Mercury Retrograde is one of my favorite topics in astrology. As the fastest moving planet in our solar system, this planet turns retrograde 3-4 times in any given year, and seems to impact us more than other retrograde planets. Even people who don’t believe in astrology have admitted to me that anomalies occur around Mercury Retrograde. Lasting for roughly 3 weeks, the retrograde cycles may not seem like a long time, but with shadow periods on both the front and backend of the cycles, the entire retrograde phases can last up to 6 weeks. These are not cycles you can ignore - ever!

The mythology behind the planets is a great way to delve into their symbology. In our solar system , our planets and other heavenly bodies, i.e. asteroids, are named after Roman gods. But those Roman gods have Greek counterparts and this adds depth and detail to each and every planetary body. Mercury in the Greek Pantheon is called Hermes, known as the winged messenger. He is an androgynous figure depicted with a winged helmet on his head, winged sandals on his feet, holding a caduceus. I will delve a bit more into the symbology of Hermes because I think that in many ways, it adds to the story of Mercury.

In the physical world, Hermes rules trade, commerce, retail, merchants, and travelers. He is associated with craftspeople, handwriting, typing, computers, and electronics. Hermes/Mercury also rules players, thieves, liars and tricksters. This is where the term "mercurial" comes from. Someone who is a bit unstable and very changeable. Think of the liquid element for Mercury, also known as quicksilver.

Hermes in Greek mythology was the guide to The Underworld. A fascinating detail about Hermes is that he was one of the only Gods directly in communication with Hades (Pluto) and was allowed to come back and forth between the physical world and The Underworld, without consequence. Let that sink in. The winged messenger could transcend the physical and move into The Underworld, or as I prefer to call it, beyond our world--another dimension. This aspect of the mind and consciousness is fascinating to explore.

Mercury/Hermes has been assigned the ruler of communication, the intellect and intelligence, as well as literacy. It is the god associated with language and early childhood education. Hence, the youthful androgynous figure moving quickly through time and space. Picture small children in a classroom and playing during recess. There is an exuberance that comes with learning, play and acquiring knowledge.

Just as the sacral chakras are associated with energetic points in our body, the heavenly planets are also aligned with our body. Besides ruling our mind (thoughts-ability to travel to many places all at once), Mercury affects other parts of our physiology. He has been associated with the spinal cord, the nervous system, the respiratory organs (lungs), our arms and hands.

Why is it important to know Mercury's characteristics and rulerships? Because when Mercury goes retrograde, everything I described is affected. Transport, cars, commerce, computers, communications (both personal and professional), our thinking and decision making can all become muddled. I have personally had cars break down, computers blow up, shipments lost or delayed, purchases made and later regretted or returned. These are just some examples. And of course, it depends on your natal Mercury, which sign Mercury is transiting and if you know your birth chart, you can check which house Mercury is transiting as well.

When a planet goes retrograde, it really is not moving backwards. It just appears that way to us. Every planet has a different orbit around the sun and when one planet passes another in orbit, the slower moving planet "appears" to be moving backwards. It can get a little scientific from here, but just remember that Astrology is based on how these heavenly bodies affect us, so when the planets move around the sun and we move around them, just know that there are magnetic forces at work.

So is Mercury Retrograde all bad news? It doesn't have to be. If you prepare yourself, you will learn to navigate and maybe even enjoy these moments of slowing down. Just remember it is not a time to start anything new, but it's a great time to do anything as long as you place the prefix "re" in front of the word.

Here are some examples:

• Re-visit

• Have a Re-union

• Re-model

• Re-do/make

• Re-organize

• Re-activate

• Re-address

• Re-affirm

• Re-establish

• Re-invent

• Re-finance/mortgage

• Re-hire

You get the picture. Don't be surprised if you run into friends you haven't seen in awhile or feel the need to re-organize your closet.

As I was writing this, the program I was using crashed. My jaw dropped open and I gasped. I hadn't saved the document. A window popped up and asked me if I want to send a crash report or re-open. I hit "reopen" and thankfully the document opened, barely unscathed. I had to chuckle as we just entered Mercury Retrograde two days ago. I made sure I saved the document the second time around. That is a perfect example of how the planetary energies work. I think Mercury was having a little fun with me. Nothing but respect for this mischievous little planet.

“Organizing is what you do before you do something, so that when you do it, it is not all mixed up.” ~ A.A. Milne