Free Will Astrology: May 14 through 20

 ARIES [March 21–April 19] I hope you've been trying to bolster your stick-to-it-iveness, Aries, as well as pumping up your follow-through and supercharging your determination. If you haven't been attending to this unglamorous yet heroic work, play catch-up. Your final exam will be administered no later than May 24. Here's a sample question: If a teammate drops the ball, do you a) quit the game; b) throw the ball in your teammate's face; c) pick up the ball and start running in the direction your teammate was supposed to?

TAURUS [April 20–May 20] The Young and the Restless has been the most highly rated show in its time slot for more than 1,000 consecutive weeks. First appearing in 1973, the daytime soap ascended to the top slot in 1988 and has never slipped since. I'm happy to announce that in 2008, you have the potential to begin a comparable run of success, Taurus. But it all depends on the preparations you make in the coming weeks.

GEMINI [May 21–June 20] "Pain is weakness leaving the body," says fitness trainer Mark Duval. If that's true, you've gotten a lot stronger in recent weeks. By my astrological reckoning, you've not only shed a few months' worth of emotional distress, but purged a few lifetimes' worth of confused dreams. Congratulations on all the new vitality you've earned through your constructive losses.

CANCER [June 21–July 22] As part of the arrangement your soul entered into before you were born, you were given the mission to accomplish five specific miracles. Three of these you haven't even guessed the nature of yet. Why? Because you've been overly timid imagining what you're capable of. That's the bad news, Cancerian. The good news is that you're very close to the mystery spot where one of those undiscovered dreams has been moldering.

LEO [July 23–August 22] "The maxim for any love affair," wrote Charles Williams, "is 'Play and pray, but do not pray when you are playing and do not play when you are praying.' We cannot yet manage such simultaneities." But I strongly disagree with Williams, especially in regard to your destiny in the coming weeks. According to my analysis of the astrological omens, you can and should blend reverence and irreverence in every way you can imagine.

VIRGO [August 23–September 22] Seems you're pushing to learn all you can from places and ideas you barely even knew existed a few months ago. Your experiments continue to provide such valuable lessons that you'd rather not wrap them up yet. That's fine—we here at The Grind will welcome you back anytime. We completely understand if you want to stay out there on a limb until you're sure the butterfly won't have any desire to change back into a caterpillar.

LIBRA [September 23–October 22] "Dear Rob: I've been a Libra all my life, and I'm always puzzled by those who say that Librans have trouble making decisions. My experience of the Libra approach to life is that we are connoisseurs of completeness. We strive to include all the applicable information in our deliberations, even if it's at odds with our personal perspective. Now it's true that urgency and speed are the cultural norms; in that light, Librans may seem wishy-washy and hesitant. But in fact, we're actually thoughtful and judicious. Please help correct the bad stereotype about us. —Discerning Libra." Dear Discerning: You make some excellent points. I will pass them on to my Libra readers because it's crucial that, in the days ahead, they avoid being misinterpreted in the way you described.

SCORPIO [October 23–November 21] A journalist visiting the home of famed physicist Niels Bohr was surprised to see a horseshoe nailed to the wall. "Can it be that you, of all people, believe a horseshoe will bring you good luck?" he asked. "Of course not," Bohr replied, "but I understand it brings you luck whether you believe it or not." I suggest you adopt the physicist's mind-set in the coming week, Scorpio. Without dumbing down your powers of logic, be open to the possibility that you will benefit from forces that are beyond your imagining or unaccounted for by your belief system.

SAGITTARIUS [November 22–December 21] In his folk song "Farewell to the Gold," Nic Jones tells the story of a failed gold prospector. After two years, the unlucky man is giving up his search. "Farewell to the gold/that never I found," he sings. "Goodbye to the nuggets/that somewhere abound./ For it's only when dreaming/that I see them gleaming/down in the dark deep underground." If I'm reading the omens correctly, Sagittarius, it's time for you, too, to say goodbye to a quest that hasn't panned out. Yes, it'll be sad—but within a month, you'll be led to a better quest with more chance of success.