YOUR HOROSCOPE FOR THE WEEK BEGINNING 18 FEBRUARY 2018

ARIES March 21-April 20

I magine being given a bag of gold coins and then, one by one, chucking the coins into a river. ‘Who needs these bits of metal, when this bag is so very useful?’ It seems like a silly idea, doesn’t it? But it’s all too easy to accidentally place great value in things that aren’t worth our time. Recently, you’ve begun to realise that a long-held dream might not be quite what you’d built it up to be. It has closed your mind to more enriching possibilities. Once you’ve built up the courage to let it go, something thrilling can take its place. IN YOUR LOVE LIFE: If you now want to make the best possible kind of progress, allow yourself to appreciate many different viewpoints.

TAURUS April 21-May 21

Y ears ago, Jonathan wrote a book explaining how to coax the cosmos into helping turn dreams into reality. Rather than describing a way to fulfil wishes, it focused on learning how to make wishes less specific. History is full of stories about men and women who achieve their goals only to realise that the grass wasn’t always green on the other side. That’s worth bearing in mind as you assess your progress so far this year. As Venus and Neptune connect this week, you can get what glitters. Just don’t expect it all to be gold. IN YOUR LOVE LIFE: We are born with a simple appreciation of all that life brings. Rediscover that. The road to happiness is the open one.

GEMINI May 22-June 22

T here are a hundred self-help books for every condition you can imagine. Diets? Yes! Savings? Yes! The problem is that they often disagree with each other! You could spend your life comparing volumes and be no closer to any kind of consensus. The one thing they do have in common is that in order to be successful, you need to have selfbelief. So, do you have what it takes? The tiniest spark of faith is about to be fanned into a fire of success. You’d be stunned if you realised just how close you are to achieving your dream. IN YOUR LOVE LIFE: A series of niggling details are bugging you. Yet human beings can’t be perfect. Find the perfection in imperfection.

CANCER June 23-July 23

T he words ‘what’ and ‘if’, though simple, are powerful. Sometimes they can be catalysts for dreams, hopes and aspirations but, more often, they're the words that cause us to slam our foot on the brake, and bring things screeching to a halt. They easily throw us into doubts about our abilities and decisions. As a general rule, life’s troubled waters become a lot easier to navigate when we stop questioning every choice and just trust in our abilities. There's so much to be hopeful about, this week. Give in to that optimism. IN YOUR LOVE LIFE: Do you have a hidden agenda? If you can now be honest about your own aspirations, you can find ways to fulfil them.

LEO July 24-August 23

P inch yourself. Yes, that’s right — you’re not dreaming. So now we’ve discounted one possibility and ascertained that this situation truly exists, the question is: how do you feel? Perhaps you’ve been so taken aback by recent developments that you haven’t thought about your new social standing. But as your ruler enters Pisces, the dreamiest of signs, it’s time to wake up! You have the power to make great and profound changes. You’re not living in a dream but, with the right tools and enough drive, you can turn life into one. IN YOUR LOVE LIFE: All you need to do now is listen to someone. If you really listen to them, they’ll listen to you!

VIRGO August 24-September 23

F rom technological whizzkids to green-fingered gardeners, there are so many examples of brilliance. There’s so much to know, so much we should know... and so much we don’t know. In this world of specialised expertise, when so many people seem to know more than you, it’s easy to feel inferior. But this week, you know exactly how to do what you need to do. If you act with sincerity and care, all will go well. You have the skills you need to accomplish your goal without going off route. So there’s no need to fear anything going wrong. IN YOUR LOVE LIFE: Is something preventing you from progressing? Break out of a situation that has been making you feel trapped.

LIBRA September 24-October 23

H ow are you going to win the lottery without a ticket? As the song in the musical South Pacific so beautifully puts it, ‘You’ve got to have a dream, if you don’t have a dream, how you gonna have a dream come true?’ It makes it sound so simple! But it takes a bit more than just a dream. It takes definite, decisive action too. This week, as Venus and Neptune link, although dreaming is a very good place to start, you should find that circumstances contrive to create an ideal opportunity for you to make an important move forwards. IN YOUR LOVE LIFE: Remember the game where you have to bash plastic frogs that pop up. Stop thumping the frog; kiss it instead.

SCORPIO October 24-November 22

I magine being fortunate enough to be able to buy a huge and beautiful mansion, only to become depressed by how much money you have to spend on CCTV and security guards. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m sure it would be annoying. But would it really have stopped you from buying the house? Although your chances of winning the lottery are slim, the cosmos is blessing you with good fortune this week. If you focus on the benefits rather than any perceived negatives, your luck will continue to gather and grow. IN YOUR LOVE LIFE: You have lately given more than enough thought to ‘what if?’ It is time for an adventure. You deserve this!

SAGITTARIUS November 23-December 21

M ars in your sign is like a hamster in a wheel. But this wheel is powering a time machine set to take you back to the past. That’s no bad thing, but there’s a chance that this journey will take you on a journey past some less than rosy memories. But there’s a way of turning this to your advantage. This is a chance to review what you’ve seen as a mistake and realise that it was a necessary step on the path taking you where you needed to go. When we learn to appreciate where we’ve been, we get to love where we’re going.

IN YOUR LOVE LIFE: Old ideas and emotions are harder to abandon than old unfashionable clothes. But are you sure they still suit you?

CAPRICORN December 22-January 20

W hy are you in charge? When someone asks this question, the implication is that the person who’s being challenged shouldn’t be in a position of authority. Although you haven’t heard these exact words, there’s an unspoken feeling that this is what someone close to you is thinking. It’s no wonder you feel defensive. But rather than your decisions being called into question, people just need to understand why they’re doing what you want them to do. If you share your vision, you’ll find that others are eager to jump on board. IN YOUR LOVE LIFE: Coming soon: a chance to change some aspect of your life forever, bringing less stress and more hope. Embrace it.

AQUARIUS January 21-February 19

W ouldn’t it be nice to win the lottery? To go on an all-inclusive trip to Bali? Or buy a sports car? And a castle! You could throw lavish parties, or live quietly in the countryside. Sorry, I’m getting carried away. But doesn’t everyone, now and then, get distracted by ideas that are unlikely ever to come true? This week, though, the cosmos indicates that rather than wasting your energy by chasing after wishful thinking impossibilities, if you focus on what’s possible you can achieve something which is desirable and very satisfying. IN YOUR LOVE LIFE: It’s time to rise above an uncomfortable situation. Accept a process of exchange; it will bring surprisingly deep joy.

PISCES February 20-March 20

H ere come the Sun and Mercury entering your sign. Venus, already encouraging more love and kindness, is converging with your ruler and helping you appreciate the beauty of the world. There goes Saturn, ensuring that you have a source of reliable support, and helping your friends to ground you so that you focus your attention on what matters. Here comes Mars, ensuring that you needn’t accept no for an answer. And soon comes your birthday and the promise that this year holds more success than you dare hope for. IN YOUR LOVE LIFE: The issue is not always how much you have in common, as how you handle times of stress. Remember that.