Once again, Mercury is in retrograde, as it began on December 29, 2022 (the day we had to put our dog down), and it continues until January 18 in Capricorn. However, there are some upsides to Mercury retrograde, as I explained in a piece I wrote months ago on Medium.

Mercury represents communication, travel, and thoughts. Retrograde planets appear to go backward, but they aren't really going backward.

As a result, the energies of that planet will change regardless, so its internal points will strengthen while its external powers will weaken.

Because of this, you can expect miscommunication, missed emails, texts, mail, power outages, forgotten appointments, and broken appliances and vehicles.

The situation is frustrating, and misunderstandings make it easy to get into arguments.

In other words, making big decisions, signing contracts, or starting anything new should only be done if you have no choice (consider everything carefully and think it through).

This is a great time for finishing up old projects, cleaning, brainstorming, planning, and consulting a therapist, a psychic, a tarot reader, or an astrologer for insight. It is also the time of fated events.

Since you're here, let's look at a tarot spread from Emerald Lotus that can help you navigate Mercury's retrograde energies.

Mercury Retrograde Tarot Spread

Mercury retrograde tarot spread by Miriam Rachel.

It's a five-card tarot spread, with the top left card representing what the retrograde has in store. The tarot deck I am using is the Penguin deck. This reading reveals the Ten of Swords as the first card.

The second card to the right of card one represents the interruption the retrograde will cause.

This is the Seven of Swords. A significant shift will occur in the third card on the right. The Ace of Cups represents that.

In the bottom left corner, the Ten of Pentacles shows up, which tells you what to pay attention to during this time.

Finally, the fifth card, a Ten of Cups, illustrates how the retrograde can benefit your karmic path. Let's examine this in more detail in this Medium article.