Strawberries, honey, and beer

The Algonquin Native Americans gathered their strawberries in the first half of June every year.  The strawberries had a really narrow window for harvesting the berry.  Of course, the moon has its phases in June, but at some point in June a full moon appears.  When it does, it has a name just like every other month of the year when a full moon occurs.  In May, the full moon is called the flower moon, because all the flowers are blooming during this month, and in April, the full moon is called the pink moon because of the color of the pink phlox that bloom as they cover the ground.  So, that's right, you guessed it.  For June the full moon is called the strawberry moon.

So, tonight I drove home with the strawberry moon looking through my passenger window.  It was really, really pretty.  But one thing I noticed was that the strawberry moon was not strawberry colored in the least.  In fact, the full moon in June is nearly always a golden color because when it is low on the horizon the heat from the Earth colors the view of the moon, transforming its usually white glow to a honey shade.  Those who drink ale or amber beer call it the old word for beer - mead. So, tonight my passenger on the way home from work was the honey moon, the mead moon.

This moon was a little more special tonight than most full moons, though.  Tonight is Friday the 13th.  What are the odds that a full moon would land on a Friday the 13th? Pretty high, right.  The last time that occurred was October 13th, 2000.  The next occurrence of a full moon on a Friday the 13th will be in the year 2049.  Now, that's special.  So, I'm feeling pretty loved for my good fortune of having the honey moon accompany me on my way home tonight.  But, this is really a much more special moon than what I would have ever imagined.  The last time a honey moon appeared in June on Friday the 13th was in 1919, almost 100 years ago.  The next time that will happen will be almost 100 years in the future, 2098.

I am now feeling that the celestial order has treated me royally.  The majestic splendor of the strawberry moon rode with me my entire 50 minute commute from work to home.  Wow. I haven't been treated so special in I don't know how long, and couldn't help but compare it, figuratively, to times in my life when I was treated that regally.  The strawberry moons in our lives, like the real ones, happen rarely, and the figurative honey moons of Friday the 13th even more rarely, so when they happen, we see their majestic splendor.  The most recent strawberry full moon for Friday the 13th in my life was so special that I still feel its warmth, its heat coloring my life in the amber of mead.  It was my honey moon because it was pure gold, my strawberry moon because of its taste - J ust L ike S trawberries.

Oh... so delicious... so majestic.