The Full Moon of July

The full moon of July  21 is also called the buck moon. The name comes  from the Algonquin people----this is high summer, when the buck deer are showing off their new antlers. 

It is a time of ripening and roundness---tomatoes, peaches, plums.  There are days so perfect--- blue sky,  sun and 78 degrees, and a cool breeze off the lake.  The kind of weather we dream about all winter. 

This full moon is also known as the Thunder moon, a time of summer storms, lightning and thunder!

July has brought heat and humidity---and very severe storms.   Last  Sunday and Monday nights had powerful straight line winds  and  tornadoes!   The NWS is still investigating the damages, but as of Friday, July 19, they reported  24 confirmed tornadoes on the night of July 15.  This is  a new record for tornadoes in Chicago area on a single day or from a single event.  

 July 20th has been designated as International Moon Day--A very special day.  On this day in 1969, for the first time in history, a human being set foot on the surface of the moon.  Maybe you remember that day, 55 years ago.  What an exciting time that was, and still is.

Maybe the future the moon landing promised is not here, yet.  But today,  people have more computing power in their phones than the first moon mission had.

Maybe someday, we will  be One Earth,  One People,  on that Pale Blue Dot.  Maybe someday we will travel to the stars.  But first, we have work to do. Defend freedom and. democracy  Protect the earth, our home. And we can still  look to the sky and the stars, and wonder at the moon. 

Tanabata, the Star Festival

 

According to folklore, on the 7th day of the 7th month, two stars cross the river of the Milky Way  to meet again after a year apart. They are the stars Altair and Vega, part of the Summer Triangle,  along with the star Deneb.

You can read more about the Summer Triangle here.  

It  is a story about two married lovers--Orihime and Hikoboshi, the Weaver and the Cowherd.  

You can read their story, here.

Their meeting is celebrated throughout  China and Japan. The actual date may vary, but it usually begins on the 7th day of the 7th month according to the Gregorian calendar. Tanabata is a summer festival of magic and romance and ripening rice fields---an evening of lanterns, beautiful colors, dances and fireflies! 

In case of rain,  and the lovers cannot meet, their reunion is postponed for another year. 

Hope for clear skies tonight!