Watching the moonat midnight,
solitary, mid-sky,
I knew myself completely,
no part left out.
Izumi Shikibu
Dare I confess it? This moonscape was actually a waning moonscape, and I was not sure I should post anything here at all - I didn't actually witness the full moon this month. We were beset by heavy clouds, wind and rain on full moon night, and there was (alas) no lunar magnificence to be seen for a day or two. In the end, it simply did not feel right to allow May's full moon to go unmarked, whether I had seen it or no, and so here it is, several days late. The verse by Izumi Shikibu is one of my favorites ever.
Spring evenings are vibrant, velvety and chock full of possibility. When the air finally cleared and the clouds rolled away for the most part, how bright the just-past-full moon was and how perfectly serene in her rising through the wispy clouds and over the wind tossed trees. There was spring in her step, and she seemed to be dancing aloft, celebrating the grace and grandeur of life and without a care in the world.
We also know this fifth moon of the calendar year as the: Alewife Moon, Anagantios Moon, Beltane Moon, Blossom Moon, Bottlebrush Moon, Bright Moon, Budding Moon, Corn Planting Moon, Death Moon, Dragon Moon, Dyad Moon, Fawns Moon , Field Maker Moon, Fifth Moon, Fish Moon, Flowering Moon, Fright Moon, Frog Moon, Frogs Return Moon, Geese Go North Moon, Geese Moon, Grass Moon, Hare Moon, Heavy Snow Moon, Hoeing Corn Moon, Idle Moon, Iris Moon, Joy Moon, Leaf Tender Moon, Leaves Appear Moon, Lily of the Valley Moon, Little Corn Moon, Little-finger Moon, Magnolia Moon, Merry Moon, Milk Moon, Moon of Big Leaf, Moon of the Strawberry, Moon of the Camas Harvest, Moon of Waiting, Moon To Plant, Moon When Corn is Planted, Moon When Ponies Shed Their Fur, Moon When the Buffalo Plant is in Flower, Moon When the Leaves Are Green, Moon When the Little Flowers Die, Moon When the Horses Get Fat, Moon When Women Weed Corn, Mulberry Moon, Mulberry Ripening Moon, New Waters Moon, Old Woman Moon, Panther Moon, Penawen Moon, Peony Moon, Planting Moon, Putting Seeds in the Hole Moon, Seeds Moon, Seeds Ripen Moon, Sprout Kale Moon, Staying Home Moon, Storing Moon, Strawberry Moon, Suckers Dried Moon Summer Moon, Thrice Milk Moon, Moon When the Ponies Shed Their Shaggy Hair Moon, Wind Tossed Moon, Winnemon Moon.
3 comments:
even though here the air is filled with the cold of winter for a moment i felt the warm moonshine on my face as she drifted on the spring breeze.
Oh, so it was the Flower Moon that kept we wide awake two nights in a row. I did get five hakiu written the first night, getting up and writing with each one, so I didn't really mind. My sheer curtains allow the moon to shine on me, so it is hard to miss.
That is a lovely poem, I copied off the name of the poet.
Oh, Good! I'd been looking for May's full moon photo. This picture is lovely, and it's wonderful that you kept up your tradition of noting and naming each month's moon--even though the weather wasn't cooperating this month! Thanks
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