121: FULL CIRCLE
TUE 21 SEPT 00:54 - Mooning Monthly going round and round.... and round
Happy Harvest Moon dear friends
This momentous shiner falls pretty much smack on the Autumn Equinox and calls time on summer in the Northern Hemsiphere. Astrologically it peaks in Pisces, the last sign of the zodiac, and signifies the end of an annual cycle.
Which all suggests we're about to witness some chickens coming home to roost, the fruits of our labour and proof in our pudding. This is pinnacle harvest season folks, where we literally reap what we have sown as seeds of intent earlier in the year. It's a time to take stock of and store the good stuff whilst simultaneously getting rid of anything that might be bruised or rotten to avoid spoiling an entire season's yield.
To a greater or lesser extent we're all damaged goods of course, and this is a great fortnight in which to consign our heartache and disappointments to the returns depot of the past. The wounds of emotional pain are evident around and within us, inflicted by the male dominated, cultural malaise that continues to violently impose its cruel, greed motivated default ideology on planet and people. War; sexual violence and abuse of women and children; poverty; disease; famine; environmental degradation, climate crisis; cruelty to animals; can send many of us into spirals of emotional despair, often triggering and reopening experiential scars of our own.
Water sign Pisces is as emotionally charged as a sign can get, so under this Pisces Harvest Moon the tears of pain, anger and frustration are likely to flow. With resolute courage, this is a recommended fortnight in which to contemplate our man made catastrophe: the cage of perception that we continue to lock from the inside, in order to challenge it on both a personal and collective basis.
Our current landscape is of our own making... the proof is indeed in our very own pudding. There is no one or nothing else to blame. But even in the most challenging of circumstances we can find the determined capacity to react in a positive manner. Such conscious responses foster greater self empowerment and choice where otherwise there might appear to be none.
And, if the signs of positive change aren't evident in our own lives and those immediately around us, it could be that we haven't yet had the courage to plant the seeds from which they might germinate.
This week, it's well worth reminding ourselves of any seeds of positive intent that we did consciously plant in the fertile soil of spring this year. What were our new year resolutions? How have those plans worked out? What has been learnt in the process? How many of the questions and challenges we set ourselves remain pertinent, unanswered or simply forgotten six months later?
Why are we still eating meat and dairy products? (UN reports 90% of farm subsidies damage people and planet)
Why are we still buying unnecessary new stuff? (How the world became consumerist - BBC)
Why are we still drinking alcohol? (Alcohol statistics - Alcohol Change UK)
Why are we still buying take-out burgers and pizza? (What you need to know about your toxic take out pizza boxes)
Why are we still looking at porn? (Harmful effects of porn on young people)
Why are we not buying organic produce? (10 reasons to go Organic)
Why are we still condoning plastic packaging? (9 reasons to refuse single use plastic)
Why are we still buying into the relentless Hollywood nightmare showing on a phone screen near you? (100 years of Hollywood's corrosive, systemic sexism - Guardian)
Why are we still tolerating abusive and discriminatory relationship/employment/education environments? (Gender discriminination in the workplace remains rife)
Why are we still reading HELLO magazine....even in the dental surgery waiting room? (Brilliant article - why Britney Spears was never in control)
What unconsidered influences are we subconsciously inviting into our lives and to what end? (Capitalism is failing us just when we need it most - Forbes)
These and countless others, are questions for each of us to individually address. Answers may be found by reflecting on who is actually served by our habitualised, normalised behaviour, (although there is very little 'normal' about it). Is it really us? Generally speaking, it isn't. Mostly we've been duped to think our actions are what we need to be happy. The economic wealth generated rarely alleviates the suffering of those in real need. Worse, quite often our societally conditioned, poorly considered decisions lead to others being put squarely in harm's way and it's really not a good global look for the 21st Century.
How many of us are prepared however, to change the self serving 'lifestyles' to which we've become accustomed in order to contribute to a wider benefit for all? How many of us care enough to give up anything that we mistakenly believe has been hard won when it has largely been bestowed by privileged good fortune?
Is it possible for us to become a generation of 'have-nots' by celebrated choice? A population that values clean air, clean food and clean thinking over the clatter, chatter and confusion of insatiable consumerist 'norms'. We are all products of our social and economic environments. We are the chickens that have come home to roost and the coop in which we sit and preen our good luck is overflowing with festering piles of our own shit.
So where do we start to pick up the pieces of our evident self loathing (self hatred being the foundation upon which we demean and hate others) and reassemble them into an altogether more positive, immediate vision for our planet and population? How do we begin to clear up the shit and turn it into nutritious, organic compost in which to plant the seeds of a healthy sustainable future?
