Welcome back to the Essential Astro Cast.

I am your host, Veronica Perretti, and
this is the podcast that you listen

to when you want to know what's going
on up in the heavens, so that you can

dictate your fate down here on Earth.

Let's all take a deep breath.

It has been a minute.

I apologize for being absent.

I realized when I started doing some
notes for this episode that we've not been

together since October 2nd, so that is
a very long time and I did not intend on

being away for the past eight weeks or so.

Someone in my house has
been sick at every moment.

Mostly not me, but, it's been challenging.

So this is the life.

my son started preschool this September,
so from what I understand, we should

expect him to be sick 50% of the
time, which means that we are going

to be sick probably 25% of the time.

Anyway, I am back here with you
today and there's so much happening.

I want to really just boil it down
to the essentials because this is the

essential Astro cast, and I don't wanna
overwhelm you with too much information.

Since we last spoke, a lot has shifted.

We are in what we call retrograde
season here in the Astro world.

It doesn't mean much, it just means that.

All of the outer planets
pretty much are retrograde.

Pluto is not, but the rest of us
are retrograde and that's fine.

Saturn and Jupiter and Saturn
and Uranus and Neptune, they

are all moving backwards.

So we.

If you've been with me for a while, if you
were at my year ahead workshop in January,

or if you were listening to the podcast
back in the early part of 2025, you know

that I have been talking about 2025 as
the year that is like a movie trailer.

To 2026 and really the next three years,
like 2026 through 2028 in a lot of ways,

because we had a taste this summer of
all of these outer planets being in new

signs, and it is extremely rare to have
five outer planets move into new signs

within weeks and months of one another.

In November of 2024, we had Pluto
move into Aquarius for good.

So he was back and forth for a few years
between late Capricorn and early Aquarius,

and he's an Aquarius for good now.

So we're really experiencing our first
true taste of what Pluto and Aquarius.

Is gonna be like, you know, it's like
you came to the restaurant and you got

a little am moose B when you sat down
at the table, and now we're like into

the appetizers and we're getting an idea
of what this meal is gonna taste like.

So that's Pluto.

But then we had this summer,
pretty much spring, summer, we had.

Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and
Neptune all go into new signs.

So this was very, very rare to have these
four planets move into new signs in such a

short time span, so close to one another.

So we are experiencing a big shift
in our collective consciousness now.

Of course, because planets retrograde,
these planets are moving back into the

previous signs, or at least some of them.

So we have Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune,
all retrograde currently in the

signs that they were in previously.

So the signs that we were
experiencing them in in 2024

and the years prior to that.

So we are.

In this moment where we're doing
a lot of reflection, we're doing a

lot of reconsidering, we're doing a
lot of healing, we're doing a lot of

tying up loose ends, and inevitably
we're doing a lot of releasing.

So this week and this time period that
we're in, in general feels like we're

finishing up a lot of old business.

So I'm gonna repeat that because
I wanna make sure you heard it.

This is a moment in time where we are
finishing up a lot of old business.

That doesn't mean that
things aren't moving forward.

That doesn't mean that good
things aren't happening that are

going to carry us in the future.

But a lot of our mental bandwidth is.

Perhaps being taken up with things that
we have to finish up with, things that

we need to clear with, things that we
want to tie up the loose ends on so that

we can start fresh when these planets.

Go into these new signs for the second
time, which will be the real time.

So it won't be the amuse
bush, it'll be the appetizer.

so when that happens in 2026,
we're gonna be ready for it.

So whatever you're tying up, whatever
you're finishing up, whatever you

are clearing up, whatever you're
decluttering, this is certainly the time.

And even more so because
it is Mercury retrograde.

So of course while we have not spoken
in a few weeks during that time, mercury

retrograde, because Mercury retrogrades
three times a year, sometimes four.

And it is really okay.

It is totally okay.

In fact, I think it's really
good planets retrograde because

that's what they're meant to do.

