Where will the celestial objects that we see in our night sky be for the next year? It’s always fun to track the ‘transits’ of the planets through the coming months.
Get out your day-timers, if you still use them, or enter the following dates into your virtual assistant to remind yourself as the weeks go by…
I am not going to list every single New & Full Moon but there are tons of reliable calendars out there that note the days of the Moon cycle. It is useful to keep track of where in her cycle the Moon is & to monitor how you feel at each phase. Everyone reacts to the lunar cycle uniquely but I have noticed that most folks have some kind of reaction when the Moon changes phase, particularly at the New & Full phase. Each phase only lasts a few days so it is pretty easy to track an ongoing pattern.
If you know what your own personal Moon sign is, that’s another thing to track. Watch for when the Moon is in the sign that she occupied at your birth. This will occur on a regular monthly basis. In Astrology
, this is referred to as the LUNAR RETURN. We calculate a chart to the moment when the Moon re-enters the degree it was in at your birth. A series of prognostications can then be explored based on the chart that springs from that moment in time. If you are facing challenges, making decisions, and debating choices, this is a great little device for you. Even just knowing that you are at the point in the month when the Moon is moving through your own lunar energy is helpful. Take a moment & just connect to how you are feeling during the 2 ½ days that this occurs on a monthly basis.
Also, track when the Sun shifts from one sign to another. There will be 12 of these shifts over the course of the year. The most significant one for each individual is when the Sun begins his transit of the sign that he was in at your birth. This is your ‘SOLAR RETURN’ time and marks a new yearly cycle about to start for you. If you know your own natal chart, take note of this time, and the times of the year when the Sun crosses your Ascendant energy/Descendant energy, (a time of renewal & initiation), as well as your MC/IC energy, (a time for introspection & projection). These are particularly sensitive points within your psyche but really, wherever the transiting Sun can be found is the area of life 
that is under the spotlight. Concerns connected with that part of the life experience that is being illuminated by the transiting Sun are often brought into focus or take center stage in your considerations. If you begin to see a pattern developing after tracking these transits, then you can be more mindful about planning and employing strategies. Things go much more smoothly if we choose the optimum times to implement initiatives.
Mercury is a fairly fast-moving planet and the big thing to track in this case are the very regular retrograde periods, around 3-4 each year that last around 2-3 weeks with buffer periods at each end. Each retrograde will have its own flavour and each individual will interact with retrograde energy uniquely so again, the key here is to monitor how you behave as the retrograde unfolds. Once you get a sense of your own ebb and flow at these times, you can take the necessary steps to adjust accordingly.
Generally speaking, the fire & air retrogrades can feel a bit frenetic & nervy while the earth & water retrogrades can feel sludgy & arduous. But, again, how you work your way through these periods truly does depend on your own natal energy. As an example, someone with a ton of retrogrades, particularly in the personals, Mercury, Venus & Mars, is better equipped to deal with readjustment, re-thinking, re-grouping, and so forth since that is their natural process and one they have been using since birth. As another example, 
someone with a lot of fire and air in their chart might find the retrograde energy more frustrating since their natural MO might be inclined to action & immediate response. This is why it is vital that, if you use astrology, you must PERSONALIZE it. You are the variable in the cosmic equation.`
#1: Mercury begins 2024 at the end of the last retrograde of 2023.
Dec 13, 2023: SRx @ 8*CAP28”
Jan 2, 2024: SD @ 22*SAG10”
Jan 21, 2024: Mercury passes the retrograde degree of 8*CAP 28”; the post-shadow period ends.
Any initiatives that are underway during this retrograde may take a pause & you may well have some re-imaginings developed in the Sagittarius phase of the retrograde, specifically in regard to whatever you are attempting to make happen.
#2: April 1, 2024 SRx @ 27*AR10”
April 25, 2024 SD @ 15*AR59”
Give yourself time to re-group in the area of life that is governed by Aries in your chart. Wherever it is, this is a part of your psyche 
that is often impatient & impulsive, wanting immediate gratification. The retrograde urges you to pause, reflect & consider if you actually want to move in the direction indicated. Once the retrograde concludes mid-May (post-shadow), your direction will be more clearly defined.
#3: August 5, 2024 SRx @ 4*VIR6”
August 28, 2024 SD @ 21*LEO27”
Another potential readjustment in terms of creative enterprise. A new approach to projects you have on the go could well arise during this time period. Change in the area of daily ‘habitual ritual’ could prove to be useful.
#4: Nov 26, 2024 SRx @ 22*SAG 40”
Dec 15, 2024 SD @ 6*SAG 27”
A great time to retreat, re-vision your hopes & dreams & rejuvenate your spirit. Use this time to map out 2025 for yourself.
That concludes Part One of the transit overview for 2024. Grab your calendar and enter all of the above Mercury Retrograde dates into it. Forewarned is forearmed and that is how appropriate action can be undertaken.
Stay tuned for Part Two…
P.S.: Keep the suffering children of our world in your hearts and minds. They are the innocent victims we must never forget. PRAY…