closer than it looks
As a child, I was confused by the message that appeared on my car’s rearview mirror: Objects in the mirror are closer than they appear. It still takes a minute or two for my brain to adjust to what I’m being told, I guess…things seem far away, but are they close? I think?
It’s a Mercury-Jupiter dilemma, this idea of near and far, detailed and abstract. “Can’t see the forest for the trees,” we might say to Mercury-oriented people because they focus on details and miss the big picture. It’s like getting too close to a Monet landscape and complaining that it’s a bunch of little smears of paint. Or, “Your optimism is writing checks that your income level can’t cash,” for a hopeless Jupiter optimist who tends to fall into financial overextension.
Mercury in Capricorn opposes Jupiter in Cancer this week (January 14, 2026 at 12:17 AM PST). In Capricorn, Mercury is quiet but fairly confident, focused on what needs to be done today to achieve Jupiter’s long-term vision. Jupiter has a way of putting Mercury’s myopia into perspective. The challenge this week is to keep a firm grip on the wheel while keeping an eye on the future.
love and work
When I’m asked what I do for fun, I usually reply, “…I work?” I’m not very good at relaxing and enjoying myself, and it seems that once I develop a creative hobby, I find a way to turn it into a business.
When I think about it, I think what I really enjoy is business. Yes, I’m lucky enough to have found a way to make a living doing something I truly love, but I’m not going to lie – it took a lot of time for Saturn to make it work.
Venus symbolizes the things we enjoy. Now, it’s moving through Sagittarius, a sign where Venus tends to love nature, books, learning, and freedom. as Venus meets Saturn This week, during the opportunity-oriented sextile (January 14, 2026, 10:19 PM PST), an invitation or idea may appear on the crossbar, leaving you wondering: Can you combine something you love with your career? Maybe you have a book inside of you that just needs the discipline of Saturn to find its way out. Or maybe you meet someone who works remotely, is on the road in an RV, and has the freedom to enjoy some of the most beautiful natural spaces in the world as their office, and you think to yourself, “Well, actually…”.
Can you make a living doing what you love, where you love? It’s easy to love Venus. But can you also love and embrace Saturn?
Change is as good as rest
during a busy week Venus trine Uranus (January 15, 2026, 7:22 AM PST) Enter Aquarius (Saturday, January 17, 2026 at 4:43 AM PST), there is some degree of overlap in experience. In modern astrology, Uranus is associated with Aquarius because both symbolize a reckless, rebellious, and unpredictable quality. Uranus likes to change things, while Aquarius likes its distance and breathing room, and a certain benevolent indifference to the world in question.
As Venus links and forms signs with this planet this week, their influence can bring a joyous disruption to relationships. No matter how content and comfortable you feel in your relationship, over time things will become stale and boring unless you make an effort to change your routine and fun. As the saying goes: “Change is worse than rest.” Even the smallest changes in your daily routine can be incredibly refreshing!
so much love
as Venus sextile Neptune (Saturday, January 17, 12:33 AM PST) This week, we’ll take a closer look at beauty, grace, music, and all the things that make life enjoyable.
Even though we need to put in a little effort to find beauty and harmony, what is life without beauty and harmony? I love flowers, but biting cats prevent me from growing them indoors. Fortunately, there is a small patch of wood sorrel outside my north-facing office, an unbearable yellow that looks delicate, fragile, and delightful under the sometimes flat, gray skies of January. My work is not meant to be set to music, but I smile at the sound of the early winter wind blowing the wind chimes, the diligent woodpecker attacking the telephone pole, and the sound of the cat chirping at him outside the window.
Venus and Neptune together remind us that no matter how fierce the winds of change, there is so much tender beauty all around us, so much to hear and enjoy, and so much to love.
When to stop trying so hard
I’ve spent many happy hours making bread over the years. At some point during the process, kneading the dough becomes counterproductive, becoming tight and stiff and refusing to take shape. So, you have to let it rest. Cover it with a towel and leave it on the counter for half an hour or so. Go have a cup of tea and pet the cat. When you come back, you’ll find that both you and the dough are happier and more relaxed.
This is a lesson Sun in practical Capricorn sextile Saturn in imaginative Pisces (January 17, 2026, 2:41 a.m. PST). What is the key to happiness? It’s the happy alchemy of knowing who you are, what you want to be, and when to stop trying and let things happen.
Take part in a reindeer race
Personal ambition shines brightest during Sun in Capricorn season. It’s that time of year when we think about what we’re going to build, achieve, and create within ourselves over the coming year.
But being a happy person means balancing the primacy of the individual with the human need to be part of a group. Twice a year, when Sun trine Uranus (January 17, 2026, 8:59 AM PST), harmony seems to prevail: We like ourselves and others like us.
It was a brief transit, but illuminating. Seeing personal ambition solely through sunglasses is isolating. Here’s a day or two for reindeer games and simple fun. The world needs leaders and lone wolves, but we also need each other.
Now let’s go
All great things begin with passion, an impulse that connects us to the vital pulse of the world. Sit with this passion long enough and you’ll discover a story that begs to be expressed.
Now stay there for a moment and imagine sharing this story in various ways. You pick up a guitar, or sit down at your drawing table, and write a story, or make a YouTube video. Finally, you find your path and set off, fearlessly sharing your passionate stories.
This is the trajectory of Mercury’s last three conjunctions with Mars. The first is on October 19, 2025, in Scorpio, where passion is activated; on November 12, 2025 in Sagittarius, the essence of stories and the desire to share them with the world arrives. And now, with Mercury and Mars conjunct in Capricorn (January 17, 2026 at 11:40 PM PST), About Sabian Symbol 27 Capricorn: Pilgrimage to the mountains, We started climbing. We book concert venues, draft blueprints, and create video storyboards. We bring passionate stories to life.
read the tea leaves
No matter what the calendar says, New Moon in Capricorn (January 18, 2026, 11:52 AM PST, 28°43′ Capricorn) is the perfect time to make resolutions. It’s not just 2025; each new moon begins a new lunar gestation cycle that lasts for several years—plenty of time to do the important things.
This new moon point trines Uranus, the planet of awakening, and is tailor-made for transforming old patterns and opening ourselves up to new inspiration and change. It is sextile to Saturn and Neptune, preparing to leave the mysterious sign of Pisces, and seems to be related to the New Moon’s Sabi 29 Capricorn, A woman reads tea leaves. We think Capricorn is very practical, but it also has a spiritual side. At this new moon, pursue what is important to you, but remember the why behind what you are doing.
ignition
Mercury’s Capricorn season is getting a little more subdued, following its jubilant move through boisterous Sagittarius. Mercury in Capricorn usually dislikes small talk and only likes to talk when they have something important to say. This is a no-nonsense Mercury, perfect for using the ideas of Mercury in Sagittarius to create something lasting.
in this week’s Mercury sextile Saturn (January 18, 2026, 8:09 PM PST), with a passion for planning and strategy, lays out a step-by-step plan to make one of these ideas a reality. Keep the details under wraps for now until you’re ready to launch your project, perhaps next week when Mercury enters Aquarius.
A few hours later, Mercury trines Uranus (January 18, 2026, 9:38 PM PST), providing the catalyst, the prompt, the match to light the fire beneath these details and ideas. Grab a pen and paper and put your great ideas into action. This is lightning—so be prepared to seal it up.
Text and images © 2017-2026 by April Elliott Kent
