As we step into the last quarter of 2024, we feel the astrology of 2025 and 2026 looming on the horizon like storm clouds moving closer. Thinking about the outer planet ingresses ahead feels similar to watching a tempest gaining strength. Shifting currents are inevitable, powerful, and beyond our comprehension. There’s a sense that turbulence is coming, reshaping the collective experience in profound ways.

For some, this period comes with a stark realization of potential economic, geopolitical, and environmental challenges ahead. For others, it brims with promise and hope, illuminated by the prospect of sweeping change. You might feel it regardless of your political leanings or personal circumstances – the astrological weather suggests swift motion, raucous energy, and saying goodbyes. We don’t have the guardrails we once had, and we have to be mindful as we navigate the road to the future. 

December starts amid the Mercury retrograde cycle, making it a nostalgic year-end. We feel an unsteady sense of transition as we think ahead to 2025. Uranus and Neptune hover in the late degrees of their respective signs, and a Sun-Saturn square on December 4 could raise feelings of uncertainty. We may have tests of faith that carry us through the early weeks of the month, with bright lights of insight on December 4 when Venus forms a sextile to Neptune and the Moon. These transits show swells of love emerging from insecurity or frustration.

Stay attuned to the love on December 6 as Mars stations retrograde and again on December 7 as Venus conjoins Pluto and the Sun opposes Jupiter. We could easily become overwhelmed with our tasks and commitments, leaving little time for enjoyment. Fear not, though, as Pluto conjoins Ceres on December 8, it opens space (and need) for self-nurturance and enriching the soul. 

Mars retrograde is arguably one of the other significant transits of the year. It goes retrograde from December 6, 2024, to February 23, 2025. As Mars appears to move backward, we could have pent-up frustrations or feel stifled in our quest for self-expression. This retrograde cycle wakes us up but does not stir us to take action or prompt change. Allow any passion to fuel your deeper desires. Leading up to the Mars retrograde cycle, see what you can eliminate from your daily routine, list of chores, or activities. Mars is in Leo, showing us the importance of remaining heart-centered. In times of reduced activity, Mars motivates us from within and reminds us to be firm with our boundaries and honor the promises we made to ourselves, especially the ones related to our health and wellness. 

Mercury stations direct on December 15 hours before the Full Moon at 23˚ 52’ Gemini. Neptune stands in a square aspect with both luminaries. Confusion could cloud our judgment or alter our plans for a few days until the Sun-Neptune squares on the eighteenth.

We end this period with the Sun’s ingress into Capricorn at the solstice on December 21, and we shift our focus from internal balance to the external manifestation of our goals. The chart for This last quarter of the year may feel like the final push toward a deadline or the last mile of a race (as referenced before), where challenges are intensified and the pressure to persevere mounts. Yet, it’s also a creative time to imagine and envision life in a new paradigm as the outer planets change signs. It’s also a time of clarity as we see the finish line ahead. Though we may not know what awaits us on the other side, this period invites us to trust in the unfolding of a divine plan.

The winter solstice sets the tone for the months ahead. The Sun’s ingress into Capricorn means the start of a season dedicated to discipline, responsibility, and long-term plans. The solstice chart features a Grand Cross, indicating a season of trials and errors. We’re testing the limits of our capacity. Though life may not feel easy, there will be rewards for persistence.

The Virgo Moon reminds us to stay focused and not feed worries or distractions. It’s a chart that shows tension with breaking-point needs for pressure release. Jupiter sits at the apex of the opposition between the Moon in Virgo and Saturn in Pisces. We could be overwhelmed by busy work, or we may need help with problem-solving life circumstances.

With Mars, Jupiter, Uranus, and Chiron going retrograde, we may feel nostalgia or yearning for past careers or relationships. Though the cardinal energy of the Capricorn Sun propels us forward, the retrograde planets suggest it’s necessary for us to reconsider the past as we move into an uncertain future.

This month, Mars stations retrograde on December 6 and keep moving backward until February 23. This influence will shape our experience at the start of 2025. The warrior planet starts its retrograde journey in Leo, bringing up contests of will or giving a blow to our ego. It’s important to stay open-hearted and open-minded over the holidays. Minor disagreements could escalate without resolution. 

The New Moon on December 30 at 09˚43’ Capricorn offers us the symbol of “an albatross feeding from the hand of a sailor,” implying our ability to face our fears and trust. Perhaps the universe has bountiful blessings to share if we fly toward them. We are reminded that manifestation occurs on a physical plane and that it is important to be present to attend to the material desires of our daily lives. We crave good food, heartfelt conversations, and creature comforts.

As Pluto completes its ingress into Aquarius, we, too, are ushered into a new phase, where we begin waking up to a new collective consciousness. This last quarter of 2024 offers a recalibration of our individual and collective power, setting the stage for Pluto in Aquarius’s promise of mind-blowing innovations, revolutions, and wonder.