bridging season & the summer of leo
+submissions for a Q&A along with horoscopes for your rising sign
A WORD ON THE NEW MOON
We’re just coming off of the New Moon in Gemini, it went exact at 24º on June 14th. Here are a few considerations:
Anything begun around this time is to be revised. Mercury in Cancer, the ruler of this lunation, hit its preshadow degree back on June 12th and will station retrograde on June 29th. These next two weeks are primarily about things not going according to plan, questions we might have, systems breaking down, and opportunities showing their cracks. This is a highly malleable time! As I am forever a Mercury retrograde apologist, these are some of the best routine transits in my opinion. The purpose of Mercury’s retrograde is to eventually provide clarity, but of course, clarity is most palpable after a period of confusion.
This is Mercury’s journey to the underworld. It acts quite differently from how we may talk about the other inner planets, Venus and Mars, and their retrograde journey to the underworld. In the Venus story, everything seems to be happening to her or in partnership with her. She is the thing being transformed and our experiences can be quite dramatic and relational as a result. In the Mars story, there is a battle taking place and Mars revisits the actions that he’s taken to get to where he is, alchemy occurs as a result of conflict.
In a Mercury retrograde, Mercury is the guide of the journey, less so the one being transformed. They are the psychopomp, tasked with transitioning souls to rest in the underworld and delivering messages through the dream state. Mercury is the bridge, between dead and alive, waking and sleeping, one phase to another. We may find ourselves being guided through a transition in our lives during these periods, even if it is just the transition into another state of mind.
During a Venus retrograde, we are at the mercy of our partnership mirrors for understanding, while the point of Mars retrograde’s lesson may not be about understanding at all. But during a Mercury retrograde, messages are constantly and sometimes literally available to us if we are able to listen. Failure is a divine map and we may pray to Mercury for our next steps and actually receive them in return (even if they come after a necessary delay).
This New Moon links the Gemini and Cancer sectors in our personal charts too. Mercury can never be too far from the Sun and as such, it often provides a bridge from one sign to another, showing us how foundational each sign and house is to the next. In Gemini we learn to speak, write, analyze and in Cancer we learn to forget half of all that and rely on something more intuitive or irrational, but Gemini’s coding is integral, not separate, to that. You can only skip steps after you know the steps in the first place.
We should keep in mind too that Mars will ingress Gemini on June 28th, just one day before Mercury stations retrograde. Mars will then journey to conjoin Uranus on July 3rd, and this is a big part of our personal Mercury retrograde stories, but it's also important to broader U.S. history (we discussed the significance of Uranus in Gemini to the United States in another newsletter).
Mars-Uranus in Gemini ruled by a Mercury retrograde is a violent time for the mind. This is a time where significant and unexpected information may come out after being concealed, catalyzing sudden directional shifts. On a national or global level, this certainly has the power to symbolize a significant event. Our last Mars-Uranus conjunction, for reference, was on July 15th, 2024 during the attempted assassination of President Trump.
That being said, I don’t want to sensationalize this on a personal level. Sometimes this looks less like crisis and more like an overdue breakthrough arriving all at once, and without major chart activation, plenty of these aspects pass without much racket. Though it will, of course, be more important for those who have placements in the first 10º of mutable signs (Gemini, Sagittarius, Virgo, Pisces) as the conjunction exacts at 3º Gemini. If you have planets or angles active at this time, consider what is being catalyzed and clarified for you.
Mars especially represents the act of severing something. It could be a pivotal moment of liberation from a decision or from a state of ignorance. Mars tends to provide us with a plan of action that severs ties with what was once stagnant, though we may want to wait until Mercury stations direct on July 23rd to make any life altering decisions, if we can help it.
THE SUMMER OF LEO: IDENTITY CLEARING
artwork by Miroco Machiko
Now that we’re over halfway through June, it’s time to start introducing the upcoming Leo transits.
At the end of the month on June 29th, the same day as Mercury’s retrograde station, Jupiter enters Leo. This is one of the more important transits of the year as it will collide with Pluto, the South Node eclipses, and eventually a Mars retrograde. This is not a typical Jupiter in Leo transit, but we should still look to the last time Jupiter transited this sector of the chart, without the expectation that this time will be exactly the same. Jupiter was last in Leo from July 2014 to August 2015 but with none of the added drama that we’ll have this year.
