(And other names for the August full moon)

To many, it’s the Sturgeon moon named
for the great ancient fish that shines
deep-water wisdom and endurance

upon us earthlings. It reminds us
that we live through sacred cycles,
hold the changes. We, too, know how

to swim upstream against the current.
Under this moon, say the first peoples
of this land, we are both star and sky.

We must stand in our own light,
remembering that we are part
of a larger constellation of truth.

The Cree call the August moon
Young Ducks Begin to Fly, while to
the Lakota it is the Moon of the Ripening.

Cherries Turn Black, so say the Sioux,
and Corn is in the Silk to the Ponca. To
the Potawatomi it’s the Moon of the Middle.

And hearing the Haida name—
Cedar Bark for Hat & Baskets—
summons a vision of a craftsman

harvesting cedar bark, then coiling it
to hang and dry for a year, before
slicing it into strips to form

a gracefully sloping arc to a brim
atop a head tilted back to gaze
up at the fullness,

which by any name is a Joyful Moon,
a Moon of Ripening and a Time of Freshness
when it makes its monthly climb

into the heavens, shining its brilliance—
without seeking approval or asking
for anything in return—

on every blesséd living thing.