December 2024 : Holiday Respite
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Happy Holidays to each and every one of you! I am deeply grateful that you trust me to de-code the Cosmos each month. I do my very best to make sure that the content is grounded in good astrology and also accessible to those who are not Astrologers.
My Holiday Sale is up and running from December 3 - December 24, this year I am offering 25% off of all Consultations! If you are looking for a fun and different Holiday Gift, Gift Certificates are available as well. If you’re looking for a Consultation time and you aren’t seeing what you need, please reach out to me and we can find a time that works. It is Holiday Season and my schedule is currently pretty limited.
I am preparing a 2025 overview, which I will post to my podcast. Please Subscribe to my Podcast on YouTube or Spotify to be notified when new episodes are released. You can find a video version of this Newsletter in these locations as well.
In addition, Sara and I just released a Podcast on the planet Uranus!!! Check it out on YouTube and Spotify!
Sending love to each of you. May this Holiday Season be a time of respite and warmth.
Opening
Welcome to December 2025! November certainly shook up the direction of the US, throwing many into a tail-spin and even into an overwhelmed state of shock. For others extreme excitement and new hope for the future was celebrated. November was a perfect example of how fear and excitement are two sides of the same coin.
Regardless of your perspective on the outcome of the US Presidential Election last month, we can all agree that immense changes are being put into motion. Likely drastic shifts on levels that the US (and maybe even the world) has not seen for quite some time. If you listened to any of the content that I offered regarding the Election, you know that this is part of a much larger wave of change that we are on the verge of for the coming years (check out my YouTube page to find out more).
Mercury Retrograde
We begin December with Mercury Retrograde in full-swing. This Mercury Retrograde takes place from November 25 - December 15 2024 and is situated at 22° Sagittarius 40’ to 06° Sagittarius 23’. I spoke at length about this retrograde last month. However, I was thinking that there could be delays with the Election process, and which did not materialize. However, this Mercury Retrograde could point to Trumps process of building out his Presidential Cabinet. We are already seeing re-do’s in this process, as one notable appointee has stepped down. This symbolism can also embody President Biden’s decision to revoke past promises and to pardon his son Hunter Biden.
It will be interesting to see how this Mercury Retrograde plays out, particularly because this Retrograde takes place on the US Ascendent. Recalls, re-dos, reflections, etc. will likely be highlighted. Or maybe this is a reflection of the burn-out that we are all experiencing after months of intense and even volatile build-up.
Personally, look at your chart and take note of what placements you have between 06° and 22° - particularly in the Mutable signs, Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius and Pisces. This could be a time when you are reflecting on your beliefs, the wider view that you hold. As well as contemplating your relationship to knowledge in general. In addition, you could be experiencing delays and hiccups when it comes to travel, technology and communication. Back-up your tech, expect information hurdles and build-in buffers for the inevitable mix-ups. Retrogrades can also be a time when people from the past re-surface.
Mars Retrograde
Oh yes… Mars Retrograde. About every two and a half years Mars Stations Retrograde. And, here we are again… This Mars Retrograde begins in the early degrees of Leo (06° 10’) and re-ingresses into Cancer on January 6th 2025. Mars will continue to Retrograde through the later degrees of Cancer and finally Station Direct on February 23rd 2025 at 17° Cancer 00’. Mars will then make its way back through Cancer and re-ingress into Leo on April 17th 2025.
This Retrograde will be particularly challenging for those who have placements at the earlier degrees of Fixed Signs (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio and Aquarius). This is because Pluto is also at the early degrees of a fixed sign and those placements will be located in the crosshairs of the Mars-Pluto Opposition that will take perfect on January 3 & April 26 2025, but will be in “play” for much of this span of time. More positively, Mars-Pluto can inspire immense efforts towards a goal and result in a meaningful metamorphosis when put towards an optimistic outcome.
However, if you aren’t consciously setting your sights on weighty goals, you could become steamrolled by the pressures put on you. You could find yourself involved in power-plays and moments of heightened tensions.
With both Mercury and Mars Retrograde (and Venus Stationing Retrograde on March 1 2025), there is a strong invitation to reflect and possibly make take some corrective actions. Mars is the motivation that propels us as well as the actions that we take to reach our goals. We may find that the fire under our butts is a bit dim, because of the adjustments that we need to make our progress is slowed. This can be a good thing during the holidays, a time when we want to relax and unwind.
If you have any big projects underway from December 6 2024 to February 23 2025, be patient if progress is a bit delayed. The readjustment is likely necessary in order for you to ultimately reach your goal, or maybe the goal needs to be adjusted all together. The overall “umph” in life is likely to be either slowed all together or to run at a sporadic and unpredictable pace.
Check to see what you have situated from 17° Cancer to 06° Leo to see how this Mars Retrograde will impact you.
