This will be a big month, full of surprises, both in your life and on the world stage. The eclipses are powerful, and they will change your timetables, your priorities, and your goals as new opportunities and conditions arise at rapid rate. Most eclipses are mixed in outlook, but these are the most loving and affirming. They fall in air and fire signs, too, which blend perfectly with your fire element.

Should you experience an untoward event this month (unlikely), I feel you will see, in a few months from now, that the eclipses worked to move you to greater maturity and growth. Both eclipses (the full moon lunar eclipse in Aquarius, and the new moon, total eclipse of the Sun in Leo) will bring you opportunity, and it seems, a change of lifestyle. They are cutting across your most social parts of your chart – friendship and love – so this should be an exciting month.

Often when we have eclipses, the other little planets step aside to allow the majestic moon (the lunar eclipse) and Sun (solar eclipses) take center stage. Often in a given month there are many planetary conversations going on, but not this month.

The first signal you will get that this is no ordinary month is on August 7, the full moon lunar eclipse in Aquarius, 15 degrees, falling in your eleventh house of friendship. You may be invited to a major social event, such as a charity benefit, wedding, or lavish birthday party, as some examples. Full moons bring things to culmination, and in this case, it has to do with a friend.

I love that this eclipse is in perfect angle to Jupiter, giver of gifts and luck, suggesting any event you attend would be lavish in some way. If you are attached, your partner will accompany you joyfully, without any complaint. Your partner will be just as eager to go to this event as you will be.

At the same time, Mars will be in Leo all month, touring your house of true love, so if you are single, you may meet someone special at this event – Mars, your ruling planet, can help you in a big way while touring Leo. This is fantastic for your love life. Look your best.

With eclipses, all kinds of news may come up. I cannot see everything in your chart, so things could possibly go either way. It is possible that a friend will bring you news that she is going through a difficult patch. A lunar eclipse points to a woman. Because this person is showing up in your chart, it means you would be in the best position of all her friends to help her. Friends are the family we create, and it seems clear you love this friend, and so you will want to roll up your sleeves to lend a hand in her time of need.

Or, as previously said, it would more likely be a joyous event, but at the same time, show a change of lifestyle. Your friend may be getting married and moving away, and it will be hard not to feel the passage of time. Eclipses can push forward in our march toward maturity, ready or not. They show us a mirror to our present life, and where we stand, and ready us for bigger and better things, even if we feel we cannot possibly handle a more responsible life’s role.

The eleventh house rules friendship but also groups of all kinds, such as a social club you belong to that can enliven your private life, or a society devoted to professional interests. You might take on a managing role in a community or humanitarian event, or perhaps organize an event, such as an industry panel or charity fundraiser.

The eleventh house also rules your deepest hopes and wishes, so a desire dear to your heart may now come to fruition, which has to be a thrilling prospect. A golden triangle of planets will join hands, the finest, most harmonious aspect you could ever receive, involving Uranus in Aries (surprise), the Sun and your ruler Mars (fun, love), and to Saturn (stability), the latter filling your intellectual house of travel. August will be a great month to travel, especially for personal pleasures.

The second eclipse will arrive as new moon solar eclipse of August 21 in Leo at 29 degrees, and it will be even more dramatic. While the lunar eclipse of August 7 will mark an ending, the new moon solar eclipse will herald a beginning. It will light your fifth house of romance, and as all new moons do, open opportunity, and in your case, to find true love. This eclipse will be like three new moons in the same sign rolled into one – that powerful.

This eclipse will be called the Great American Eclipse, as it will be visible in certain states, starting in Oregon and moving slightly diagonally east, ending in South Carolina. (Go to the NASA website for more information.) The last time we had an eclipse that was visible only in the United Sates was June 8, 1918. Uranus in Aries (in a once-in-a-lifetime, seven-year trend that started in 2011) will add a surprising twist.

Saturn can, and now will, contribute stability and longevity to your relationships, both those that are new and those that are ongoing in your personal life and your career. This is a rare and wonderful interplay of two different planets, Saturn and Uranus. Mars, ruling action, will also contact Saturn precisely, giving you the power to set up a foundation for something new, whether that is a relationship or creative project. This is a very exciting eclipse! Mars will also be active and reach out to Jupiter, the good fortune planet. This is extraordinary!

