The Harvest Moon is almost here! The full moon that rises in the sky each September, known as the Harvest Moon, is my favorite moon of the whole year. There is an astrophysical explanation for why this particular moon shines the brightest and looks the largest of all the calendar moons…but I’m not going to ramble on about that rationale here. The Harvest Moon receives its name from the season that celebrates the significance (the reward) of hoping. Harvest is the joyous reality of receiving what was, in seasons past, imagined.
This process is not without hard work. In agricultural terms, there is first the identification of what matters – what needs to be grown to keep life going. Then, there is the selection and preparation of land, the toil of cultivating soil to then plant seeds to take root. Then, there is waiting. There is humility in surrendering to time and tempests; and there is intentional attention to helping healthy growth take place. There is more waiting…and watching. There is the possibility of despair and even death. But amidst that shadowy insecurity, there still exists the anticipation and purposeful preparation to meet and greet what has matured and is ready for harvest. Harvest, itself, is its own important effort that requires the collective support of persistent muscle. The careful plucking and cutting of crops still involves imagination of the banquet tables to come. There is a symbolic synchronicity to the Harvest Moon’s ambiance that represents, for me, how heart, hand, land and especially ethereal efforts are always at work to offer hope and joy throughout every season of life.
The 2015 Harvest Moon will appear on September 27. Look up! I hope you get to see it and enjoy the present it is.
A Good Gift
You made the moon to rule the night –
That means even in the dark, there is still light.
In the absence of day glow, no less inferior,
You are here – proving Yourself superior.
Rays of hope as surrounded arms,
Your maternal embrace truly warms.
Amid cold shadowed veil,
You prove Your love can never fail.
A very real reflective radiance
And a divine ordained incandescence
Fills the sky with eternal essence.
I stand in awe of Your glorious presence.
References:
- Resurrection; sculpture by Jamie Wasson 2014
- Why does the Harvest Moon look so big and orange?
- The Art of the Commonplace by Wendell Berry
- A Good Gift; poem by Jamie Wasson 2010
My Beautiful Vision 