The names of each month’s full moon come from various sources, including Native American, European, and Colonial American. June’s full moon, appearing in the night sky on June 3rd, carries a symbolic and spiritual meaning coming from the Lakota, Ojibwa, and Algonquin peoples.
June’s Strawberry Moon most likely refers to the time of the year when the berries begin to ripen. The Strawberry Moon is a celebration of the short strawberry harvest. It is also the time of the year when animal babies start to be born. June is also the month of the Summer Solstice, and we turn the page to another season.
European settlers often called this moon the Rose Moon or the Honey Moon in reference to the marriage custom of drinking Meade at weddings that often took place during the month of June.
June is a month that celebrates fertility and growth, with the world coming into bloom after a long winter sleep. My wife and I recently planted our garden as the soil finally warmed enough to keep the new plants warm during nighttime.
From a spiritual perspective, our energy is on the rise. We may start to feel more energy coming from the sun as we begin to shed those winter layers and allow the sun to beat on our skin. In addition, the transition in seasons brings longer times of daylight which draws us out of doors and helps to replenish the Vitamin D that was lost during the cold months of winter.
We are reminded to harness this energy for our creative purposes, but we should get out and smell the booming flowers, if your allergies allow for it, and breathe, take some time to relax and love ourselves. The Strawberry Moon is also a time to focus on our growth through patience and mindfulness. Look to realign yourself and return balance to your life through your spiritual practices.
This is the time to enjoy the natural world and, like the ripening berries, those things in our lives that we have been working on that just might come to fruition during this time of the year.
Let us pray:
May the blessing of light be upon you, light on the outside and light on the inside. With God’s sunlight shining on you, may your heart glow with warmth like a turf fire that welcomes friends and strangers alike. Amen
