R*n 390: Caton & Brookhouse

There are myths and legends associated with a full moon, one of which is that the moon is thought to influence human beings. More than 150 yrs ago it was officially recognised as a cause of madness. The Lunacy Act of 1842, stated that " a lunatic was a person afflicted with a period of fatuity (silliness) in a period following after the full moon".

So a bunch of lunatics set off from the Septics house for a local run along the local river valley, coincidentally,the river Lune. An act of Lunacy? Of course.

Did we behave like a bunch of Lunatics? Well yes, we waxed and waned along the paths.

In many mythologies the moon is essentially female. In classical tradition the moon was sister to a male sun and it became the domain of the Greek goddess Artemis and her Roman counterpart Diana. Diana lives on to the present day as the patroness of some latter day covens, a role which her traditional mastery of night flying made her especially suited to. I suppose it was another version of girl power.

So after the run we returned to the Septics, formed a circle, downed some evil brew, chanted a few incantations, singled out special members for their sinsand forced them to drink an evil potion (Boddingtons Bitter).

We lit fires, put a ritual sacrifice on the barbecue and sat around a wood fired brazier making mutterings and occasionally cackling with laughter in the moonlight. We left happy, charmed by the wonderful spell cast by the Septics.