And if we only ever went forward,
how would we know where we've been?

You know, life is putting one
foot in front of the other, but

we also have to turn around and
appreciate where we came from.

Otherwise, the path ahead would be
a lot less sweet if we didn't have

those moments of turning around and
saying, wow, look how far we walked.

So.

If you are feeling a little frustrated,
know that this is an opportunity.

Mercury retrograde is an opportunity.

These other planets.

Being retrograde is an opportunity for
you to reflect, for you to clean up some

things, for you to re reconsider things,
and for you to recalibrate because the

summer was, felt like astro whiplash.

So much happening, so much new
energy that we're working with now.

We have an opportunity with these
planets, you know, Saturn and Neptune

back in late degrees of Pisces and
Uranus back in the late degrees of ta.

we have an opportunity to recalibrate
with the energy that we've been

used to prior to this summer.

So I think this is a youthful time,
and I know, at least for me, I've

been doing a lot of decluttering in
my own house, I hosted a Halloween

party for my son's friends, I was
canvassing for our local Democrats.

Here we're gonna have a brand
new mayor here in my town.

I was knocking on doors that was a lot
of mental bandwidth for a few weeks.

The election was my primary focus,
even amidst all of those exciting

new things that were happening, I was
feeling really called to declutter.

To clear out, and that is an indication
to me when I have that nudge.

I love doing that.

It's one of the ways that I soothe
myself because I'm a moon in Virgo,

but it indicates to me that there is
some new energy that wants to come in.

if you are feeling that pull, honor
it and know that mercury rich grade

is a fantastic time to do some
decluttering and to review and

reconsider what's important to you.

What do you wanna keep?

What's taking up space in your closet is
that dress that's too small constantly.

Filling your brain with negative thoughts
when you go to get dressed in the morning,

are those books that you're never gonna
read, making you feel bad about yourself.

Every time you look at your bookshelf or
your nightstand, just reconsider, what

do I want my brain to be filled with?

Because mercury is our thoughts.

It's how we understand information.

How we process it and make sense of it.

Mercury is the messenger.

So one of the things that might be
coming up for you with this Mercury

retrograde is that Mercury might be
showing you things that you need to see

that you weren't able to see before.

And so we're seeing this
happen in the collective.

Of course, I'm gonna bring in politics,
big, big news over here, in the

States with everything coming out.

These emails regarding Epstein and.

A certain fellow living in the
White House, and we're getting

a lot of information, right,
and not just about that fellow.

We're getting a lot of information
about a lot of fellows.

So if you're following this, it does
feel like a drip, drip, drip, but this

also feels very mercury retrograde.

That we're getting little puzzle pieces
dripped out, and we're gonna start

to put that puzzle together, which is
one of the metaphors I use for Mercury

retrograde all the time when we talk
about it, is that you start to get

these puzzle pieces and then Mercury
goes direct and you have these moments

of clarity throughout the retrograde.

And then when Mercury goes direct,
you start to put the puzzle together.

And so we're having a little bit of that
experience right now collectively as well.

So Mercury retrograded on Sunday, November
9th, and he retrograded in Sagittarius.

he is in Sagittarius from
November 9th to November 18th.

On November 18th, he will
move back into Scorpio.

He will be retrograde in Scorpio moving
backwards through the last degrees of

Scorpio until November 29, and that is
the day that he will station direct.

Mercury retrograde is often
associated with things.

not working, whether that's your
phone or your email or whatever,

and I had an experience of that.

I've had a few experiences like that.

Today I was searching for an email
from someone from my son's school,

and then I realized there was another
email from another person from my son's

school that I had never seen before,
and I was like, oh my goodness, I just

messaged this woman about this yesterday.

So we're gonna have experiences
like that, which are classic Mercury

retrograde, but we're also going to
have experiences that are much more

emotional because Mercury is retrograde
in a fire sign and a water sign.

