Beginning of winter

立冬(Lì Dōng) is the 19th solar term in the traditional Chinese lunar calendar. It marks the beginning of winter in China and usually falls on November 7th or 8th each year. The character "立" means "beginning" or "starting", while "冬" refers to "winter".
During this time, the temperature drops dramatically and the cold wind starts blowing from the North. It’s time to prepare for winter by storing food, cutting wood for fuel and warming up the house. In ancient times, people used to worship their ancestors and gods during the day of Lì Dōng. It was believed that they could help protect people from the cold winter winds.
In terms of food, Lì Dōng is the perfect time for eating hot pot, which is a popular dish in China. Hot pot is a traditional Chinese food that involves cooking meats, vegetables, and other ingredients in a pot of hot soup that’s placed in the center of a table. The soup is often spicy, which helps to warm people up during the cold season.
Lì Dōng also marks the time when some animals, such as bears and squirrels, begin hibernating. Farmers will have harvested most of their crops by Lì Dōng and they'll start to prepare the land for the next season, plowing the fields and spreading fertilizers.

Lì Dōng is an important festival that signals the beginning of winter in China. It's a time when people need to prepare for the cold season, worship their ancestors, and eat hot pot to keep themselves warm. It is a traditional festival that has been celebrated for hundreds of years in China and is still widely observed today.