Fun Facts from Your Friends at Wesley Enhanced Living

The start of a new year is exciting. It is like have a clean slate to begin new habits, build new relationships, and have new adventures. Often we may sit back and reminisce about years gone by. The people we knew. The lessons learned. Often, they are fun memories like when a beloved elderly aunt tried on roller skates for the first time. Or that fall when grandpa took the whole family for a wagon ride around his farm.  Sometimes we wish we could turn back the calendar to relive those fun times. 

Here’s an interesting fact: Did you know that in 1752, the calendar was not turned back but was pushed forward by 11 days in Britain and its colonies? Imagine going to bed on September 2nd and waking up on September 14th. That is quite the leap! 

Make each day count when you move to a Wesley Enhanced Living continuing care retirement community. Our staff is dedicated giving you the best in care through your nutritional, emotional, and social needs. We are here to ensure each day on the calendar is the best one yet.

More Fun Historical Facts about Our Current Calendar

As a child you may have recited the rhyme about the months – “30 days has September, April, June, and November…” Back in Roman times, January and February looked quite different, with each having 29 and 23 days respectively. Here are some other fun facts:

  1. The goal of the Gregorian calendar was to adjust the date of Easter. Pope Gregory XIII was concerned that the date of Easter (celebrated on March 21st) was falling further away from the spring equinox because of a miscalculation in the Julian calendar.
  2. The new year has not always started on January 1st. When Julius Caesar introduced the Julian calendar in 45 B.C.E., January 1st was the start of the year. The Catholic Church changed this practice during the Council of Tours in C.E. 567. If you lived during the Middle Ages, your year could start January, March, September, December, or around Easter.
  3. Leap years are not exactly every four years in the Gregorian calendar. The Italian scientist Aloysus Lilius, the developer of the new system, found the calculation error that made the calendar too long. He devised a plan to add leap days to those years divisible by four. For years divisible by 100, no leap day is added. If the year is also divisible by 400, then we still have a leap day. 
  4. The original Gregorian calendar only held authority within the Catholic Church. Civil authorities in each country took much longer to accept these changes. Now, Catholic countries like Spain and Italy implemented the new calendar into civil affairs quickly. However, Protestant countries like Britain held out until about 1752.

Enjoy Timeless Fun at Wesley Enhanced Living 

As a retiree, you have the luxury to ignore all calendars and embrace the fun and good times at Wesley Enhanced Living! We designed our communities to center around the needs of our seniors with a variety of living options, including independent living, personal care, and rehabilitation and skilled nursing. Visit us to see what we have to offer. 

Wesley Enhanced Living provides high-quality senior retirement communities for you or your loved ones.  Contact one of our Philadelphia area locations and find out why our seniors love where they live. Our staff is happy to discuss your elder’s needs or your own, give you a tour and inform you of our range of services.