If you are single, make an effort to circulate, for rarely have you had such an outstanding opportunity to meet the one person for you. If you are attached, you may have a romantic experience this month that will last a lifetime. You may get engaged or married now, or promise to be exclusive to each other. If you hope to have a baby or adopt one, news should be encouraging, something you are likely to notice after this new moon solar eclipse arrives.

If you work in a creative role, or with creative people, things will go so very well. The same house of “baby” is your creative efforts, so this is included as a bonus of this eclipse. It seems you will hear of a new project as a result of the eclipse, or you will present ideas at this time that will go over very well. Your timing will be perfect.

After you finish reading this month’s forecast, it might be helpful to read “How to Deal with Eclipses” that is on my home page, lower left hand side. Or, on my app, premium edition (subscribed) under “Life + Love” on the menu, and once inside that chapter, under Susan’s Essays. Eclipses usually bring something from the outside world into your life that will land on your doorstep and change events.

If your birthday falls on April 19, you will be in an ideal position to gather up all the golden vibrations of the month, for the eclipse will be speaking directly to you. If your birthday falls on April 16-18, you too will feel this eclipse quite directly, although April 19 birthdays will benefit a little bit more. If you have Aries rising at 29 degrees, the moon in Aries 29 degrees, or a planet in Aries, Leo, or Sagittarius at 29 degrees, plus or minus four degrees you will also benefit.

Two planets will change direction this month. Uranus will go retrograde from August 2 until January 2. You won’t feel this too directly unless you have a strong Uranus in your chart or have Aquarius rising. If you do, you may see a temporary delay in a project you are working on – not now does not mean never. It’s also likely a friend from the past will reenter your life at some point in the second half of the year to reconnect in an important way. There appears you have more to do together in this life, or that something was left unfinished, and that in the second half of 2017 can find closure and perhaps more joy in the relationship.

Saturn will go direct on August 24 and will remain strong until April 17, 2018. This will now open a door wide for your career. For months, Saturn has been retrograde, going back to April 6, 2017. This is important because Saturn rules your tenth house of honors, awards, and achievement. If you feel your career has been stalled, that won’t be a problem anymore. It will now bring all kinds of news, so things will be full steam ahead.

The universe is cooking up exciting events in your love and friendship houses by sending you two major eclipses this month, and that means change is on the way. Change can sometimes sound scary, but I feel it won’t likely be at this time, for unlike eclipses over the past years, these are due to bring stimulating developments to you. Of course, all change requires adjustment, but this time, even you will admit, change is good. The first eclipse this month is a full moon, August 7, so that makes it a lunar eclipse, to light your eleventh house of friendship. Eclipses bring powerful events, as they are like full moons or new moons on steroids.

Something special will occur in regard to a friend – an event you will long remember. It may be, for example, your friend is getting married and moving on to a new lifestyle, and although you are close, you may sense you will never be friends in the same way that you were before. You will be happy for your friend, but the happiness might be bittersweet. This is only one example, and it is just possible you will make a new friend who matches your interests and becomes a force in your life, making new introductions and generally revitalizing your love life.

The new moon on August 21 will bring a major total solar eclipse, and unlike the first eclipse, which will bring an ending, a solar new moon eclipse will open a new chapter. This eclipse will be particularly joyous, for it lights your fifth house of romance. If you are single, this may be the rare moment where you have that fateful meeting with your one true love, for eclipses are certainly strong enough to create a miraculous development. With Mars, your guardian planet, in your house of true love, you, Aries, seem to be the darling of the eclipses. With this one, a golden triangle will appear, bringing Uranus (surprise) and Saturn (long-term relationship) together, as the two legs of the triangle at 120 degrees each from different points in the sky, at the first eclipse. If you are serious about meeting your one true love, go out and have a little fun. You won’t have to try too hard to catch the eye of someone intriguing. Let nature take its course. If you are attached, of course, you will enjoy yourself to the fullest.

The same house where the eclipse will arrive not only rules love and fun, but also conception and birth of a baby, so you may be knitting baby booties soon. If you are not ready for a baby yet, or haven’t met your soul mate, you may want to freeze your eggs. Do so in September, a week after Mercury will finish up retrograding in your fifth house of health. (Mercury will be retrograde from August 12 to September 5.) Schedule your procedure next month, on September 12 or September 15, when both days have Venus smiling on you.

Jupiter, giver of gifts and luck, has been in your marriage house for months, and you will still have this wonderful privilege in August and September. If you are dating seriously, the solar eclipse of August 21 can set a proposal in motion. No one would be happier than you when it all unfolds.