February 21-27| Mercury Retrograde begins
- Sarah Brynteson
- Feb 20
- 7 min read
Good morning!
This past week was so BIG astrology wise, beginning the week with the Solar Eclipse and capping it off with the Saturn and Neptune conjunction.
Check in time — how are you doing with it all?
For me, the Eclipse was a day that felt a little tired. For one of my friends, they had more energy than they had in a while. Another had some drop ins. However it was felt for you is perfect by the way. That is the beauty of being human. We all get to experience things differently.
As for the Saturn and Neptune meet up, on Social Media I shared that this is just the start of a 36 year cycle. It may not feel like a flash in the pan for that reason. I invite you in the coming days and weeks to notice what structures are ready to be rebuilt — or even built for the first time. What in your life needs to dissolve so that those structures can come in? That is what they do after all — Saturn builds and strengthens. Neptune dissolves and brings spirituality or the divine into the mix. What we end up baking with this batter is up to you.
This week will feature the First Quarter Moon and Mercury Retrograde starting. Ready to dive in?
Cosmic Weather: February 21-27| Mercury Retrograde begins
Note for all times listed in it will be CT due to where I live. Please convert to your time zone!
Due to the extra long Void of Course window I have included the entire week with this post. If you want to receive next Saturday in email form 👉 Click here to subscribe to my newsletter —plus a 15% discount on your first consultation with me along with finding out what else is going on.
✨ February 21, 2026
Yesterday, Saturn and Neptune met up at 0° of Aries under the Aries Moon we start our day with.
For me, it feels like today is a little bit of a buffer or integration day for that experience. The Moon is still in Aries all day long, though she will be Void of Course for 12 hours and 19 minutes of it.
What does that mean?
Void of Course Moon means that she is resting. The Moon is not talking to any planet by any aspect. We call those conjunction, sextile, trine, square, and opposition. During this time it is common to feel floaty, scattered, and highly intuitive. The last planet that she talked with was Mars, so you may feel motivated to do something, though I recommend it be more of the I need to finish things rather than start things kind of working on things.
✅ Great for:
– Meditating
– Finishing up existing projects
– Taking a walk
– Resting or napping
– Creating a to-do list
🚫 Maybe skip:
– Starting something brand new
– Making major decisions
– Being hard on yourself 🤪
When the Moon shifts into Taurus at 5:30 pm, I would encourage you to plan to have an amazing supper or dessert if that is your time for it. Taurus energy in Pisces season feels yummy to me. Definitely everyone around you may want what they want and how they want it. It is a very hard working to savor hard kind of vibe. It is also soft and caring with this combo of the Pisces Sun and Taurus Moon. Ohh, maybe even ending your evening with a nice glass of tea or hot chocolate would be yummy too!
✨ February 22 and 23, 2026
Sunday and Monday will have more of the Taurus Moon Pisces Sun soft and caring, though I want what I want kind of feel.
Sunday has the added benefit of a beautiful aspect from Mars to Chiron. This gives us added energy to heal wounds related to drive and determination. If you had past conflicts or pain around these themes, you may find yourself turning your sensitivity into strength and confronting fears that may have stopped you before.
This is heightened by beautiful aspects the Moon, Venus, and Jupiter are making. This adds to the emotional healing possibilities, romance, creative inspiration, and feeling at home within yourself and those you are in relationship with. Be careful to not become too passive though, especially if it has you avoiding potentially necessary or uncomfortable actions.
Monday, most of the day will have more of the Taurus Moon vibe with expect the unexpected energy and potential intuitive drop ins. There is a 4 hour Void of Course Window from 4:28 pm CT to 8:28 pm CT. If you have a lot to do during that time, remember to make a list!
✨ February 24 and 25, 2026
The Moon will move into Gemini at 8:28 pm CT on Monday, February 23, setting us up for the First Quarter Moon at 5° of Gemini at 6:27 am CT.