The argument goes that in challenging and changing the paradigm of our social and economic circumstances we can change our collective outlook and behaviour, but where in education or mainstream media coverage are credibly supported alternatives? Where are the legitimised, workable role models for future equitable prosperity? International, global economies have little vested interest in what happens in localities and communities so by necessity we must create those models ourselves....and NOW. Buy local, buy organic, buy second hand. Repair, recycle, reuse. It's a start.
In the re-membering of our unified origin and humanity's inherent interdependence is the beginning of the end for the discriminatory lines of division separating us from our collective planetary birthright of paradise on Earth. It is the beginning of a great healing. Recognition (or not) that our conditioned, unthinking behaviour cannot be divorced from the consequences of planetary blight for others will be the signature of our times. Chaos theory might have fallen from recent science headlines but its mathematical assertion of universal interconnectedness holds true. It is karma dressed in number and equations whose results are increasingly 'instant'.
Instant-karma : A circumstance where the actions of a person backfire by causing an immediate unforeseen and unintended effect that may be deemed just deserts for those actions. www.yourdictionary.com
Our ultimate potential as a species and an integral part of Earth's biosphere lies together in harmonious diversity, respecting and nurturing self and each other. Until we understand that we are our neighbour; that there is no more rational nor sensible action in life than to treat that neighbour as we would want to be treated ourselves, we will continue to roost in and choke on the fresh harvest of our own unprocessed crap. It really is time to stop shitting on our own doorstep, because ours is truly the threshold to everyone else's home.
But there's a full moon risin'
Let's go dancin' in the light
We know where the music's playin'
Let's go out and feel the night
Because I'm still in love with you I want to see you dance again Because I'm still in love with you On this harvest moon Neil Young - Harvest Moon 1992
We can just as importantly harness the emotional charge of this Pisces Harvest Moon to connect with the simple joys in life that cost no one: life's perpetual win wins. A kind word or a smile; an act of generosity towards those in genuine need; a trusting volunteered hand in the neighbourhood; a listening ear or comforting presence; a move towards contrition or more importantly forgiveness; a personal commitment to cause no harm in thought, word or deed; afternoon naps; growing some veggies; evening walks in nature under a waxing moon; open, intimate conversations from the heart; a home cooked meal from hand picked organic produce; an early night with a good friend; creative activities whether written, drawn, painted, sculpted, sung or danced; all steeped in the existential marinade of Love.
These aspects of our lives, vital to our well being, are not pipe dreams forged in the manufactured fog of consumerism that threatens the essential, life supporting biodiversity across Planet Earth. They are not idols at whose altar we would debase or sacrifice our happiness. They are not yardsticks of success with which we can beat ourselves. No. They are inherent aspects of being both human and humane, instantly observable as beneficial to all and worthy of defending. They are no less than the paradise we would wish for ourselves and should therefore wish for everyone else. Let's nurture our most progressive, happiest dreams toward that singularly beneficial harvest.
With love 'til next time
Mark
Next month's edition of MOON LIT features the enlivening poetry of emerging poet Nancy Govern. A long time member of our international Mooning Community, Nancy has been writing primarily for pleasure over the years but I'm delighted she has offered to share some of her work with the MOON LIT readership this autumn. Nancy lives and works in close proximity to Mooning HQ and is a founder member of ArtClub™ an international artist collective that aspires to inspire positive change in the world through their creative endeavour.
Her written work is a considered, mature blend of observation and concern never completely losing itself in the pressing and depressing concerns of our age. There is always hope, redemption, forgiveness and Love. Her poetry embodies them all. Subscribe for free HERE to ensure her hymns of healed hostility arrive in the pew of your inbox to inspire acts of instant devotion on the day of publication.
Nancy's poetry will be accompanied by a selection of new (and long overdue) paintings by the internationally renowned artist Heather Mann. Since her last exhibitions in Switzerland in 2015 Heather has kept her work pretty much to herself. I'm delighted that she has decided to offer our privileged readers a taste of the vibrant intensity that is currently emerging from her inimitable brush.
The bawdy poetic brilliance of Samuel Morley's Ten Steps Towards The Moon lingers on in the last edition of MOON LIT and is still available to enjoy here: MOON LIT 9. Well worth a wander in that direction....
FULL MOON MARKS
EACH MONTH DURING 2021 WE WILL CHART THE DEVELOPMENT OF A SINGLE, YEAR LONG LUNAR INSPIRED DRAWING BY ARTIST AND FELLOW MOONER MARK WEIGHTON
MOON 9
32 x 24cm charcoal on paper