Page 107 - NT 2022 Almanac

In August, it can feel as though the summer holidays will stretch on forever. You can enjoy the long, sunny days and spend as much time outside as possible. Perhaps you will be lucky enough to go to another country for your holiday, but if not there is more than enough to do closer to home. Days by the seaside or down by the river or playing
in the parks or woods near your home offer lots of opportunities for activities and fun things to do with your friends and family.
Or perhaps you are the sort of person who likes to do nothing at all on a hot, sunny day? Sometimes it’s lovely just to find a spot of shade where you can read or snooze or sit and watch the world go by. Whatever you choose to do this August, make the most of all your free time and enjoy yourself!
Why is August Called August?
The Roman Emperor Augustus Caesar thought that since there was a month named after his great-uncle Julius there should be one named after him, too!
So Sextilis or the ‘sixth month’, was changed to August in the year 8 BCE in his honour.
The Anglo-Saxons called it Weodmonath, which means ‘weed month’ as so many weeds grow at this time of year.
Birth Flower and Birthstone
The flower for this month is the poppy, which represents strength, love, marriage and family. The stone is called peridot.
It is an unusual olive-green colour and contains a lot of iron. Peridot is formed in the magma of volcanoes and comes
to the surface when volcanoes erupt.
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