Horoscopes | Week of May 30-June 5, 2011

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Looking at last week's horoscope from a different angle, Aries, I encourage you to make peace with the fact that you require other people—and the unpredictable antics that come with 'em—in order to move forward from here. Please be practical, rather than overly idealistic, about this fact. No matter how brilliant the effort, and no matter how brave the individual at its helm (i.e., you), there always comes the stage where you must (1) ask for the requisite bits of assistance, (2) disseminate the relevant information to nearby stakeholders, and/or (3) let the social currents imprint their influence over the matter. If you avoid this step, you risk becoming so insular in your outlook (and, thus, somewhat out of touch with the wider agreed-upon reality), you end up being perceived as a helplessly uncompromising eccentric—pure in your individualistic ethics, perhaps, but undesirable as a collaborator or cohort. For your own good, you'll probably want to court methods of greater interactivity, instead of trying to proceed without 'em.

 

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): I'm honored to inform you, precious Taurus, the planetary harbinger of growth and good luck (otherwise known as Jupiter) arrives in your sign this week (on Sat Jun 4) to stay for many months of opening your eyes, expanding your possibilities, and revealing innumerable ways for transcending what you previously thought of as unyielding limits. In other words, think of this as the official beginning of your one-out-of-every-twelve-years special-opportunity moment… and rather than merely cross your fingers and hope for the best (which isn't the worst strategy, although a bit imprecise), I strongly encourage you to spend the next couple weeks setting specific priorities as to which area(s) of your life you'd most like to explore, broaden and develop. By graceful coincidence, this week also brings a solar eclipse—in your 2nd house, where our money and other practical resources are managed—which is an especially fabulous time to separate from the old manners-of-being, and to leapfrog into new ones. The month ahead is ideal for shedding skin… and reemerging, in a big way, with a reinvigorated glow.

 

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): The show must go on, though we admit to sometimes wishing the intermission would stretch on indefinitely. We aren't always so eager to return to the scene of the critical action, to continue carrying on through the crescendo and toward the next movement, since we know our part is neither optional nor easy to play. Yet, we cannot freeze this frame forever, to bask in final moments or beg for another chance to make different choices. The march onward persists, Gemini… and any denial-laden attempts to buck the progress of time are potentially self-damaging in their wistful wishfulness. This is what has happened. You are where you are. No one's saying you should already know what the next act will bring… just that, by now, you ought to have come to grips with the fact there will soon be a 'next act,' since this last one sure looks, clear as day, to be ending.

 

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Forcing quick answers or too neat-and-tidy solutions to far-reaching problems is not a wise bet. In fact, Cancer, such a demanding time-sensitive approach to creative thinking goes totally against your current astro-forecast… which is, instead, much better suited to passively allowing alternative perspectives to gently and circumstantially sneak up on you. Banging your head against the same damn wall (or other such metaphoric expressions of desperation) will only leave you with an ouchy noggin, while consciously letting your mind wander elsewhere (and letting artificially urgent timelines go) fosters the greater cerebral freedom that's likelier to produce the breakthrough. If you can officially excuse yourself from a day or two of performing your responsibility—and I chose the word 'perform' to emphasize the efforts we often make to appear to be doing a certain thing—you'll actually increase your eventual productivity. But please note: We're going for the 'eventual', and that means wisely indulging a short-term lull first.

 

LEO (July 23-August 22): A wide umbrella of opportunity, extending far beyond the immediately adjacent boundaries of 'near here', is opening above your head, Leo. Therefore, please ensure your social-network mechanisms are in full operation, linking you not merely with the same few people you see day-to-day but with the grander 'everybody who matters to you', regardless of geographic distance or years since you last talked. I want you to confirm the working order of each interpersonal synapse, activating all your channels of acquaintance and comradeship. This is your astrological invitation to get back in touch, to catch up or link in, to experientially remind yourself what it's like to be blessed with such an assortment of interesting characters. But if you take no initiative, alas, you're likely to miss out on pleasurably insightful reconnections, some of which bear the potential to shed additional light on the very life-philosophy changes you're already engaged in making. With certain fundamentals still very much up for grabs, why limit yourself when, instead, you can increase your possibilities?

 

VIRGO (August 23-September 22): The palpable air of transition that's blown in over these past couple weeks, Virgo, is your outer-world 'green light'… signaling that, yes, you may return to concentrating on your career and/or public reputation, in order to address your next set of looming ambitions. Your mind ought to be swimming with a myriad of ideas and intricacies, great and small, which should provide you ample raw-material for any number of next-steps. (If anything, the challenge might be where to start. The good news? Anywhere will do.) The proliferation of possibilities is your proof that you've lifted yourself out of the prior situational madness, since now you can actually think about other things. But if you unfortunately haven't yet found your way out, I suggest you carve out some distance from that particular individual whose continuing emotional attachments are adversely impacting your mental independence. While you may still care about this person, you also desperately need to release your brain from any such bondage.