So Mercury retrograde and
Sagittarius, it's really

having us question our beliefs.

Because Sagittarius is ruled by Jupiter.

Jupiter is associated with our belief
system and what we feel to be true,

what is aligned with our truth.

Jupiter is the.

The, the wise one, the teacher, the guru.

You can think of Jupiter as the
force that helps us expand and grow.

Now, a lot of people in modern astrology
love to say, Jupiter is the blessings

and the abundance, and that is.

Totally true, but anyone that has
had a guru, I am one of those people,

they will tell you that that is a
very hard experience and often an

experience that leads to a big let
down because human beings are fallible.

And the growth and expansion that we
experience in the let down is often even

bigger than the growth in the experience
and expansion that we experience from

the learning, the formal learning.

So.

Retrograde, Jupiter, ge
stationed, retrograde.

So Jupiter is the ruler of Sagittarius.

Mercury is retrograde and Sagittarius.

And this, Tuesday, November 11th, which
was Veterans Day here and Remembrance

Day in Canada, we had Jupiter retrograde.

And this is a wonderful opportunity
for considering all the growth

and all the expansion that
you've experienced since June.

As well as the lessons, and sometimes
the growth and the expansion

comes in the flavor of hard times.

It comes in the flavor of
difficulty, and that's okay.

Jupiter is exalted in cancer
where he is right now.

so there is more energy of
sweetness, of goodness, of receiving

goodness because cancer is a
feminine sign ruled by the moon.

But it's emotional and there's
a lot of emotional stuff coming

up for all of us right now.

water signs are emotional and we've been
working with a grand trine in water in

the sky, off and on for a few weeks.

So with that, please know that if you've
been feeling super emotional, that is

totally to be expected while Jupiter
going retrograde is not a huge deal at

all when he stations to retrograde or
when he stations to go to Iraq, just

like any other planet, that is when
we're gonna feel it most intensely.

So this week you might be feeling
like, Hey, I need to take a moment.

And just honor where I've been since
June and what is growing and expanding,

what is asking for my attention, what
is asking me to show up with wisdom?

I apologize if you hear any noise.

My cat is just not leaving me alone today.

So my son is taking a nap,
but my cat is certainly not.

Um, so moving on, I wanted to mention
that Mercury will move into Scorpio,

as I said, and Mercury moving into
Scorpio is going to be emotional as

well, you know, in a different way.

Mercury and sage is certainly emotional.

It can make us a little restless.

Like we wanna get out and do something.

we wanna go climb a mountain, we wanna go.

Run and we wanna go on vacation,
we wanna just take off.

of course we have everything going
on with the flights and the airlines

when Mercury's retrograde and sag.

SAG is foreign travel.

moving on to Mercury and Scorpio, that is
gonna be emotional and more of a feeling

of, I don't wanna escape or run away.

You might feel like you're
being called to dig deep to

plumb the depths of your psyche.

You might be called to.

Do some really deep work, clearing
out some of the deeper stuff, in

your emotional body, and that can be
something that comes up with Scorpio.

Scorpio is also associated with
intense loyalty and intense

grudges, so you might notice.

That people pop back into your life
that you feel a sense of loyalty to,

or people pop back into your life
that you feel a big grudge against.

So pay attention to who shows
up during Mercury retrograde.

You always wanna pay attention to who
is showing up in your texts, who shows

up in your social media, who shows
up, you know, at the grocery store.

Maybe you run into someone
that you went to college with.

Before we move on from Mercury retrograde,
I do wanna mention that two important

moments in this Mercury retrograde are.

The conjunction to Mars that we
experienced on Wednesday the 12th.

That was a day where you
might've felt a lot of pent up

frustration or anger come out.

Collectively, we saw those emails
really hit a fever pitch on Wednesday

into Thursday, so not surprising
with that Mercury Mars conjunction.

Mars often is a severing
or a cutting away.

