Slow and steady, my friends, slow and steady. July is a bright and loud and busy month, especially in the Northern Hemisphere where summer grows lushness in gardens and an abundance of buzzing insects and sunshine longer than you’d think it could last. And we’re in a world at war with itself, where illness and austerity and oppressive history are catching up with us even as we collectively try to outrun them. But maybe running isn’t the right response — it’s the fear response that we’re used to, but this month deepens us into the major theme of this year and next year: How to soothe ourselves so that we can face the dangers of the world from a place of resilience, not reaction. How to love ourselves and each other subversively — by which I mean, to love what you’ve been taught is unlovable is the first step in any meaningful revolution. We queers know how to do this, and also know that it takes time and there are days when dominant culture wins. Loving takes energy and courage, and this year has taken us on such a ride so far that we may feel low on both those resources. Grief, fear, and anger take a toll on the nervous system. Feeling these things in a world shaped by distance and isolation compounds them. We have work to do this month, but I encourage you to pace yourself. Rest, cry, hydrate, repeat.
We’re in Cancer season, which can bring big feelings and sudden mood swings. This is a tender time of year, when we’re learning about our own vulnerability and how to stay connected to others even when we’re afraid. This year, we’ve got one last eclipse in the Cancer-Capricorn polarity, with a Capricorn lunar eclipse on the 5th. This comes mere days after Saturn retrogrades back into Capricorn, so we’ve got a theme of vulnerability vs. responsibility coming up again. This eclipse closes out a cycle—what we’re learning now is how to refine the tools we’ve been building since summer of 2018.
One thing is clear right now: We need to learn how to love differently. In a way that doesn’t sweep history under the rug. In a way that doesn’t leave anyone behind. In a way that doesn’t cut corners. In a way that doesn’t use the right words but continue investing in business as usual. In a way that will help us all heal. In a way that opens up what seemed impossible. In a way that shares risks rather protecting a few at the expense of others.
These are all big dreams, and we’ll only reach them by working at the small stuff continuously. Moving between Cancer and Capricorn, we move between compassion and responsibility. We need both of these right now, and it’s important not to get caught in just one of them. If you’re just beginning to show up for larger struggles, welcome! We need your energy. If you’ve been in it for your whole life and all your ancestors’ lives as well, I see you. If you’re anyone in this world who is grieving, fighting, fearing, and trying to keep shaping what is beautiful and sacred to you in this time—I send you my love. There are a million ways to be a revolutionary in these times, and no one knows the one right way to bring this system down and grow something more beautiful in its place.
For more monthly insights, including a deeper dive into the astrology of this month, (join me on Patreon)[patreon.com/corinadross]. Only $2 a month gets you extra horoscope content every month, and for $10 or more you’ll be entered into regular drawings for free readings. I’m taking a month off from giving readings as I move across the country this month, but you can (book ahead for August at)[flaxandgold.com/readings].
Aries
Accept your work: Whatever kind of childhood you were given, it’s yours to heal from now. Maybe some of your family can help you, maybe they’re still blocking your way. In order to live into the person you want to become (for your partners, for your friends, for your children, for generations to come), you’ve got to understand what’s good about being an adult. Let go of the bad models you’ve been given and start looking for inspiring ones. Realize that life doesn’t get less magical when you get more mature.
Taurus
Accept your work: As good as you are at accepting what’s happening in the moment, you need to start believing in the future. Your comfort zone is whatever’s familiar, and you are a creature who really loves comfort. Nothing wrong with that, except when what’s comfortable and familiar isn’t actually helping you live your best life. This is a month when you’re aiming yourself like an arrow at the future, and your main assignment is to align yourself with that path, let go, and trust that you’ll land where you need to.
Gemini
Accept your work: You’re here to bring joy, laughter, and your unique perspective to the people you love. In love, you really groove on mutual delight, curiosity, and playfulness. But if you stay on the breezy, sunlit balcony of merely entertaining one another and never visit the dark basement of emotional realness, your relationships will eventually wither from lack of deep roots. Your work is to find ways of diving deep—into painful memories, uncomfortable feelings, sexual healing, and grief about the world. Do this with the people you love. Risk being real. You can always come back up for fresh air when you need to.
Cancer
Accept your work: And here you are, at the end of a two year reckoning about how you show up for yourself and the people you love. The Capricorn eclipse this month opposes your sign, reminding you of the work you’ve done over the past two years to dramatically shift how you understand relationships. Whatever changes have happened in that time, take this month to appreciate what you’ve learned. Your work now is to show up for your commitments, which means soothing the fears that come up when you let yourself fully choose and trust someone. And having a plan for how to set boundaries and ask for care that comes from a place of trust in yourself and in the people you’re choosing.
Leo
Accept your work: Trust that you are fucking stunning and then let go of the need to be constantly validated about it. Your relationship work this month has everything to do with being humble and attentive to the present moment. Let yourself be devoted in small ways, and let yourself receive love the same way. Your personal work right now is to show up for what your body actually needs, not what you think will make it more attractive. If those overlap, well and good, but be careful not to equate health with dieting. Listen to what your body’s asking really asking for, whether that’s rest or carbohydrates. Learn to love the changing way your body takes shape in this world, and trust that you will be lovable however you look.
