As the month opens, you have a buildup of planetary energy in your professional house of honors, awards, and achievement (tenth house), an exciting development, for it shows your career is about to get very active after the new moon in Aries, 18 degrees, on April 7. This new moon may bring you into a very new, pioneering area where you will have the ability to learn a great deal because you (and everyone you know) have not been down this path before. It may involve a new technology, for example, or something newly developed, such as a new drug or completely new design of a product or fashion in any field. You will be attracted to this because it is so very new and because you can build a reputation of leadership as you build your knowledge in this area.

Expect some interesting surprises in regard to your professional interests, because Uranus, planet of creative, rebellious, and unexpected events will be conjunct the moon. With Uranus involved, you can't guess that will come up, but let's think good thoughts and hope events will be positive and innovative in regard to your career. Those Cancers with birthdays near July 9 will be most affected by this new moon.

Pluto will be at odds with the new moon, however, so you appear to be combatting open competition or a partner who simply won't see eye to eye with you and will be quite vocal in his or her opposition to your plans. Knowing this you can be ready for any challenge to your thinking. Pluto can be unfair in the way things play out, and I am sorry to report this, so you have to be ready for anything. Fortunately, this new moon will be in Aries, and Aries is ruled by Mars. Mars will be in a supportive angle to this new moon, even though Mars traveling in his present position is considered a bit far from making a mathematical aspect to the new moon from his perch in fire-sign Sagittarius. I feel he still can help you. I wish Mars were closer, but he is within a ten-degree separation, so Mars will be found on the borderline limits of being within orb. I say Mars is just close enough to aspect the new moon (albeit, by a hair), so take cheer in knowing Mars will be of assistance to you. Mars is a highly energetic planet, and also happens to be Cancer's natural ruler of your solar tenth house of fame. I am happy to see that Mars is just close enough to be in agreement with the new moon. As you see, you have enough going for you to do well, but you will have to face a certain number of obstacles and get over them before you can grasp the career prize you have in mind. Keep striving - you can win if you do.

Transiting Mars is currently traveling in your assignment sector, a trend that started last month on March 5, so you appear to be very busy with a project that seems to have pressures and a deadline. The project is either a long-term one, with many phases and plateaus to reach, or the jobs may be different, with a steady stream of different types of work reaching your desk. Mars will remain in your sixth house of work endeavors until September 27 - quite a long time for Mars. Mars does not typically remain in one part of the chart more than seven weeks, but the reason Mars will stay so long is that Mars will retrograde on April 17 to June 29, going back and forth in one place of the chart.

Mars retrograde will slow your progress. All the signs of the zodiac will be dealing with the same situation, but in different ways. Don't feel singled out. You will feel that projects are proceeding slowly, requiring more money and more time than usual. This is important to know if you are asked to estimate how much time or money you will need on a new project. Give yourself a bit of leeway and elasticity in all assignments. You might not need more time or money in the budget, but it will be comforting to know it is there if you need it.

Venus is in your house of professional prestige and honors, and Mars is in your workaday assignment sector. Happily, Mars will reach out to Venus on April 12, making for a wonderful day for receiving applause for work well done. This day can elevate your career status in a big way and would be perfect for taking action. Schedule an interview, make a presentation or speech, serve on a panel, or schedule an audition. Hand in a report, a manuscript, or outline an idea to higher ups. You will glow on this day, and praise is likely to rain down on you.

If you have to sign a contract or travel a short distance for any reason, act on April 14, for Mercury will be in Taurus, in ideal angle to Jupiter, the giver of gifts and luck. Any contract you sign on this day is likely to bring profits or an attractive financial situation, and if you travel for business, you're likely to reach an agreement and come home with the deal signed. This would be good timing, because you need to finish things up before Mars gores retrograde.

Last month, you may have seen opportunities to travel to a very distant point as a result of the eclipse of March 8. If you didn't travel, watch the time near April 7, plus or minus four days, for possible news or events. Occasionally an eclipse will deliver its message one month to the day later, plus or minus five days. You may be leaving for a distant point at that time, or returning from one, but one way or another you appear to be a passenger on an airplane or ship. Your ninth house was lit up, so there are other topics that might have surfaced, or will surface instead. You might have heard news about a legal case or a matter in regard to a university you hope to attend, or already do and want to make plans for certain courses, or make arrangements for financials involving tuition. It may alternatively involve a publishing or broadcasting project or something more spiritual, religious, or philosophical. You will know when this comes up.

We had two eclipses last month, and the second one, a lunar eclipse, March 23, pointed to developments in your home and/or to a close family member. Something was being finalized. In case you didn't hear anything about your living quarters or family last month (nor near February 23, one month before the eclipse), then pay special attention to April 23, plus or minus four days, in regard to a home-related matter. Astrologers use bell curves, so eclipses can be felt one month before or after an eclipse occurs.

