Book of Days

November. Such a complex month. We begin by remembering our beloved dead. We celebrate the new wine. We thank the earth and God for bounties bestowed. And by month’s end, Christmas music is everywhere and we have our sights firmly set on the midwinter celebrations that will close the year, even if Advent is just beginning. Along with all those celebrations come also Diwali and Chanukah.

It’s a fascinating 30 days. And to accompany them, here (I know, finally) is your Convivio Book of Days Calendar for November. Cover star: an image celebrating Chuseok, the Korean Thanksgiving celebration, which this year was in September. But that’s the way with Thanksgiving celebrations: September in Korea, October in Canada, November here in the States. Other countries, like the UK, have harvest festivals. But the concept across the board is the same: thankfulness for a bountiful harvest.

NEW SALE at the WEBSITE!
We’ve got lots of new Advent Calendars from Germany and Christmas goods, too, plus new shipments coming soon from Sweden and Mexico and from the Sabbathday Lake Shakers… so it’s time for our annual Christmas Stock-Up Sale: Use discount code STREETFAIR at checkout for $10 off your purchase of $75 on everything in the shop, plus FREE domestic shipping. Click here to shop!

Those of you who came out to see us at Dia de Los Muertos Lake Worth Beach and at Florida Day of the Dead in Fort Lauderdale: Thank you! It was great seeing people again in person. We’ll be popping up again soon: Matthews Brewing Company Holiday Market here in Lake Worth: Saturday November 28 from 2 to 8 PM, and one of our favorite events: the annual Christkindlmarkt at the American German Club in Lantana: Saturday December 11 (2 to 10 PM) & Sunday December 12 (1 to 8 PM).

Image: Detail from “Korean Thanksgiving Day Night” by Mobilos. Digital fractal, 2015. Creative Commons via Wikimedia Commons. View the full image at this month’s Convivio Book of Days Calendar.

Short and sweet: Here is your printable Convivio Book of Days calendar for September. Autumn is coming, and so is, hopefully, an abundant apple crop. This is what we dream of here in Florida, where apples will not grow. Oranges, mangoes, carambola and papaya…. all grow readily here, but it is the humble apple I wish for most.

Cover star this month: a painting, most likely from the late 1890s, called “Harvest.” It’s by American artist Levi Wells Prentice, who was self-taught and associated with the Hudson River School––and there you have another thing I tend to look longingly toward as autumn color sweeps across the land: the Hudson River Valley and the legends and lore of writers like Washington Irving. Each autumn, I find myself pulling down one of his books from the bookcase. I find myself a cozy chair and read a tale or two about the Hudson Valley he loved so much. Washington Irving: he’s like Father Christmas to those of us who love autumn.

I already know I’ve got busy days ahead so I cannot guarantee you’ll hear from me before a couple of red letter days pass this month. Both come on Monday, when it will be Labor Day once again. We think of it as our unofficial close to summer in these United States of America, but more than this, it is the day we set aside to honor the workers upon whose labor this nation was built. Later that evening, with the setting sun, Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year celebration, will begin. It is a time for sweet things, as simple as a slice of apple, dipped in honey.

And there, short and sweet as promised, is your invitation to this month’s calendar. I think you’ll like it. It’s a PDF that you can print and pin to your wall, and it is a fine accompaniment to this blog. Over at the website, our Summer High Five Sale continues for just a few days more, but I’ll be writing again soon with news about our upcoming autumn sale, which features a bigger discount but also a higher minimum… so if you’re planning a purchase, well, plan accordingly. Currently, and for the next few days, take $5 off your order of $35 or more with discount code HIGH5.

Summer here persists a while longer, but knowing autumn is coming to the Hudson River Valley and other points north is all I need to know. I’m with you in spirit.

Image: “Harvest” by Levi Wells Prentice. Oil on canvas, circa 1890s [Public domain] via Wikimedia Commons.