A Celebration of the Full Buck Moon

This July full moon is called the Buck Moon, named for this point in the year when the antlers of male deer (bucks) are in full growth mode. I love the feeling of peak growth, of projects getting completed, of ideas and dreams coming to fruition, of flowers that I planted months ago now showcasing their beauty, of the garlic showing signs that it’s ready to be harvested, of deep connection with parts of myself that I’d felt disconnected from. In these fleeting moments, I can look, with awe, from a higher vantage point than usual, and trust in the wisdom of life. I know I’m not alone in my love of this season. Thank you, high summer for all of this ripe juiciness.

And yet, peak fullness is immediately preceded by a deep letting go, to make space for what is going to come in next. This cycle is shown to us by the phases of the moon, by the earth mother as she turns the wheel of the seasons, and by the sacred cycles that women experience within our own bodies. Every year, bucks lose their antlers and then regrow a bigger, more impressive set. I wonder if they freak out a little when they lose them? Do they trust the process?

I tend to get a little (or a lot) anxious when the waning process starts in my life. When business slows down, when I don’t have a creative project with wind under it’s wings, when I have less energy. Sometimes, in those moments, it’s hard to remember that the cycle depends just as much on the emptiness, the return to the void, as it does on the culmination and the crescendo. We can also look at that as a moment of pure potential, a time to rest, to discern, and to plant the next set of seeds.

California poppy, pictured below, is one plant ally that offers us a daily reminder of the cycle of blooming and resting. Each morning when the sun rises, the small orange flowers open up their petals and stand in connection with all that is. As the sun sets each evening, they go inward, closing up for the night to rest and replenish before starting the cycle again in the morning. It’s no coincidence that this plant also contains potent alkaloids that, when taken as a tincture, can act as a sedative, assisting us in the process of falling asleep. The plants have so much wisdom.

I often think “If only I could bottle this moment, and then take regular sips throughout the darkest coldest weeks of winter, to bring in this essence.” If only! But here’s something that helps me remember: Every once in a while, I get a note from a client, student, friend, sharing how my work opened up something important in their lives, and I feel seen. I feel confident and grateful that I’m staying the course and doing the work that my soul came here to do in this lifetime. Those notes are keepers, and they go in a “rainy day file” to be read on the low days when I lose sight of it all.

But why wait until someone else recognizes that in me? Right now I’m seeing it in myself, and that is what’s inspired this post- both to serve as a reminder for me of the realness of the top of the cycle, and to remind anyone who reads this that you can ride these waves with presence and intention too. Take the time to notice when you are in peak flow. Notice how you are a reflection of what’s happening in nature at that moment. Let it remind you that you are a part of creation, that you belong. Document it in whatever creative way comes to you. Share it with others to remind them. And then use it as your own medicine, later on in the cycle, when you need help remembering your fullness. When we do this, we heal ourselves and those around us. The earth celebrates.