Talking down to Mercury
For Barbaras Ahajusts:
We need to consider two broad issues relative to Mercury retrograde.
First, when Mercury turns retrograde it is ahead of the Sun in terms of where it is in the zodiac. It is where the Sun has yet to go. Mercury is clear headed, able to "see" without being influenced by the ego, one's desires or intent. When Mercury turns retrograde it "falls" back towards or into the Sun. Then it moves backward some more and ends up behind the Sun. Even when it again turns direct, it is "behind" the Sun's position in the zodiac, it covers ground (so to speak) that the Sun has covered, it is shaped by the Sun's intent, direction, sense of self -- in other words, Mercury sees things as it is told to see them, it talks "politically correctly".
Mercury retrograde and Mercury-direct-but-behind-the-Sun carries the Sun's garbage. If the Sun has tough aspects, that Sun-view-of-the-world colors Mercury functions of thinking, organizing, communicating. Mercury ahead of the Sun does its own Mercury-thing without regard to the Sun and its aspects.
Second, how does a retrograde Mercury affect your planets when it makes an aspect-contact with them?
1) If Mercury makes contact with a planet while it is retrograde and still "ahead" of the Sun, it seems to understand how that planet would like to express itself and cooperate with other planets that it might aspect.
2) If Mercury makes contact with a planet while retrograde and behind the Sun, it helps that planet express itself in terms of what the Sun wants and how the Sun functions. Mercury is the Sun's "gopher".
3) When Mercury goes direct, but is still behind the Sun zodiac-wise, it becomes more of a "nag" or "organizer" to serve the Sun's purpose. The planets that are contacted in this phase are urged to act as if the Sun was in aspect to them.
4) When Mercury is direct and ahead of the Sun in terms of its zodiac position, Mercury helps the planet to express itself in its true nature without regard to the Sun's natal influence by sign and house and aspects.
Does this help? Dave
Edited to add: You won't find this stuff in the books. Your responsibility is to test this in your chart to see if its true. Don't just believe me because I said it was so.