Slowing Down with Mercury Retrograde
Audio version:
The light is coming back, and I’m hearing it as much as I’m seeing it.
Most mornings now, I wake up to a little more brightness over the New Hampshire water. It’s still cold and clearly March, but the days are stretching out. There’s a bit more glow in the late afternoon, a softer feeling in the evenings, like the whole day is slowly loosening its grip on winter.
The birds are starting to return, too. I notice a few calls outside my window, or a short burst of song when I walk by the water. It’s not loud or dramatic yet, just small voices threading through the quiet. But every time I hear them, it feels like a confirmation: yes, we really are turning the corner into a new season.
All of this is happening while Mercury is “in retrograde,” which is just an astrologer’s way of saying that, from Earth, the planet looks like it’s moving backward in the sky. Many people experience this time as a period when plans get delayed, messages are misunderstood, or technology acts up. Whether or not you follow astrology closely, you might notice that things feel a little slower or more confusing than usual.
Instead of seeing that as bad, I’m trying to treat it like a built‑in pause button.
The longer days and brighter light make me want to jump ahead into spring: start new projects, make big plans, say yes to everything. The world around me starts talking about “springing forward” and being productive. But Mercury retrograde invites me to do the opposite for a moment: slow down, double‑check, listen more carefully.
Here’s what that looks like in simple terms:
- I don’t rush every decision. I give myself an extra breath before I answer, agree, or commit.
- I use this time to go back over things: unfinished conversations, old ideas, promises I made to myself but never fully kept.
- I let the returning light lift my mood without turning it into pressure. I’m allowed to sit in a sunny spot and enjoy it without turning it into a plan or a project.
- I’m extra careful with my words, because misunderstandings feel more likely. I try to speak a little more clearly and listen a lot more than usual.
By the time Mercury moves forward again and spring fully settles in, I don’t want to arrive stressed and tired from pushing. I want to arrive clear, rested, and ready, because I allowed this slower, in‑between time to do its work on me.
This is where I keep landing: I don’t have to understand every astrological detail to feel what this moment is inviting me into. The days are getting longer. The birds are beginning to try out their songs again. My plans may be slower, messier, or more roundabout than I’d like, but underneath all of that, life is quietly tilting toward more light.
So as Mercury finishes this backward stretch and we move toward the first true day of spring, I’m choosing not to rush myself into the next version of my life. I’m letting the delays, the mix‑ups, and the second thoughts be part of the process. I’m letting the returning light remind me that growth can be gentle, and that I don’t have to push to prove I’m moving forward.
If you’re feeling a little foggy or behind right now, you’re not alone. From my corner by the sea, I’m blessing your pauses, your re‑tries, your careful words, your deep breaths. May this strange mix of Mercury in retrograde and lengthening days show you that you’re allowed to come back to yourself slowly, the way the light does, and the way the birds do, one small song at a time.
With love from the water,
Sarah