So if there was someone in your life that
you had to release or someone in your

life was releasing a belief that they
held, that could be the Mercury Mars.

maybe you've been waiting to end something
to let go of something and you finally

took the stuff to Goodwill, or you finally
had the conversation, or you finally made

the decision internally, even if you're
not gonna take action on it quite yet.

Those are some ways that the Mercury
Mar conjunction on November 12th

might have manifested for you.

So just a reminder that.

We use retrogrades.

To reflect, to reconsider,
and to recalibrate.

So give yourself the space to do that.

This season, it is also Scorpio season.

We have the sun in Scorpio, so the
sun in Scorpio is a time when we honor

sa, which is Halloween of course.

And we, there is a belief that
the veil is thin between the

material and the spiritual realms.

So it is inherently a very good time to be
doing the emotional work of clearing out.

it is inherently a really good time
to reflect on the year that's been

and what you want to be putting
your energy toward as we come

to the winter solstice and 2026.

I will be teaching my year ahead
workshop, which I do every year.

It's called Dictate Your Fate, A
Workshop to Embrace the Year Ahead.

we will be doing that,
I believe the first.

Week of January, so stay tuned
on the exact date and time.

I'll be updating you on that
after Mercury goes direct.

I am mulling over a lot of things
for 2026 right now in my business and

terms of teaching and workshops that
I'm gonna teach and taking on more.

One-on-one reading slots
and things like that.

So I'm really looking at my
schedule and my son's new schedule.

He's settling into a new schedule with
school and he's going to bed later,

So I'm taking all of these things into
account, this Mercury retrograde, and

after the Mercury retrograde is over.

And we move toward winter solstice.

I will be, sharing some of that with
you and also sharing the date of that

year ahead workshop, which is really
my favorite thing to teach all year.

I love teaching it, And it's so
much fun because a lot of the people

that come, come every year, so they
have in their journal many years of

intention setting practices for that.

Your head workshop, which is really
lovely, and of course we talk about

all of the astrology coming up, and
2026 is going to be a big banner year.

Remember, 2025 is the trailer of a
2026 as the start of the movie, so

we're gonna have a lot to talk about.

Stay tuned on that front.

Okay, so Mercury retrograde,
we're not even done with that yet.

So much to talk about with Mercury,
he is going to join with the

sun for what we call the Kami.

And the Kami occurs
every, mercury retrograde.

It's the halfway point of the retrograde.

So.

When the Sun and Mercury join
together on, November 20th,

we'll have the Mercury Kami.

though that's usually a moment of
clarity amidst to the confusion.

So look for that that day.

It's also.

The day of the new Moon and it's a
new moon in Scorpio at 28 degrees.

So I think this is really interesting
because this new moon is going to have

a grand water trine in it with the sun,
and the moon of course at 28 degrees.

And then they will be making arine to
Saturn and Neptune at the late degrees

of Pisces and Jupiter and cancer.

So this is going to be a really
interesting New Moon because

it is at the late degrees of
Scorpio, which is inherently.

A part of the chart
that calls for release.

It's a part of the chart that calls for
us to let something go, probably something

that we're clutching onto really, really
hard because Scorpio, again, loves to be

very loyal and loves to hold a grudge.

They dig in.

Scorpios are fixed signs, they like
to dig their heels in and stay put so.

If there's something that you are
really reluctant to let go of, but

you know it's time, this New Moon,
it's gonna be a really wonderful time

for you to gather yourself, gather
your confidence, and make it happen.

And if you're not quite ready at the
New Moon, nine days later, mercury will

station direct, and then you'll really
be ready to start to move forward.

the New Moon is going to be an opportunity
for releasing for the death of something.

And death of course can be just the end.

It doesn't mean leaving our physical form.

It can be an opportunity to transform into
someone or something new, or to transform

something in your life into something new.

And the thing with Scorpio is that,
you know, the sign of Scorpio is

a sign that is very resilient.

