Metaphors, and the Moon

Tonite the moon is beautiful. I watched it come up over Pilchuck, actually seeing it rise moment to moment. The air was crystal clear, the moon was slightly yellow in color, and all the features of the surface were clear to see. It seemed that you would not need a telescope to see what Gallielo saw when he named the seas on the Moon.

It occurred to me as I watched it rise that this was exactly the situation about which the metaphor of "the Moon as a mistress" was first penned. Mistress? How would that happen? The Moon is certainly wonderful to see, but doesn't the concept of mistress have some sexual content that the Moon lacks? Looking into a lover's eyes is like looking into a dark pool of water, or some such. Where does the Moon fit into that scheme? You will have to help me understand.

Some things are just simply physical phenomena and the Moon rising seems to be one of them. Sometimes it is just behind the clouds. Sometimes the moon is not full, and hence not impressive. But when the Moon is full it rises exactly when the sun sets, and the combination of the sky being not quite dark, the moon being wonderfully round and slightly yellow, the clarity of the thing being what it is under ideal conditions, and all of it combines to make an experience we like to talk about and record in various ways. Poetry. Prose. Meaningful glances. Heart throbs? You tell me.