The moon is not yet visible yet tonight as I write this but I would call it The Frog Moon or ( the Cautious*) Planting Moon.
I love to hear of and imagine the dreamy bluebell woods and Maypoles but sadly we do not have either where I am.
There is almost a sweet imagined nostalgia - as if there’s a deep memory in the bones that one can’t quite grasp a firm hold of.
In fact I like the idea of a “floating” Beltane or May Day as the climate where I am is not in synch with these festival days and indeed the Indigenous People’s marking of the year just make more sense, as does the budding or flowering of a local plant to mark the arrival of spring or celebration.
*Gardening by the Moon, this is only a time for planting hardy root veg. The safe planting is closer to the 20th.
Fascinating stuff thank you Elizabeth, and it does make sense to leave planting until later in the month anyway by all accounts, as it's safer and the late sowings always seem to catch up. I had an abundance of vegetables last summer and left it very late to sow - and that wasn't even working strictly to the moon's rhythms. Yes, the indigenous peoples' moon names illustrate so well how the season floats according to climate as they shift up and down the continent. That's inspiring to note even on this relatively small island, let alone where you are. And there's no reason why you shouldn't have a deep ancestral memory in your bones. I imagine we all do. Perhaps we only get a glimpse or a feel of it now and again when something brings it closer to the surface momentarily. If you try the smoothie bowl I hope you'll enjoy it!
Sweet May - harbinger of rebirth, renewal, and possibility! Thank you for celebrating its beauty - and that moon picture! Grandmother looking so elegant and mysterious above the water. Blessed Be!
'Harbinger of rebirth, renewal, and possibility!' I love this! Thank you for reading the newsletter and for your kind words, Joan. I felt myself very lucky with that moon photo. It was worth dashing out to see what would happen and even before I left the cliff top the beauty had been hidden by a thick band of cloud. Still there, of course!
I really like the poems you’ve chosen and you describe the merry month of May perfectly! Everything is unfurling and poking and reaching out into the warmth and Light, Flowers’ excited emergence. I like Hawthorn Moon and Bluebell Moon sounds magical. Fiddlehead Moon? I loved dancing around a Maypole too in my very young years and I missed the truly gay fun! I’m planning a moonlight walk even though it’s raining here.
I love Fiddlehead Moon! It seems to offer everything that's magical about this month; the unfurling bracken and the infectious fairy tunes just caught on the breeze. I hope you enjoyed your moonlight walk and that the rain cleared up. I must say I was very lucky to catch the moon in that photo as it did cloud right over afterwards.
The moon is not yet visible yet tonight as I write this but I would call it The Frog Moon or ( the Cautious*) Planting Moon.
I love to hear of and imagine the dreamy bluebell woods and Maypoles but sadly we do not have either where I am.
There is almost a sweet imagined nostalgia - as if there’s a deep memory in the bones that one can’t quite grasp a firm hold of.
In fact I like the idea of a “floating” Beltane or May Day as the climate where I am is not in synch with these festival days and indeed the Indigenous People’s marking of the year just make more sense, as does the budding or flowering of a local plant to mark the arrival of spring or celebration.
*Gardening by the Moon, this is only a time for planting hardy root veg. The safe planting is closer to the 20th.
Your smoothie bowl sounds delicious.
Fascinating stuff thank you Elizabeth, and it does make sense to leave planting until later in the month anyway by all accounts, as it's safer and the late sowings always seem to catch up. I had an abundance of vegetables last summer and left it very late to sow - and that wasn't even working strictly to the moon's rhythms. Yes, the indigenous peoples' moon names illustrate so well how the season floats according to climate as they shift up and down the continent. That's inspiring to note even on this relatively small island, let alone where you are. And there's no reason why you shouldn't have a deep ancestral memory in your bones. I imagine we all do. Perhaps we only get a glimpse or a feel of it now and again when something brings it closer to the surface momentarily. If you try the smoothie bowl I hope you'll enjoy it!
Sweet May - harbinger of rebirth, renewal, and possibility! Thank you for celebrating its beauty - and that moon picture! Grandmother looking so elegant and mysterious above the water. Blessed Be!
'Harbinger of rebirth, renewal, and possibility!' I love this! Thank you for reading the newsletter and for your kind words, Joan. I felt myself very lucky with that moon photo. It was worth dashing out to see what would happen and even before I left the cliff top the beauty had been hidden by a thick band of cloud. Still there, of course!
I really like the poems you’ve chosen and you describe the merry month of May perfectly! Everything is unfurling and poking and reaching out into the warmth and Light, Flowers’ excited emergence. I like Hawthorn Moon and Bluebell Moon sounds magical. Fiddlehead Moon? I loved dancing around a Maypole too in my very young years and I missed the truly gay fun! I’m planning a moonlight walk even though it’s raining here.
I love Fiddlehead Moon! It seems to offer everything that's magical about this month; the unfurling bracken and the infectious fairy tunes just caught on the breeze. I hope you enjoyed your moonlight walk and that the rain cleared up. I must say I was very lucky to catch the moon in that photo as it did cloud right over afterwards.