museletter

Lammas

Full Moon in Aquarius

Jen Yi

31 Jul 2023 • 7 min read

full corn moon — Image description: Dark blue sky with dark gray stars and a large orange hued full moon. There are shadows of corn stalks rising from the bottom of the picture. Unknown artist.

August 1 is Lammas or Lughnasa in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the 1st sabbat in the waning part of the Wheel. Sunlight is fading even though the globe is on fire. Is anyone else concerned/shitting their pants about the record breaking heat waves? It seems like every summer, we have the highest recorded temp ever on Earth. This sabbat does celebrate the Celtic deity, Lugh, ruler of Sun and light, known to be wise and just, but also a trickster. Is this Lugh’s trick as they sacrifice themselves for the 1st harvest? The sun is going down earlier each day, but the humidity still lingers in the thick air. Occasionally, a cool breeze will remind you that this will end. The air will soon become thin and crisp as the Wheel turns into autumn.

Lammas will be spent on a our yearly extended family vacation deep in the north woods on Anishinaabe lands, specifically the Lac Courte Oreilles people from the Ojibwe tribe. This area is the stomping grounds of my youth. I spent many years in these woods. I was so happy to escape them for my liberal bubble of a suburb, but now I can’t wait to get back. It’s different when you’re a financially stable adult than the child of a poor single mother. We get to do all the things I wanted to do, but didn’t get to. I finally went inside the big fish instead of just pulling over and looking at it.

Image description: Bright blue sky with sparse small white clouds and green trees are the backdrop for a large muskie statue. The muskie is a long, slim fish with green and yellow stripes, two small fins below its gills, with its mouth open exposing rows of pointy white teeth. Picture taken by me.

The Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame in Hayward, WI was a place I remember driving past many times in my youth. Pee-wee’s Big Adventure was one of my favorite childhood movies and the 143-foot-long muskie sculpture reminded me of the roadside dinosaurs from the movie. Last year, my husband and I took a solo day trip to the attraction. After ascending several flights of stairs, I was in the mouth of the muskie.

Image description: Point of view from inside the muskie mouth. There are rows of pointy teeth along the top and bottom of the muskie’s jaw with a brown railing along the bottom jaw. My husband stands on the right side wearing dark blue shirt and light blue shorts. There is an owl statue on the right side. In the distance, there is a gray water tower, blue sky with scattered white clouds and green trees down below.

In case you are wondering, yes we invited the kiddos, but we couldn’t drag them out of the lake. A fishing museum was no match for the warm, clear waters of a lake on a hot August day. My inner 7-year-old was with us in spirit. She would have been torn between the lake and the big muskie too.

This year, Lammas coincides with the Full Moon in Aquarius. This is the 1st of 2 Full Moons in August. I have seen many references to this moon as the Sturgeon Moon, but my research could not find an actual name of consensus. The indigenous people had many names for the August Full Moon depending on where they lived. My research revealed the Ojibwe either called this the Ricing or Corn Moon. Both make sense as wild rice was abundant on these lakes and corn is ready for harvest right now. Unfortunately, the wild rice was swapped out for beaches, docks, and resorts. I will be in Bayfield County, WI which has 398 accessible lakes. Sadly, only 2 of those lakes are suitable for harvesting wild rice.

Lammas is the 1st of 3 harvest festival. This Full Moon is the end of the moon cycle started Jan 21, 2023 with the New Moon in Aquarius. What has come to fruition these past 6+ months? Aquarius is the futuristic, innovator of the zodiac. Some may say quirky or weird, but definitely unique in their cognitive abilities. Lammas is a celebration of harvest and abundance, but airy Aquarius knows this is not just the material. Have you gained more tenacity? Friendship? Inner stability? Joy? Maybe you banished some shit and now that space is filled with something more satisfying.

Working with the Moon cycles has helped me set and follow through with intentions. Manifestations are not always what I expect, but it is usually what I need. Maybe I’m just gaslighting myself, but if it works, amirite?