Venus into Aquarius
Venus’ journey through Aquarius from December 6 2024 - January 2 2025 is notable because it is interacting with and highlighting the Mars-Pluto Opposition, as well as the Mars Retrograde. The Fixed Sign Ingress is currently a contentious situation, planets have to contend with Pluto and then Mars, it’s an intense landing, one that likely leaves a mark. This is a circumstance that the Moon will find itself in about once a week (which can impact the overall “mood” of our lives for a while). This will be heightened until early January, when Mars Retrogrades into Cancer.
However, beginning December 6 2024 (and until about December 14 2024) Venus will find herself in a very uncomfortable position, on December 7 she will conjoin with Pluto and on December 12 she will Oppose Mars. Venus in Aquarius is a bit distanced and even aloof, but can also be a dependable force of creative zeal. There is an innate strength and endurance to Venus in Aquarius. From that perspective, Venus in Aquarius could have some of the tools necessary to contend with both Mars and Pluto in such contentious circumstances. But, this is still Venus… a Benefic and the Archetypal representation of love, kindness, consolidation, and peace.
Expect December 6 - December 14 2024 to be a time when your relationships could be put through the wringer. Intense power-plays and immense pressure could be placed on your love-life, encouraging the icky-material within your relationship to come to the surface. Not pleasant. With Venus in such a tough place, expect for the resolution and the coherence to be challenged. The peaceful and calming salve that we depend upon is not available at this time.
Gemini Full Moon / Mercury Stations Direct
The Gemini Full Moon takes place on December 15 2024 at 23° Gemini 53’ (Sun in Sagittarius, and Moon in Gemini). Most notably, this Full Moon is situated Square to Neptune, reiterating the heaviness and the sluggishness that we could be feeling collectively. This is most prominently illustrated by the Mars Retrograde, negating our “forward movement”. And, as Mercury Stations Direct (at 06° Sagittarius 24’) on the same day, this Full Moon suggests that Mercury will likely NOT be providing a “full-steam-ahead” adjustment to our lives.
In addition, Neptune will have just Stationed Direct on December 7 2024 (27° Pisces 08’), meaning that there are some potent Neptunian vibes in the collective at this time. Sensitivities are heightened and ambitions are low.
Expect to feel somewhat hungover around this time. It makes sense that we are not so gracefully collapsing after several months of complete and utter tension, excitement and anticipation. We may not even realize how burnt out our nervous systems have become, and now our bodies are urging us to embrace being horizontal. This is a great time to release the toxic ideas, emotions and materials that we have ingested or taken on. Purge that shit out of your system.
There are many ways to purge : sweat inducing exercise, ugly crying, screaming, raw dancing, punching a punching bag, etc. (( Be sure not to harm yourself or anyone else in the process. )) And once you have completed this, lie down in a pile of complete surrender. Feel the toxic build-up release from your being and embrace the love and subtle beauty that supports you.
Whatever detoxification-and-collapse process works for you, be patient and kind with yourself and with others. We are collectively in a state of burnout and need to recover. While we would love for this to be a straight-forward process, make room for ebbs and flows. Healing is not linear and it is not “goal oriented”. Healing is a journey, a state of being, a means of surrender, a blessing.
Capricorn New Moon / Chiron Stations Direct
The Capricorn New Moon takes place at 09° Capricorn 43’ on December 30 2024. Moon in Capricorn is a bit of a work-horse by nature, feeling nurtured by completing tasks and building stability. In the midst of the Mars Retrograde, there could continue to be a lull in progress, however, this New Moon may inspire some pragmatic steps forward, despite the overall encumbered motivation.
In addition, the New Moon is in an Applying Square to Chiron - who Stationed Direct the day before (19° Aries 00’). So the themes of Chiron are dominant at the end of the month, implying a sense of isolation, wounding and possibly deepened healing. How can we make meaning out of old wounds and pave a path for a restorative life? This is the tension that is being highlighted this with this New Moon.
The work that is being invited into our consciousness is internal and, similar to the Full Moon, the process is not straight forward. Because, the nature of Chiron’s wounding is that which will ultimately never heal. However, how we work with those wounds provides deep and unmeasurable understanding and knowledge regarding the challenges of life and allows us to be better stewards to one another.
Closing
The overall theme for December is respite. While life will not stand still this month, it is clear that the push to the proverbial finish line will not be as potent as it normally is. The humans on planet Earth are tired, we are burnt out and a bit ornery. There is the potential for a release valve moment in order to purge the pent up energy that has become lodged in our bodies, and then an invitation to become a puddle on the floor.
We don’t have to hold onto the toxic materials, ideas and emotions. This is a great month to purify one’s self and create new habits for self-healing. Life is a constant cycle of effort and ease. This month emphasizes ease, because we have recently put in SO MUCH effort.
My wish for you is that this Holiday Season allows you to relax, unwind and deeply appreciate the hard work that you have exerted in recent months. If you have the opportunity to make life a little easier on yourself, this is your permission slip to do so.
Happy Holidays and I will see you in 2025!
Lisa Pesnichak (aka The Dynamic Self)
