And after him came next the
chill December:
Yet he, through merry
feasting which he made
And great bonfires, did not
the cold remember;
His Saviour’s birth his mind
so much did glad:
Upon a shaggy-bearded Goat
he rode,
The same wherewith Dan
Jove in tender years,
They say, was nourisht by
th' Iaean Maid;
And in his hand a broad deep
bowl he bears,
Of which he freely drinks an
health to all his peers.
Spenser
“Like the three preceding
months, December derives its name from the place which it held in the old Roman
calendar, which divided the year into ten months, December (the tenth) being
the last. The ancient Saxons
called this the Wintermonath, or Winter Month, but after their conversion to
Christianity they changed the name to Halig Monath, or Holy Month, in honor of
the Christmas anniversary on the 25th.”
Curiosities of Popular
Customs, p. 324
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Astronomy for December:
The full moon on the 28th
is the Cold Moon or Hunting Moon.
Solstice occurs at 6:12 am
(EST) on December 21st.
The Old Farmer’s Almanac says that it is the earliest winter since 1896.
Meteor Showers
The spectacular Geminid
Meteor Shower peaks in the overnight hours of December 13 – 14. No moon
that night (and hopefully no clouds), so start watching from about 8 pm until
dawn.
The Ursid Meteor Shower , when it
takes place (and it doesn’t always), runs from December 17 through 25, but the
peak is on December 22-23. The moon will be waxing, and at peak will set a couple of hours after midnight, so the best watching is in the (brrrrrrr) predawn hours.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Novenas for December
December is dedicated to the Immaculate Conception.
Saint Nicholas continues
from 27 November
Immaculate Conception continues from 29 November. Also here and here.
Advent continues
from 30 November. Not actually a novena, as it is said 15 times each day from
Saint Andrew’s day until Christmas.
Our Lady of Guadalupe begins 3 December. Also here and here.
Saint Lucy begins 4 December.
Epiphany begins 28 December
[Note, because someone asked. You can say novenas at any time, just as you can say prayers at any time. Many people like to pray specific novenas nine days before the specific festival, hence the timetable above.]
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Ember Days
12/19: Weather today foretells the weather of January12/21: Weather today foretells the weather of February
12/22: Weather today foretells the weather of March
Chill December brings the
sleet,
Blazing fire and Christmas
treat.
Weather for December:
Based on the 12 Days of
Christmas: Sunny and less cold.
Based on the first 12 days
of January: Rain, wind, cold, raw. Brrrr…
Based on the Ember Days: Dark clouds in the morning, bright sunshine
in the afternoon.
The last Sunday of the month
indicates the weather for next month: The
last Sunday of November had clear skies and high winds, very chilly high winds.
---------------------------------------------------------
Weather Lore for December:
December cold with snow is
good for rye.
December’s frost and
January’s flood
Never boded the husbandman
good.
Thunder in December presages
fine weather.
On the other hand
If it thunders in December,
there will be cold weather.
Along with
Thunder in December
signifieth cheapness of corn and wheat, with peace and accord among the people.
12/1 – 3: As the first three
days of December, so will be the first three months of the year.
12/2: If it rains on St.
Bibiana’s day, it will rain for forty days and a week.
On the other hand, optimists may prefer:
If it rains on the first Sunday of the month before
Mass, it will rain for a week.
If it storms on
the first Sunday of the month, it will storm every Sunday that month.
12/12-31: The general character
of the weather during the last twenty days of December will rule the weather
for winter.
12/13: If St. Lucy’s day be
bright, Christmas day will be dark with snow; but if the snow falls on St.
Lucy, Christmas will be clear and sunny.
The weather on each of the
twelve days from St. Lucy to Christmas Eve presages the weather for the twelve
months in the coming year.
12/14: Halcyon Days begin.
12/21: Look at a weathercock
at 12:00 noon on St. Thomas’ Day and see which way the wind is – for there it
will stay for the next (lunar) quarter.
Frost on the shortest day is
said to indicate a severe winter.
If it freezes on the
shortest day of the year, the price of corn will fall;
If it be mild weather, the
price of corn will go up.
As the wind and weather at
the solstice, so will they be for the next three months.
12/24: As the weather is on
St. Adam and Eve, so will it be until the end of the month, and also will be
mostly throughout the next year.
If Christmas Eve is bright
and clear, then follows a very fruitful year.
When on Christmas night and
evening it is very fair and clear weather, and is without wind and rain, then
it is a token that this year will have plenty of wine and fruit.
If it is foul weather and
windy, so shall the year be very scant of wine and fruit.
If the wind should arise at
the rising of the sun, then there will be a great dearth of cattle.
If the wind should arise at
the setting of the sun, then there will come death to kings and other leaders.
12/25: If the sun shines
clear and bright on Christmas day, it promises a peaceful year, free from
clamors and strife, and foretells a plentiful year.
However
A green Christmas makes a
fat churchyard.
So many hours of sun on
Christmas Day,
So many frosts in the month
of May.
A warm Christmas, a cold
Easter; A green Christmas, a white Easter.
Easter in snow, Christmas in
mud; Christmas in snow, Easter in mud.
If it rains on Christmas,
there will be four weeks with no sun.
A windy Christmas is a sign
of a good year to come.
A windy Christmas and a calm
Candlemas are signs of a good year.
