The Moon Is Always Whole

Written November 23, 2016

The moon is always whole. Not always full, but always whole. 

Last year when I was struggling with almost unbearable anxiety about some personal challenges, there were many times I'd go sit in the hot tub at 4 or 5 in the morning - just to look at the stars and try desperately to remember that something greater than me and my challenges was operating in the universe.

One morning, the moon was a crescent (just like this morning) and I had a sharp moment of clarity and understanding: the only thing that changes with the cycles of the moon is our viewpoint. We may see a waxing crescent; we may see a waning crescent. But the moon is unchanged, and always, always whole.

This morning I headed out to the deck at a more reasonable hour, just before dawn. And I watched the unfolding of the most breathtaking morning. At first, just the faint stars and the moon were visible. Waves of clouds moved from West to East, and the moon dipped in and out of hiding. After a while, rays of light from the morning sun began to backlight those same clouds with vivid oranges, pinks and yellows. And still the moon stood sentinel.

To say that I am blessed would be a masterful understatement. At times I get so caught up in the day-to-day challenges that I temporarily lose sight of all the gifts I've received. But my access point back to gratitude and the larger perspective has, and always will be, nature. 

The sun does not know, nor does it care, what dramas we're experiencing individually or collectively. The birds are singing the same song they did a week ago, a month ago, a millennia ago.

And the moon is always whole.