Virgo
Accept your work: You can’t control what everyone else is doing. You can’t convince them to choose what you’re choosing. You can’t offer them whatever is working for you and have it work just as well for all of them. While this may feel frustrating, it does open up some new horizons for you—namely, that your role in any group might not be what you think it is. Instead of merely offering solutions and support, consider centering what brings you joy. There’s a trick to doing this so that it’s not just selfishness, or pulling back from a group to experience a private retreat. Consider your own energy as what you’re working on as an offering to the group — maybe what people need more than advice is someone in the room feeling calm and open. This is a skill you can learn, if you don’t already know it, but it takes practice to really do it well. This month, practice merely being present and calm during stressful times. What do you need to maintain this? What do you need to do before and after? How do you get there next time?
Libra
Accept your work: You deserve to feel safe in your home, in your relationships, in your body. Wouldn’t it be amazing if this just was just your base state? For most of you, I’m guessing it’s something you’ll need to work toward. First, identify what actually keeps you feeling centered, calm, and nourished. Next, let your loved ones know! They can’t read your mind. Even those who can shouldn’t have to. It’s your job to advocate for what will help you feel held, filled up, and able to rest and digest. Practice steps one and two as often as necessary: notice and name, then speak up.
Scorpio
Accept your work: You know how when you’re deep in your feelings the words “always” and “never” start popping up? “I’ll never date a Leo again. I’m always left out. I’ll never be attractive to the people I want to date.” Watch out for these pesky words, my friend, because your feelings are hella real but the stories they tell you — if they’re using “always” and “never” — certainly are not. This month, your work is to change the script in your head, word by painstaking word. “The way my ex-partner expressed Leo energy felt selfish to me. I feel hurt, and I’d like to protect myself from future pain by welcoming generous and empathic partners into my life.” It takes a lot longer, but it’ll get you much closer to the truth, which will indeed set you free, my dear.
Sagittarius
Accept your work: There’s something exciting about starting over, and right now you’re beginning of some kind of new adventure (even if it’s just in your mind). But your work right now isn’t to purge yourself of the past and throw yourself into the future with reckless abandon. Whatever you’re leaving right now—even if you’re thrilled to leave—it’s worth considering what you need to hold onto in the process. Don’t trash what helped you get where you are. Don’t burn all bridges as you ride out of town. Consider slowing down, establishing connection with what you’d like to maintain. Practice grounding exercises and eat plenty of protein right now, and let your forward momentum be at a gentle pace.
Capricorn
Accept your work: Do you remember who you were in 2018 and before? How have you transformed since then? The eclipse in your sign this month is the last in a pattern that began in January 2019. Since then, you’ve been learning about your core needs—who do you become in different circumstances? How do you hold onto the versions of yourself that feel best? Where is there dissonance between who you aspire to be and how you actually live? Where is there movement toward becoming more whole? All the questions coming up this month are part of a longer growth cycle. Every question you answer brings you closer to accepting your real needs and making room for your full self.
Aquarius
Accept your work: This is going to be hard to hear, my dear brilliant revolutionary genius, but your work right now is all about resting. Yes, we are in the midst of a revolutionary moment with both inspiring and horrifying qualities. Yes, the sense of urgency is strong. Yes, your insights and skills will be necessary. And yes, there are probably a lot of people looking to you to help them make sense of what’s happening or know what to do next. But here’s the thing, my sweet human friend: for as much as your pouring out into the world through action, or absorbing through research, you need to keep tapping into those quiet, still times where you can float along like a moth or a piece of dandelion fluff in the wind. This isn’t laziness, this is letting yourself be whole. You need to take seriously your work of restoring your energy and resilience through regular retreats, whether that’s a quick nap or a week of camping with no cell phone service. Let this be a time when you practice pacing yourself for the long haul.
Pisces
Accept your work: You have a somewhat fraught relationship to groups. There’s a part of you that’s drawn to group identity and another part of you that gets exhausted and needs plenty of solitude to recover from time in groups. This month, pay attention to how you move between times of togetherness (virtual or IRL) and solitude. Pay attention to how you think of yourself in relationship to your groups—are you on the edges of them? In the center? Quietly influencing? Subtly blocking? Totally merged? Off to the side, disdaining? This month, consider switching places. Notice what happens when you stop playing the role people expect from you. Notice what else becomes possible when you shift your perspective.
“Realize that life doesn’t get less magical when you get more mature.” Wow, Corina, I needed this. Thank you.
my venus, sun, moon and rising are all so relevant to me apparently i Really needed to get these messages
“Don’t trash what helped you get where you are. Don’t burn all bridges as you ride out of town.”
… as a Sag moon who has openly identified as a “slash and burn type” about to switch jobs, I feel *called out*