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Horoscopes | Week of March 24-30, 2014

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Do not prematurely stir from your much-needed respite, Aries. And please don't dismissively guffaw if you aren't immediately seeing that this moment actually does qualify as 'respite'… at least in comparison to the even more raucous and unsettling energies which begin rocking your world in earnest next week. A lot may be 'going on' in your life, but, in fact, defining actions and on-the-record responses aren't being demanded of you right this very minute. (Hopefully, you can trust other members on your team to volley this round of replies, perhaps not exactly as you would but successfully enough to hold any deepening involvements at bay.) For now, you've got to acknowledge the high value of self-replenishment. You must unapologetically embrace that feeling of not wanting to do a single thing, if only because honoring it will help you accept that your very humanness means you aren't inexhaustible. With such honor in mind, don't do much this week. Bubble quietly in the anticipation. Much is likely to transpire in the next month, and, after a relatively restful week, you will be ready.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Professional advantage, reputational esteem, and goodwill are yours for the taking, Taurus, as long as you continue being amenable to ongoing edits, improvements, and experiments in your on-the-ground approach toward the work. You can't expect Venus-in-the-10th to do her auspicious thing if you resist these obvious pressures to shake up the routine. No matter what sign you are or how successful you've been up 'til this point, the current astrology holds few, if any, rewards for those who desperately clutch to the same recipe they've followed for years, expecting their familiar product will forevermore reap predictable returns. Pay special attention to any individuals who are expressing this evolutionary pressure in your life: They are not the adversaries you secretly dread, but instead are complicating figures whose challenges will help inspire you to get better at how you do what you do. Against the broader backdrop of not being able to perpetuate success by mindlessly repeating age-old patterns, you'd be wise to greet such a challenge not as an ego-threat but as an invitation to stretch for an upgrade. The most successful folks aren't averse to periodically changing much of what they do.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Please don't avoid the now-timely act of providing the Powers-That-Be an honest assessment of how you believe the initiatives, endeavors, and/or the organization itself are currently functioning… including mention of both the good and the bad, in order to show your opinions can be trusted. After a prior week (hopefully) filled with lots of listening, Gemini, you ought to be fairly sure of how your feedback's likely to be received, based on whether what others have been putting forth seems accurate, overly critical, or wishfully pie-in-the-sky. But no matter if your remarks will be hailed as insightful or land with an uncomfortable thud, this is still your moment to describe what you observe, experience, and/or wish to improve—for the benefit of the greater whole and for your own development as a credible professional. You mustn't get too caught up with fearful worry about what they might think about the information you offer or how to 'sweeten' your sentiments so they sting less. If someone has a loud objection, the two of you can continue batting the topic around and talking it through. This is an ongoing conversation, is it not?

CANCER (June 21-July 22): The outer landscape is undeniably changing, Cancer. Windows-of-opportunity will be opening and closing even faster, perhaps, than you'll feel you have time to respond to… though your impulses are, in fact, sharp enough to react sufficiently quickly to take advantage when a situation demands it (if, that is, you'll quit worrying about whether you can 'handle' this heightened pace). And besides, nobody catches all the fly-balls, so should a potential something-or-other pass you right by, you'll just have to nab the next one that comes along. Too many circumstantial strings are flapping wildly in the air to be tied neatly together. Some will amount to nothing; some may be your 'start of something big'. Who's to know? This unruly quality is not only temporarily inescapable, it actually symbolizes the fruitfulness of the messes we manifest when in the midst of birthing new possibilities: With all the stray fragments in a giant sloppy pile in the middle of the floor, you can more clearly see what's at your disposal to work with, in this process of cobbling together a collage-like series of next-moves. Necessarily messy, necessarily fragmented, still emerging from the womb… at this stage, how else would it possibly be?

LEO (July 23-August 22): Be sincere, present, and loving, Leo, rather than trying to save face, win favor, or create any particular impression. Say how you really feel, instead of worrying your real feelings will cause the listener to turn uncomfortable with these flagrant displays of emotion. Your vulnerability could make certain individuals stammer or squirm, especially if your relationship with them is predicated on nobody getting too 'deep' or spoiling the 'fun'. To be clear, there's nothing wrong such relationships, based on a shared interest or superficial rapport—as long as you see it for what it is, and don't rely on it to fulfill any intimacy needs. On the other hand, how amazing are those other relationships in which you don't have to think about whether your truth will be too 'heavy' for the other person… because it's already been established you have each other's backs, through thick and thin, and can talk about any- and everything. At the moment, you've got bandwidth for both surface and depth in your different relationships. Which is most important right now? And who will best fit that bill?

VIRGO (August 23-September 22): Notice your growing awareness of the value of your time, Virgo… and how your willingness to ease up on expectations and standards related to tasks which aren't, in fact, your most valuable time-investments can allow you to invest more time in those tasks which are. Though you're generally thought to be a fairly efficient worker, you can sometimes create unprofitable lags by belaboring certain points (in the name of getting everything 'just right' or, god forbid, 'perfect') when, in the grand scheme of the entire project and what you're personally earning from it, these minor details really don't matter. You're currently in a prime position to increase how lucrative your efforts are, based on economically-minded evaluations of what you spend your work-hours on—and whether there might not be more affordable alternatives, which might warrant delegating some of your duties to somebody else, that treats your own labor as the higher-ticket-item you ought to conceive of it as being. But to do that, you must prioritize your own interests as a living-and-breather moneymaker over the inanimate worth of supposedly objective results.

