Mercury retrograde is coming soon. But before that, the speediest planet is entering Leo on June 26. Mercury will still be in Leo when it goes retrograde on July 7, so enjoy these twelve days before chaos strikes — er, we mean, before the retrograde begins.
“When Mercury is in the sign of Leo, communications become bright and bold, and self-expression reaches its most inspirational manifestation,” explains Narayana Montúfar, Senior Astrologer for Astrology.com and Horoscope.com. “No matter what your sign is, from the moment that Mercury enters this fiery sign on June 26, you are encouraged to express your ideas in creative and even dramatic ways. Overall, this yearly transit is positive for creative work and romantic inspiration.”
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Astrologer Lisa Stardust warns that there’s a danger of things getting too dramatic. “This time, there will be an exuberant over-the-top dramatization added to all conversations and declarations of the heart. However, don’t run too fast into expressing your sentiments,” she says. “With Mercury answering to the Sun and the Moon (Leo is ruled by the Sun and the Sun in Cancer is ruled by the Moon), we can expect major gaslighting and indirect emotional responses from others. Also, we may even be in protective mode and unsure of how to express our desires.”
However, because Mercury is so close to its retrograde period, we won’t experience this transit as fully as we will when Mercury re-enters Leo in August. “While entering Leo, Mercury is already in its pre-shadow period (moving very slowly) as it prepares to go retrograde on July 7th, meaning that its dramatic flair might be toned down considerably,” Montúfar explains. “During this retrograde phase, Mercury will back all the way to the watery sign of Cancer, bringing its usual set of volatile delays, distortions, and glitches until gaining direct motion on August 11th. This means that we might not experience the communication guru in its fully Leo splendor until then.”
Montúfar adds that the upcoming Mercury retrograde “is part of one of the most important astrology configurations of 2019.” And because Mercury is already in its pre-shadow period, we should keep a few pieces of advice in mind. “Along this process, keeping an open mind is not only advisable but necessary, when breakthrough ideas have the ability to find us as we gain insight into whatever we have outgrown and need to let go of,” she says. “When the feeling of needing to break from the past is amplified, taking time for deep reflection is key as we gain incredible insight into the old, possibly negative patterns that need to burn off so we can start creating the life we want.”