It’s still valuable to take note of what expanded at that time and what facets of identity flourished into completely new territory. Some of those significations remain the same: creativity, self expression, and whatever house themes were active for each of us personally.
This time though, there’s simultaneous growth and decrease happening all at once due to the copresence and eventual conjunction to the South Node of Fate. I imagine this has to do with a careful examination of how we might be performing in ways that are detrimental to the kind of growth we want to experience. Leo’s daimon is here to discover complete authenticity but it may first rub up against insincere, counterfeit roles– likely from habit or default.
I’m revisiting an article written back at the Leo Full Moon, right before the first Solar eclipse in its opposite sign, Aquarius. Here’s what I wrote in February in preparation for this nodal cycle:
This is an uneclipsed lunation in Leo before a series of major transits begin to reshape this sector of the chart. Beginning Summer of 2026, the South Node and Jupiter will both move through Leo, signaling a prolonged period of identity clearing, expansion, and confrontation with what has outlived its usefulness. This process is further reinforced by the Saturn-Neptune conjunction in Aries, which dominates the year and speaks to the dissolution and rebuilding of foundational identity structures.
While Jupiter is often framed as optimistic, its upcoming opposition to Pluto at the start of the transit, followed by a conjunction to a retrograde Mars midway, suggests that growth here doesn’t feel particularly easy, this is not whimsical business. Power dynamics, misuse of authority, and the exposure of false or contorted identities are likely themes.
Taken together, the activity on the Leo-Aquarius axis points to something meatier than simply discovering who we want to be or which groups we belong to. There is a fervid forging process underway and it's one that asks for sacrifice, honesty, and a willingness to confront the cost of becoming more fully oneself.
We’ll also have some of our regularly scheduled Leo transits, Venus has already ingressed Leo to start us off but we’ll see the Sun and Mercury in Leo as well. Here is a full line up of ingressions and other major transits to this sign for the rest of 2026:
June 13 - Venus enters Leo
June 29 - Jupiter enters Leo
July 20 - Jupiter opposes Pluto
July 22 - Sun enters Leo
July 26 - South Node enters Leo
Aug 9 - Mercury enters Leo
Aug 13 - Solar eclipse in Leo
Sept 27 - Mars enters Leo
Nov 5 - Mars rx enters preshadow at 20º Leo
Nov 15 - Mars conjoins Jupiter
Dec 12 - Jupiter stations rx
ANONYMOUS ASTROLOGICAL Q&A
RISING SIGN HOROSCOPES
Read for your rising (ascendant) sign, you can calculate your birth chart here.
Aries rising:
The New Moon activates your 3rd house, beginning a new chapter around communication, writing, learning, siblings, and your immediate environment. Mercury, ruler of this lunation, is moving through your 4th house, suggesting that conversations and ideas are leading you back toward questions of home, family, roots, and emotional foundations. What you're learning externally has something important to reveal about your inner world. The next several weeks may expose gaps in plans or assumptions, but those revisions help you better understand what truly supports you.
This summer, Leo energizes your 5th house. Jupiter's arrival asks you to examine creativity, pleasure, romance, and self-expression. Yet growth here comes alongside a shedding process. You may discover that certain performances, identities, or ways of seeking attention have outlived their usefulness. The invitation is to create from authenticity rather than habit.
Taurus rising:
The New Moon falls in your 2nd house, bringing attention to resources, finances, values, and self-worth. Mercury's position in your 3rd house suggests that information, contracts, conversations, or new skills are directly shaping your relationship to security. What you believe and how you speak about your capabilities may become just as important as material circumstances themselves.
This summer, Leo activates your 4th house. Themes of home, family, ancestry, and belonging begin a significant period of expansion and clearing. You may be outgrowing inherited definitions of stability. Growth requires distinguishing between genuine roots and obligations you've simply carried for too long.
Gemini rising:
The New Moon occurs in your 1st house, marking a personal reset. Questions of identity, direction, appearance, and self-definition are all up for revision. Mercury, your ruler, is moving through your 2nd house, linking this reinvention process to your values, finances, and sense of self-worth. Who you are becoming may require a new understanding of what you truly value.
This summer, Leo energizes your 3rd house. A major cycle of learning, writing, teaching, speaking, and local activity begins. Yet as opportunities multiply, there is also a process of discernment underway. Not every message deserves your attention. Part of your growth involves becoming more selective about where your voice is invested.
