New Moon in Cancer

Mid-July is packed to the brim with dramatic shifts. Between July 17th and 22nd, everything seems to switch over on us. On the 17th, the same day as the new moon, the lunar nodes switch signs, initiating us into a new year and a half long eclipse story along the Aries-Libra axis. Then, Mars and Venus, the current custodians of the nodes, both run into internal and external obstacles. On the 20th, Mars opposes Saturn, subjecting us to the whiplash of being stopped in our tracks.

On the 22nd, Venus stations retrograde, pumping the brakes on her own inclinations. On the same day, the Sun squares the nodes and enters Leo, which will likely make this retrograde station an eventful one — normally, we can see the writing on the wall by the time a planet pivots backwards, but there might be some climactic plot twists served at the 11th hour and a distinct sense of “that was then, this is now.” For the rest of the summer, we’ll be reassessing matters of the heart, dwelling on the authenticity of our desires, and playing with aesthetics. Whatever sets us off in mid-July might feel heavier, and full of big emotions, than what results from a summer of trying new affinities on for size and indulging our most extravagant whims. 

Back to the Cancer New Moon: there’s something profound about the moon renewing itself in its own sign as the moon’s nodes are initiated into a new chapter of their own, given all of the high drama surrounding that shift. We’re about to go through some big changes around what we want, how we go about getting what we want, our own self-image, and how we maintain our sovereignty in relationships. As we step across that threshold, the new moon is an opportunity to fertilize our imagination with potent symbols of things to come and to listen to what our bodies are asking from us in the midst of so much eventfulness. When you choose to honor what you hear today, you seed the potential for a more attuned mind-body connection in the months to come.  

This new moon also sits opposite Pluto, trine Neptune, and sextile Uranus. In dancing with all the outer planets, the Cancer moon locates itself in a very personal moment that feels contextualized by a lot of things that feel much bigger than us, that are larger than the scope of our individual lives. This is a “feel your feelings” moment concerning both the events that feel beyond you, and the events that are hitting close to your heart. Though the opposition to Pluto might bring up stormy, intimidating feelings, the soft aspects to Neptune and Uranus make this a potentially productive lunation for exercising your imagination, softening into a flow state, and opening to an expanded sense of possibility.

Steph Koyfman is a writer and astrologer best known for her work as Lady Cazimi. She is an ardent student of archetypes and is a big fan of using language to poke at the layer of metaphor that encapsulates our experiences.