On Full Moons
People associate the full moon with all sorts of nasty things. Supposedly, it induces madness and insomnia. It might even cause lycanthropy. And it's vaguely associated with all sorts of dangerous occult things.
Of course, there is a certain eerieness to a bright, full moon, especially if it's partially eclipsed by clouds. But I don't find this threatening. It's one of the most beautiful astronomical phenomena you can regularly observe. It is a bit odd that everything is suddenly so bright at night—this does a lot to contribute to the eerieness—but it doesn't unnerve me. More than anything else, it makes me want to stay up late with my friends.
And, somehow, there is something very human about appreciating a full moon. There are not many universal human experiences. My life is radically unlike those of my hunter - gatherer ancestors, and their lives were quite unlike those of sedentary farmers. Even the stars vary with time and place; my stars are not those of an Icelander or Argentine. And in the modern world, many of us have lost them entirely.
But, unless they were blind, most everyone has seen the same moon, and I'm sure they have remarked upom it when it is bright and full.