The Magic of the Moon

 (photo courtesy of sxc.hu)

While on vacation recently, I was abruptly awakened one night by a single stream of light cascading through the blinds.  This light was so bright that I was sure one of my kids was standing over me, shining a spotlight in my face.  It would not have surprised me. 

Instinctively, I checked the clock.  It was near 4 o’clock in the wee hours of morning.  Still blinded, I sat up and realized this glowing light was nothing other than the moon beaming into my window, lighting up a narrow trail across my eyes.  I felt it beckoning me to the window. 

Doing my best to keep silent, I ungracefully tip-toed to the window, tripping over at least three items of clothing.  When I finally arrived at the window, I could not help but take in the sheer magnitude of it.  There it sat, glimmering in the tree branches with robust pride.  Instantly, I felt its peace.  It had been a long time since I'd admired the moon.

The moon and I have had an arrangement for some time now.  When I was younger and away on the other side of the world from my family, the moon was my connection to home.  It was during some of my loneliest nights that the moon served as my sense of strength and comfort.   My first Christmas away from home.  The night of my grandmother’s funeral, for which I was unable to come home.  On those nights, I would look up to the sky and know that I was looking at the same moon my mom, dad, and sisters could be looking at that very moment.

On night flights it helped keep me awake as I watched it rise and sparkle over the ocean.  When I would walk home to the barracks in the dark as I didn't own a car, the moonlight guided me along the right path. 


The sun and the moon are the universal forces that connect all of us on this Earth.  Friend or foe.  Western or Eastern side of the world.

I’ve been back in the states for some time but my sisters have all moved away from home.  My family is literally spread from one side of the country to the other.  There will be many nights in which we will still text each other a simple message.  “Look at the moon tonight.”  And we will know what that means.

I have recently begun to teach my children this as well- for when I travel, they can take comfort in knowing I’m looking at the same moon as them- no matter where I am in the world.  There is just something about knowing that we are looking at the same moon that makes our world feel a little smaller.