I was born a Moon Child, so they say. Astrologists say my “ruling body” is the moon. Something astrological about when I was born — I never looked into it very deeply. The label seems to hold though; most of the things I’ve had to name are called “Moon-something.” This blog is a case in point.
Coincidentally, I’ve also felt particularly attuned to the magical goings-on in the sky. Eclipses, full moons, northern lights, meteor showers — they all call my name saying, “Come and see — this is really cool!” And generally I do.
Or at least…. I want to. We’re surrounded by impossibly tall trees, and Michigan is known for its cloudy weather. Skies may not be cooperative, and the events are generally well past my bedtime. Many attempts to view these heavenly delights have met with disappointment dipped in too little sleep and no stellar tales to tell as a reward for it all.
News of the coming Blue Moon/Blood Moon/Lunar Eclipse had my attention for the last number of weeks. What a cocktail of events all rolled into one! A rare occurrence indeed, it’s been over 150 years since one was visible in the U.S. The best viewing time was at a decent hour, and — weather permitting — it should have been easy. So why did I miss it?
One of my fallback phrases for missing things or forgetting something is that “life got in the way.” And for my viewing of this January 31st skyward magic, that’s exactly what happened. Working several part-time jobs as well as tending to the house and family members, my days are pretty complex. Normally, it’s do-able and happy. But add into that mix that our son needed some extra medical care, the house made an ice dam and made it rain in the living room (for days!), and the news that some of my work was to be included in a major new book — and “complex” spun out of control. I forgot to include the Moon event into our daily life plans, and it was lost.
My husband saw it on Facebook just as the eclipse was at its peak, and we saw the effects of it in the shadows of our woods. We didn’t have time to hop in the car and go anywhere for a better look before it was all done. So close…..
I felt lost over missing this, and have been wondering what washed over me to make it so. I guess life happened. A little research says January 21, 2019 will be the next Supermoon/Lunar Eclipse and should be visible from the entire U.S. It won’t be a Blue Moon….. but I guess you can’t have everything.
(c) 2018, J. Cools
Moon Dance 