Confession Friday on a Saturday - I See the Moon and the Moon Sees Me

 "The night walked down the sky with the moon in her hand." ~ Frederick Lawrence Knowles
 

I'm not quite sure why it is, but for some reason I have become obsessed recently with the moon.  There is nothing better than a mild summer night with the requisite slight breeze, clear skies,  bright stars and accompanying moon.  And lying in the hammock....but that's another obsession to explore later......  Let's get back to that summer night of stars and moons....


My dad was a moon planter.  What is a "moon planter", you ask? Someone who uses the moon and its phases to base when to plan and plant vegetables in the garden.  He was an avid, die-hard believer in using this system and never a new year came that he didn't get his copy of The Farmer's Almanac to study and chart where and when he would plow the garden in the spring.  It was a tradition that farmers believed in, before there were weather forecasts and meteorologists reports ready available.  His copy of the current year's Farmer's Almanac was dog-eared and well used by the time May rolled around.  I can recall some good natured kidding from folks he amicably endured, but the proof was in the pudding -  Dad's garden was abundant and rich in its bounty.  He always had the last laugh.

Hey, hey! Don't be so quick to snicker and poo-poo the moon and its effect on planting and growing gardens. Seems now there are some truths that have been discovered recently that confirms and proves that our agrarian ancestors were on to something.  Here's how it works:  Our planet Earth resides in a large gravitational field.  Both the sun and the moon have their influence on this gravity field. When the moon is in its new and full moon phases and the sun and moon are lined up with Earth, the oceans' tides are at their highest.  Like the moon's pulling the tides, other smaller, insignificant sources of water are being pulled, too.  This results in the moisture rising in the soil, which in turn, increases growth.  Thus, the moisture in the soil is at its highest during these moon phases and seeds absorb the most water during the full moon!  Who knew?  Well, obviously, our ancestors.....

Even today we cannot get away from the folklore that has been passed down to us through the ages.  When we hear of people acting strange, committing bizarre crimes, more babies being born than usual, we blame it on the full moon. "Must be a full moon" is our way of summing it up. Yet, upon further exploring of this subject, this, too, isn't just a figment of our imaginations.  I came across the following:

Gout and asthma attacks peak during new and full moons, according to work carried out at the Slovak Institute of Preventive and Clinical Medicine in Bratislava, where attacks over a 22-year period were monitored.....

Data from 140,000 births in New York City showed small but systematic variations in births over a period of 29.53 days - the length of the lunar cycle - with peak fertility in the last quarter. "The timing of the fertility peak in the third quarter suggests that the period of decreasing illumination immediately after the full moon may precipitate ovulation.'....

A study in Florida of murders and aggravated assaults showed clusters of attacks around the full moon. A second study of three police areas found the incidence of crimes committed on full-moon days was much higher than on all other days. And a four-year study into car accidents found that the lowest number happened during the full-moon day, while the highest number was two days before the full moon. Accidents were more frequent during the waxing than the waning phase.

Another study of some 800 patients with urinary retention admitted to hospital over a period of three years found higher retention during the new moon compared with other phases of the cycle. Interestingly, patients didn't show any other daily, monthly or seasonal rhythms in their retention problems.....

Even what we eat and drink is affected by the lunar cycle, according to a study at Georgia State University. Researchers looked at lunar variations in nutrient intakes and the meal patterns of 694 adults. They concluded: "A small but significant lunar rhythm of nutrient intake was observed with an 8 per cent increase in meal size and a 26 per cent decrease in alcohol intake at the time of the full moon relative to the new moon.''....

While scientists have been trying to prove for some time that the Moon does exert an effect, what has not been established is why. Scientists have until now examined the theory that the Moon triggers changes through its gravitational pull. But the latest research points to an effect on people's hormones. "The lunar cycle has an impact on human reproduction, in particular fertility, menstruation and birth rate. Other events associated with human behaviour, such as traffic accidents, crimes, and suicides, appeared to be influenced by the lunar cycle,'' said Dr Michael Zimecki of the Polish Academy of Sciences....