This can create an inner tension or frustration between wanting to rely on your rational, airy intellect (Gemini Moon) and the emotional intuitive waters that the Pisces Sun brings. You may notice the tendency to overthink (Gemini) vs wanting to emotionally escape (Pisces). The desire for facts (Gemini) vs needing to rely on your intuition (Pisces). If you are feeling this, leaning on your curiosity is something you can use. How can you balance logical thoughts with your emotions? It could lead to some deep conversations that may feel uncomfortable at times, yet are very needed.
As we move into Wednesday, it may be interesting what your dreams are like for you.
Venus and Mercury both will square the Moon while we are sleeping and into the early hours of the morning. Venus and Mercury in Pisces give us a deep need for a romantic and spiritual connection to things, yet the Moon invites us to make it practical too. You may notice yourself really feeling your feelings vs just saying that you are. Intuitive hits and a busy mind may also be very present today as Mercury retrograde will start on Thursday.
From 5 pm CT – 11:11 pm CT there will be another longer Void of Course Window before the Moon moves into Cancer.
✨ February 26, 2026
About an hour and a half after the Moon moves into the sensitive sign of Cancer, Mercury Retrograde will begin.
First, the Moon. A Cancer Moon in Pisces Season is extra sensitive because they are both water signs. It may feel normal to want to eat the foods that made you feel good in your childhood, connect with family (or your children if you have them), and want to stay home. If tears flow that is totally normal too. It is also very intuitive, which leads to the next big event.
Mercury Retrograde starts today. Dates for the retrograde are:
February 11: Pre shadow at 8° of Pisces
February 26: Station Retrograde at 22° of Pisces
March 7: 1/2 way point of retrograde 16° of Pisces
March 20: Station Direct 8° of Pisces
April 9: Post shadow ends
Mercury in Pisces naturally can bring miscommunications and feeling your thoughts. When planets retrograde, this inward movement is what happens. It is an invitation to pause — rethink, review, retry, all the re- words before you resume what you are doing. If you are traveling, give yourself extra time. If you are signing something, be sure you read it through thoroughly. Yes, you can still do things in retrogrades. Just be sure it's exactly what you need by reading the fine print!
This internal examination is something we are already feeling with where Mercury is now. It will be good to pay attention to those moments of "oh yeah that happened" and write it down. It may not be something you use right away, but helpful later on.
To help with that I created a 3 Step Retrograde Activation Mini Workbook that you can grab here for free. It also subscribes you to my emails to help navigate the season too, and if you already get them you'll just be asked to confirm your info. It will help you track the Preshadow, Retrograde, and Post Shadow timeframes.
Spoiler alert: all the retrogrades this year will be in water signs, first in Pisces then Cancer and last Scorpio. This to me is the softer of the three!
✨February 27, 2026
As we round out the week it will be under a Cancer Moon. Same sensitivity we saw on Thursday, though you may feel like being out and about too. The Sun will meet up with the North Node today, so it may be interesting if you notice anything pop up that started with the Eclipse last Tuesday.
There is also an expect the unexpected energy for the day. If you are out and about be mindful on the roads please. It's one of those times I suggest that you be that student driver acting like they cannot see you, because the other drivers around you may be not paying attention.
As we end the evening it will close with a Void of Course Window from 10:21 pm Friday to 2:16 am Saturday. Your dreams may be super interesting during this time. More on the Leo Moon that she will shift into next week!
✨ Closing Thoughts — February 21–27
This week asked us to move between action and integration — from the aftereffects of the Solar Eclipse and Saturn/Neptune meeting, through a long Aries Void of Course Moon, into the soft sensitivity of Taurus and Cancer, and now into the reflective invitation of Mercury Retrograde in Pisces.
You may have noticed moments of tension between logic and intuition, bursts of healing around drive or determination, or even memories surfacing that feel ready to be looked at again. As the Moon closes the week in Cancer and Mercury begins its inward journey, this is a time to pause, reflect, and gently review what is coming up for you before moving ahead.
If you would like to receive the full Cosmic Weather for the week ahead — including how the Leo Moon may show up for you — you can join me over on Substack so it arrives right in your inbox next week.
Until next week,
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