November's Full Moon

It rained lightly all last night and part of this morning.  We had "tree rain" for the rest of the day.  I'm grateful for every drop! 

I went outside not expecting to be able to see the moon, but the clouds were moving pretty briskly, so I waited a bit and got lucky.  My Oglala Sioux ancestors called November's full moon "Last Leaves Falling Moon."  You can find dozens of websites purporting to know the names that the tribes of the First People called the moons, but I find that very few match exactly what my Sioux and Cherokee grandparents and parents told me.  I'd tell you the Cherokee name, but I can't remember it right now.  Darn memory.

Columbus Day?

Sorry, Mr. Columbus. My ancestors got here before you...by about 30,000 years. The Vikings got here before you did. Heck, even some Irish monks got here before you did.

Which is why it really ticks me off that I can't pick up a package that I've been waiting for from the Post Office today. It's closed in your honor. Hmmm...'honor' and 'Christopher Columbus.' Now, there are words that really don't belong in the same sentence.

I'm part Italian (Northern Italy) and I'm proud of that. Italians have contributed a great deal to the richness of the cultural heritage of this country. But you? Pah. Believe me, my Italian Nonna would really have some things to say to you that you wouldn't like, and, I imagine, so would her husband, an Oglala Sioux.

Full Moon Musings

I can never stay inside on a full moon night, as long as the sky is clear. Something about the moon when she is full calls to some ancient  memory within me.     

To me, as to so many other women, the moon represents the feminine aspect of God.  To stand in her silver light is to feel a calm blessing washing over me.

I also think of her as 'Grandmother Moon' which is what my Cherokee and Oglala Sioux ancestors called her for thousands of years.  We still call her by that name.  The sun is Grandfather Sun, then there is Mother Earth and Father Sky.  But Grandmother Moon has the strongest claim on my heart and spirit.

So, on the nights when the moon turns water into liquid silver and paints the trees and ground with her luminescent, magical light, I take a "time out" from my life and enjoy soaking up the moonlight and the subtle, calm magic such a night can bring.