Remember November
Discover more from LD Lewis—The LEEP Newsletter of Events
Header Image: Walking toward the King Charles Bridge from Prague's Historic District in the Czech Republic. Prague feels like a fairytale with its gorgeous architecture, European cuisine, and centuries-old handicrafts. Best of all, it is affordable!
We are heading into the 11th month of the year (already?).
When I was living on the Arabian Peninsula, November is the month when the flowers bloom, the humidity leaves, and the temperatures are delightful. It is pure heaven. Qatar will be fabulous for everyone attending the World Cup (I'm so jealous if you're going!). During a residency in South America, November peppered the air with warm winds and promises of summer. Elsewhere, the holiday season is upon us in the western world. It means delicious food, parties, festive decor, family, and friends.
If you're doing business in any Christian-majority country, get everything sorted by the third week of November (because not much gets done over the year's last six weeks). Thanksgiving (November 24) is the big holiday in the United States (and with American ex-pats). Regardless of where you are, November has some of the best shopping sales of the year, with Singles Day (November 11), Black Friday (November 25), and Cyber Monday (November 28).
On a more somber note, November holds the anniversary of the end of World War I (The Great War), which is observed as Veteran's Day, Poppy Day, or Remembrance Day (November 11) in the US and British Commonwealth. Homelessness and feeding the hungry are significant themes in November, as are the diseases accompanying diet, including several events focused on diabetes, cancers of the mouth and stomach, and Crohn's disease.
Let's kick off November with a favorite event of men, Movember. Gentlemen, toss your razors in the bin for a month. Not shaving is a good thing!
MOVEMBER
Date: November 1-30
Location: Worldwide
Champion: Movember Foundation
Movember, also known as No Shave November, is a campaign challenging men to grow a mustache and beard during the month to raise awareness of men's health issues.
Sponsored by the Movember Foundation, health issues highlighted include early detection of male cancers and depression. First held in 2004, today, it is supported by thousands of organizations worldwide, and the events organizer is considered one of the top 100 NGOs in the world.
SINGLES DAY
Date: November 11, 2022
Location: Worldwide—China, the European Union, and the United Kingdom
Champion: Alibaba
Singles Day is about romance, but it is even more about insane retail sales. It's the 21st century's global version of Black Friday. If you're an online retailer who isn't tapping into Singles Day, you're missing the biggest online shopping day in the world, which generated $84.54 billion in revenues in 2021. Holy cow!
The holiday began with a group of bachelors at Nanjing University in 1993. Originally it was a reason to party and hold events where one could meet their escape from singlehood, that elusive significant other. Chinese retailer Alibaba picked up on this and began running deep discounts on 11-11 in 2009. The promotion they launched was the Global Shopping Festival.
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF ELEVEN
Then 2011 came around. The Chinese culture includes a lot of mysticism around numbers, and the number one is especially sacred for single adults signifying individualism, self-sufficiency, and, most importantly, availability. With 11-11-11, savvy retailers seized the opportunity to promote the single luckiest day for singles in a century.
A solitary number one = an individual
Two ones together represent two single people finding each other
Four represent finding your true soulmate, that person who is just for you.
The more double ones, the more likely soulmates will find each other.
Singles Day is celebrated in several countries, including the United Kingdom, the European Union, China, and online.
How should you celebrate? Try treating and pampering yourself to anything you want, dressing to the nines, and getting out there to meet other singles on this most auspicious day.
SAINT ANDREW'S DAY
Date: November 30, 2022
Location: Scotland
Champion: United Kingdom Bank Holiday
Saint Andrew's Day in Scotland commemorates the martyrdom of St. Andrew, the patron saint of Scotland, who was crucified on an X-shaped cross on November 30, 60 AD. Scotland flies the Saltire flag on public buildings. The ceilidh, a traditional dance, is performed in Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Dumfries.
Saint Andrew was the younger brother of Saint Peter and one of the twelve apostles of Jesus Christ. He was born in Bethesda on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, and he died in Patras, Greece.
MARRIAGE WISHES
For a young woman wishing to marry, this day holds special meaning. At midnight on November 30, hopeful brides pray for a future husband, peeling an apple as a continuous ribbon, then throwing it over her shoulder. The position of the peel when it lands determines the first letter of her future husband's name. Then she pours liquid candle wax into a bucket of water. As it cools, its form tells her of her future husband's profession.
Hint: If you have a bar, entertainment venue, or even a cruise ship, this tradition would be a fun, inexpensive way to engage patrons. Bridal showers and bachelorette parties are other possibilities.
