April 2017 Monthly Forecast

Fire, Fire, Burning Bright – Fire Energy Still Strong

What a dynamic month! Venus is still Retro until mid-April. Mercury goes Retro too. The fire element keeps popping out its surprises, and it’s the last month of the North Node in Virgo completing many of the past 18 months’ destiny arrangements, while other alignments complete many years’ worth of destiny themes.

Even if it seems to have gone underground this month, this year’s strongly highlighted fire element is still emphasised. There’s enough deeper fiery energy to keep us on our toes in this apparently quiet first few weeks of the month – ‘apparently quiet’ because Venus is in Pisces and Mars and Mercury are in Taurus, the often-described calm, composed feminine signs.

Is the Yin Feminine Secretly Yang?

Yet even while in Pisces and Taurus, both Venus and Mercury respectively are still enveloped by the Aries vibe because they are retrograding in and out of Aries. Sure, Venus is in feminine water element Pisces all of April, but she’s still running an Aries vibe. Venus is fully back in Aries all of May to reassert her drive and willpower.

Similarly, even though Mercury is in feminine earth element Taurus for the first three weeks of April, Mercury is still running an Aries vibe, and from 21 April until mid-May, will be fully back in Aries with clearer passionate intent.

Venus and Mercury Retro/Direct – Twists and Turns

Added to this, both Venus and Mercury are in intense moods because they’re both going through the ‘contortions’ of shifting Retro/Direct, which slows things down, mixes things up, brings ‘atomic bombs’ of awareness, then has to clean up the aftermath, which slows things further until fresh starts finally stabilise and flow returns. Due to all the fiery energy about, things are actually moving very quickly, but there are delays, obstacles, red tape, hoops to jump through – all of which give us a moment to check and double-check our intentions, attitudes and sensitivity to right timing in case we force an outcome prematurely.

Venus goes Direct on 15 April after being Retro since 4 March, and Mercury will go Retro on 10 April until going Direct on 4 May.

April’s Major Deeper Alignments

March, April and May are months of great ‘soul churning’ from the perspective of three major astrological influences on top of Venus and Mercury going Retro/Direct which are all about endings and beginnings and getting to the core of the matter:

• Jupiter square Pluto, waning in April (but still a strong effect)
• Black Moon Lilith square Nodes, waning in April (but still a strong effect)
• Saturn conjunct Galactic Centre, active all of April

I described quite a bit about these in last month’s forecasts.

Yet added even on top of all this are two more major influences this April – the North and South Nodes are in the final month of the zodiac signs they’ve been in the past 18 months, plus Mars (planet that rules fire sign Aries and is known as a ‘fire archetype planet’) squares the Nodes.

North Node in Virgo/South Node in Pisces – the Final Clearing

The Nodes have been in Virgo/Pisces since November 2015 and are now in their last month of this major ‘destiny influence’, for the Nodes are known as ‘the axis of destiny’ and either ‘hook us in’ or ‘unhook us’ from certain destiny pathways. Over the past 18 months they have been in zodiac signs to do with clearing great collective emotional seas (Pisces), including our own personal emotional soul baggage, while simultaneously putting a magnifying glass to our actual actions and behaviour right down to the smallest micro details that reveal deeper core attitudes of respect or disrespect (Virgo). This is the final month of this major assessment/clearing process. In May the North Node goes into Leo and the South Node goes into Aquarius, bringing a major shift in the ‘destiny energies’.

Mars square Nodes – the Final Battle

On 24 April, Mars squares the Nodes, but the energy clicks in mid-month around the time Venus goes Direct on the 15th, or even earlier when Mercury shifts Retro on the 10th (given how Venus and Mercury are both triggering Aries energy in their Retro/Direct movements, and Mars rules Aries), and the effect lasts until end of April, into early May.

One of Mars’s key tasks is to make a stand for what is important to our core heart and soul truths and needs. During this time, especially around 24 April, Mars has to ‘face the Nodes’, ie. the ‘axis of destiny’. How will this brave warrior fight without his guns and swords and other tools that make him feel safe? How will he fight when it’s just his core self, core courage, up against ‘the book of life’? He might even wonder why he is fighting life itself, protecting himself against it. What would happen if he just surrendered to the love, creativity, beauty and brilliance that is already there within him and within the world?

Beyond the Checkpoint – ‘Coeur’, ‘Core’, ‘Heart’

By early May, Mars passes the Nodes’ checkpoint and by then Venus and Mercury will be back in fast Aries helping him out. All three will be able to move forward with joy, ease and celebration once through April’s challenges if they let go of past ‘wrong uses’ of the masculine fire energy. April is a great month to be freed from past feelings of guilt, shame or blame over past hurts and harms, which usually only happen when out of alignment with the ‘core self’. When in alignment with ‘the core self’, we can always find ‘heart solutions’ for self and others and discover there’s no need for destructive battles, for ‘heart’ simply means ‘core’. The French word for ‘heart’ is ‘coeur’ and the Italian word is ‘core’, which both go back to the Latin root ‘cor’ or ‘cord’.

Interesting word ‘cord’, as the symbols for the Nodes look like ropes or cords or chains that bind us, and we can either feel punished by ‘destiny’ when it ‘grabs us by the short and curlies’, or understand that destiny when it ‘ropes us in’ constantly gives us opportunities to naturally and organically ‘cord’ ourselves to others through our ‘core’, our ‘heart’ – and that’s where all the solutions lie.

The Latin word ‘aperire’ means ‘to open’ and is connected with the etymology of the word ‘April’. Wishing you happy openings after each checkpoint and the new visions that fire always brings, and Happy Easter too! Michelle

April’s 1st Quarter Moon

For information on the 1st Quarter Moon in Cancer on 4 April, go here around that date. The interpretation will stay online until the next 1st Quarter Moon four weeks later.

April’s Full Moon

For information on the Full Moon in Libra on 11 April, go here around that date. The interpretation will stay online until the next Full Moon four weeks later.

April’s 3rd Quarter Moon

For information on the 3rd Quarter Moon in Capricorn on 19 April, go here around that date. The interpretation will stay online until the next 3rd Quarter Moon four weeks later.

April’s New Moon

For information on the New Moon in Taurus on 26 April (SUPERMOON), go here around that date. The interpretation will stay online until the next New Moon four weeks later.