 

LIBRA (September 23-October 22): You're on the cusp of simultaneously 'simplifying' and 'complicating', Libra, along the lines I discussed in last week's edition. The simplification is a philosophical one… and yours to take pride in, once you can confidently settle into accepting that (1) you've already thought it all through, so nothing good will come from continuing to bat around familiar scenarios as if you overlooked a key component (which you haven't), and (2) you have every right to reach your own non-negotiable resolution, no matter anyone else's beliefs on the matter. The complications, meanwhile, are what you must deal with after having simplified things for yourself—on the interpersonal level, once you bump up against a persuasive partner, controlling family member, or seemingly inflexible institution who'll likely want to push on any limit you set, to see how firm you really are. What's crucial to understand: Though potentially frustrating, staying actively engaged in this increasingly complicated situation is actually healthy for your evolution. Here's how you can learn to openly, forthrightly disagree… and find a way forward that's based on a mutual-party breakthrough, not a one-sided caving.

 

SCORPIO (October 23-November 21): When in doubt, instigate the potentially uncomfortable conversation… as opposed to, say, quietly suffering an excruciating question-mark, which only leaves you to ride a merry-go-round of maybe-this-maybe-that until you're nauseous from the spinning. Dare you concern yourself with worrisome ramifications of revealing what's on your mind, Scorpio, let me assure you that speaking the unspoken will only put you in the power position. (Not that I'm glorifying 'power grabs', but whatever.) A somewhat-relevant piece of good news: Benevolent king Jupiter is entering your relationship house (the solar 7th) for a year, beginning this week (Sat Jun 4), a sign that you're about to go further in an existing pairing and/or dip your feet into a new one. It also points to your potential for outgrowing any interpersonal situation that leaves you little room to develop in new directions. Therefore, regardless of feared outcome, I urge you to talk your way right toward that hot-button. Whether with this person or eventually away from them, you're due for a larger presence in your relationship(s)—so stop cramming yourself back into that box.

 

SAGITTARIUS (November 22-December 21): A genuinely curious heart and a vocal willingness to gratify your curiosities are all you need to possess, Sagittarius, if you seek to learn more about what's on a certain person's mind. You're well-situated, astrologically speaking, to foster more extensive one-on-one conversation(s) with any individual(s) you'd like to understand better… as long as you're bold enough to break through a surface-tension of politeness, which may be more wisely done by volunteering something provocative about yourself before posing any probing questions to them. Once you get 'em talking, however, please be mindful not to interrupt their confessions or disclosures with the conclusions you might (prematurely?) jump to. You may detect an emotional subtlety to what they're saying that even they aren't fully conscious of yet. Let the other person's continuing understanding of him-/herself emerge organically, over time. (Nobody wants to be told how they are feeling.) For now, initiating further dialogue is the perfect gift in itself.

 

CAPRICORN (December 22-January 19): Let your imagination run wild with the zillions of possible detours, innovations and improvements—some quite reasonable, some a bit 'out there'—that you could potentially explore, as you take your day-to-day work to 'the next level'. Just because I threw in the word work, Capricorn, that shouldn't strip all the pleasurable imaginativeness out of the process. In fact, you'll soon have a largely advantageous shot at inserting more of your authentic self (not merely the 'professional' persona) into what you're doing… if, of course, you agree that's a priority for yourself. To be clear, there's no rule that stipulates you must maintain a strict boundary between (1) how you behave as a responsible worker and (2) your more natural, uncensored personality. I'm not suggesting there be no difference, only that you consider revealing more of your creative quirks and goofy nerdisms, so that 'getting serious work done' doesn't have to be so damned serious (or, sadly, joyless). You'll have to decide, though, you can better integrate your work and play modes… to the benefit of both.

 

AQUARIUS (January 20-February 18): The fun times must start, my dear, with a defiant choice on your part: a refusal to settle for not having a blast during your 'off hours', no matter what circumstances you must contend with while 'on'. In other words, Aquarius, I cannot make any promises that work pressures and/or family challenges will markedly ease up… only that there's no reason such issues should consume all your waking hours, unless you are a glutton for self-punishing obsessions. If you allow what isn't flowing smoothly to become your center-of-focus, then you can expect to experience that sense of bumpiness more profoundly. But if you appropriately cordon off the problem-area into its proper pen, you should be better able to see it in more realistic terms (rather than as some 'epic disaster', which it clearly isn't)—and thus prevent it from contaminating the other enjoyable elements of a rather decent life.

 

PISCES (February 19-March 20): Inspired by my thoughts of you, Pisces, I see an adorably intent young child sitting in front of a big pile of jelly beans, carefully counting out fair portions for both herself and her best friend. 'One for you, one for me,' she repeats each time, doling out a single candy to enjoy herself for every piece she gives to her pal. She's your model for healthy behavior: a considered balance between (1) generously offering of yourself to those you care about and (2) sustaining your own contentment by keeping some for yourself. One hour of time into the 'social' pile, one hour into the 'me' pile. One helpful-hand or shoulder-to-cry-on for someone who needs it, one heartfelt request of the same support from someone who cares. You'll disrupt this elegant equilibrium by indulging either end too indiscriminately. Do not give everything away, as if your own desires don't matter… and do not keep everything to yourself, as if to alleviate any potential discomfort in the exchange.