By thys fyre I warme my handys;
And with my spade I delfe my landys.
Here I sette my thynge to springe;
And here I here the fowles singe.
I am as lyght as byrde in bowe;
And I wede my corne well I-now.
With my sythe my mede I mawe;
And here I shere my corne full lowe.
With my flayll I erne my brede;
And here I sawe my whete so rede.
At Martynesmasse I kylle my swine;
And at Cristesmasse I drynke redde wyne.

The Labors of the Months are cycles of life represented in Medieval and Renaissance art that illustrate appropriate pastoral activities of the time period. Sometimes, the Labors are synched with astronomy and astrology, and the labors themselves differ region by region.

For our in-house labor of the month, we will be featuring a dedicated charity scent in addition to those found in our Activism series. January’s charity is Feeding America, the largest hunger-relief organization in the United States, and February’s charity is the National Urban League, who works to enable African-American and other under-served urban residents to secure economic self-reliance, parity, power, and civil rights.

Art in this series from the Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry.