Does August Bring the Energy Of Assertiveness, Self-Assurance or Arrogance?

I once read arrogance is sometimes confused with confidence, but that arrogance is a toxic trait, that's used as a defense mechanism. Arrogant people are condescending and put others down. They also  boast about their own accomplishments and view themselves as more knowledgeable than their peers. Whereas confident people believe in their own abilities and the abilities of those they choose to put their trust in. It is something about the month of August that carries the energy of both.

I don’t know what it is about August, but during this month I notice people are a little more assertive and have a tendency to become aggressive. Maybe it’s because of the heat, or the competitive nature that comes with summer activities. It could be from feeling less restricted having fewer clothes on. But, for some reason  people tend to act a little more arrogant in August. I wonder could it be because the name of the month was conceived out of vengeance.

Did you know the original Roman calendar was ten months long? Before the Romans changed the calendar, there was no July or August. Under the old system, the beginning of the year started in March and ended in December. Many of the names of the calendar are named after deities. The rest of the Roman calendar is named after the Latin numerical position they had on the old calendar.

Quintilis meant "fifth " until it became July. Sextilis meant sixth until it became August. Romulus, the legendary first ruler of Rome, is supposed to have introduced this calendar. The Roman ruler Numa Pompilius added January and February to the calendar to make the calendar correspond approximately to the solar year. But that’s another blog. No matter how you feel about the Romans, they sure did come up with some lasting branding (mostly through force).

It is unceasingly impressive and scary to me that, July and August are on the calendar out of sheer ego. You see, Julius Ceasar appointed himself forever ruler. He was murdered because of it. Then his protégé Augustus got revenge on those responsible for his death. Finally, as his own act of defiance, Augustus changed the calendar naming the months that generates the most resources after Julius and himself.

July and August as months are like the personalities of the people they are named after. July brings the heat with excitement and commotion similar to Julius Caesar. It is the hottest month of the summer and has a major national celebration. On the other hand, August is like Augustus, is long suffering and enduring.

August doesn’t have a notable celebration like the Fourth of July, but it does seem to be the month were people have more individual celebrations, like family reunions, weddings, and back to school parties. Augustus is not as renowned as Julius, but he is the ruler that upgraded Rome from a republic to an empire.

Augustus’s public last words were, "Behold, I found Rome of clay and leave her to you of marble. Think about the people you know that are born in August; does that sound like something they would say? Lol, shoutout to my Leos and Virgos born during this month. Augustus was so aligned with the spirit of the month he created; he died 19 August 14 AD. (he was born in September). Factors like these is what contributes to the feeling of confidence fueled by assertiveness that verges on arrogance during August.