LIBRA (September 23-October 22): I advise you to use this week ahead to continue making any minor tweaks to your work-methods or day-to-day habits that'll impact how much you can get accomplished, Libra, pouring as much brainpower into taking care of those to-dos now… while you've still got a fighting chance at preserving an extended attention-span. If it hasn't started already, you'll soon begin witnessing some sincerely strange reactions to you from other people—and, because of the innate unpredictability of these astrological influences, I cannot tell you whether 'strange' is strangely awesome or strangely upsetting. But just so you're under no delusion you're an innocent victim of such strangeness, you should consider these happenings a type of pushback, in response to that recent edge in your personality which Mars continues to bring out. The few weeks ahead will be chock-full of exciting and/or destabilizing interpersonal goings-on (which could be romantic in nature, involving friends, and/or a part of your continued professional evolution) that are likely to dominate your attention. Get some more work done now, before developing circumstances steal your focus.

SCORPIO (October 23-November 21): Though I spy a spike in how vocal you're becoming about a particular person, priority, or purpose that's obviously got you all excited, Scorpio, I want you to simultaneously recognize that your current gratification is less likely to come from how you're received by others in your increasing vocalness… and more from consciously fostering an inner contentment that doesn't rely on anyone else's favor. Your outwardly intensifying expressiveness operates on one level, of energy-release and idea-endorsement, while there's another more-explicitly-emotional streak of introversive bliss that comes from reserving a significant chunk of yourself for yourself. I'm well aware this horoscope has already lapsed into confusing territory, as I'm trying to distinguish between two inclinations—one which moves you to assert more of your creative spirit out into the world, and one which still has much to gain from its self-nourishing behind-the-scenes maneuvers—that presently exist in tandem. My main point in making this distinction? Encouraging you to freely fling the expressive whims out there, vocal as can be, without needless preoccupation about others' impressions. Whether everyone loves or hates what you have to say, your momentary contentment still rest on the private subtleties of self-care.

SAGITTARIUS (November 22-December 21): You're now leaning into a soon-to-be-steeper slope slanting straight toward the Fun Zone, Sagittarius… and, though this slide won't happen without its fair share of puckish pandemonium, it nonetheless promises to release you from all these recent weeks of pent-up 'almost-there'-ness. Even with the continuing likelihood that certain individuals will be discouraged, displeased, or outright disgusted with what your notion of healthy mischief looks like (though, frankly, anyone who lurches all the way to 'disgust' in their judgment probably has a serious stick up their ass), I still suspect this sensation of something happening will serve as a great relief to you after this too-long span of non-committal watching and waiting. Come next week and beyond, you'll finally be ready to have it out with anyone who takes umbrage with how you 'present' yourself (ahem), concerned perhaps your behavior reflects badly on them. As we both know, you don't respond well to that sort of attempted social control. Hopefully, your actions will be less about antagonistically fueling conflict, and merely about ramping up how much fun you're having your way… dealing with any party-pooping naysayers only as their hostility leaks out.

CAPRICORN (December 22-January 19): It's one more week in which you'd be wisest to table your own intended conversation-topics, Capricorn, especially if you're actively seeking a certain outcome… and to, instead, concentrate your most caring qualities on genuinely absorbing others' tales of their present emotional experiences. Like I told you last time, this practice bestows upon you a few cherished moments away from whatever personal concerns have lately monopolized your thinking (and probably for good reason), in addition to offering you an excellent chance to affirm your intimate connections with whichever colleague, friend, or familiar-face has happened to catch your ear. But there's also more to it than that: An emotional breakthrough of your own—one which has probably been a few months in the making—is liable to be sparked, in your process of feeling into the tender sentiments being shared by others. Listening to their experiences can help you reach a new level of understanding of yours, whether through the parallels or sharp contrasts between them. Turns out, interactivity is often a better method of sorting out our feelings (even if that wasn't our original motive) than stoically holding them in.

AQUARIUS (January 20-February 18): Make your intentions known, if they aren't already, Aquarius. That doesn't mean you should start pushing people or papers or processes firmly toward said intentions, as such a forcible approach is not what the planets presently have in mind. Rather, under Venus's benefic guise, you need use only a gentle touch… the power of suggestion… a decidedly unattached-to-outcomes (but not necessarily neutral-in-opinion) manner of presenting your ideas that gives all parties lots of freedom to chew on them, to ask supporting questions without feeling threatened or problematic, and to decide to agree with you on their own time. The more insistent, impatient, or haughty you are in your attitude toward those who aren't yet on board, need further information, and/or might end up disagreeing with you, the less assuredly you can count on Venus's blessed influence to advantageously nudge you along. If you're indeed confident about where this is all headed (even if you aren't certain of either the methods or the timeline), you ought to be totally open to talking through the principles which underscore your intent with anyone who's interested. Lest they actually have a substantive concern with your thinking, you'll only profit from sincerely taking it into account… even if you later, after fair consideration, dismiss it.

PISCES (February 19-March 20): Before we launch full-speed into an April to remember, I want you to deliberately freeze right where you are, Pisces… and to take a full-body snapshot of this moment in time, so you remember its undeniable perfection as it presently exists. Pretty soon, there won't be much opportunity to be so intentional in your appreciation for what already is, wrapped up as you'll likely be in exploiting the promise in situations which unexpectedly present themselves, along the road to another undeniably perfect state-of-being that's sure to look quite different than this one. Before all that happens, please take stock of the beauty in what'll soon be a memory. Review the last several chapters in this strange story that ended you up here , perhaps where you hadn't expected to be but where you nonetheless find yourself for good reason. This is no fluke. Consider the other characters neither saviors nor demons, merely agents of the Divine with whom you've collided destinies, having escorted each other down some proverbial aisle to this point. Maybe you'll go farther together, or perhaps you'll part ways. But you, as your own individual, will soon begin to resemble someone other than the person you showed up here as. You're at a divergence point. Celebrate your surroundings, gratefully, before proceeding onward.