Scots proposed Saint Andrew's Day be a bank holiday in 2003. The St. Andrew's Day Bank Holiday Act of 2007 passed on November 29, 2006, and was given Royal Assent by the Crown on January 15, 2007. As of 2007, it is an annual bank holiday in Scotland. If November 30 falls on a weekend, the following Monday is the official state holiday.
WORLD HELLO DAY
Date: November 21, 2022
Location: Worldwide
Champion: World Hello Day
Anyone can participate in World Hello Day by simply greeting ten people with a friendly "Hello," "Hola," "Marhban," "Kon'nichiwa," "Habari," "Bonjour," "Shalom," "Olá," or any other language. This greeting demonstrates the importance of personal communication in preserving peace.
World Hello Day began in response to the Yom Kippur War between Egypt and Israel in 1973. Since then, World Hello Day is celebrated by people in 180 countries.
Today's objective is to greet at least ten people you do not know with "Hello" to promote world peace.
CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE DAY / GUY FAWKES DAY / BONFIRE NIGHT
Date: November 5, 2022
Location: United Kingdom
Champion: Historical Anniversary
The Fifth of November in the United Kingdom is known as Civil Disobedience Day, Guy Fawkes Night, Guy Fawkes Day, Bonfire Night, and Fireworks Night.
On this day in 1605, a group of English Catholics, led by Guy Fawkes, attempted to assassinate the Protestant King James I of England and replace him with a Catholic monarch. After the failed attempt, Fawkes was arrested guarding a cache of explosives placed beneath the House of Lords in London, which he was attempting to blow up.
Since 1606, the Fifth of November has defined civil disobedience. The "Guy Fawkes Mask" is one of the more endearing symbols of rebellion and is used by the hacker group Anonymus as their signature and increasingly by protesters worldwide.
SKIN CANCER ACTION WEEK
Date: November 20-26, 2022
Location: Australia
Champion: Australian Cancer Council
Summer approaches, which means more time in the sun. National Skin Cancer Action Week in Australia is a joint initiative of the Cancer Council Australia and the Australasian College of Dermatologists. Its primary message: a tan is not healthy. Two-thirds of Australians are diagnosed with skin cancer by age 70, and more than 2,000 die from it annually.
National Skin Cancer Action Week is an opportunity to learn about safe sun practices and make the most of your time in the sun without endangering your life.
November is also National Healthy Skin Month in the United States.
REVOLUTION DAY
Date: November 21, 2022
Location: Mexico
Champion: Historical Anniversary
Revolution Day commemorates the Mexican people's struggle against dictator Jose de la Cruz Porfirio Diaz Mori. Francisco Madero of the Antireeleccionistas led the rebellion.
On November 20, 1910, sequestered in San Antonio, Texas, Madero published his manifesto, the "Plan de San Luis Potosi," which compelled the people of Mexico to rebel against the oligarch's rule.
The people tried. However, the November 20 revolt failed, but it sparked a revolution. Over the next ten years (including the years of the Great War 1914-1918), a civil war raged within Mexico, ending in 1920, with Mexico emerging as the constitutional republic it is today.
One of the most colorful characters during the period is Pancho Villa, considered the Mexican Robin Hood. The popular adventure series by Johnston McCulley, Zorro, was first published in August 1919 during this struggle.
Initially celebrated on November 20, the holiday observance was changed in the labor law to the third Monday of November beginning in 2006. Revolution Day is a national holiday in Mexico.
KEY SPORTING EVENTS IN NOVEMBER
FIFA World Cup (Football/Soccer), Qatar: Nov 21-Dec 18
ICC Men's T20 World Cup (Cricket), Australia: October 16 - November 13
Melbourne Cup (Horse Racing), Australia: November 1
NASCAR Championship Race (Auto Racing), United States: November 6
Virtus Oceania Asia Games (Multi-sport) Australia: November 5-12
World Championship (Weightlifting), Columbia: November 28-30
World Cup (Bowling), Australia: November 3-23
World Series (Baseball), United States: October 28-November 5
FEATURED EVENT
ADVENT
Date: November 27 - December 24, 2022
Location: Worldwide
Champion: Christian Religious Observance
The season of Advent occurs in the four weeks leading up to Christmas. It's about preparing the mind, body, and soul for the Messiah's joyous arrival and marking the church's birth.
What is the Messiah, and how does this differ between Christianity, Islam, and Judaism? Here's a bare-bones mini-messianic primer for those not familiar with Abrahamic faiths.
Christians believe Jesus Christ is the Messiah (savior and liberator of the people) promised to the Israelites and the fulfillment of biblical prophecy.
