Total Eclipse of the Moon

I had a homeschooling plan: We'd read up on lunar eclipes, do a trial run with a flashlight and juggling balls, then snuggle up and eat moon shaped cookies and drink cocoa while the moon put on its show.

But life intervened. We heard one of Maia's favourite boat friends arrive in the harbour and ended up whiling away the afternoon, and early evening catching up on five months of separation. By the time we'd eaten a late dinner Maia was ready to nap before the eclipse.

There were no cookies or cocoa and Maia laid against me heavy with sleep as we watched a shadow sneak across the moon, turning it dark, and then deep amber. We made up our own myth-like explanations--imagining how it would have been to be an ancient person encountering a moon turned dark.

 Rather than a science lesson it was a nature lesson, and a snuggle lesson. A simple night. A beautiful Moon.