Mercury in retrograde and Eeyore
Mercury is in retrograde. That is my excuse — well, one of them. My new favorite. That’s why I’m feeling so negative and cranky.
Apparently, Mercury began to move backward in the heavens this week, foreboding bad mojo because it goes against the planet’s natural movements. That’s what astrologists say.
Astronomists, however, have a different explanation. Since Mercury is so much closer to the sun than we are, its orbital speed is faster, circling the sun in a mere 88 days. Its path is also more elliptical. So, a couple of times a year, Mercury laps us here on Earth, and creates an optical illusion, kind of like a car passing a slower-moving car on I-10. It appears, for a moment, that the faster-moving car is backing away. But the truth is — the car is not reversing on the interstate, and Mercury isn’t hurtling backward through the cosmos. It’s just a matter of perspective, the way I see it.
Hmm. It’s only my perspective. Back to that. Dang! My brand-new best excuse for being in a lousy mood, confuted by science.
But this is good news. Changing the way I see things seems far less daunting a task than trying to get a planet to behave. I’ve actually devised a system. It may seem a little hokey, but I swear, it works for me.
First, I have to accept the science — or in this case, the psychology — that the way I perceive things when I’m in a foul mood is never the whole story — and often not even a true story. Mercury is not flaunting the laws of physics. I am not fated to have a “bad” day.
With that established, I then ask myself three questions; I usually write down my answers.
What went right yesterday? (Or last week or at that ridiculous business meeting, or during that tense family gathering.) What went right? Something always went right. I write it down.
The second question is this: Who was a blessing to me yesterday? (Or this morning at the gym, or at my own dinner table last night?) Who contributed to my life in a positive way? Again, I can always think of someone who has encouraged me or embraced me in some way.
And the third, and most challenging question is this: How did I shine? Of course, when I’m feeling like Eeyore, it’s hard to appreciate myself, but there is never a day when I completely suck at life. I love the old gag — “I’m not a complete failure; some parts are missing.” I write down that missing piece.
As it turns out, yesterday wasn’t a terrible, horrible, no-good day. It was a really good one, when looked at through a different lens. I didn’t even have to think too hard to get Mercury back in line.
What went right yesterday? My dear friend’s cancer scans came back clean as a whistle.
Who was a blessing to me? A person I didn’t even know approached me at Publix to tell me how much her elderly father is enjoying my newest book.
How did I shine? I remained kind when treated harshly. I didn’t lash out. I actually wrote a little sign and taped it to my monitor, “High Road. Take it.” And I did.
I didn’t have time to wait two weeks for Mercury to resume its prograde motion through my night sky so that I could relax. Though clearly, I’m not an astronomer or physicist, I find that I don’t have to understand all the mysteries of the cosmos to have faith in the stars.
