Winter Solstice

For your listening pleasure during this post, an instrumental piece titled Winter Solstice by The Tea Party – http://blip.fm/~zxai9

Staring up into the night sky as clouds drifted over the stars, I could see the moon bright and full through the thin layers, and beneath it sat Orion in all his magnificent glory. I say hello to Orion every night when I stand outside. The moon was directly above me, and for the first time in 456 years, the earth’s shadow would cover the moon on this winter solstice. The numerology alone is crazy, but the full lunar eclipse on this longest night of the year—spectacularly powerful in so many ways.

I checked periodically while reading, editing, and tweeting. I watched the clock. I stepped outside. The moon was almost completely covered by the shadow. I smiled and went back inside once more. I can’t stand for long and I had no chair to sit in and watch. When I returned, the eclipse was full … and the moon, from my viewpoint, was bathed in a red tint. I shared this with most of the world, as they sat outside and watched with me. I know the reason the red tint happens because I took astronomy in college, but I still can’t help but marvel when I see it.

When I look at a moon like this, I view it from many different pairs of eyes. If I’m in awe of it now, in this century, with my knowledge, I can imagine and understand the power it once held over less civilized cultures. It still holds that power. I see it through the eyes of a villager who thinks a demon/monster is swallowing it. I see it through the eyes of a Druid who knows of its mystical power. I see it through the eyes of a scientist who, while understanding it’s a rock orbiting the earth, still can’t help but be pulled in by its incredible power to effect things on earth and in our minds. And I see it through the eyes of a 41-year-old gal who’s always loved staring up at the moon and the stars.

I don’t know if it has to do with my genetics (because I’m not the only one like this in my family) or if I’m just odd, but normally a highly creative individual such as myself doesn’t usually carry much logic in the brain. You’re either a creative mind or a logical one. Rarely both. Mathematics, for example—we have a love/hate relationship and an agreement to leave one another alone. However, when it comes to science (yes, this won’t make sense because it certainly doesn’t to me) I excel at it, I love it, I understand it, and for whatever reason, I can do the formulas well beyond my mathematical skills if they involve space or geology. Told you it wouldn’t make sense. Perhaps it’s as simple as love for the knowledge of it. Or I had wonderful, patient professors who knew how to explain mathematical equations. Either way, science is only a small part of the reason I stare at the moon and stars every night. My ancestry is another part, and my creativity plays a very large role in why I stare and am in awe.

I stared at the red-tinted moon for a long time last night, and I prayed. I bound. I asked. And I forgave. My spirit is calm. My Karma is in alignment. As much of a bitch as Life can be, I’m ready for Life to begin again. This next year will be good. I can feel it.

So mote it be.