On June 21st, the day of the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere, the sun moved into Cancer, where it will be until late on July 22nd. Cancer is a cardinal sign, representing the beginning of a new season, and it’s a water sign, symbolized by the crab. Cancer is ruled by the moon, so when the sun is in Cancer, it’s answering to the fast-moving moon. The moon changes signs every couple days, which makes Cancer season super moody.
Cancer is associated with home, family, and feeling rooted. It’s sentimental and nostalgic, concerned with memory and the way we feel or felt. Jonathan Richman’s song “That Summer Feeling” perfectly encapsulates the Cancerian vibe. (His natal Venus is in Cancer.)
Venus’s current journey through Leo is encouraging us to be social this summer, but Cancer can be a bit of a homebody. The best way to merge these energies is to socialize with those that feel like home to you. Cancer season brings about a desire to visit our hometowns or reunite with family or old friends, which is a good way to recharge. It offers some respite after the chaos and buzziness of Gemini season.
This year, Cancer season brings with it some bumpy transits. Mars squares off with Uranus on June 26th, which can bring sudden, unexpected shocks. And Mars opposes Saturn on July 20th, which means there will be a push-and-pull between action and will (Mars) and structure and systems (Saturn). So those dates are ones to pay attention to and try to be patient and take it easy. However, with Saturn and Neptune both in another water sign, Pisces, the sun will make trines, or positive aspects, with each of these planets as it moves through Cancer over the next few weeks, which will be helpful.
Regarding people with Cancer placements in their birth charts, they are often moody, sensitive, intuitive, and empathetic. Like crabs, they wear armor, so they may come off as hard, but inside they are soft and vulnerable. Cancers are thought to be conflict avoidant, shifting side to side to avoid head-on impact. However, they feel deeply and can be fiercely protective and loyal, so if you come for a Cancer’s loved one, the pinchers will come out. This protective quality contributes to the nurturing nature of Cancers, which is considered to be the mothering sign of the zodiac. Ruled by the moon, those with Cancer placements, even if they themselves don’t become mothers, are often cast in mothering roles by others. (Cancer men especially can have mother issues, which is why they can sometimes get a bad rap.)
For Bravo watchers, Vanderpump Rules is teeming with Cancers: Ariana, Sandoval, Stassi, and Jax are all Cancer suns, and those four actually have quite a bit in common. They are all extremely sensitive, even though they present as tough.
They’re all very intuitive and can read other people and situations really well, which, as a shadow quality, can make Cancers good at manipulating others. Even Jax of all people has been weirdly right about a lot of things, especially looking back in the wake of Scandoval, and of course, he has used his intuition to his advantage, continually playing upon the sympathy of others and finding easy scapegoats in order to ingratiate himself back into the group after his truly terrible behavior time and time again. Sandoval has done the same thing, just in a very different way, but it will be interesting to see how that works or doesn’t work now.
Ariana’s diehard loyalty to Tom, despite his shortcomings and repeated mistakes in their relationship, is pure Cancer. I recently rewatched part of season 3 of VPR because Bravo was showing a marathon, and the way that Ariana staunchly defended Sandoval in the whole Miami girl situation, confronting Miami girl and excoriating Kristen (to a somewhat cruel degree) even though she knew Tom had, in fact, slept with Miami girl, is very Cancerian, for better or worse.
Cancer season is a great time for spending a Sunday in and binge watching, so if you haven’t seen Vanderpump Rules, who even are you? I highly recommend it. It’s up there with Mad Men for the greatest show of our time and astrological archetypes are on full display.
