Lightness

" Soft and clear is the night and without wind, and quietly over the roofs and in the gardens rests the moon, and far away reveals every peaceful mountain"

When I looked through Calvino's essay on lightness, and the thing that really caught my attention was the poem on the moon. The idea of the moon as an image of lightness was very attractive to me. I'm sure Macnab knows exactly the reason why. When I think of the moon I think of a big chunk of rock out in space that orbits around the earth and reflects light from the sun. Very scientific and to the point. But it can be poetic and mystical as well. It does seem to float across the sky throughout the night, yet it is solid and stable. Calvino states, "As soon as the moon appears in poetry, it brings with it a sensation of lightness, suspension, a silent calm enchantment." The moon is a symbol of lightness regarding weight yet it also provides illumination so it can represent lightness in more ways than one.

I grew up out in the country and the nearest light except for our porch light was three miles away. The nights were very dark. But, on those nights that the moon was full, it was almost like daylight. Every tree, leaf, and blade of grass had a stark outline and the shadows they cast were sharp and detailed. At the same time, all of those normal things that you see everyday looked so unfamiliar in the moonlight. The moonlight changed their appearance completely; still perfectly visible yet vastly different. Writing with lightness should be like the moon. It floats, it glides across the sky effortlessly and at the same time lights up the world beneath it. Good writing glides and flows while illuminating the knowledge stored in the words.