96: COUNTING THE UNPRECEDENTED DAZE
THU 07 MAY 11:45 - Mooning Monthly keeping a tally of time well spent....
Happy belated Beltane* one and All (*wikipedia) This Thursday delivers a Scorpio housed Supermoon and with it some welcome relief from the full on challenges of the past three lunar months. There is a dominant, soothing Neptune influence which thankfully trumps the invasive, enforced and uncomfortable change of recent weeks. Although a Scorpio moon is traditionally a time of intrigue, covert operations and clandestine encounters involving very little underwear, the graceful influence of Neptune helps evolve the next fortnight into a period of greater emotional sensitivity, attentiveness and open, honest communication. Instead of hurriedly getting off in the sordid shadows we might well be shining an unflustered, revealing spotlight on our fullest, most familiar undies, rejoicing in their intimate, well worn comfort and the open pleasure of what lies beneath. (Read that analogy into your love lives folks and romance stands a chance of breaking boundlessly free of its Hollywood dictates.) Has the lockdown contributed to a greater openness between folks anyway? After living together in such close proximity for a couple of months, what is there left to hide or disguise? Life, shared at close quarters, makes it doubly difficult to avoid the testing behavioural traits of ourselves and others. Are we learning to accept these foibles a little more generously than we did pre-Covid? Those of us who have faced isolation since March are surely valuing social contact with anyone more than ever. After only seven weeks of shutdown, we suggest that the collective has already gone through something of a transformation. Despite the sadness surrounding so many deaths at the hands of humanity’s continuing, multiple stupidity, we seem to be participating in an enforced mass awakening. Are we woke Mooners? And to what are we woke? The squandering of valuable time with those we love in pursuit of professional aspiration and material gain? The chemical charms of regular salon hair colouring and nail extensions; the coercions of fashion and bullying 'beauty' products upheld in the high temple of Hollywood? The unnecessary nature of most car travel; the beauty of nature as it rediscovers its confidence in our pedestrianised presence? The putrid pestilence of plastic ......even if it keeps your crisps crispier? The complete lunacy of avariciously abusing the ever generous biosphere for excessive material gain; the deadly viral evidence of that continuing misguided human behaviour? (Rise in pandemics as biodiversity is lost - article) The value of family and community; the true love of self and other? The excesses of air travel; the comfort of cleaner air? The lengths to which we have been complicit in living lives containing the seeds of our own misery; the paper thin illusions we have come to accept in lieu of happiness? The need for appropriate investment and remuneration for the essential professions and infrastructure we rely upon in such desperate times? The inevitability of change and our inherent ability to align with it? The miracle of sensual perception; the delights of regular, low stress exercise; the simple charm of a healthy body and well maintained immune system? The joys of peace and quiet? The elasticity of time? The woke list grows as the period in which we are faced with ourselves lengthens. Those that embrace the opportunity to engage in an intimate, inner dialogue are amongst those most likely not to want the cultural dial to be set back to ‘normal’. It's not the most politically palatable statement ever issued from Mooning HQ but, personally speaking, we don’t want that normal anymore. We like this one. We like staying home and the people stuck here with us. We like the fact that when we go out we can walk most places. We love what we have seen in the interaction between people, and between people and the natural world. We like growing stuff, particularly fresh food. Folks here, just south of Staines in the UK, have started planting seeds, shrubs and flowers on every available earthy kerbside. Every day on countless corners, sticks sprout from the verge topped with skewered seed packets in a bizarrely immediate, printed floral prophecy of the delicate blooms to come. Love is observed and exchanged at a two metre distance, but it is love nonetheless. People stop and chat, even to strangers, no one seems in too much of a hurry. (George Monbiot article - rebuilding our economy for the good of humanity) Are we witnessing under this Scorpio Full Moon a paradise in the claiming, one freeing itself of religious dogma or governmental engineering? Has human consciousness suddenly caught up with the bricks and mortar of modern living: ready to take up residence and compassionate, ethical, sustainable governance of our material 'cathedrals' and infrastructure - whether in our homes, workplaces or Parliament? Heaven forbid, people are sharing the stuff they've amassed, not merely from an honourable sense of duty, but for the love of giving. Amidst the tragedy, something lovely is going on dear Mooners. (Covid 19 creating a more equal society research) And time, that great human construct, seems to have lost its grip on our psyche. Mooning HQ, has, on several occasions, quite literally lost track of the days of the week as weekends and weekdays merge into meaninglessness. Everyday in peak lockdown has felt like the Sunday mornings of our 70s childhood when trading was prohibited and road traffic was scarce. A romantic, welcome throwback. Daily activities meander between meals; bedtimes get earlier, rising more relaxed; sleep deeper, dreams more vivid. Who wants old 'normal'? The venerable 20th Century sage, Boy George offered his great wisdom back in the 80's - did we listen? Time won't give me time and Time makes lovers feel like they've got something real
But you and me we know we've got nothing but time....
