August | Harvest
“Clouds in the sky cover the color of summer, and the sound of leaves shows the beginning of autumn.”
Beginning of Autumn – Waiting for the Harvest
Into August, the heat gradually recedes, and cool breezes blow in the morning and evening. The sky is clear and bright, gradually filtering out the color of summer. The leaves of the Chinese parasol trees on the street become yellow, floating down to earth. They are issuing their first announcement: Autumn is here!
The Beginning of Autumn is the 13th solar term and also the first term of autumn. At this time, the yang energy is getting weak while the yin energy is gradually growing. The Beginning of Autumn is the point when the energy gradually changes from active yang to active yin, and everything starts to become mature and desolate from its luxuriant growth.
The arrival of the Beginning of Autumn signifies the time of harvest.
There is a saying in Zhuangzi: “When spring comes, all plants start to grow; and when autumn arrives, all the fruits mature.” The rotation of the four seasons is always soundless. Until one day, suddenly, we find that the sky becomes very high and bright and branches are full of fruits, only to know that time has never stopped to move forward.
Seeds sown in the spring and kernels born in the summer are now mature and full of fragrance.
After the Beginning of Autumn, it is about to usher in a great season of harvest. Golden pears hang on the pear trees, apples show their scarlet faces, the sea of rice waves along with the wind, and sorghum raises its fiery red torches.
Farmers sweat through the rice fields, harvesting and drying the golden ears of rice to be processed into rice.
Fruit farmers pick a wide variety of autumn fruits among the orchards, picking the ripe fruits one by one and shipping them to all corners of the world.
Eating porridge with lily bulb and lotus seed
After the Beginning of Autumn, the biggest change is the reduction of rain. Every time the autumn rain falls, a round of heat in the air will be collected away.
With less rain and rising dryness, the most important thing to pay attention to in autumn is to moisten and nourish the lungs. Among those nourishing ingredients, the first to recommend is the combination of lily bulbs and lotus seeds.
Lily bulbs have the effect of moistening the lungs, relieving cough, nourishing yin property, and eliminating heat, while lotus seeds can nourish the spleen, relieve diarrhea, ease the mind, and soothe the nerves. In early autumn, a bowl of nurturing and sweet lily bulb and lotus seed porridge is perfect.
LILY BULB AND LOTUS SEED PORRIDGE
Ingredients：
Lily bulb pieces, lotus seeds, rice, red dates, goji berries, rock sugar
Procedures:
- Wash the rice, lily bulb pieces, lotus seeds, red dates, and goji berries.
- If you use dry lily bulb pieces, soak them in warm water in advance to soften them before cooking; if you use fresh lily bulb pieces, cut off both ends to remove the black roots, and then wash the pieces for use. If you use dry lotus seeds, also soak them in warm water in advance to soften them.
- Put rice, lily bulb pieces, lotus seeds, and dates in a pot, and add water.
- Boil the ingredients for half an hour, then turn down the heat and simmer the porridge for an hour.
- Remember to add rock sugar and goji berries half an hour before the porridge is done.
Sleep early, get up early
After the long hot summer, the body is prone to an imbalance in body fluid, weakened gastrointestinal function, and increased burden on the cardiovascular system while leaving the body in a state of overexertion. Into autumn, our body enters a cyclical resting phase.At this time, people’s living routines should be adjusted accordingly with the climate. The temperature drops very quickly at night, and we should go to bed early and get up early.Try to go to bed before 11 p.m., and get up early in the morning and go for a walk in a place with good air quality. During the walk, you can also cough or laugh with your mouth open so that you can let out the turbid air in your lungs and breathe in fresh air to clear your lungs.
The golden time for sports
Autumn is the prime season for people to exercise, and half an hour of activity every day is good for your health.
You can choose to go hiking and do long-distance running. These two exercises can increase lung ventilation and lung capacity, enhance blood circulation, improve heart function and brain blood supply, and effectively stimulate metabolism and increase energy consumption.
May we all take good care of our life in the changing season.