Romance will be top of your mind at the full moon in Scorpio at 2 degrees, April 22, plus or minus four days. This will be a heavenly full moon - the most tender and romantic of the year. If you are single, you may meet someone intriguing that you will want to get to know better. If you are dating, this might become a turning point when your relationship becomes forever closer. If you are committed to each other, you may talk about a pregnancy, put in papers for an adoption, or schedule an in vitro fertilization. Neptune will be beautifully angled to this full moon, and because Neptune is the planet that is called the higher octave of Venus, Neptune will now take the beauty and love of Venus to a higher level. With Neptune there is a willingness to sacrifice one's own pleasure to benefit the beloved - a mark of true love. This is how deep your emotions may go at this highly romantic and loving full moon.

If you are a Cancer with a birthday that falls within four days of June 23, you will benefit the most from this full moon. The same is true if you have Cancer rising at 3 degrees (within five degrees), or a natal planet in Cancer, Scorpio, or Pisces, Taurus, Virgo, or Capricorn at 3 degrees (within five degrees). You would benefit too.

Mercury will turn retrograde, as mentioned earlier, on April 28 until May 22, so work hard to get your projects finished well in advance of this period. If you need to buy any machine with moving parts, including an electronic item like a computer, smart phone, or TV, do so early in April.

April will be a huge career month, packed with unexpected developments, some positive and some jarring. When the month opens, you have the new moon of April 7, Sun, Uranus, and Venus in your tenth house of career reputation and status. Uranus will be conjunct the Sun, and the Sun happens to rule your earned income house, so you may expect a measure of volatility in your finances. Nevertheless, Venus in your career house suggests popularity with VIPs, co-workers and underlings alike. If you are trying for a promotion, get cracking early in the month to capture that position. Pluto will be in hard angle to the new moon from your seventh house, suggesting you will have to anticipate that very aggressive competitor(s) to be on your tail. You will need to be on top of your game and to allow no distractions in your quest to win the job prize that you want. It appears your competitors will stop at nothing to steal the job for themselves, or if you are self-employed, a piece of your market share.

No doubt you are working hard, for Mars, the energy planet, has been touring your sixth house of work projects, a trend that started last month on March 5. One day when you will have the ability to hand in superb work will be April 12, when Venus and Mars will work together to shower you with praise from a higher-up for work well done.

Saturn, the taskmaster planet, is also in that same assignment area of your chart, so you will continue to have to keep your nose to the grindstone. You will for the coming twenty months. Mars is now in an unusually long tour of your sixth house of projects, so you are likely to have a heavy load of assignments from now through September - pace yourself. (Mars' usual stay in one sign is seven weeks, not the seven months Mars will do now, while visiting Sagittarius and your work sector, energizing things quite a bit this year - it may be flattering to be so wanted.) With all this emphasis on working hard, you will need to watch your health to be sure you eat nutritiously and get enough rest. Your sixth house, so energized by Mars this year, also rules health matters, and it appears you may be under some strain.

Mars is due to go retrograde on April 17 to June 29, and this will have ramifications to your career. Your tenth house of promotion and status is ruled by Mars, so with this long impending slowdown, you will have to be patient. You may interview for a job, only to be told later the company has put a freeze on hiring, so for now, the new job is off the table. By the end of the year, starting in October, you may be able to start up talks again, or not even have to vie for the job because you are told that you were management's first pick - and be awarded the job later in the year, after the freeze is over. When Mars awakens on June 29, the red planet will have to ramp up his energy to his former strength, which won't happen until August 22. A week later, August 30, Mercury will go retrograde, so for all practical purposes, April through September will be a time of looking back to fix what's broken, but not a time to look ahead and forge into new territory with new ideas.

Specifically, this month, Mercury will go retrograde too, from April 28 to May 22. Mercury out of phase will slow down projects, and make clients and management indecisive. Your career world will be in flux, and VIPs will hesitate to give clear answers, as they don't yet know the direction things are going. Don't try to buck this trend - go with it, as delays will benefit you.

Even though Mercury, soon to retrograde, rules travel, you can go on a getaway and enjoy yourself. If flying, be careful to mark your luggage and bring something to read or listen to if your flight runs late. If driving, get very specific address instructions, for sometimes apps can send you in the wrong direction or on a longer route than necessary. A fantastic day to take a trip, where you will reach accord on a business deal or have fun seeing a friend, will be April 14, thanks to Mercury in ideal angle to Jupiter.

The full moon, April 22, will bring a welcome development in matters of the heart. A romantic matter is about to reach fullness, providing you with a thrilling experience. Neptune will be in the wings, showering you with pixie dust. You may go to an especially beautiful social event or may be on a trip at this time to a very distant city. You may go with a sweetheart or spouse, or if unattached, you may meet someone near this full moon, whether you travel or not. Alternatively, a campus setting or a party may be the perfect place to new romance.