The Full Moon

The moon tonight is so beautiful; looking at it makes me think about how it does not really choose how it wants to be seen. It does not decide when to be full, when to be half, or when to look like it is slowly disappearing. It is simply there, moving through its own rhythm, reflecting the light of the sun. What we see from Earth depends on time, distance, shadow, and the alignment between the moon, the Earth, and the sun.

But the truth is, the moon is always whole, no matter how much of it we are able to see. I think that is where the deeper lesson is for me.

I do not really think I need to care whether people can see the full moon inside me or not, because that would be too much of an expectation. It becomes another way of waiting for someone else to understand, notice, or recognize something that I should already know within myself. The moon does not need anyone on Earth to see its fullness in order to be full. It does not lose itself because someone only sees a crescent. It does not become less beautiful because clouds cover it or because the timing is not right. It simply remains what it is. Some people may only see a small piece of me. Some may see me through their own shadows, distance, or understanding. Some may never see the parts of me that I carry quietly inside. But that does not mean those parts are not real. That does not mean I am less whole. I do not have to prove my light, explain every shadow, or wait for the right eyes to see me clearly. I only have to remember myself. I only have to believe that the full moon inside of me is always there, even in the phases when I feel hidden, quiet, tired, or not fully seen. I am not waiting to become full; I have always been full.