Cancer rising:
The New Moon activates your 12th house, drawing attention toward endings, retreat, dreams, and the unconscious. Mercury traveling through your 1st house acts as a bridge between private reflection and visible self-expression. Insights emerging from solitude may soon require a more conscious embodiment. What is being revealed now is still taking shape.
This summer, Leo activates your 2nd house. Questions of income, resources, and personal value move into focus. Expansion is possible, but this transit appears less concerned with accumulation than alignment. You may be asked to release outdated attachments to security in order to build something more sustainable.
Leo rising:
The New Moon falls in your 11th house, bringing developments among friends, communities, audiences, and future aspirations. Mercury in your 12th house suggests that behind-the-scenes processes are influencing what comes next. Certain dreams may need revision before they can fully emerge into the world.
This summer marks the beginning of a major cycle in your 1st house. Jupiter, the South Node, eclipses, and eventually Mars all move through Leo. Identity itself becomes the project. Growth and release occur simultaneously. You may discover that becoming more fully yourself requires relinquishing versions of yourself that once felt essential.
Virgo rising:
The New Moon activates your 10th house, opening new developments in career, reputation, visibility, and public life. Mercury in your 11th house links professional shifts to communities, networks, and long-term aspirations. Conversations with friends, collaborators, or audiences may provide crucial information about your next direction.
This summer, Leo energizes your 12th house. A quieter but profound process begins. Identity clearing may happen through retreat, closure, healing, and release rather than external achievement. Something is ending so that a different chapter can eventually begin.
Libra rising:
The New Moon occurs in your 9th house, encouraging exploration, study, travel, publishing, or philosophical inquiry. Mercury in your 10th house connects these expanding horizons to career and public visibility. What you're learning now may eventually reshape your professional path or public role.
This summer, Leo activates your 11th house. Communities, friendships, and future goals undergo significant growth and refinement. New alliances may emerge while others naturally fall away. The question becomes whether your networks genuinely support the person you're becoming.
Scorpio rising:
The New Moon activates your 8th house, drawing attention to shared resources, debts, intimacy, trust, and transformation. Mercury in your 9th house suggests that perspective shifts, education, or spiritual inquiry are helping you make sense of deeper transitions. Answers may arrive through study, travel, or encounters with unfamiliar ideas.
This summer, Leo energizes your 10th house. Career and public identity enter a pivotal period. Recognition and expansion are possible, but so is a confrontation with outdated ambitions. Success may require redefining what authority and achievement actually mean to you.
Sagittarius rising:
The New Moon falls in your 7th house, highlighting partnerships, agreements, and important one-to-one relationships. Mercury in your 8th house suggests that deeper questions of trust, vulnerability, and shared obligations are intertwined with whatever begins now. Relationships may reveal hidden dynamics that require further examination.
This summer, Leo activates your 9th house. Travel, teaching, publishing, spirituality, and long-range vision all become areas of expansion. Yet this growth asks for honesty. Certain beliefs may need to be relinquished before new wisdom can take root.
Capricorn rising:
The New Moon activates your 6th house, bringing attention to work, health, routines, and daily systems. Mercury in your 7th house suggests that partners, clients, or collaborators play a significant role in shaping these changes. The revisions ahead may reveal where greater cooperation—or clearer boundaries—is needed.
This summer, Leo energizes your 8th house. Questions of intimacy, shared resources, inheritance, debt, and psychological transformation move center stage. Growth here is rarely superficial. You may find yourself releasing attachments that have quietly defined you for years.
Aquarius rising:
The New Moon falls in your 5th house, encouraging new beginnings in creativity, romance, pleasure, and self-expression. Mercury in your 6th house suggests that practical realities, work demands, or health routines are helping shape how creative impulses are ultimately expressed. Inspiration benefits from structure.
This summer, Leo activates your 7th house, bringing major developments in relationships and partnerships. Because so much activity occurs on the Leo-Aquarius axis, others become important mirrors. The process is not simply about finding the right people but understanding which relational identities are no longer authentic.
Pisces rising:
The New Moon activates your 4th house, bringing new developments around home, family, ancestry, and emotional foundations. Mercury in your 5th house creates a bridge between private life and creative expression. What is happening within your inner world may seek an outlet through art, romance, play, or personal passion projects.
This summer, Leo energizes your 6th house. Work, health, routines, and service become sites of significant growth. Yet the emphasis isn't merely productivity. You're being asked to examine which habits genuinely support your vitality and which have become performances of responsibility rather than expressions of it.
Comments