Horoscopes

Aries (March 21-April 19): Feel scattered? Think of it as a prolonged state of brainstorming. You’re searching for one small new thing to add to your life to brighten your mood and enhance the impression you make on the world. Taurus (April 20-May 20): Some of the good questions have answers. But most of them just hang their, ripe, overhead and will continue to do so for many lifetimes, scenting the air with their sweetness, drawing our imaginations up and up and up. Gemini (May 21-June 21): Give yourself a wide margin for error. You won’t need it, but this will keep you at the low stress level that allows for maximum poise and charisma to spare. You’ll like whom this attracts. Cancer (June 22-July 22): Laughter usually bonds people, but be aware that it can also alienate people. Not everyone has your stellar sense of humor, especially when it comes to kidding that’s a little too close for home. Sensitivity required. Leo (July 23-Aug. 22): From Hitchcock to Shakespeare, the best storytellers know to leave the most intense scenes off the stage and let the audience fill in the blanks with imagination. You’ll benefit from doing the same. Say nothing. Let them fill in the blanks. Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): The social technology that is supposed to facilitate human connection often has the opposite effect, drawing us into a social fantasy while we ignore those who actually exist at an arm’s length. Don’t let it happen to you and yours. Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 23): Greatness and inner strength go hand in hand. You develop it the same way you do physical strength — by doing hard things over and over. It’s why you choose to stick to this job until it’s done. Scorpio (Oct. 24-Nov. 21): The animals have an effect on you, and you’ll be more keenly aware of this. Whether you care for an animal or just admire the natural world, you’ll be enriched by other lifeforms today. Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Being in control of a small part of your environment will make you feel in control of your whole world. To extend the idea, what you do for your body, you’ll do for your life. Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): When it comes to “getting over it,” there’s no time limit. Take as long as you need. Just know that until you’re “over it,” it will be hard to get “on with it,” so it’s in your own best interest not to wallow. Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): The concept of one person not being good enough for another person is truly false. There are better matches and worse matches, but no one is inherently better than anyone else. Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20): Life doesn’t usually offer closure in any kind of neat form. Endings often aren’t. And even when they are, they can be so long and drawn out, you might as well say “so long” instead of “goodbye.”

To write to Holiday Mathis, visit www.creators.com/ author/holiday-mathis and click “Contact.” DEAR ABBY >> My niece has a 1-year-old son. Neither my niece nor the baby’s father is religious, and they have chosen not to have the baby baptized. My sister, the baby’s grandmother, while not wanting to impose her beliefs on the parents, comes from a generation when even couples who were not demonstrably religious usually had their baby baptized.

I know it would comfort my sister to know this ancient ceremony had been performed. Since my sister watches the little boy at her house, would it be wrong for us to organize an informal baptism — just holy water and a couple of prayers? We don’t feel we need to have an officiant of any religion present and, of course, we would not tell the baby’s parents. Would this be appropriate? — Mortified in Montana

DEAR MORTIFIED >> No, it would not. If you were sure that it would be, you wouldn’t have written to me about it. My advice is not to do ANYTHING like this behind the parents’ backs, because if you do, there will be hell to pay. Consider this: Not all denominations baptize their members as infants.

DEAR ABBY >> Please post my message for people to be more considerate and nonjudgmental about their “help.” I am a housekeeper by choice. I have office skills, massage therapy skills and many talents, but I have noticed that clients seem to have a preconceived idea of who I am.

I am not someone who is money-driven. I am also not uneducated. I am a person who enjoys helping others, no matter what I may be doing. What I do for a living is not who I am.

I have been treated disrespectfully. People who have housekeepers — beware. We “might” be doing a sociological study on how people treat the help. Wasn’t there a movie about that? Be kind to each other, people! — The help

DEAR HELP >> What you have experienced isn’t a problem faced only by housekeepers. It is something that many service industry workers encounter all too often. Perhaps it happens because some people were never taught that inside the uniform is a person with real feelings, and that everyone deserves to be treated with respect.

DEAR ABBY >> After a year together, my boyfriend recently proposed. We plan to wed in two years. During this time, he intends to move into my home so we can save for the wedding. My parents, however, are completely against our living together before we get married.

Abby, I’m 30 years old and so is my fiance. I own my own home and my boyfriend currently rents. My parents are very traditional and may not help with the wedding if we move in together. We can’t afford to pay for much if we don’t do it and save. On top of that, we are excited to start our lives together. Do I honor my parents’ wishes or do what I feel is right for me and my fiance?

— Rock and a hard place

DEAR ROCK AND A HARD PLACE >> You and your fiance are both 30, which means you are well into adulthood. Don’t you think it’s time for you both to start becoming and thinking like independent adults? By that I mean deciding which is more important to you — living your lives the way your parents want, or the way you want.

Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Contact Dear Abby at www.DearAbby.com or P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.