Looney Moon
a Haibun
In the late 1960’s after several years of nursing, I went back to school for a Bachelor’s degree in nursing Education. Some of the classes I had to take, I had already been through as a student nurse. One of these was psychology.
The professor discussed ancient myths about human psychology. One point of discussion, dispelling a widely held belief, was the “reality” that the full moon has no influence on human behavior. The handful of nurses in the room looked at each other and we shook our heads. We had encountered a different perspective: labor and delivery rooms overflowing their capacity, emergency departments brimming with “crazies,” often accompanied by police officers, and inpatients with some degree of mental disturbance or dementia whose behavior decompensated even further.
Though the textbook and the “expert” saw things differently than we did and ignored our point-of-view, our experience seemed to us to be a more valid indicator.
Winter Moon won’t hide.
She highlights our nakedness,
bares our poor spirits.
- Posted for my prompt at dVerse Haibun Monday: Fuyu No Tsuki–Winter Moon. I hope to see some of you there. I would enjoy hearing any experience you have had related to the effect of the full moon on human behavior. Nurses, Doctors and Law Enforcement have their own unique insights, I believe.