When Christmas day cometh
while the moon waxeth, it shall be a very good year, and the nearer it cometh
to the full moon, the better shall that year be. If it cometh when the moon decreaseth, it shall be a hard
year, and the nearer to the latter end, the worse and harder shall the year
be. [And the moon waxeth until full on the 28th.]
A green Christmas, a good
harvest.
On the other hand
If it snows during Christmas
night, the crops will do well.
And
If it snows on Christmas
night, there will be a good crop of hops next year [and hops make beer, and beer makes the Widow’s heart merry. This may be the only time I hope for
snow.]
Light Christmas, light
wheatsheaf;
Dark Christmas, heavy
wheatsheaf.
And
A bright Christmas foretells
that hens will lay well.
On the other hand
A dark Christmas foretells
that cows will give much milk.
[This year Christmas will be
very bright. A good egg year
coming!]
If the sun shines through an
apple tree on Christmas, there will be an abundant crop of apples in the coming
year.
If there is much wind on
Christmas Day, trees will bear much fruit [and they are not talking about the emissions after a heavy Christmas lunch!]
If at Christmas, ice hangs
on the willow, then clover may be cut at Easter [i.e. early Spring, and
pasturage for the animals, a good thing.]
If the wind grows stormy
before sunset on Christmas, it betokens sickness in the coming spring and
autumn. [Well, there’s an easy bet, whether it is stormy or not!]
On Christmas day, place
twelve onions in a row, each with a pinch of salt on the top, The first onion
on the left represents January, the next February, and so on.
On Epiphany, check the
onions. If the salt has melted on
any one of them, the corresponding month will be wet; where the salt remains,
that month will be dry.
Thunder during Christmas
week indicates that there will be much snow during the winter.
The twelve days from
Christmas to January 5th are said to be the key to the weather for
the following twelve months.
If it rains much during the
12 days of Christmas, it will be a wet year.
If the days between
Christmas and Epiphany are dark and foggy, there will be much sickness next
year.
If it sleets between
Christmas and Epiphany, there will be a good mast year.
If the sun shines on the 1st
day of Christmas, there will be abundance and much joy in the world.
If it shines on the 2nd
day, then money will be easily come by.
On the 3rd day,
there will be a great fight among poor men, but peace between rulers and
powerful men.
On the 4th day,
there will be a great lost of money.
On the 5th day,
there shall be a great bloom of fruit that year.
On the 6th day,
there will be much milk.
On the 7th day,
there will be a good crop on the trees.
On the 8th day,
then quicksilver will be easy to get.
On the 9th day,
then God shall send a great baptism that year.
On the 10th day,
then will the oceans and rivers have a great supply of fish.
On the 11th day,
then will there be many deaths among men.
On the 12th day,
men will be weak, and the earth will be quiet.
From a c1120 manuscript.
12/26: If on St. Stephen’s
Day there is much wind, it betokens a bad grape harvest next year, and the wine
will be poor.
12/27: If St. John’s day is
dark, the following year will be good.
12/28: If it be lowering and
wet on Childermas Day, there will be scarcity; while if the day be fair, it
promises plenty.
12/30: The weather on the last Sunday of the month presages the weather for the following month.
12/31: Wind on St.
Sylvester’s day seldom brings good wine.
Then again,
A north wind blowing on New
Year’s night foretells a fruitful season.
Or not.
If on New Year’s Eve, the
wind blows south, it betokens much warmth and growth;
If west, much milk, and fish
in the sea;
If north, much cold and
storms there’ll be;
If east, the trees will bear
much fruit;
If north-east, flee it, man
and brute.
If the old year goes out
like a lion, the new year will come in like a lamb. [And you thought that just pertained to March, didn’t you.]
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Gardening for December
Then Ivy and Holly Berries
are seen,
And Yule Clog and Wassail
come round again.
12/21 - “Plant shallots on
the shortest day and harvest them on the longest” (June 21)
According to the 1817
Almanac: “Set all Sorts of Stones, Kernels, &c. Plant Vines, and Stocks for Grafting; trench Ground, and
dung it for Borders.”
“Towards the end of the
Month, sow Radishes, Carrots, and Lettuce on warm Borders. Sow Cresses, Mustard, and other Sallad
Herbs on a moderately hot Bed, and cover them with Mats.”
“Plant all Sorts of Trees
that shed their Leaves.”
Cassell’s
Illustrated Almanac (1871) for November:
Flowers – Dig out the borders, re-arrange the beds if required, and protect the
roots of all tender plants. Open the pits freely in the finer days of the
month, but water very sparingly, if at all.
Vegetables – Attend to the autumn-sown plants, removing decayed leaves, &c.
Onions may be planted where the ground is dry.
Fruit – Mulch over the roots of tender trees, such as apricot and peach, as
they are often so far affected by frost as to be barren in the coming year.
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Health for December
"Keep your Feet warm by
Exercise, your Head cool through Temperance; never eat till you are hungry, nor
drink but when Nature requires it."
==============================================================
December. Engraving by Samuel Williams. William Hone, The Everyday Book and Table Book, (1838), p. 1343.
Immaculate Conception. Francesco de Zurbaran, c1628.
December – Threshing and Winnowing. Engraving based on an 11th
century manuscript. William Walsh, Curiosities
of Popular Customs (1898), p. 324.
