You have a happy month in store. Four joyful little heavenly bodies will be stacking up in your solar eleventh house of friendship, fun, new acquaintances, and events sector, so it seems clear that you will be socializing up a storm. Temporarily let go of the many career obligations you've been dealing with lately and shake things up. It's time to enlarge your circle of friends and acquaintances, for by doing so, your friends will inspire you and expose you to new ideas. With so much going on in your career lately (especially last month), you've not had the time to give much thought to shaping a warm and rich personal life. Now you will, without losing any of the good momentum you've built up this year.

Nothing of enormous importance will happen in May because five out of eight planets will be in retrograde. You won't lose out on any opportunities. Included in the retrograde group are Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, and Pluto, all out of phase, urging us all (of every sign) to look closer at our past, and for now, to put the future on hold. We cannot do well in the future until we are sure the foundations we have built are steady and secure.

We don't feel the effects of outer planets that spin on the outer regions of the solar system when they are retrograde quite as much as when the three planets that spin closest to earth are out of phase. Those nearby planets include Mercury, Mars, and Venus. Venus is in good strong position now and will not retrograde anytime soon, but both Mercury and Mars are already out of phase, and that will slow down all parts of life.

Both planets started to retrograde last month: Mars will be retrograde from April 17 to June 29, and Mercury started to retrograde April 28 and will finish up on May 22. If you like, on the bottom of this report you will see a link to last month's forecast - in it I spoke in detail about how Mars retrograde would affect you, so have a look. The link is at the bottom of this forecast below the Summary.

There is always value in looking ahead to pioneer into new territory that we want to explore, but often when the world has been racing forward too quickly for some time, the universe, in its wisdom, slows the pace and almost forces us all to look back and take stock. Cultivate new friendships, but more importantly be in touch with friends from your past. In terms of a love relationship, dare to dive to a deeper level. Projects can always benefit from you having a second look to see if any one of them can be polished and groomed to a higher level of excellence. It is human to always look forward, but this month, looking back, getting closure, and reconnecting will have greater value.

Travel may form part of the picture this month, for short trips appear to bring you happy, lucky social experiences. A case in point will be May 3, when the mighty Sun in your solar eleventh house of social activity will reach out to Jupiter, the giver of gifts and luck. Indeed, May 3 will be a remarkable day, so try to plan something special. Travel as defined by the solar third house also includes your daily rounds around the neighborhood in addition to normal short trips that are within 500 miles from home. As you see, you have options. Be sure to look your best at all times, no matter where you go.

If you can NOT travel, this part of your chart also rules communication, including texts and phone calls, emails, letters, manuscripts, greeting cards, advertising, and publicity. May 3 should make you happy, even if you don't receive a love letter or travel - it's sure to be a magical day.

Next, the new moon of May 6 will work to expand your friendships in a big way, and like a stone cast into a quiet pool of water that creates ever widening rings that reverberate outward, your circle of friends are likely grow outward too, with each friend making introductions to others. Again, travel will have a part to play, along with interesting and creative communication. Lighting your solar eleventh house of friendships and events, this new moon will ratchet up your social life yet another notch - more than what will occur May 3. If you are inclined to do community work or volunteer to work on a charity, you will be very busy and make a big difference to those you are trying to help this month.

At the time of the new moon May 6, not only will you have the full support of benefic Jupiter, making for a luxurious, happy time in the days that follow, you will also have Neptune friendly to this new moon. This suggests you may be going to a friend's celebration soon, say over the weekend of May 7-8, and if so, the event will be quite poetic and lyrical. The energy of this new moon is sensuous and the air may be perfumed with a haunting scent, such as honeysuckle growing nearby to complete the setting. There will be music and beautiful foods - surely this will be a heavenly event that you will always remember.

If your birthday falls on July 8, plus or minus four days, you will benefit the most form this lovely new moon. The same is true if you have Cancer rising at 17 degrees or a natal planet at 17 degrees in Cancer, Scorpio, or Pisces, Taurus, Virgo, or Capricorn, and in all cases within plus or minus five degrees. Having just one natal planet within five degrees of 17 degrees of those signs could make this new moon as special as can be.

Jupiter, which has been retrograde since January 8, will turn direct on May 9, so after that date, you will get significantly more support from Jupiter in matters of writing, speaking, editing, translating, and other communication arts. Jupiter will be moving in direct speed until February 6, 2017, so your ability to use words and to move others with those words will grow stronger from now on. If you were an actor, or work in publishing, broadcasting, or the movies, this change of Jupiter will affect you in an extra strong way. I suppose I am splitting hairs - every Cancer will benefit and that includes you.

On May 10, a Tuesday, Venus will conjoin Jupiter, an annual event. Again, both planets will meet in your friendship sector, making this day ideal for doing something special for a friend who has always stood by you, or for benefitting from a friend's kindness. A home, property, or family matter, or a relationship with one family member, should also bring exceptionally good news to you.

Now let's turn to your work life. Against this lovely background will be plenty of work at the office. Mars is still in Sagittarius and will be lighting your solar sixth house of assignments and workaday experiences. This is the place in your chart that Mars entered on March 5 and will continue to light until May 27. With Mars and Mercury retrograde, you will almost certainly have to take a second look at one or more project to make changes, as per the client's dictate. (If you are the client, you will have reasons to ask the team to do this.) Everyone will be backtracking - it's the way things are in May.

