Astrologer and Cut columnist Claire Comstock-Gay reads the stars as Madame Clairevoyant.
Shailene Woodley, a Scorpio.
Photo-Illustration: by The Cut; Photo: Getty Images
Today, the Virgo moon gets generous support from both the sun and Jupiter, bringing you good luck — or maybe just a good mood. Right now, you can set aside your fears of the unknown, and move through the world with confidence. Even if you don’t quite know where you’re going, you can trust that your instincts will pull you in the right general direction. Your mood could sour a bit in the evening, as the moon faces off with Saturn in Pisces, but any bad feelings are likely to pass relatively quickly, so be patient and resist the urge to do something spontaneous.
When life feels overwhelming, it can be comforting to tell yourself that your actions don’t really matter anyway — you’re just one person, and the problems facing you are so big — so there’s no reason to put so much pressure on yourself to do the right thing. In reality, though, imagining that you’re powerless isn’t really any better than imagining that you’re responsible for all the world’s problems. So today, don’t swing to either extreme; just try to keep a sense of perspective. Focus on the places where you can make a difference, and let the rest go.
It’s normal for friends to disagree with each other sometimes — but even though you know this, it’s still hard not to immediately get combative when anyone contradicts you. But while you’re allowed to stand up for yourself, it can be hard to learn anything when you’re laser focused on proving everyone else wrong. Today, do your best not to get defensive. Whether or not you end up changing your mind, actually listening to what others have to say — rather than immediately trying to refute their points — will only benefit you.
It can be dangerous to place too much emphasis on making others happy. No matter how hard you try, you have no real control over anyone else’s feelings. Even when you do all the right things, the people you love might still struggle, feel dissatisfied, or endure long periods of sadness. This doesn’t mean the answer is to stop being kind to the people you love — it just means that you shouldn’t worry if your efforts don’t seem to do anything. Your compassion and generosity are making a difference, you just might not see it yet.
When you grow too accustomed to playing it safe, it gets difficult to make the most of the big opportunities when they arrive. The more you resist taking small, low-stakes risks, the less equipped you are to take the important ones. So today, try to get back into the practice of doing little things that scare you. You’ll build up your confidence, reminding yourself that you’re stronger than you thought. You’ve got plenty of courage, but if you don’t want it to wither, you have to make a point of regularly deploying it.
You tend to get irritated when people imply that you shouldn’t need external validation, that the satisfaction of a job well done should be enough. It often feels like they’re either making excuses for their own unwillingness to give you the attention you long for, or they’re trying to exploit you in some way. You’re not entirely wrong — but sometimes, it genuinely is helpful to let go of any desire for praise and fanfare, and simply enjoy the process. Today, don’t worry about impressing anyone else — at least for now, the only approval you really need is your own.
Today, remember that you don’t have to agree with what someone is saying in order to have empathy for them. You can keep loving your friends even when you think they’re in the wrong; you can want the best for them even when you suspect that they’re not making the best choices. You don’t have to suppress what you really think — sometimes, the best thing for others is to hear your unvarnished thoughts — but if you’re going to share something critical, be sure that you’re also making it clear that your love is just as strong as ever.
It’s easy to convince yourself that the problems in your life are unsolvable, that it’s a better use of your energy to work around them, not try to fix them. But if you’ve been on the verge of giving up, today might be a good time to take one more shot. You don’t need to resolve your issues in one fell swoop; just try to take things step by step. If you pace yourself, taking on one manageable challenge at a time, you might be surprised by how much easier it all gets.
You tend to hang back and observe before you take action; if you had your way, you’d always wait for someone else to act first. But even though watching and waiting might allow you to feel more in control, it’s not the most effective way to actually make things happen. If you have specific goals in mind, it’s up to you to take the initiative. Today, especially, is a good time to put yourself out there: It’s scary to make the first move, but you’ll be glad you did.
You can find it difficult to walk away from the things that are no longer working for you. You aren’t scared to face the unknown — if anything, you find it exhilarating — you just worry that you’re giving up too soon, and if you can hang on for a bit longer, things will finally start to work out. Ultimately, you’re the only one who can know what’s best for you, but today, make sure you’re not waiting around forever for a change that’s not going to come. If you aren’t getting any signs that things will improve, you might as well take the leap.
Most of the time, you try not to rely too much on anyone other than yourself. People so often disappoint you — either they do a lackluster job, or they fail to follow through — and it can be less trouble to just do it all yourself. But while this might work sometimes, it’s not sustainable in the long term; nobody can manage everything on their own. So today, make a point of asking for help, or at the very least, figuring out who you can turn to when the need arises. You have a community, and you’re allowed to lean on it.
It can be difficult to imagine that you’ll ever be any different than you are today: For better or worse, this is who you are. But while it may be true that your fundamental personality isn’t likely to change, you still have the capacity for growth. Over time, you’ll continue to learn, meet new people who change you for the better, to be transformed by new experiences. Challenges that appear impossible right now won’t always seem that way — you just need some time to grow into them.
You want to be able to trust the people around you, but sometimes it seems unwise to let your guard down. You’ve learned from experience that not everyone can be counted on to tell the truth, and that being too credulous can lead to embarrassment, or worse. But while it might be wise to approach strangers with a bit of healthy skepticism, there’s no reason to hold your friends at arms’ length. If people have proven themselves generally honest, the best thing to do right now is to actually place your trust in them.
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