As the hart panteth after the fountains of water, so my soul panteth after thee, O God. ~ Psalm 41:2 DRB
This year, July’s full “Buck Moon” falls on the 10th. The name comes from the time of year when male deer start to regrow their antlers. Popularized by the Farmer’s Almanac in the 1800s, the term was reportedly adopted by the pioneers from the Native Americans. It is also known as the “Thunder Moon,” due to July’s frequent storms; the “Hay Moon” for the hay harvest; and the “Mead Moon,” marking the season when honey was traditionally gathered to brew mead, an ancient and tasty fermented honey beverage.
Unable to find real mead in time, I thought we would instead mark the occasion with a few shots of Bärenjäger and Jägermeister, along with a little moon bathing, weather permitting. Traditionally, in Naples, moonlight bathing is believed to cure both physical and spiritual ailments.
Long fascinated by the moon and other celestial bodies, La Luna is a medieval symbol of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Just as the moon reflects the light of the sun, Mary reflects the divine light of her Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ.
The stag bathing in springs symbolizes baptism and the Church’s role in guiding the faithful to the sacred waters of eternal life. The motif of the hunted stag pierced by arrows, as seen in the hagiographies of Sant’Eustachio Martire and Sant’Uberto di Liegi, represents both the Passion of Christ and, more broadly, the martyrdom of the saints.
With more than a few hours to kill before the astronomical event, I plan to browse my poetry books for a few poems to read to my guests after dinner. I already know I will recite Salvator Di Giacomo’s Luna Nova (New Moon) and Gabriele D’Annunzio’s Il Cervo (The Deer). Hopefully, I will find a couple more suitable for the evening.
An excerpt from D’Annunzio’s Il Cervo:
Udremo a notte le sue lunghe
muggia, udremo la voce sua di toro;
sorgerà il grido della sua lussuria
udremo nei silenzi della luna.
At night we will hear his long
bellows, we will hear his voice like a bull’s;
the cry of his lust will rise
we will hear it in the silences of the moon.
And from Di Giacomo’s Luna Nova:
Luna d’argiento, lass’ ‘o sunnà,
vaselo ‘nfronte, nun ‘o sceta…
Silver moon, let him dream,
kiss his brow, do not wake him…
~ By Giovanni di Napoli, July 9th, the Feast of Santa Veronica Giuliani
