Fall! Pumpkins to carve, cookies to bake, back-to-school germs to endure. I certainly didn’t have time to enter a writing contest this month, until…
I saw that Kaitlyn Leann Sanchez at Math is Everywhere was inaugurating the Kidlit Fall Writing Frenzy. I took a tiny peek at the prompts, and well, I couldn’t resist.
Those who know my work know that I love writing lyrical stories about science and nature. And when I saw prompt #5 of a full moon, I had to write about the harvest moon (the first full moon after the autumnal equinox).
All entries are required to be under 200 words, and mine clocks in at a speedy 115. There’s more to say about the autumnal equinox, but, alas, I have cookies to bake.
Hope you enjoy!
Harvest Moon
Every year, in late September,
Something magical happens.
The center of the sun lines up
with the Earth’s equator.
This tiny, transformative moment–
Invisible to human eyes—is when fall begins.
When nights grow long and days short.
When the sun’s reign ends, and the moon’s begins.
And, the moon celebrates.
She dances across the sky.
Every night, a slightly different shape.
Sliver, crescent, half, until…
Fall’s first full moon—or the Harvest Moon.
Round as a pumpkin,
The Harvest Moon rises just as the sun sets.
Low in the sky,
Painted in the sun’s waning orange light,
It looms larger than life.
As if to say,
“I am your moon,
And this is our night.”
Kate Allen Fox 
Lovely 💕
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I really love those last two lines.
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Thank you! I wasn’t totally sure about them, so I’m glad you like them.
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I really enjoyed this lyrical piece. I’m so fascinated by the moon.
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Thank you! Me too!
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Beautiful! My favorite line is “It looks larger than life.”
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*looms
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Thank you so much!
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Lovely and lyrical!
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Thanks, Cathy!
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A good combo of science facts and lyrical language. Bravo.
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Thank you so much, Kathy!
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Kate,
I love this ending and what great info about the Harvest Moon that k never knew! Thanks so much for entering the Fall Writing Frenzy, especially with such a busy schedule
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Thank you so much to you, Lydia, and all the donors for such a wonderful contest! It was so inspiring (and I appreciate the impetus to get something down on paper this month)!
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Yay!! So happy to facilitate great writing!
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