Astrologer and Cut columnist Claire Comstock-Gay reads the stars as Madame Clairevoyant.
Lisa, an Aries.
Photo-Illustration: by The Cut; Photos: Getty Images
With positive energy flowing between Mercury and Jupiter — in water signs Pisces and Cancer, respectively — you’ll be better than ever at thinking creatively and communicating clearly. The problems you had assumed were unsolvable might prove simpler than you thought; if you approach them with optimism and a sense of adventure, you’ll discover that anything is possible. In the evening, however, as Venus and Pluto square off in Taurus and Aquarius, interpersonal conflicts could take precedence; do your best to settle things respectfully.
The more you tell yourself that you have a responsibility to do something meaningful with your life, the more stressful every day gets. Nothing you accomplish seems to be enough; there’s always more you imagine you could be doing. But today, try to let go of that mindset, at least for a moment. While there’s nothing wrong with being ambitious, there’s nothing wrong with finding happiness in the small moments, either. For now, focus on enjoying what you have, rather than striving for something better.
It can be easy to mistake others’ curiosity for judgment — when they ask about your decisions, they so often seem to be prying; when they inquire why you did something a certain way, it’s easy to imagine that they’re subtly indicating disapproval. But when you take a defensive posture, expecting that everyone’s approaching you in bad faith, genuine connection becomes difficult, if not impossible. Today, try to operate from the assumption that when your friends ask questions, they’re doing so out of a real desire to learn and understand.
You’re great at responding to situations as they come up, but not always quite so good at planning ahead. The world is changing so fast and so unpredictably that it hardly seems worth preparing for the long-term. But just because the future is uncertain, that doesn’t mean your efforts will be wasted. Today, especially, is a good day for making long-term plans: You’ll inevitably have to adjust them as you go, but having an idea of what you’re aiming for, and roughly how you think you’ll get there, will be more helpful than you think.
You sometimes imagine that your main purpose is to make everyone else’s lives easier: to support your friends, to help your community, to improve the world around you in whatever small ways you can. But while your love for others is unquestionably a good thing, don’t use it as an excuse to neglect yourself. Today, remember that not every move you make needs to be rooted in altruism; your life is no less important than anyone else’s, and you’re allowed to do some things simply for yourself.
The more you’ve been let down in the past, the less likely you are now to trust others, especially new people. Though you recognize the value of compassion, part of you worries that people will just take advantage of your empathy, that you’d be foolish to give anyone the benefit of the doubt. Today, though, there’s no need to be so stringent. Being kind to the people you encounter is always worthwhile; it’ll make your life better, even if not everyone “deserves” it.
There are plenty of people in your life who you like and respect, but don’t feel particularly close to. Maybe you enjoy their company, but you never seem to connect on a deeper level; maybe they’re an important part of your broader social circle, but you don’t ever spend time together one on one. Today could be a good time to strengthen these sorts of relationships by having serious, thoughtful conversations with those people. If you want, you could finally go from being casual acquaintances to genuine friends.
In theory, you can recognize that it’s important to give others space to be themselves, to live on their own terms. In reality, though, it can be frustrating: So often, people seem to use that freedom to make all the wrong decisions, and to make your life more difficult along the way. Today, though, it might get a bit easier to trust that your friends know what they’re doing, even if it’s not what you’d choose for yourself — and you can support them, even if you don’t fully agree with their decisions.
It isn’t always possible, or even advisable, to avoid arguments. Handled respectfully, they can be clarifying; hashing out your disagreements with your friends can help you understand each other better, and can mean that you’re better equipped to meet one another’s needs. But just because conflict can be useful, that doesn’t mean it’s always the best option. Today, it should be possible to avoid getting drawn into ultimately unimportant arguments, and to simply enjoy other people’s company.
You know that not everyone in the world is trustworthy, but you also don’t see the point of being suspicious of everyone you meet. You’d rather take them at their word until they give you a reason to doubt them. But today, you might get the vague sense that you’re not getting the complete story — and if so, make a point of asking a follow-up question or two. You don’t have to accept the first answer you’re given: If you have doubts, or simply need more information, ask.
Collaborating with others can quickly get frustrating. The more people are involved in a project, the more opinions and preferences and communication styles you have to navigate, and the more potential there is for conflict and misunderstandings. But today, don’t worry too much about the possibility that things will go wrong. Remember that other people aren’t just sources of potential problems — they also have support to offer and valuable ideas to share, and right now, their contributions will more than make up for any added stress.
The longer you struggle with a big problem without seeming to make any headway, the easier it is to get overwhelmed. You look at how far you still have to go, and can convince yourself that you’ll never succeed. But that’s not really true, it just feels that way because you’re discouraged at the moment. So for now, instead of stressing yourself out with the enormity of the problem in front of you, break it down into the smallest possible pieces. Taking things one little step at a time will get you farther than you imagine.
When a certain skill comes naturally, or when you have an idea that seems obvious, it’s tempting to dismiss it as unimportant. If something is easy for you, you imagine, it must be equally easy for everyone else, too — and therefore, it can’t be particularly valuable. But while this might be true in some cases, don’t be too quick to downplay your own unique talents. There’s no need to overcomplicate things: Just doing what you’re good at can sometimes be the most meaningful way to contribute.
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