December 26: Cancer Full Moon
The Cancer Full Moon on 7:33PM ET on December 26, illuminates your kin and kindred. This relational lunation is the last of 2023, arriving just after the Winter Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere. We are halfway through the lunar time of year when we spend more time indoors. The Solstice is the mid-way point between Equinoxes. There’s three long cold months till Spring. This lunation spotlights who we’re gonna snuggle up with during our hibernation.
The Moon waxes to fullness at 04°58 Cancer as millions gather with their families to celebrate Christmas, highlighting the people inside the walls of our home. Capricorn erects the structure and fortifies the parameter, but Cancer, ruled by the Moon, fills it with people. The Moon is connected with the polis, the common folk. Our family are people we inherit. We don’t choose them, and even if we don’t like them, they define our lives from the inside out. Our family members could be people we’ve danced with through many past lives and feel deeply tied to, or cosmic strangers we have nothing in common with besides DNA and upbringing (which is a lot). No one thinks the holiday season is easy, and this lunation will put a spotlight on the dynamics of your intimate relations. Notice what is revealed: is it an easy love or a difficult negotiation? A bit of both?
The Sun is in a sextile with Saturn at 02° Pisces, inviting us to strengthen our emotional boundaries while showing up with love. Cancer can be quite codependent because it fears being left out in the cold. Saturn, the planet of form, moving through a most amorphous part of the zodiac until 2026, anchors our attention in the felt quality of our experience. How does it feel inside the nest? Notice if vulnerability brings up your defenses. The grand water trine with Venus in Scorpio and Netpune in Pisces is heightening our desire to connect deeply, but if those impulses are not received, we could have a big reaction thanks to the Mars-Mercury conjunction in Sagittarius.
Sun enters Capricorn December 21, 2023
The Sun enters Capricorn at 10:27PM ET on December 21, the hardworking earth sign that desires to build something significant in the world. Capricorn’s ambitions may manifest as a drive towards personal greatness, but the broader purpose of this goal oriented energy is towards safety and security for the most vulnerable. Cancer is Capricorn’s polarity, reminding us not to forget our family and loved ones in the climb to the top. The ruthless miser Ebenezer Scrooge is a Christmas cautionary tale for what happens when Capricorn loses its heart.
It's easy to miss out on life when we’re always trying to get somewhere better. Mercury retrograde in Capricorn is traversing the underworld reminding us that life is short. No one knows how long we have on Earth so all we truly have is today. Winter is historically a time of death, and people slip more easily behind the veil during Mercury retrograde. The Solstice reminds us that each moment we get to spend with each other is truly precious. A fleeting gift.
Mercury is waiting for the Sun at the Solstice degree and goes cazimi at 00°40 Capricorn at 1:54PM ET on Dec 22. This peak of the retrograde cycle at the Solstice infuses this turning point with a new way of operating.
Our relationship to work, money, time, and resources got a major overhaul in 2023 with Mercury retrogrades happening exclusively in earth signs. We conclude the year with a Mercury retrograde that began in Capricorn on December 13 and moves back into Sagittarius on December 23, initiating us into a new cycle of retrogrades in fire signs in 2024. Mercury stations direct on New Years Day so don’t be surprised if the new year gets off to a slow start.
Mercury moves back into Sagittarius at 1:17AM ET on December 23, and meets with Mars who is completing its journey through the mutable fire sign. The testy conjunction with Mars and retrograde Mercury at 22°24 Sagittarius, in a square with Neptune in Pisces, peaks on 7:31PM ET December 27, but it is certainly activated at Christmas. This is not a great week to have a “big talk” as anything you say will just have to be revised once Mercury stations direct. The Sun at 05°36 Capricorn trines Jupiter on December 27, so whatever arises shouldn’t destabilize us too badly. It could be that Mars provides the impetus for harmonious commitment and development.
If things do go a little off the rails, you’ll have an opportunity to revisit the situation in early January, once Mercury starts moving again. Mars gets a sense of strength from outward action, but Mercury retrograde is a mysterious internal process. The best course of action is to notice what arises within yourself and seek to work it out in the new year. Mercury and Mars will meet again in mid-Capricorn on January 27, which will be a more accurate assessment of whether your situation has any lasting power.
Venus enters Sagittarius at 3:32PM on December 29, bringing a little levity to help us trot into 2024. Venus in Sag has a ‘centaurs just wanna have fun’ ethos that's enjoyable when it's not avoidant. Have a good time on New Year’s Eve, but try not to do anything you’ll regret. Venus squares Saturn at 03°18 Pisces at 8:26AM ET on January 1, 2024, so you won’t be able to skip out on being accountable in the romantic realm.
Jupiter goes direct at 05°35 Taurus at 9:40 PM on December 30, and will conclude its tour through Taurus by May 25, 2024. Whatever got initiated in May 2023, will develop more fully over the next 5 months. The Jupiter-Uranus conjunction on April 20, is going to make a big bang. Enjoy the quiet and stability of the Winter because Spring is going to be wild.