the homebody club: everything ephemeral

welcome to the homebody club: everything ephemeral. named after the word that seems to encapsulate augusts energy the most. aka: something that lasts for a very short time, fleeting, or temporary, such as a passing moment. august reminds us that all good things come to an end, and that all beauty is temporary. i think if august could talk, she’d whisper “slow down, soak it all in while you can”. in this post we’re going over the ancient folklore of the month of august, how august got it’s name, the celtic tree of the month, and more.

an august reflection

august, the closing month of summer, and one that always feels so warm and glowing. august feels like if you could step directly into a sunset, the colours burning bright across the sky. it’s a bittersweet month—the one that confronts us with the fact that summer is coming to a close, and will soon be gone for another year. like having a dear friend visit, noticing the clock tick by, and knowing they’ll have to go back home soon.

august to me is sunsets and sunday nights. it’s beach days where golden hour settles in a little earlier. it’s a weekend spent at a historic inn, then wandering through the gardens next door. august is feeling a slight chill in the evening air for the firs time in so long, and getting excited by the prospect of fall. august is a month that asks (some of)us to find a balance between holding autumn excitement and still hanging on to whats left of summer.

there’s a strange sense of nostalgia that comes with missing something before it’s truly gone. august makes me want to hang on to summer a little tighter—to say yes to more beach days, to watch the sunset without rushing, to make sure the summer doesn’t end and leave me wishing for more. i’m trying to be present and enjoy the summer while it’s here, trying to live seasonally as much as i can. which for me, means sinking into summer a little more, not allowing this month to just become autumn-lite.

but then there’s still that side of me ready and excited for fall. i love that august feels like a transition month that doesn’t need an immediate goodbye. instead, we get to live in the inbetween—one foot in fall, one in the summer. i can’t help but lean into autumn excitement a bit, as a fall girl it takes a short season and lets me extend it a little while longer. half the fun is the time spent imagining fall before it gets here. making seasonal bucket lists, planning autumn tbrs and things to bake, looking forward to crisp mornings and knit sweaters.

sometimes the balancing act of it all makes it feel like i have to choose. i can either lean fully into fall, or push it away and soak up the rest of summer. but maybe i don’t have to choose, and you don’t either. maybe we can just let ourselves love what’s left of summer while still feeling that longing for fall. maybe we can be sad about one thing ending while still holding excitement for what’s next.

i plan to just let august be august. i want to pay attention to the earlier sunsets and the cooler evenings. i want to go to the beach more than i probably have time for, and also shop for fall candles and my autumn tbr. because august is fleeting, its ephemeral, and thats part of what makes it such a beautiful month. like a perfect sunset, the light will fade.

the rest of this post is for paid subscribers. in this almanac we’ll talk about the ancient folklore of august, how august got it’s name, the perseids meteor shower and more.