My Monday Morning Mishap

I’m a big advocate of what I call “Practical Rituals,” Reader.

They help me stay grounded and keep me organized.

One of my standard evening rituals is to plug in my iPad across the room from my bed and open the alarm clock app I use. The app has my wake-up times for every day of the week pre-set. This sets me up for my morning rituals.

Pro Tip 1: Having the alarm across the room forces me out of bed to turn it off.

This week on, Monday morning, the alarm didn’t go off.

Although the iPad was plugged in, it apparently wasn’t charging, so the battery drained. 😔

Once I got up, I plugged it in to charge while I got ready for the gym.

Then I couldn’t find my Beats Fit Pro ear buds.

I generally keep them plugged in overnight in the bathroom, with my Apple Watch.

Pro tip 2: This ensures I’ll keep moving because I try to get a stand goal for every waking hour in my day.

But my ear buds weren’t in their usual charging place.

Ok. Maybe I forgot to plug them in last night?

I checked the night stand. No.

I checked the dresser. No.

I checked the desk. No.

Maybe I forgot to take them out of my bag when I came home?

I checked the pocket of my gym bag where I always keep them. No.

Sunday nights I do flying trapeze, so I checked the pocket of my trapeze bag where I sometimes put them. No.

By this point I was starting to panic… because I don’t lose things.

So I stripped the bed. Because…. you know how you start looking in places where the thing definitely couldn’t be?

It wasn’t there.

I emptied out my entire gym bag, thinking maybe . No.

Maybe they were in the car? I went out to check. No.

I went back upstairs and emptied out my entire trapeze bag. No.

And then, sitting on the floor surrounded by a mess, I found them.

They were in the outside water-bottle-pocket of my trapeze bag.

The last place they should be. I have never put them there before.

By the time I found them, I wasn’t even relieved. I was just annoyed.

I spent 30 minutes hunting for my ear buds, making me even later for the gym than I was already made by the iPad malfunction and oversleeping.

More important, the act of trying to remember or think about where my ear buds might have been drained cognitive resources and executive function skills I desperately need.

In top of that, one of my ADHD meds has been out of stock for well over a week. So l’ve already been operating at a reduced capacity.

It was not a good start to the day.

A Classic “Mercury Retrograde” Example

As all of this was going on, one of my first thoughts was

Of course this is happening today. Mercury just stationed retrograde:

That’s right. Mercury stationed retrograde in Virgo just after midnight eastern time Monday.

And both of my morning mishaps are classic examples of things that people usually blame on “Mercury Retrograde.”

Tech malfunctions. Delayed travel. Broken contracts.

Something going missing that you have to look for is literally the most on-point symbolism of Mercury retrograde, which is in part about going back to retrieve something.

Before I knew anything about astrology, I had been hearing about the infamous Mercury Retrograde.

It’s very common when tech snafus happen to just be “oh, Mercury Retrograde,”

but here’s what I want you to know:

Planets do not cause events to happen. They mirror what is happening.

Also, to be sure, this was not the first time my iPad didn’t charge overnight. It was the first time I lost my ear buds.

When we blame “Mercury Retrograde” we actually bypass the ability to do the work of Mercury Retrograde.

(This applies to all planetary transits, by the way.)

So, what is the work of Mercury retrograde?

First, it’s important to know that Mercury Retrograde happens 3-4 times a year, for 3 weeks at a time. So it’s pointless to be afraid of it and unrealistic to shut down life because of it.

Because it happens approximately 3-4 times per year, I think of Mercury Retrograde as a period for quarterly review.

Mercury Retrograde is a 3-week period that invites us to review what’s working and what’s not working, revisit decisions, and refine systems in a certain part of our lives.

When something like my Monday morning mishap happens at the start of a Mercury retrograde, I take it as a sign — a “homework assignment” if you will — of where I need to focus my review.

Knowing what area of my life this is falling in helps gives me some focus as to where I need to review my systems and shore them up before moving forward. (Your birth chart will tell you that information.)

Looking at Mercury retrograde through this lens is more constructive and empowering than just blaming Mercury Retrograde. In this framework, I’m not a victim of Mercury retrograde (or of my lack of ADHD meds).

In fact, I really love Mercury Retrogrades for the reminder to slow down and be intentional.

Used in this way, astrology becomes a very practical tool for productivity and personal growth, rather than something that is “deciding my fate.”

Yes, tech snafus can happen — and we might be more aware of them during Mercury retrograde — but this period of time just reminds us to shore up our systems and create space in our schedules for unexpected delays.

Pro Tip 3: A healthy dose of self-compassion also helps.

That’s a good practice every week of the year.

What’s landing for you? Hit reply and let me know.

xoxo,

Renee

PS: In my upcoming course on Practical Astrology, I’ll share more specifics on how to work with Mercury Retrograde and how to know what area of life it’s directing your focus to. You’re already on the VIP list so hold tight for more info!