MOON, MOON, HARVEST MOON Saturday, October 3, 2009

The Full Moon in Aries (Full Harvest Moon) will occur Saturday, October 3rd, at 11:10pm, with the New Moon in Libra arriving Sunday, the 18th, at 1:33am. The full moon closest to the Equinox on September 21st bears the name "Harvest Moon" because it is the brightest full moon of the year. Farmers are able to harvest their crops by the light of the moon and see the fullness of their labors, the fruit on the vine, the efforts of their work.

Today the heavens are emptying the clouds here on the Ledge and much of the Pacific Northwest west of the Cascades Mountains. Our first season of growing a garden on the slopes of the ledge have been humble. The three small raised beds filled with our West Seattle compost of 2008 produced a tiny harvest. We have eaten small and delicious broccoli heads, a handful of fingerling potatoes, tender zucchini, Roma tomatoes and resting on the tiles next to our outdoor sink are four mini acorn squash. Perhaps a reflection of our vardo-sized home we have grown a micro harvest.

In the bright light of the Harvest Moon we have harvests to celebrate even as we continue to search for the next, new dreaming place where Kolea Nani rests for the winter. Here are a few of the things that can be celebrated:

• I have applied for Social Security Benefits that will start coming to me in January. I'll turn 62 in November, and it's time for me to harvest the benefits of the working years. Like our garden on the slope of the ledge, my check will be a mini harvest. I will love it, bless it and use it well. It's incoming resource and that is a very, very good thing.

• We have a sweet, safe, comfortable place to be and sleep. Kolea Nani the VardoForTwo is our mini nest. The heart of our two years of planting the seeds of believing it could be done. By the light of the fullest of brightest of moons we will celebrate our work and our home.

• We have learned so much about living with less and appreciating all that is more. MCS has challenged us more than anything we have ever experienced in our combined 120+ years. Not unlike thousands of families in this country, we have paid out of pocket for every service, bit of food, tank of gas, doctor appointment, visit to the NAET practitioner, and stopped paying for health insurance last year when it was a choice between food or insurance. The choice was easy.

• Our savings have supported us to this point, and we are grateful for that. Our economy is truly that of WEE. We have learned to enjoy the best organic and authentic food we can find and put our money there. We maintain that green Subaru for she is our scout and backup when an exposure or source of danger requires a quick get-away. The old 66 Dodge truck will get her first test of road readiness as soon as we know where it is we're headed. She's paid for, licensed and insured. We pray for the gods of travel to make her a safe and stout hauler of the vardo.

• Our physical health operates on faith, good nights of sleep, connection with supportive community through the cyber-nets and blogsphere, organic food, sweet pure water and lots of prayers. All in all the journey is just plain lots of work. Our Harvest Moon will shine on our belief that a safe and sane way of life without chemicals and harmful fragrances and toxic practices is a garden-life worth celebrating.

We celebrate the gift of our talents: resiliency, the ability to make do with little, the knowledge to fix things that are broken, reuse bits and dabs of what already is, the vision to see through the dribble and know what is worthy, the ability to write the truth, and a willingness to see when we are wrong and the courage to know when we are right; the ability to stay open to learning from many sources; and the internal knowing that we are valuable simply because we are.

What will you celebrate on the Harvest Moon?

Here are a few cool links to places where Moon Words, Moon Names and Tips for Planting by the Moon can be found :

http://home.hiwaay.net/~krcool/Astro/moon/moonwords/index.htm MOON WORDS

http://home.hiwaay.net/~krcool/Astro/moon/moonnames.htm MOON NAMES FROM DIFFERENT CULTURES

http://auntiemoon.wordpress.com/gardening-by-the-moon/garden-club-presentation-gods-heavenly-clock/colleens-notes/

PLANTING BY THE MOON A CANADIAN GARDENER’S NOTES