October Moon

The fish skim the surface of the water sieving bugs. Their disturbance of this platter reflects the moon's light, causing glitter where everything else is smooth.

From where are you viewing this same full moon? Is it rising in your sky too?

I remember my friend, heart breaking, clutching on to me for dear life. Hands and arms clinging so tightly, sobbing, crying with paralyzing grief. I was so young, I had never been the strong one before. How many months and years of full moons have passed since then?

Jupiter shields the Earth from asteroids, taking hit after hit that explode on its surface. Starbursts of light become fireworks as Earthlings watch safely through their telescopes. I was Jupiter, trying to be the grief shield for my friend. I was the child that had become the caretaker. I wanted to block, absorb any hurts. But I could not - I had to stand helplessly and watch the waves of pain crash in over and over again.

Now it's my turn. Endless hurts, shouting, chaos, tinnitus a constant companion my every waking moment.

The night passes. The moon tracks across the sky on its legless trek. Early morning, there are no sparkles on the water. In the same secret spot, mists rises in a column and fish languish. A pair of geese fly in; from the side they look like SST aircraft.

The moment is over. The glittering surface, the memory of grief - buried for now, precious, waiting to rise again as the moon will rise.