Elanites celebrate numerous holidays, some dating back to before the Houses ruled. Although the Church takes part in most of these holidays to some extent or another, every occasion has significance among the secular population. As time has passed, some holidays have taken on different significance, but many Elanites see them as an opportunity to celebrate togetherness and the passage of time.
The Turning-days mark the turn from one season to the next, and are generally celebrated over weekends at the start of every season.
Seedtide is celebrated at the start of March. Although originally marking the new year, modern Seedtide is the beginning of the spring planting season. As a festival of new beginnings, weddings are often held on Seedtide, as are adoptions and coming-of-age ceremonies. The Church encourages forgiving past wrongs during Seedtide to celebrate the triumph of Mercy.
Suntide is celebrated at the start of June, and is tied to the outdoors and celebrating beauty in all forms. Bright colors are worn by all, with many also donning face paint. People read poetry, sing songs, and make wreaths and bouquets. Suntide is a traditional beginning to courting, so many dances and couples’ activities are held. The Church engages in Suntide by encouraging people to acts of kindness and compassion, speaking to the triumph of Duty.
Culltide is celebrated at the start of September, and is a harvest festival. Paper boats inscribed with wishes of a bountiful harvest are placed in rivers and lakes, and the end of the weekend is celebrated with a grand feast where each participant contributes, either by cooking, providing ingredients, or even cleaning up afterward. This feast traditionally includes pot pies as a symbol of bounty being unearthed. The Church encourages people to invite strangers and the less-fortunate to their table in a showing of the triumph of Charity.
Snowtide is celebrated at the start of December, and celebrates togetherness of the family and household. Many people choose to bunk up inside, having quiet celebrations with lots of singing, acting out funny plays, and hot tea, soup, and bread. This time is also regarded by many as the part of the year where the dead are nearest, and many households take an opportunity to celebrate and wish well those who have passed on. The Church takes part in memorial services, and asks people to celebrate the triumph of Hope with wishes of health.
Crownfall Day, celebrated in late April to early May, is a day intended to celebrate the birth of Elan and the fall of the Houses. Many tributes to the nation occur during this period, including reenactments of the Siege of Huxley House and readings of Corley’s Address. During this weekend, authority is inverted, with local leaders taking the role of a fool and children taking charge, often making joke rulings and enacting silly laws to last the weekend - “criminals” are subject to “punishments” like pies to the face or having water dumped on them. In spite of the Church’s austerity, they encourage such traditions as good practice for engaging in the triumph of Lawfulness, even if the laws may be humorous.
This holiday, celebrated at the end of October, originates from Dorage, and translates as “twisting”. Originally believed to be a time when evil spirits roamed the land, people dress in costumes and use false names, either to fool the spirits into believing people are spirits themselves or someone other than who they really are. Nowadays, most take it as an opportunity to dress in costumes and go by silly made-up names. At the end, the weekend is celebrated with an in-costume feast!
The end of the Elanite year matches with our own, at the end of December. As Seedtide is a time of beginnings, Yearsend is a time of conclusions - people often begin the process of life changes at Yearsend with the intent to actualize them on Seedtide. Many who feel they have become dependent on something choose Yearsend as a day to quit; the Church even pushes people to believe in themselves through the triumph of Valor. On the stroke of midnight, tradition is to run outside and ring a bell, blow a horn, or shout a cheer to close the year with a bang.
This holiday is specially held by the Church in mid-July, intended to celebrate the first Shepherd themself. Local shepherds tell the tale of Zell’s wanderings and teachings, ending with the Deathbed Synod and asking congregations how each of them have embodied the Nine Triumphs. It is a time of rededication to faith, mindfulness of self, and love for community.
Held in mid-February, Manythanks is a holiday that arose fairly recently as a way to break up the end-of-winter doldrums. People are encouraged to give gifts to one another, preferably something both useful and unexpected. Also common are cards to loved ones, often plain in appearance but filled with words of appreciation, encouragement, and love. Although some see companies’ involvement with the holiday through sales promotions and sponsorships to be against the spirit of the event, it certainly aids people in finding presents. The proper way to accept any gift is in the name: lock eyes with total kindness, and tell the giver “Many thanks!”