April 17, 2026
Where did April go, is it holed up at somebody’s house, eating ice cream and watching movies on streaming? Last time I looked it was all bunnies, decorated eggs, and flats of delicate spring flowers like snapdragons at the garden center, and now it is – in a flash – plenty hot and bursting all over with vibrant zinnias, which don’t mind weeks of baking in the sun.
At this rate it will be Fall before you know it, and somehow Fall is not as enjoyable without a long stretch of anticipation. But things are different now, and time seems to be altered as well. I did notice far fewer April Fool pranks this year; nobody has the emotional bandwidth for such foolishness, and things are hard enough without annoying practical jokes.
At any rate, here is the New Moon, racing in to tell us that we have plenty of year left to shake things up. What you plant now will be need tending and harvesting in the hot weather, so think about that symbolically. Think over what you seed at New Moon, and figure ahead if you’ll have the energy to follow through.
Remember also that our New Moon wishes don’t have to be about material things, but can be about learning and expanding our minds. Don’t know why but that seems important, with this New Moon. “Try something new” is poking me in the ribs as I shuffle the cards, and could as well be, “Learn something new!” Our cards, with Lenormand following, for the next two weeks of initiating fresh ideas:
- Ace of Swords
- Nine of Cups, reversed
- Temperance
- Queen of Cups
- 8 of Pentacles, reversed
This spread speaks to me of creating new ways of communicating, and thinking our fabulous new idea will get us immediate, even lucrative, results.
Ace of Swords is a beginning; it is the flash of inspiration that propels us off the couch and away from the movies and ice cream. Those aces! As initiatory cards, they have great power to change our working frequency, juice it up, cause us to see the whole story at once, from where we start to where we hope to end up.
We throw open the door and holler to the world, “I know what to do! I know exactly what to do!” and feel confident that we’ll ride that big wave straight onto the sand in a smooth landing of swooshy elegance.
But a couple of cards are waving caution flags and asking us to pull over (reversed 9 of Cups and reversed 8 of Pentacles) so the pit crew (Temperance and the Queen of Cups) can check the tire pressure and add fluids, a ridiculous affront to our momentum; can’t you see we’re working, here?!
Well, yes. But not working in the way you expected.
For starters, we’ve got a Queen. Obviously, 9 of Cups texted (from the couch,) “Im not feeling 2 good crying emoji, crying emoji, crying emoji” as 9 of Cups drank the last of the melted ice cream out of the carton. Queen of Cups hurried over, as she would, but not to go out and get more ice cream or pile the 9 of Cups into the car and drive to a therapist, because those are King things.
The Queens manage the situation as they find it. She’s not here for the ending with the bands and the parades and the clapping (again, that’s kinging.) Queens are the right now people. A queen assesses the situation, and makes the needed course correction so it can continue forward.
In that same frequency? Temperance. Temperance finds us in a mess and says, “No, don’t run away” with a light hand on our shoulder. Temperance, like the Queen, has not come to get us out of anything but to help us endure where we find ourselves, and to focus, and to get steady again. Both of these energies recognize and honor the process of moving from here to there, and not skipping steps.
The reversed cards, sobby 9 of Cups and 8 of Pentacles, are feeling very let down and unable to get the big prizes – the emotional contentment of 9 of Cups and the mastery of a craft or skill indicated by 8 of Pentacles. Because they are reversed, the energy is not flowing. Reversed cards are like uninflated balloons. Are they still balloons? Yes. Do they work as intended? Nope.
Let’s make this even more fun by adding some Lenormand cards to the mix. Because of these reversed cards signaling caution, I phrase it this way, “What might hold people back with this new moon that needs to be acknowledged?”:
- Star
- Bouquet
- Rider
- Man
- Snake
Ah, there’s our wild wish or initiatory flash, the Star! And with it, the Bouquet, so we’ve got such honest, happy energy fueling our enthusiasm to swing for the fences and start something big this New Moon.
But here’s the Rider, bringing news that we did not know, and so answering the question about what will get in the way of our progress: the Man. He’s a Snake. Oh, well, crap.
And there it is, there’s the reason the pit crew is waving wildly to us, forcing us off the track when we’re otherwise feeling so great about the ride! How fortunate that we get advanced warning to not plunge ahead, because things are not what they seem and perhaps we don’t have the correct information. Is that deliberate, or just developing? Doesn’t matter; in either case, our prospects are not well favored and that is enough reason to change plans and direction.
Does this mean that New Moon is a wash this time, and we should not think about, wish for, or start new things at all? No. It’s just clear that we can’t get ahead of ourselves, because there is something shady afoot brought about by masculine action, and it is tricky if not outright deceitful. Do you want to find yourself mired in that? No, you do not.
Instead, keep the good things about this New Moon, which appear to be a genuine burst of positive momentum and inspiration, but let them cook. It’s hard to cool our heels, standing at a stove, waiting for a pot to boil.
But it’s a lot better than turning up at the picnic with your crunchy, half-raw potato salad, and finding out the whole event has been overrun by zombies and you are next on the menu.
Actual zombies? No. But you get my point. This is a New Moon to hatch and nurture something patiently, not force a result that you probably won’t like, because of the plot twist you didn’t see coming.
