Plan Ahead: These 3 Astrological Trends Will Shape Your Summer

It’s the Summer of Love…with an asterisk

This might be the most romantic news we’ve had all decade: On June 5, ardent Venus checks into romantic Leo for an extended four-month stay. Better yet? Lusty, assertive Mars is also in Leo until July 20, raising the erotic stakes to a scorching-hot high. The pursuit of pleasure is on for us all, so unleash the scroll-stopping selfies and PDA that exhibitionistic Leo lives for.

Now for the catch: Venus will be retrograde from July 22 to September 3. This plot-twisting six-week cycle has the power to turn stable relationships into soap operas, exhuming ghosts of the past—including exes or issues that you didn’t quite resolve the first time they reared their ugly head. If you’re otherwise engaged when a former flame hits you up on Snapchat, stick to your boundaries! If possible, wait until the retrograde ends on September 3 before making irreversible moves.

We realize this is not the best news for summer weddings planned between July 22 and September 3, but, fear not, we have a workaround! Plan for a vow renewal on your first anniversary. Venus will not be retrograde a year after your wedding, since its backspins only take place every 18 months. Or, as our astrological friend Susan Miller advises, tack on a (secret) City Hall wedding before July 22.

New social justice luminaries will emerge to mobilize the masses

With an ever-growing grab bag of restrictive, repressive laws being enforced, the political climate is becoming unbearable for anyone who doesn’t fit neatly into a box marked “The Patriarchy.” Be on the lookout for more vociferous, courageous leaders to emerge after July 17. For the first time in 20 years, the lunar nodes shift into freedom-fighter Aries (north node) and justice-seeking Libra (south node) until Jan. 11, 2025.

“The Justins” already set this in motion. Back in April, the Gen Z Tennessee lawmakers (Justin J. Pearce and Justin Jones) led a gun control protest on the Tennessee House floor only to be unjustly expelled from—then reinstated—to their seats.

The lunar nodes are not planets, but rather points in the sky that—according to astrology— direct collective karma, destiny, and spiritual evolution. The Aries-Libra node cycle, which last occurred from December 2004 to June 2006, is here to help us figure out which battles are worth fighting…and how best to do “combat.”

Labor Day travel will be hectic, so proceed with caution

Alas, we have another summer hiccup to mention. Mercury spins retrograde in finicky Virgo from August 23 to September 15, which could throw a wrench into Labor Day fun. Consider yourself notified and start planning, ASAP. Book your beachfront cottage or festival transportation now and get ahead of Mercury’s schedule-scrambling retrograde. Traveling in a group? Collect payments in full and agree upon cancellation policies up front so no one gets stuck covering for a last-minute dropout. (And there will be at least one of those.) You want your Burning Man trip to go off without a hitch…with the possible exception of a trailer hitch, that is. Bon voyage!