May Brings A Balance of Venus & Mars  

     “April showers bring May flowers” is the old adage and this month of May rings true with the time-tested saying. This month gives us a chance to catch our breath to balance and integrate the new spiritual directives or “flowers” we’ve been given over the past five months since Mars moved into Virgo. Powerful Full and New Moons this month emphasize lessons of the heart and open us to new levels of experience in this area. One important thing to notice in April and May is that Mars goes direct as Venus goes retrograde. Whenever planets go retrograde, they spend an extended period of time in one sign, emphasizing the lessons of that sign. There is no denying that the many economic, political and spiritual changes of the past year are calling for a greater balance between male and female energies.

Alarming ecological changes, such as the extremely mild winter, also alert us to the need for a greater understanding of the natural world by humankind.  Male energies represented by Mars have caused us to take a long hard look at the ways in which we maintain the Virgo-oriented systems of our lives since November 10^th of last year. With Mars in Virgo, humankind has been quite self-critical both on an international and on a personal level. Protests against dictatorial regimes continue in Syria and Yemen and Israel stands poised to strike at Iran’s nuclear program.