The Joyful Almanac - October

We are in the 'ber months now.

September, October, November, December - the four months whose names end in -ber, whose Latin roots whisper seven, eight, nine, ten, the ancient calendar still visible beneath the modern one like pencil marks under paint. The year in its final chapter. The home straight. And October is the 'ber month that still has warmth in it, the one that hasn't fully committed to winter yet, the one that lets you believe, on a good afternoon, that there might be a little more of everything before it's done.