will be blown off one way or another by the time Saturday rolls around. Whatever results from this aspect will surely feel constructive, but could feel quite fiery and hellish in the midst.

On Sunday the Sun in Taurus sextiles Neptune in Pisces around 10:56 am AST. If you’re still reeling from Saturday, this will provide an opportunity to re-ground and reassess the “illusions” you’ve been hanging on to, and to start thinking towards how to create better and more beautiful systems of security in your life, how to redefine your personal boundaries in a way that allows you to feel inspired and unshakeable.

This week the Moon moves from intense Scorpio (how about that Full Moon last night?) through Sagittarius and Capricorn, finishing the week in Aquarius. This will be a week of unpacking the past to redetermine the next destination, then putting the plan into action and reaching out to find new innovations for making things work <3<3

This week’s cards are drawn from Astrological Oracle Cards, Oracle of the Mermaids, and Tarot of Mermaids. I laid out a crystal grid of various special shells, a dolomite fish and dolphin for energies of flowing abundance and fun, agatized corals for deeper understanding of your personal patterns, a big carnelian for creativity and connection with your emotional body, landscape jasper for protection of your plans and inspiration to create ones that are far-reaching, chevron amethyst for release from anxiety and connection with your Higher Self, and black onyx for grounding and protection of your personal energy.

To begin, let’s look at the Shadow cards, indicating the underlying theme of the week ahead:

Shadow Cards: Aquarius + 37. Visions reversed + 0 – The Fool

Yes, this week will require a totally revolutionized mindset! You’ve been seeing yourself as a “fish out of water,” not noticing the leaps and bounds you’ve made towards becoming 100% legitimate at what you’re doing — it’s time to see yourself as the real deal, to stop looking for “signs” and detaching yourself a bit emotionally as you settle in to how very real this is now. You have built the necessary structures and now have room to innovate at a new level, one that is no longer a place of fantasy! Your perspective needs to match up with this, and you need to start functioning will full belief in what you have created and the direction you are taking this next. Stop dreaming, start believing, and go!

Oracle Cards: Saturn + 31. Coral’s Wisdom

That being said, just because it’s real now doesn’t mean it will come together quickly! No, there is lots of work ahead, testing your structure’s stability and making the necessary adjustments. Challenging to be sure! Trust in the power of time, both that there is enough of it to get everything done, and in your own command of your own time and your ability to make good choices surrounding when to do what. This new beat is becoming a part of you, and you are growing and flourishing as a result of the major life decisions you have made in recent months. You are building your legacy and have really only just begun — what’s that about “Rome wasn’t built in a day?”

Card 1: Focus for the week ahead: 5 of Swords

Indeed, the picture of me struggling along in the rain comes to mind: this will be a week of conflicts, of mental battles, of being presented with messy debris and having to decide precisely what you’re going to do with it. Thank goodness it’s cleanup week in my town so the literal garbage can actually be tossed to the curb for good! It’s the mental stuff that will be harder — and also more necessary — to sort effectively. When thoughts or circumstances pop up that you’d rather not deal with, it’s probably a good time to take a close look at them to determine why you’re so averse! This week it will be very important to look for solutions, because sweeping things under the rug won’t work.

Card 2: Release: 7 of Swords

It’s so funny, I feel like I’m writing the astro advice out again! Truly, this week it’s time to be honest, honest, honest on a newer and higher level than ever before! Skeletons are coming out of closets all over the place, so own yours on your own terms before someone busts it out on you on theirs. Even if you were keeping this to yourself because it felt like that was the best way, do some soul-searching about potential outcomes of sharing. Everyone is put at a disadvantage when something is being withheld, and being honest will feel like a weight has been lifted as new solutions will be opened up for exploration.

Card 3: Energy to Increase: 10 of Swords

Even though these first three tarot cards are some of the “most negative” in the deck, I was laughing as I turned them over — it’s like the week went “pow! slap! punch! haha!!” Yes, there’s no escaping the “realness” of this week, and the way to make the best of it will be to be honest with yourself about that last pattern that you need to break. You know you can’t continue on like this, you know that making this one energetic change will allow you to both feel and be more effective in your daily routine — all this requires (“all this requires,” haha!) is one teensy shift in your thinking. Mine is “I don’t have time to do a load of laundry every morning.” The answer is yes I do, and it will save me the time that load takes in searching for tiny socks and underwear because I’ll know that there’s at least a pair for everybody done. Now, to put that plan into action…!

Card 4: Best Advice: Knight of Cups

Aww <3<3 this was like a nice little hug after all those challenging Swords cards! Ultimately, get yourself through this week by constantly reminding yourself that you had a dream, you took action on it, and it is more real than ever now — you really are living that dream, you’re following your heart, and everything is going exactly how it should. These growing pains are you expanding to fill your bigger boots, you living up to your purpose, you reaching new levels of accessing your truth! This is so, so beautiful and you should be as proud of yourself as everyone else is. You are a shooting star, and trudging through this week’s challenges will find you that much closer to feeling like the diamond being formed under all this pressure <3<3 When I flipped this card the lyrics “take a chance on me” popped into my head — this week, support may be found in unexpected places, and the power of love will be a major player in making everything feel like it’s going to be okay (here’s a secret: it is!!).

Now for the Higher Self cards, a message of hope moving forward:

Higher Self Cards: Sagittarius + 2. Transparency + 4 of Swords

Oh yes, keep shooting for the stars — if anything you’ll notice that this week’s challenges are not about lack, but rather gain; everything you’re forced to deal with will hold some sort of reward, something that in overcoming will further fuel you to seek out the next step. This is because you truly have touched on something that’s so authentically you that nothing can keep you from living it, from vibing on it, from being lifted up through the very knowledge that you get to do this as a part of your real life experience. Whoa!! That’s kind of overwhelming, accepting that things are on the right track — as always this week, if it all becomes too much at any point, your Higher Self has thrown you the “nap card:” a temporary check-out to check-back-in, recharge, get up and keep going!

This week is a gateway, like the “second gate” after the massive one presented at the Full Moon on Sunday — you’ve entered the antechamber and are getting closer to the treasure. This week you’ll be feeling around for the “key,” the key to striking the balance that will free up the flow — this will be an ongoing theme as we get deeper into May, which promises to have its share of zany and unexpected occurrences as Uranus prepares to move into Taurus on the 15th. We’re in the Shadow of this shift and things are already changing — manage your energy levels as best you can and remember that you’re doing amazing work towards making this everything it can be <3<3

This is an example of the $25 4-Card Reading in my Etsy shop! If you’re interested in a full month of personalized readings like this, feel free to use the coupon code 4WEEKS25 for 25% off the purchase of four 4-Card Readings — the 4th week is free! I look forward to working with you <3<3

Decks used:

Astrological Oracle Cards. Lunaea Weatherstone and Antonella Castelli. Llewellyn, 2012.

Oracle of the Mermaids. Lucy Cavendish. Artwork by Selina Fenech. Victoria, Australia: Blue Angel Publishing, 2013.

Tarot of Mermaids. Lo Scarabeo. Llewellyn Publications, 2003.