By Angel Lopez:
The astrology of February is very Aquarian, which makes it all about acknowledging your authentic nature and putting it to work for you. With Venus’s shift into Aquarius on February 2nd, four of the major planets, as well as the Sun, will all be in Aquarius, which is not only tied to your unique expression but also to how you share it with the world. There’s a responsibility in sharing your gifts with others in ways that honor yourself but also contribute to the greater collective. This month is a good time to make sure that you’re in touch with the ways that you go about making that contribution and how you view the need to do so. This doesn’t mean you need to be taking up a social cause necessarily. You may just find yourself feeling called to offer an expression of you to a friend, to your work, or to your home. This Aquarian vibe can ride into your life in a variety of ways, and you should know that it’s setting the stage for the rest of the year to come.
One key factor in all this is that Mercury will have just begun its retrograde phase, where it will be until the 21st. I’m sure you know that’s when the cosmic communication highway comes to a slow down. Appointments get delayed. Emails disappear. Conversations go south. The internal mind also starts to second guess or grows easily frustrated. The latter may be the course for this retrograde, as Aquarius loves to ignite and share ideas. But the words may get in the way of translating those ideas with the lightning speed Mercury wants. Allow yourself to slow down when it comes to committing to any of your mind’s suggestions. As mentioned, this is the time to get more in tune with your spirit’s unique expression. Make sure that the thoughts and ideas flying through are actually coming from your deepest source and aren’t just old thought patterns or voices from your history that you’ve integrated but no longer reflect your truth. When you come across that frustration, pause and wonder, “What is the gift of self-awareness that’s being offered to me at this time?”
Venus, the goddess of relationships, will be making her rounds this month and connecting with all of the planets. She’ll come head to head with Saturn, the mister of responsibility, on the 5th, which could bring some conflict into relationships. But this meet-up can also manifest as allowing yourself to show up for someone else in a really purposeful and supportive way. On the 6th, Venus has a challenging square to Uranus, who always loves to come with a surprise. You may find some secrets revealed here or see someone in a different light than you’ve been used to. Venus then buddies up to Jupiter on the 11th, bringing some good cheer to relationships. In Aquarius, this may mean some success when it comes to aligning with a common vision. It then aligns with Mercury the next day, which allows for you to invite any partners into a decision you’ve been grappling with to help gain some greater clarity.
February 11th is the Aquarius New Moon, which really has some “Age of Aquarius” vibes to it; but it will be important for you to personalize the meaning of that for yourself. Initiate some intention around generating your own sense of harmony and understanding within. It’s a good time to come to terms with any aspects of you that don’t feel like a part of your self’s bigger picture. Can you also cut out ways of being that have allowed you to engage with the world without actually being of it? It can be very easy to want to turn off from what’s going on in the larger world around you, and trust that there will still be some fireworks in the political and societal sky, but you must remember that you play a role in it and must take responsibility for how you show up. But also, we’re not all traditional activists by design. You may use your writing, your creative expression, your mothering, or your workplace as a space to share your unique gift, perspective, and vision for the world that you live in.
The main event of this month is the first of three squares between Uranus and Saturn, who can represent the new and old ways of doing things, specifically in how you relate to approaching change. Saturn can be slow and gradual, rooted in systems and beliefs that have lasted great lengths of time. Saturn’s approach can be, “If it ain’t broke, then…” However, Saturn can be so focused on the greater picture that it misses out on seeing where its structures may benefit one while ignoring another. On the other hand, Uranus embraces change with the quickness. It sees a problem and innovates a solution. And it will sometimes act without alerting or consulting anyone. It’s just all about the, “Surprise!” So, with this square energy on the 17th, you may find an old way of doing or being encountering a sudden interruption. This doesn’t have to be difficult if you allow a willingness to embrace any shift that wants to emerge. You may actually find a little sense of chaos or restlessness in the air, making you the one who wants to shake up the old and bring on the new. This takes us back to the overall theme for this month: embodying a greater authenticity. If there are structures, relationships, or environments that don’t support the person you’re looking to be, do what’s in your power to shake things up. This will be the first of three of these moments this year, so know that the themes and areas of life in the spotlight of this time will continue to play out throughout this entire year.
February 18th marks the beginning of Pisces Season, where we enter into the dreamy waters of our unconscious and merge more deeply with our creative and spiritual nature. Pisces can invite you into a more emotional time, strengthening your relationships with intuition and instinct. But it also has its challenges in that it tends to lose sight of boundaries, which makes for a harder time in relationships. Pisces sometimes just wants to be alone, so this time of year can pull you toward a withdrawal of sorts. Just make sure that you’re finding time for what you need at this time, especially as others may be trying to pull you in all kinds of directions.
The month ends with a glorious Virgo Full Moon on the 27th, which is a great time to release any unhealthy habits, routines, or patterns. It’s when the body and soul want to meet and make sure that all is in sync within. This should definitely be an opportunity to disconnect from taking care of others and taking care of you first and foremost. It’s important to consider your mind at this time and make sure that it isn’t perpetuating any detrimental tendencies. The way you talk to yourself can be under scrutiny here, as this full moon allows you to really take in the words you may use against yourself and make an actual change around them. Finding ways to use some sort of creative expression will help. The mind needs more imagination and less theory right now. You are the artist standing at the canvas of your life: Do some dreaming and see what visions come. Some may inspire new pathways for you to explore in the months to come.
Angel Lopez is a film producer, writer, astrologer, and co-host of the podcast, THE SPIRITUAL GAYZ alongside his husband, our Spiritual Guru Brandon Alter. Angel has been studying and working with both tarot and astrology for twenty years. He hosted the astrology web-series, ASTRO TALK WITH ANGEL, and writes the blog ASTROLOGY REALNESS. He has also had pieces published on Upworthy.com and The Huffington Post.
On the film side, Angel produced the Sundance Film Festival award winning film DEAR WHITE PEOPLE, as well as the features THE DINNER and STATE LIKE SLEEP. He also wrote and directed his own short film, I CAN’T WITH YOU, which had its premiere at the 2016 HollyShorts Film Festival, and he recently finished producing filmmaker Justin Simien’s second feature, BAD HAIR.