The full moon May 21 in Sagittarius at 1 degree will bring a work project to fullness, and it will be one you apparently have been working on quite a bit lately. This will be the first of two full moons in Sagittarius in a row, a rare event, and both new moons will open a path in your workaday sector, with new projects coming up. Apparently you will have plenty to do these months, and your services will be in high demand. Of the two full moons, the one this month will be the easier one to navigate. Mars will conjunct this new moon, so you will be eager to get plans in place and lift them off, but with so many retrograde planets, you will need to wait. Delays will benefit you. Mars is the planet that helps you win in competition, but without Mars' help, it will be very hard to stand out.

Not only will Mars in Sagittarius (and the full moon in that sign) give you many things to do at the office - and at home too - this house also focuses you on health. You may be going to the gym and working out - Mars is known to bring a lot of energy - but this planet can also inflame conditions. If you have a chronic illness, go the extra mile to be careful and take good care of yourself. If you notice a dormant condition suddenly flare up, seek medical help, the sooner the better. (I am not saying you WILL have a flare-up, but IF you do have one. Let's hope you don't, dear Cancer.)

Romantically, as you saw at the beginning of this report, you have many dazzling moments coming in the first half of May and those days should scintillate with luxurious social opportunities. May 3, May 6 (plus ten days, the area of influence of all new moons), May 9, and May 10 are all superb times to for you to circulate and be open to meeting new people.

You have other conditions working in your favor. Venus in Taurus is a fine place for Venus to be for you, dear Cancer, for Taurus' earth sign element blends beautifully with your water sign Sun. Venus will remain in Taurus from the very start of the month until May 24. In Taurus, Venus will augment the friendship / social events theme that will be so evident in the first half of May.

On top of that, Mars will retrograde into Scorpio from May 27 to August 2 and light your solar fifth house of true love. Whether you are single and hoping to find your one true love, or attached and hoping to have more carefree fun together with your partner, this tour of Mars will bring on a golden time for love.

There is one more event in the heavens that will set this month apart from others for superb romance. At the end of last month - April - two extremely powerful and slow moving planets - good fortune Jupiter and transformational, powerhouse Pluto - were in perfect harmony. This is a rare condition that will not happen again in similar form until April 2020. Pluto is still in your marriage house, and Jupiter is sending beams to Pluto from your third house of communication and travel. Separately, and additionally, Pluto is in sync with Neptune, the planet of inspiration, and is based in the long-distance travel house (This house includes honeymoons.) Here you have travel, commitment, and clear, warm communication all working together to make this month a month to remember for you.

Dear Cancer, this is your month to kick back and have fun. You won't lose any competitive advantages by swinging your hips to the music of steel drums while you sip a drink that comes with a tiny umbrella in it. You WILL enjoy May.

The month of May holds so many pleasures. It's a sentimental month, where you will be looking back to former times that made you happy and perhaps finding ways to recreate those times - a good idea. On May 3, you may see an old friend in your town or a nearby one, and reminisce over the fun times you had "back when." Five out of eight planets will be retrograde in May - Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn, and Pluto - the reason the past will have such a strong hold on you now, in the best sense.

Friends will begin to play a bigger, more pronounced role in your life once you get to the glorious new moon, May 6. Jupiter is the planet of good fortune and Pluto is tied to transformations and success, and both will support this new moon. This suggests you will go to a beautiful setting to attend a celebration that you will get to by car, bus, or rail. The event will be dressy and memorable, with every detail overseen by the host with great care. It certainly is an event you will want to attend. If it turns out that you will be giving a party in early May, it will go exceptionally well. You seem to have a partner with you who will want to support all your efforts. Venus will be in Taurus, an earth sign that blends beautifully with your water element, dear Cancer, and this will continue until May 24. During that time, friends will call, and you will have reason to feel that your free time has taken on a new breezy, light feeling.

Meanwhile, at work, projects will pile up. Ever since Mars entered your sixth house of work projects in early March, your boss or clients have become somewhat demanding. You appear to be taking your assignments seriously and are determined to be thorough and careful with them. You have Saturn in your projects house, and Saturn is known to require concentration to all tasks at hand. Your hard work - which seems to have international application - will keep up until the end of September, with a breather in June and July. Even so, schedule regular breaks for rest, and perhaps book a massage occasionally. Near the full moon, May 21, you will finish up one project or get a large project to a key plateau or phase. You may hear very good news about your income on May 3, thanks to collaboration between the Sun and Jupiter.

Alternatively, the sixth house, where all your activity is based, also rules your health, so if you have been going through a course of treatment, it may now end on or near May 21. With Mars remaining in this part of your chart in May and then from the start of August until end of September, it appears you will have to continue to follow your doctor's orders to the letter to avoid flare-up. Assuming you give your condition attention, your chart suggests you will feel noticeably better by October.

It's a busy, active month, and admittedly, it will require patience and a willingness to go back into finished projects and make them even better. We are all in the same boat - there is value in taking a second look at those assignments and former relationships. If you long for reconciliation with a former love, this is the time to make your move.

In love and friendship, you will have a banner month, for happy little planets are lining up to bring you bushels of fun, especially in the first half of May, and in the last days, when Mars enters Scorpio. Mars is getting ready to bring you amazing experiences in love in June and July (starting May 27), so get your outfits ready. You'll be stepping out!