Carried forward, the moon becomes our shared mirror. In East Asia, Mid-Autumn gatherings, mooncakes, and lanterns honor reunion under the same sky. Poets made the moon a conduit of longing: Li Bai’s Quiet Night Thought (c. 8th century) links pale light with homesickness, while Sappho’s fragment on the setting moon folds desire into celestial rhythm. Islamic communities glimpse the slender hilāl to begin Ramadan, and Japanese tsukimi marks appreciative watching. Across cultures, the lunar face steadies our scattered lives by offering a common point of attention. [...]