So it teaches us about going through the
hardships so that we might experience

the transformation and thus the rebirth
and the New Moon is certainly going

to pave the way for that opportunity.

Something else I wanna mention to
you just as a little note, like a

little PS on this episode of the
podcast is that we have Jupiter and

Saturn in a trying to one another.

So while all of this reflection and.

Reconsidering and tying
up loose ends is going on.

Astrology is never black and white.

There are always cycles that
are layered upon one another.

Right?

So this is interesting.

Jupiter and Saturn are
in arine to one another.

Now it's not exact, but
it's so flipping close.

Because it's so flip and close.

It really is a trying now it's
not going to be exact until August

of 2026, which is so funny 'cause
they're very close right now.

But this is interesting 'cause if
you think back to June 15th, that

was when Jupiter squared, Saturn.

That was the opening square
to their conjunction.

This is a 20 year cycle that we
are working with, and Jupiter and

Saturn coming together, they can
joinin every 20 years, and it's

called the Great Conjunction because
these 20 year cycles give us an idea

of what humanity is working with.

Jupiter and Saturn are the.

Planets that have to do with
our relationship to our society.

So Jupiter and Saturn coming together
is really interesting and they're

always strange bedfellows 'cause
Jupiter's expansion and Saturn is

restriction when they come together.

It's kind of like this little magical
moment that plants a seed for 20 years.

So in December of 2020.

You might remember me talking about that
time there was around Christmas you were

able to see Jupiter and Saturn in the sky.

People were calling it
the star of Bethlehem.

It is believed that that might
have been what those three

wise men were referring to.

the idea is simply that every 20
years, this gives us a little bit

of a understanding of the chapter of
humanity that we are in at the moment.

They joined together in Aquarius
at zero degrees Aquarius, which

is really, really important.

There is a sense of purity when you
have zero degrees of a sign and having

Jupiter and Saturn join at zero degrees.

Aquarius was kind of felt like, oh
my goodness, this is a new era for

humanity because for 200 years we
had them meeting in earth signs.

Now this is an interesting
part of this cycle.

In 1981, we had a little blip
when Jupiter and Saturn met in

Libra, which is an air sign.

But other than that, they met in
earth science for 20 years and now

they will meet in air signs for
200 years Every 20 years they meet.

But for 200 years they meet in
the signs of the same element.

So we went from 200 years of
earth, these the great conjunctions

occurring in earth signs, and now
we have entered a 200 year period.

Of Jupiter and Saturn
meeting in air signs.

Now, earth is about what is tangible.

It is about growing wealth.

It is about growing resources.

It is about, you know.

The shoes on your feet,
the roof over your head.

Air is about connection.

It's about ideas, it's about ideals.

It's about how we talk to one another.

It's about sharing words.

It's about communicating.

It's about community.

it's much more about people and how we
connect from the intellectual space.

So.

It'll be interesting to
see what this looks like.

All of that is to say that something
was seeded for you in December of 2020

that we got a little look at in
June when we had the opening square.

And now they're working together.

So what was going on in June that maybe
was a little bit tough and now maybe

you're getting a little more flow with,
and you're gonna get a little more flow.

In August when they officially trying.

So just think to yourself, yes,
I'm in a moment of reflection.

I'm in a moment of release.

I'm in a moment of finishing up old
business, but there's something really

wonderful that is also coming together
that was seeded in December, 2020.

And maybe you had no idea what it was.

It was a glimmer of a thought, but now.

It's starting to come to fruition.

You're starting to see how
that's evolving, so just put

that in your back pocket.

I hope this was helpful.

I love being here and
chatting with you guys.

I will.

Hopefully be back next week.

make sure that you are on my email
newsletter because I still send emails

even if the podcast hasn't come out.

So make sure that you're
on my email newsletter.

go to veronica perretti.com

to sign up and I will
talk to you next week.

All right, take care.

Bye.