VIRGO HOROSCOPE

Born under the zodiac sign of work and service, Virgos are hardwired to lend a helping hand without a second thought. This is fine if people are respectful, but not so great if they assume that you will just drop everything you're doing to race to their rescue. This can turn into a form of dependency where they don't even look at a problem, but simply pass it along to you. Bring this to an end on May 30th by teaching a friend to stand on their own two feet. They won't love you any less as a result. If anything, they'll appreciate you more.

You know what you're good at. You fill a certain niche at work, produce top-quality results, and are always on call when someone needs you. It's gotten you far and you like it. That said, your job performance has come to the attention of certain superiors who would like you to take on more. They see you as someone who could run things more smoothly and increase efficiency. The question is: do you? It's flattering to be held in such high regard, but think about the lifestyle changes and whether they're worth it. Nobody's ready to make the offer yet, but they will be soon.

Many things will be said that you wished had remained unsaid when Mercury squares Mars on May 18th. Mars has no problem fighting dirty and Mercury will weaponize the closest word handy; yet it's not the fight that's at fault, but the means being used to win it. Nobody ever wants to acknowledge using private confidences and tender moments to inflict pain – but the sooner you do, the sooner the other party will follow suit. Altercations like these are never pleasant, but if they can serve as a deterrent against ever doing anything like this again, then that means some good has come of it.

There are certain times when you have to abandon the flight plan and just wing it. It's a frightening prospect but as a Virgo it's entirely possible that you could spend your life at the drawing board carefully drafting all kinds of layouts and plans that never go anywhere. In fact you’re never going to know if you’re even capable of achieving your goals and ambitions as long as you see them as works on paper. Thankfully circumstances surrounding the Mercury/Jupiter sextile on May 5th promise to push you out of the nest – thereby forcing your spirit of invention to take wing and fly.

Times of uncertainty present great opportunity if you know how to seize the moment. People think of these moments as grand and heroic. They imagine grabbing brass rings that are bold and larger than life. You learned a long time ago that game-changing moments often appear disguised and come in small (rather than big) packages. This will become abundantly clear on May 4th when something you've been studying at a distance starts to show potential. Maybe it was forgotten, neglected, or even misplaced. In any case you know just what to do with it and the timing – along with the circumstances – couldn't be better.

Are your choices moving you forward or backward? It's a question worth asking this week. Born under the zodiac sign of work and service, it's easy to let your obligations to others take the wheel. You will always put their needs ahead of yours. Yet this can also be a form of passing the buck and that's something you need to own when Venus conjoins Saturn in Pisces on April 24th. If you truly want to continue in a relationship, great; if you're returning to it because it's safe and familiar then you may be robbing yourself of the chance to follow your own path.

It's not every day when you're seized by a creative impulse that can be implemented immediately. Usually you're full of questions and doubts about whether it's even feasible. Well, that's a thing of the past as Ruling Planet Mercury conjoins Neptune on April 17th and then sextiles Pluto on April 20th. This transfer of light sets up easy access to your imagination so that you are guided by your mind's eye (or ear) rather than being left on your own to reconstruct something glimpsed in a millisecond. This active partnership is something you can look forward to as a regular collaboration moving forward.

Mercury retrogrades are always dicey, but this latest one (March 15th to April 7th) was especially unruly because Mercury began its retrograde on the day after the Lunar Eclipse in Virgo and then changed signs on the day of the Solar Eclipse in Aries on March 29h. This would have heightened the feelings of anxiety and combativeness which explains why rude awakenings were ruder and shocking surprises were even more shocking. Although you deserve to be in the free and clear, you won't be until April 20th. That's when the wayward pieces of your life will come back together and things will make sense again.

You've learned that it always pays to play the long game. Where others rely on quick-fixes to get ahead, you have always put your faith in doing things right the first time. Yes, this may slow down your pace but it works for you later on when competitors have to go back and salvage situations that have come apart. That said an extremely rare Saturn/Uranus sextile on April 4th shows you need to pick up the pace. Part of you will worry about being rushed, but remember the prep worth you've done. It's the reason why you can move into the lead and maintain it.

For some time, you’ve been trying to figure out how to preserve most – if not all – of what you’ve built for yourself financially, but that’s just not going to happen. A Solar Eclipse in your solar eighth house says you’ll have to pay something for your freedom which means the time has come to grit your teeth and rip off the band-aid. It will certainly hurt (Aries is the zodiac sign of “no pain no gain”) but you may be surprised to discover that your losses aren’t so bad. Not only will you feel exhilarated about your decision, but you’ll also be revitalized and emboldened.