Any time I have an emergency astrology question (yes, that’s a real thing), I go to my friend Leigh. She’s not an astrologer, but she’s very intuitive, smart and dropped into the zodiac. She can validate an emotional spiral by pointing out your moon sign is getting pummeled right now and still make you feel grounded on earth—as opposed to, ya know, the stars. But something we have in common is that we’re both raising double Geminis. In the lore of astrology, Gemini gets a bad rap. They’re chatty, two-faced gossips—or so some descriptions would have you believe. In fact, Leigh had told me that she’d officially sworn off the twin sign from her love life back in college.

The zodiac is made up of 12 signs, which are then divided into four elements: earth, water, fire and air. As astrologer Jaime Wright explained to me, Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn are earth signs. Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces are water signs. Aries, Leo and Sagittarius are fire signs. And Gemini, Libra and Aquarius are air signs. 

See, the last Gemini Leigh dated made her swear off the sign entirely. And yes, she knows it’s a gross generalization, but as a grounded Taurus with no air signs in her rising or moon, the square-on Gemini traits of her college boyfriend became grating. “The younger version of me saw his ultra charming chameleon personality as duplicitous and fake. It felt people-pleasery to me.” Other typical Gemini characteristics ultimately led her to end things, “He had no patience and could never relax. He couldn’t sit in silence, so he’d fill the space with gossip.”

Fast forward a couple decades, and now, Leigh’s telling me how her Gemini son—not just a regular Gemini but a double Gemini (as in, two Gemini placements in his sun, moon and rising)—has changed her perspective. “I love his ability to adapt, communicate and bring air into our hearts and minds.” The rest of her family is earth, fire and water, so Leigh finds the air her son brings to the family refreshing. 

Over the phone, I hear her double-Gem son ask one question after another as Leigh multitasks, answering my questions and herding the kids out the door. “Here’s an example,” she starts. “We’ve been literally trying to leave the house for the last 30 minutes because I can’t find my keys…because he hides them. It’s not funny right now, but it brings levity to the day.” 

Our call gets interrupted. When we finally get back on, Leigh tells me they’ve abandoned the car and opted for bikes—something about finding the keys, but then getting locked out of the car for clicking it too many times. 

“I just think a stereotypical double air sign has a little more joie de vivre than earth signs. He doesn’t stop talking until he’s mid-sentence, head on pillow. In a relationship, having a boyfriend who didn’t stop talking was annoying, but as his mom, I can’t get enough.” Leigh quickly sidebars to ask her son if he can remember a four-number code. He responds in the background, “No!” We laugh. 

“He’s also a Virgo moon, which is why I think he fits into our family.” 

The Most Incompatible Zodiac Signs That Should Never, Ever, Date, According to an Astrologer