Three Jiggers of Moonshine

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Sep 24

2010

by Astropoetry Blog

Published: Thursday, February 12 2015 16:13

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The Moon rocks
The Moon rolls
The Moon swings round its poles.

By Deirdre Kelleghan (AWB NC for Ireland)


There once was a crater named Tycho
That happily shouted “My rays show!”
It plays a big part
In little kids’ art
With Moons not of cheese but of Play-Doh.

by Bill Moser (Pennsylvania, U.S.A.)


Full Moon, rising, is
Yellow as a pumpkin and
Has a face in it.

by Bob Eklund (California, U.S.A.)

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A few words of explanation might be useful for those not familiar with American English:  A “jigger” is a one-ounce glass (also called a “shot-glass”), usually used to serve whiskey or other distilled spirits.  “Moonshine” is a word invented when selling of alcoholic drinks was prohibited in the United States.  It referred to home-brewed liquor, often made in secret during nighttime hours.  Tycho is the great rayed crater that dominates the southern (lower, as seen naked-eye) portion of the Moon.  “Play-Doh” is a kind of modeling clay, popular with American children.  Finally, re. a face in the Moon:  In the U.S., it’s common to think of the naked-eye features seen in the full Moon as a face, “the man in the Moon.”  In Mexico, these features are often seen as “the rabbit in the Moon.”  What does your culture see in the Moon?

- Bob Eklund, Astropoetry Blog Editor