'Time (Clock of the Heart)' - Culture Club 1982 (listen here) Thankfully, the lunar calendar has lost none of its focus, eternally evidenced in the heaven held cycle of wax and wane between new and full moons. If it were possible (lol) Mooning HQ has gravitated even closer to this enduring, endearing tempo: the clock of our hearts, the tides of our blood and bone. We do not miss the morning alarm: our call to competition and the fear of lack. As the mass media outlets never tire of declaring, these are unprecedented days. Here are a few do's and don'ts that might help set precedents for a new dawn and awaken us from any lingering Scorpio Full Moon daze. DO make time for meditation/contemplation/prayer - call it what you will. This is a vital inner dialogue and key to the exercise of our intuition. The Scorpio Full Moon has gone all emotionally intuitive this weekend so..... DON'T miss the opportunity to sit still and listen to messages of your heart and the rhythms of your body as it breathes. Concentrate fully on nothing else for as long as feels comfortable. Start of the day, end of the day; thirty seconds of conscious awareness at any time during the day - it all contributes to a rising awareness of what and who you are - a walking, sentient miracle fueled by Love. DO make time to consider relationships that crawl out of the woodwork. A Scorpio Full Moon is liable to drag past lovers (and haters) back into the frame so be wary of engagements that hint at previous lessons not fully learnt. Let love and understanding be order of the day not the seductive but tired menu of titillating what ifs and maybes. DON'T confuse cordial consideration with intimate involvement just because you can. Greet, even meet, but send learnt lessons on their way with loving best wishes. DO make time for the natural world. Notice her. Cherish her. Talk to her. Plant her. Nurture her. Eat her fecund bounty with gratitude. Share her at a safe social distance. She's too good to miss in May. DON'T hurt her. DO make time for a purge. Full moons are a great time to have a cleanse or a clear up. Direct the light of this Scorpio Full Moon into those dark, secretive corners of the mind that continue to hold your personal growth to ransom. DON'T underestimate the power held in every thought, word and action to create the reality you experience...but it begins in the thoughts. Mindfulness therefore holds a key to the self-empowerment that ultimately makes the world a better place to be. DO make time to Divulge and Divest. Open, honest communication may initially induce a sense of vulnerability but it leads to a position of internal equilibrium and strength. When met with candid honesty, the world, and more importantly ourselves, desist in perpetuating the illusions of who we think we are. We present as we are. In acknowledging our feelings and the resultant behaviour, we weaken the restrictive power of the past to affect our present and future. DON'T Dilly or Dally. This is urgent business, there's a lot at stake. As we change so does the world that reflects us. Let's move through the anxieties towards Love, equanimity and peace for the benefit of All. And finally, DO make time to listen to fellow Mooner and nutritionist Becs Jones' latest lockdown offering on Balancing Mood and Anxiety with Food. Her recently recorded webinar is rammed with hugely informative nutritional advice and access is free to our Mooning Community on the Inspired Wellbeing website. Grateful thanks to Becs for sharing her illuminating, empowering work. DON'T eat all that sugary shit - apparently, it will only make you depressed. Who knew? This message is germ free, benign and handled with latex gloves from beyond four metres. Do please share with friends of similar sensibilities without fear of reproach from governmental authorities or being implicated in 5G conspiracy theories. Keep it sanitized dear Mooners 'Til next time....
FULL MOON MARKS
EACH MONTH WE PUBLISH A LUNAR INSPIRED DRAWING BY MARK WEIGHTON
FULL MOON IN SCORPIO 2020
18 x 18cm charcoal on paper
The fifth of 13 Full Moon inspired drawings for 2020 by artist Mark Weighton