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November has never been my favorite month, although it holds my birthday and a favorite holiday-Thanksgiving! I love the low stress of Thanksgiving with my family. Both my and my husband’s family are quite large with 30-50 people in attendance. But November has, historically, been a wet and gloomy month. Regardless of the weather, and seasonal affective disorder, there are tasks that must be done, as well as tasks that get to be done in November.

First, for the “must do things” we have animal care. I’ll be setting up the water heaters this month to make sure that the chickens and sheep will have accessible water if we have a long period of freezing temps. I’ll also be putting straw in the chicken coop to prevent any issues with the sand on the floor being cold enough to injure their feet. I’ll have to remove it in the spring, which is a major chore, but it’s the safest way I’ve found to prevent frostbitten toes. I’ll also be watching the weather and checking on the bees. I won’t be getting into their hive unless it’s over 55° and I see them coming and going. I’ll be adding a top insulation board, candy board and sugar to make sure they have plenty of food to get them through the winter.

The fun comes in when I get my seed catalogs! I’ve saved a lot of seeds from my garden so that I can replant the flowers and vegetables that have performed well. I’ll be gifting seeds and honey to my family this year. I’ll also be doing some canning from the frozen tomatoes from the garden. We go through a lot of pasta sauce so that’s my focus. Waiting to do that until winter means I can do it inside and the heat from the stove won’t be wasted. Often, I do canning in the late summer and it’s so hot, it makes more sense to do it outside so the heat doesn’t stay in the house. It’s an uncomfortable, sweaty mess so I’m happy to use the heat to warm the house this month.

Finally, we will finish the month with a harvest feast with the families. I will be thankful for a productive garden, my family’s overall health, and our little farm. There’s a part in the movie Where the Red Fern Grows that has always resonated with me. The main character, Billy, is lamenting that he’s been praying and praying but God doesn’t seem to be listening. His grandfather tells him that if he wants something, he has to meet God halfway. If God did all the work, it wouldn’t be good for Billy’s character. We cannot simply pray and pray and expect results. We must do our part. God gives us the strength and support to make our dreams a reality, but we must do our part to achieve our goals and see our prayers come to fruition.

November in the Garden of Our Hearts

The last couple months of the year seem to arrive slowly, then are over in the blink of an eye. These seasons of gratitude, preparation, and hopeful waiting are meant to be savored, not rushed.

So many factors limit our ability to stay present this time of year –Black Friday sales in our inboxes, Christmas carols already playing in stores, and social media posts that tempt us to compare our own celebrations to the picture-perfect ones we see online.

So, how do we stay present? How do we remove the temptation to fast-forward through the season or go all-out at the expense of our inner peace? How do we remain open to the work of the Lord in our life?

As Molly so beautifully pointed out, some things must be done in November. If you invite the family over for Thanksgiving, they’ll probably expect you to have food!

But there are other moments that we are invited into – graces that are only for this season – and we will miss out if, in the flurry of activity, we forget to be attentive to the Lord.

So my encouragement to all of us – most especially myself – is this: don’t let the lie of perfection rob you of your seasonal joy. The Lord invites us to slow down, make space for Him, and prioritize the preparation of our souls over the social media-worthy preparation of our holiday events.