My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine Potatoes

The mnemonic above was how I first learned the names of the planets in the solar system; it’s a bit dated now, since we have consigned “potatoes” to the realm of the dwarf planet and removed them from the list of first-class planetary bodies.

A brief perusal through this blog will show that I like to find poetry, lyrics, and prose that have meaning beyond the words and spaces used to build them. Today, I want to talk about the Jonathon Coulton song “I’m Your Moon” and how it became a key that helped me unlock a part of myself that I didn’t realize I could open.

The song is written from the perspective of Charon, Pluto’s lone moon, comforting Pluto about the demotion.

They invented a reason, that's why it stings. 
They don't think you matter, because you don't have pretty rings.

Yet, rather than dwell on the unfairness of it all, Charon explains to Pluto that it doesn’t matter, because they have each other.

I'm your moon
You're my moon
We go round and round
From out here, it's the rest of the world that looks so small
Promise me
You will always remember who you are

There is a deeper meaning behind the lyrics; Pluto and Charon are tidally locked. That is, they always present the same face to each other. Additionally, Charon and Pluto both orbit the same point. The term “barycenter” is used to describe the point around which bodies in a system orbit; for the Earth and Luna, the barycenter is the Earth. However, Charon and Pluto orbit each other with the barycenter being a point in space outside of both bodies.

This means that Pluto and Charon are, in a lot of ways, equal. Switching to a personal note, this is the type of relationship I always wanted but never seemed to be able to find. Until I met Dr. Sexypants, and I realized that it was possible. I’m as much in her orbit as she is in mine, and that core of our relationship makes everything else seem insignificant.

I'm Your Moon

They invented a reason
That's why it stings
They don't think you matter
Because you don't have pretty rings
I keep telling you I don't care
I keep saying there's one thing they can't change

I'm your moon
You're my moon
We go round and round
From out here, it's the rest of the world that looks so small
Promise me
You will always remember who you are

Let them shuffle the numbers
Watch them come and go
We're the ones who are out here
Out past the edge of what they know
We can only be who we are
It doesn't matter if they don't understand

I'm your moon
You're my moon
We go round and round
From out here, it's the rest of the world that looks so small
Promise me
You will always remember who you are

Who you were
Long before
They said you were
No more

Sad excuse for a sunrise
It's so cold out here
Ice and silence and dark skies
As we go round another year
Let them think what they like, we're fine
I will always be right here next to you

I'm your moon
You're my moon
We go round and round
From out here, it's the rest of the world that looks so small
Promise me
You will always remember who you are