The Pull of the Moon

A whirlwind trip to MN for a few bookstore events, and I am reminded how lucky I am to have such a great family and truly wonderful friends. Besides meeting some new people, interested for a variety of intriguing ways in Bible Babel, I got to catch up with friends and family that I haven't seen in years. As my sister Deb put it, "It's like a funeral, except no one died!" And here's a treat: seeing the great big moon coming up over Lake Superior. Walking along the shore, its boulders covered in glossy sheets of ice, icicles pinpointing down from frozen outcroppings, well, I could look and look and never lose interest. Add the sound of waves rolling in, tumbling the slush and floes, and if it weren't so darn cold, I'd be there all day and straight through the night. But now I'm heading home to sweet Virginia and can't wait to arrive. A few flight snafus, but I can see that same moon, a silent friend over the airplane's wing, and it comforts me somehow. Is it any wonder that the ancients marked holy days by the moon? Is it any wonder that the most important Christian holiday, Easter, is marked by the moon?