On Friday, Jan. 14th, Mercury entered its first retrograde* of this year. Mercury is a messenger, often a trickster who slows us down and draws our attention to matters in need of change. Last year all of Mercury’s retrogrades took place in air signs, which are about the world of our minds. Thus, Mercury retrogrades in 2021 were about bringing to our awareness beliefs, thoughts, ways of communicating that needed changing. This year, Mercury begins each retrograde in an air sign and then moves backward into an earth sign. Earth signs are about the tangible, material, physical world. I sense that Mercury is now asking us to examine our thoughts and beliefs AND to reflect on their impact on our lives, the lives of others, and our planet. What we build in our minds, we manifest in our world.
Mercury began its retrograde journey in Aquarius (air) and will move backwards into Capricorn (earth). Both Aquarius and Capricorn are transpersonal signs concerned with the welfare of the collective. While in these signs, Mercury will draw our attention beyond ourselves to look at the society in which we live, its beliefs, structures and laws, and the impact of these on people’s mental and physical well-being as well as on the health of the planet.
Mercury in the signs of Aquarius and Capricorn also reminds us of our transpersonal nature, that at our truest essence, we are all one. Our transpersonal nature brings both responsibility and opportunity. In recognizing that our individual thoughts and actions impact others and the planet, we have a responsibility to think and act wisely. At the same time, it is our transpersonal nature that gives us the capacity
to consciously and intentionally choose thoughts, feelings, and actions that make a positive difference for others. It is how we heal and help others through energetic intention and sacred prayer. It is through the transpersonal realm that our individual actions ripple out, grow in magnitude as they join with the ripples from others with like minds and hearts, and become waves of change.
Stepping into Mercury’s reflective energies, we can contemplate questions such as these:
How well is the world we have created serving us, others, the planet?
What changes would improve my life, the lives of others, and the health of the planet?
What beliefs, thoughts, laws, and social conventions need to be changed to accomplish these improvements?
As I am part of the whole, what changes can I make in my thoughts, words, and actions that will improve my life and benefit others and our planet?
On January 29th, Mercury will come into conjunction with Pluto, the planet of powerful transformational energy. Together, Mercury and Pluto can fuel profound transformational change. If we engage with 
these energies, they can add potency to our new thoughts and actions in the world. We can be a positive force for transformation. Ripples can become waves and waves can become a tsunami. The changes initiated by the vision and words of Martin Luther King, Jr. and other civil rights leaders happened in just this way.
February 3rd, Mercury will station direct and return to forward movement. It will take Mercury 21 days to reach the place where it began its retrograde. These 21 days are our opportunity to begin to integrate into our lives, the insights we have gained and the changes we want to make.
If you know where in your astrological chart this Mercury retrograde is taking place, you can consider the questions in the context of that area of your life. If you do not, tune to your inner self, and let your intuition guide you to your Mercury message.
*A planet is said to be “retrograde” when it appears to be moving backwards in the sky. (Think of how when you pass a car on a highway, the car appears to be moving backwards. It’s an illusion created by the difference in your rates of travel.)