Mercury Retrograde
Mercury, the planet associated to communication, learning, conscious mind and intellectual memory, turns retrograde about three times a year.
Even though Mercury activations by transit are different for every person depending on his/her birth chart, we all feel the effects of Mercury retrograde to a certain extent.
Communication (at all levels), travel (moves, trips, etc.), commercial activities, all things related to contracts and manual tasks tend to be impeded or delayed during the time Mercury is retrograde. Basically, subjects just mentioned are perceived by people in a different way. On one hand, people tend to review those activities in detail instead of doing them automatically, which leads to doubts about the best way to proceed and therefore delaying their completion. On the other hand, communication is not so smooth, producing misunderstandings either because the speaker does not express ideas clearly or because the listener perceives the content hazily.
It is usually recommended to avoid if possible signing of contracts, important sales/purchases, moves, trips, events where communication is a central element and publishing when Mercury is retrograde, in order to prevent errors of judgment and reduce setbacks. However, this is not always feasible, in some cases because we have to face pending lessons in these kind of situations and in other cases, simply because we cannot paralyze our activities.
Try to schedule activities ruled by Mercury for dates when this planet is not retrograde, but if this is not possible, remember that you should pay special attention to everything you write, say, listen and read documents very carefully before signing them, in order to minimize misinterpretations. If you are waiting for events related to the subjects ruled by Mercury and they get delayed (either if they depend on you or someone else), keep in mind that all cycle needs a maturation phase. Therefore, do not despair over any delays or obstacles and reflect about the factors at play to achieve a thorough comprehension of your own process.
It is usually convenient that certain activities or decisions are postponed when Mercury is retrograde. This delay can help us to reconsider our course of action, to revalue our priorities or simply be more aware of our current circumstances. Mercury retrograde can bring obstacles or deferrals, but its objective is to impose some sort of brake that compels us to revalue whatever has been obstructed. Thanks to this reconsideration, we can prepare ourselves better, rectify if necessary, change our plans to act in a more productive way when Mercury is direct again or simply focus our energies on other activities that need a higher priority that the one we have conceded them so far.
As the rune Nauthiz teaches us, "when fishermen cannot go to the sea, they repair their nets".