Muslims believe Jesus is a prophet of God but not a Messiah. Many of Jesus' sermons and teachings are in the Qu'ran.
Judaism believes Jesus is a man who lived and was a teacher (rabbi), not the Messiah promised, nor a prophet. Judaism believes the Messiah is yet to come.
Okay, so the cousins don't agree on everything. That's okay. We're still family.
Advent is a Christian celebration unique to its faith. However, has it always been observed as it is today?
NOW & THEN
The commercialization and the secularization of Christmas during the past century shifted the public understanding of Advent. Today it is more likely to signify the beginning of the Christmas shopping and party season. Festivities begin in late November and end on New Year's Day.
Traditionally, Advent was a 40-day fast, similar to Ramadan, a time of preparation, prayer, and solemn reflection beginning on November 12 and continuing through Christmas Eve. Observant Christians abstained from celebrations until Christmas Eve, including putting up their trees. In the ninth century, Advent became four weeks long and followed the traditions of Lent, featuring abstinence in exchange for complete daylight fasting.
Until the last two centuries, Christmas music and parties only occurred during Christmastide (Christmas Eve through January 5). The Christmas feast marked the end of fasting and the commencement of the celebrations.
ADVENT TRADITIONS
ADVENT CALENDARS: Advent Calendars have been a favorite European tradition for centuries within Protestant and Catholic faiths. It is common for children to have an Advent Calendar beginning December 1 to mark off the days until Christmas. Eastern Orthodox faiths begin Advent on November 15, but western churches celebrate Advent during the four Sundays leading up to Christmas. Advent Calendars come in many forms, the most common being a paper version with windows corresponding to a particular day, which children open to see a picture inside.
Other forms include candy or little drawers with coins. The purpose of the Advent Calendar is to count down the days until the birth of the Messiah by marking each day with an event designed to remind each person of the upcoming miracle.
Advent comes from the Latin "advenio," which means "to come to." The Advent season is about preparing for the arrival of the Messiah—the birth of Jesus Christ.
ADVENT WREATH: The Advent wreath originated in Germany and began as a Lutheran tradition before moving to the Catholic and Anglican churches and is similar to the lighting of the menorah in Judaism at Hanukah, but the reason and purpose are different. The menorah represents the eight days lamp oil lasted during a war that allowed the Israelites to recapture and re-consecrate their temple. The Advent wreath, with its four candles (three purple and one rose) in a circle surrounded by evergreens (symbolizing hope and eternal life), represents preparation for the Messiah's birth. A large white taper candle is often in the center for lighting the other candles. In church, the vestitures of the clergy and drapings of the altar will be purple or rose, coinciding with each Sunday of Advent.
On the first Sunday of Advent, Christians light a single purple candle and continue to light it each night of the week. On the second Sunday, a second purple candle joins it, burning together until the third Sunday when a rose candle, representing Gaudete (Rejoice), is lit. Gaudete marks the halfway point of the season and is accompanied by relaxing the rules and adding colors and flowers. These three candles, two purple and one rose, carry through each night until the final Sunday of Advent, when all four candles burn together, signaling that the feasting begins!
The Advent wreath is prominent in Christmas celebrations today, though it is often mistaken for a pretty centerpiece rather than its true purpose.
ADVENT MUSIC: Since music is relegated to Christmastide, there aren't a lot of Advent songs. However, the following carols are about it.
O Come, O Come Emmanuel
Gaudete
Twelve Days of Christmas.
That's Advent. It marks the beginning of the Christian liturgical and ecclesiastic year, which is central to the faith and the celebration of Christmas.
A blessed Advent to all those observing.
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SHAMELESS SELF PROMOTION
This article is adapted from the interactive edition of The Storybook Advent Calendar: 24 Stories for Christmas by Lewis Brech (LD Lewis & Michael Brech), available on Apple iBooks, Kindle, and GooglePlay.
The music, performed by Michael Brech, is also available on iTunes, iHeart, Spotify, Amazon, and other streaming services via Storybook Advent Carols Collection Volume One: 20 American Christmas Classics and Storybook Advent Carols Collection Volume Two: 20 British Christmas Classics.
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That concludes November highlights. The next issue will focus on December, followed by an issue highlighting the annual events, "2023 is the year of," in mid-December. Thank you for subscribing and sharing this newsletter. I appreciate it and do love feedback, good and bad. I aim to keep this relevant to an international audience, as 75% of my subscribers are outside the United States. Please let me know if there is a unique event in your part of the world, and I'll be sure to add it to the LEEP Calendar database and might even cover it here!
Happy November y'all!