Image description: Twitter post from @TheTweetOfGod, black background with white writing saying: “Everything happens for a reason you make up afterwards.”

Recently, I rear ended a vehicle during rush hour traffic on the interstate. Needless to say, it fucking sucked ass. I was driving my daughter back to her home in Minneapolis because her flight got cancelled. That put me in an awful mood and then the car accident. Fortunately, no one was injured and my car is driveable. On my way home, I drove with the sunset to my back as the sky danced with hues of oranges, pinks, and blues. Huge, billowy clouds stacked on top of each other, glided along the heavens. I was in awe. It felt like Earth had this gorgeous sunset just for me. Just to cheer me up.

My scientific, secular mind’s first thought is that I sound like a delusional kook. Yeah, the sunset was extra stunning because Earth knew I needed a pick-me-up cuz everything is about you, you narcissistic fuck. Though fleeting, thoughts like this still traverse my mind. My inner best friend tells that bitch to shut the fuck up and enjoy the sunset. This Lammas I am thankful for this inner best friend. Grateful for this relationship I have cultivated with them.

I am in the process of changing my scarcity mindset. Instead of seeing the lack, I am focused on the have and the potential. Very Four of Cups energy. I totally relate to to pouty leaf on this Four of Cups from the Mystical Medleys tarot deck. I am trying to seek the cup being handed to me from the ether. My car accident was a real-life test of my progress. The car accident was my fault, but the person I hit was very cool about it. My front end is smashed, but I have no engine damage. I am able to afford very good insurance and will only be paying my deductible. No one was injured. It could have been so much worse. I am grateful and feel fortunate.

Image description: Backdrop is black cloth with silver writing that says “Lughnasadh, Lammas, August Eve, Aug 1.” On the left is a cartoon version of the Four of Cups card. It depicts a leaf sitting under a tree with their arms crossed and stern look. They seem fixated on the 3 yellow tea cups on the ground. There is a white cloud behind the tree holding out another yellow cup. On the right is the Wheel of Fortune card. The center is a golden circle with a face displaying a full grin and fierce red eyes, It has 2 black arms with white gloves holding a yellow snake on the left and a black dog on the right. On top of the circle is a gray sphinx holding a dagger. In each corner, there are clouds with yellow books with red bookmarks and symbols of the 4 elements. The books are personified with eyes and limbs.

The tarot card commonly associated with Lammas is the Wheel of Fortune. Rachel Pollack writes in Seventy Eight Degrees of Wisdom about different cultures who would sacrifice their king for the goddess with the hopes that the seasons will change as will their fortunes. Some cultures would literally crush them under a wheel. This symbolizes that the Wheel does not stop turning and it comes for all of us, regardless of status. I have heard some tarot readers refer to this card as chaotic energy. That doesn’t resonate with me. The Wheel is not chaotic unless you are trying to control it. The Wheel is constantly turning. Even after death, there is change and evolution. You cannot stop it.

For me, staying in the present and coordinating with the Wheel is easier than fighting against it. We have the free will and power to control our lives, but we all find ourselves in predicaments we don’t want to be in. How do you respond? What do you do when that happens? This is how I felt after my car accident. I could have let my anxiety escalate, but I let Earth enchant me with its graceful sunset. I am grateful that I have shifted to being the type of person who appreciates a sunset.

Lammas will be our day to provide meals for our family vacation. We will purchase sweet corn from a local stand. It’s common in WI for small growers to have food stands which use the honor system. It’s usually a wagon on the side of the road, filled with various produce, with a metal box for money. A sign of trust and a glimmer of hope in a world where people seem very fearful of their neighbors. I will shuck the corn with the kids. We will take a pontoon ride around sunset and end the night with a fire under the Aquarius Full Moon.

We started taking these family vacations after my father in law died. After his death, for whatever reason, we don’t seem to get together as often. My husband has a hard time going to back to the house his father died in. You can really feel his absence when we are there. When we are all together up north, I can feel his presence. I am grateful to have felt his love and known his kindness. My life is abundant this first harvest festival. Wishing everyone a blessed Lammas!