#29: Pushing Up Daisies
Venus in Leo, retrograde impending
Since launching this Substack in February 2022, I hadn’t missed a single month of corresponding with y’all. But last month, I did.
At the 1.5 year mark (ahem, the same amount of time the lunar nodes spend in a pair of signs + the same amount of time between Venus Retrogrades) something shifted.
Among other things, I went to Paris.
Well, technically, I went back to Paris, as I traveled to Europe for the first time almost a decade ago. But this visit was different.
I was sober, I was with friends rather than a lover, and, for the most part, I lived like a local rather than a tourist. It was the same city, but I experienced it through entirely new lenses (quite literally, too, through a fresh pair of French frames).
Reflecting on it now, it isn’t lost on me that my experiences in Paris (and other experiences lately) were different because I’m different.
It sounds contrived, but there’s something magical about witnessing change in real time. And, on the best of days, when that change can be unequivocally attributed to personal growth.
Maybe you’re feeling something similar. Has this summer brought you back to any people, places, or things that, somehow, though seemingly “the same” also feel different?
If you’ve witnessed yourself responding to similar circumstances in radically different ways lately- pat yourself on the back. We call that growth. And if the Universe hasn’t plopped any familiar growth edges on your doorstep yet…I can all but assure you, they’re right around the corner.
We can thank Venus for the return to this, perhaps darkly, familiar fore. Like Dani in Midsommar, we may soon be asked to choose between an old, comfortable life and a new one that, while blooming, is coupled with a scent of our previous choices burning.
Because this is Leo energy we’re talking about- albeit heartfelt, these junctures are anything but casual. They will inevitably arise in a fiery, dramatic fashion, and have the capacity to change our lives for years to come.
Just before Venus stations retrograde, the lunar nodes will also be changing signs. On July 17th, 2023, the North Node will enter Aries, and the South Node will enter Libra…which, of course, is ruled by Venus.
But before I get too ahead of myself, these are the specific dates you need to know:
Venus entered the pre-retrograde shadow: June 19th, 2023
Venus stations retrograde: July 22nd, 2023
Venus stations direct: September 3rd, 2023
Venus exits the post-retrograde shadow: October 7th, 2023
While the Venus Retrograde period is always 40 days and 40 nights, the pre and post shadow periods on either side of it (the times Venus will traverse the same degrees, this year from 12°-28° Leo) are also noteworthy.
TL;DR: Anything that’s occurred in your life since June 19th (especially regarding matters of the heart) is fair game for a revisit before October 7th.
If you want to learn more about Venus Retrograde as a concept, I highly recommend this episode from The Astrology Podcast. I also love this blog post from Jill at Spirit Daughter.
And if you’re curious about how this retrograde will influence you directly, here are a few practical ideas:
Discover which house Leo rules in your birth chart & notice your Venus ruled houses (Taurus + Libra). The themes of these three houses will be where you feel this retrograde energy most potently. If you’re a Scorpio Rising, for example, Leo rules your 10th house of career, Taurus rules your 7th house of partnership, and Libra rules your 12th house of surrender.
Reflect on the summer of 2015. Venus retrogrades in the same sign every 8 years, so, as ever, we can look back to look ahead. While history doesn’t repeat itself- it often rhymes. Notice if any similar themes are surfacing for you.
Try out a new style. Just don’t make permanent changes yet! I’m very much a *tattoo girly* but wouldn’t recommend getting one during Venus Rx- unless it’s a coverup, effectively reworking previous art. Same goes for drastic hair changes, or any other Venusian ventures. It’s a moment to re-organize your closet, not buy a new one.
Revisit creative projects. Leo energy, at its best, consistently fuels the divine spark of creativity. These are our playwrights and our performers, our painters and our poets. We’re all creative (yes, even you) and this period is ripe with opportunity to reconnect with your inner child’s whims. If you haven’t read Big Magic, get yourself a copy!
Get witchy with remedial + sympathetic magic. Every retrograde is a chance to reintroduce yourself to planetary energetics. Sunflowers are a beautiful medicine at this time, as they combine both Solar and Venusian energy. You can wear gold and work with yellow crystals like Citrine and Honey Calcite (a personal fav). The Sun and The Lovers are appropriate Tarot cards to keep on your altar and having a bonfire/tossing things into it that you’re ready to release would be a powerful ritual. Money mantras are also auspicious.
Now, back to the lunar nodes. Because the South Node, what we need less of, will be freshly in Libra during this year’s Venus Retrograde…we can EXPECT LOUD BREAK UP ENERGY.
Celebrity couples, especially, will be creating flashy headlines. So and so got back together with so and so, so and so ended their relationship after many years together…I’m exhausted by it all already.
That said, your own phone might spotlight an ex or two that just ~happen~ to be thinking of you. Proceed with extreme caution, or not at all. With the North Node in Aries, solo ventures will be on the rise, which might include going to war to protect your own peace.
Ultimately though, c’est la vie! The happenings of this Venus Retrograde are best viewed as opportunities- a blessed gift of exposure. In Leo, after all, everything will be bathed in a golden hue. But like Midsommar, a film without a single nighttime scene, we’re set to learn that an absence of darkness isn’t always…an absence of darkness.
With the long, light-filled days ahead, the scariest part might be showing up within them authentically. Who will you be when there’s nowhere left to hide?
Through time and space,
Erin River Sunday
PS: I completed my Reiki 2 certification earlier this year and am slowly beginning to conduct distance energy work sessions. And as Leo energy rules the heart, I’m declaring this the summer of the heart chakra. Interested in tapping into yours? Get in touch.
PPS: A beautiful double Libra friend sent me this poem she wrote recently and allowed me to share. Right on time! Thank you, Ally <3
summer solstice sky
giving premonitions of a more colorful time
new perspectives with fresh eyes
after a long cry
the Earth gives pulsing vibes
and promises of abundance
i see it
in how the animals prance
in their buoyant trances
cancer season
ushering in the sea of the soul
and what that means during the heat
instead of the cold
these energized times
rush the water to mine the silver & gold
we hold
in the vessels that mold our thoughts and actions
the path our inner leader unfolds
if we listen
to the symphony of songs just outside the door
in the long trunks of witnessing trees
the sweet
medicine and ancient preservation coming from bees
and the first peek of sunshine coloring the sky
brings me to my knees
to pray
for peace and prosperity
release and ease
only memories now of the old life i thought i’d still be living
and only gratitude remains for the redirection
of sensations or
situations
not quite
right for me- Ally DeJong