Have you been feeling a bit unfocused lately? Have communications been off with people? Technology acting up? Plans being delayed and things being misplaced or lost? If any of the above happened to you and you feel like fate is taking over don’t worry, you’re one of the many many people affected by this period called Mercury Retrograde. For those of you who know about it, hang tight while I explain to our friends who may be hearing about it for the first time today.

Three or four times a year, a planet in the solar system, Mercury, is said to go retrograde — that is when it is moving in the opposite direction to planet Earth. The planet Mercury rules communication and all moving things, and it can cause disruption in our everyday flow since humans are always communicating and moving.

The belief that some planet going in the opposite direction can crash our laptop or disrupt our travel plans may sound ridiculous. If we need to find reasons, such as Mercury Retrograde, to justify why losing our car keys for the third time this week is OK, then we really need to talk about the real elephant in the room: FATE.

The truth is that whatever happened to you, it happened because it was meant for YOU.

While I have been an avid believer of Mercury Retrograde for many years (and still do), I realized that one way I have been able to finally combat the unnecessary anxiety of planets spinning out of my control is to accept my own fate, the good and bad that make up the entirety of life, while still focusing on things I can directly control myself.

In the philosophy of Stoicism, we are often reminded of Amor Fati, the Latin term which translates to Love of Fate. Amor Fati serves as a brutal reminder to embrace all that is life, without fighting it. All that is good, all that is bad, all that is enjoyable, and all that is painful. To deliberately make the best of any moment especially in times of trial, when difficult obstacles are thrown at us left, right, and center. Essentially Amor Fati is the practice of loving everything that happens to you, and not just accepting begrudgingly, but fully embracing it, welcoming it by taking full control of your perspective no matter what fate throws at you.

“What is thrown on top of the fire, is fuel for the Fire” – Marcus Aurelius

When the laptop crashes in the middle of you working on your project you say: “Great! I love this, now I can go create a better version of my project! Amor Fati, I love it!”

When traffic delays your plans, you say, “Sweet! I can finally take a little break from the busyness of life and maybe catch up on the podcast I’ve been wanting to listen to!”

When you send the wrong email to the wrong people, maybe even embarrassing yourself, you say, “Yes, I am ok with this experience because I can practice humility and learn from this. I am stronger and more thick-skinned because of this.”

Instead of blaming planets and our solar system for messing up our lives, I think a better way to approach all this is to embrace all that is life, all that we are. The good and the bad, the joy and the suffering. That is Amor Fati, Love of Fate.

This mindset is what’s going to crush mercury retrograde and every single retrograde the entire solar system ever throws at you.

P.S. Today we released two new designs in the spirit of Halloween and a touch of Stoicism. The first design, Death by Techno (Amor Fati), is aimed to remind us of the fate we chose in life and to embrace all the good and bad this path in life we chose (through Techno) may throw at us, Amor Fati.

Our second design, Rave to The Grave (Memento Mori), serves to remind us of our own mortality. Only through this constant reminder of our own death, will we find the courage to live the life we truly wish to live, to the fullest.

Both shirts are available right here at The Shop! Scroll to our "Latest Collections" Tab on the home menu to get yours today!