"Although the exact mechanism of the Moon's influence on humans and animals awaits further exploration, knowledge of this kind of biorhythm may be helpful in police surveillance and medical practice,'' he said....

The researchers also found links between the lunar cycle and the likelihood of people being admitted to hospital with heart or bladder problems and with diarrhoea. The menstrual cycle, fertility, spontaneous abortions and thyroid disease were also affected. Just how the Moon could have an effect needs further research. Dr Zimecki suggests that it may be the effect of the Moon's gravity on immune systems, hormones and steroids.

He said: "At this stage of investigation, the exact mechanism of the lunar effect on the immune response is hard to explain. The prime candidates to exert regulatory function on the immune response are melatonin and steroids, whose levels are affected by the Moon cycle....

"It is suggested that melatonin and endogenous steroids [which are naturally occurring in humans] may mediate the described cyclic alterations of physiological processes. Electromagnetic radiation and/or the gravitational pull of the Moon may trigger the release of hormones.''

So there you have it.  Give the Moon some credit, okay?  It's not just hokus-pokus like we thought all along.  Which gets me back to my original thought of being ever so conscious lately of the moon- that glorious, mysterious nocturnal orb in the dark sky.  I am fascinated by the phases, the waxing and waning, the new crescent, the quarter moon (which looks like half), the full moon, the dark side and the far side.  Do you know the difference between the dark and far side?  Neither did I till recently.  The dark side is the part that faces Earth and us but is not illuminated.  The far side of the moon is the side we never see - the other side.  And the difference in the waxing and waning?  Waxing comes after the new moon, which is the dark moon followed by the waxing crescent, which is the crescent moon with the round part that looks like the round part of a capitol D or a left parenthesis ).  Waxing means the shining part of the moon is getting larger, culminating with the full moon. Waning comes after the full moon and the illuminated part gets smaller until the waning crescent that looks like the round side of a capitol letter C ( and ends with the new moon once again.  Every 29.5305882 days the moon goes through its phases and starts all over again.  And nature responds.  I don't know about you, but I find that fascinating.  Just think, since the beginning of time and Earth's creation, the moon has been going through its phases, guiding planting and nature and tides.


Then there are the special moons.  The Harvest Moon is the full moon closest to the Autumn Equinox; a blood moon is a harvest moon that appears large and dark orange or red.  I've seen these over the course of my life and they never cease to amaze me and give me a little bit of a spooky feeling.  The Hunter's Moon -a full moon appearing in October or November, usually in October - was named for when Native Americans tracked and killed their prey by autumn moonlight, stockpiling food for the winter.  They celebrated The Hunter's Moon with a feast. Let's not forget a Blue Moon - the third full moon in a season with four full moons, but some people say it is the second full moon in a calendar month, neither of which happens very often.  Thus the phrase "once in a blue moon", meaning something rare or that doesn't occur regularly.  And don't forget the intriguing phenomena of the lunar eclipse which happens when the moon passes behind the Earth so that the Earth blocks the sun's rays from striking the moon. It can only happen when the moon, Earth, and the sun are aligned exactly, or very closely so, with the Earth in the middle. Remarkedly, a lunar eclipse can only occur the night of a full moon.

Oh, and I love the sayings that refer to the moon. "I love you to the moon and back" comes to mind.  Remember Ralph on The Honeymooners?  "To the moon, Alice, to the moon!"  "Shoot for the moon" is always a good thing, no matter how high the goal.  I am "over the moon" about my grandkids!  "Mooning" - dare I say more?  But "mooning" can mean to long for something fiercely, too. Have you ever seen "the Man in the Moon"?  I think I have.....

 I confess I am not sure the moon possesses any mystical powers, but I know that I find delight and entertainment in it.  And I thank the Creator of all things that above us all, every single night, the moon is there for us to admire and ponder and love.  So at least one night this summer, take a blanket, or if you are as lucky as I and have a hammock to lie in, and go out and do your own moon gazing and feel the power of the night.  Let's go do some howling!

I'll leave you with this bit of entertainment.  From Jim Brickman

Moonlight is sculpture.  ~Nathaniel Hawthorne