6 Outdoor Hospitality Ideas for Autumn: How to Connect in These Pandemic Times

There’s a single-file row of foxtail grass bending over the roadside like a line of school children dropping pennies off a bridge.  Oddly enough, seeing them posed over the gravel gets me thinking about gathering with others and embracing autumn’s invitation for offering outdoor hospitality.  It gets me thinking about standing with others to admire the season as it unfolds all around us.

A few years ago, I wrote a series of posts on how to offer hospitality that changes lives (Check out the most popular post in this series here: 8 Surprising Ways to Extend Hospitality).  The underlying message woven throughout these posts was this: Hospitality is the art of creating spaces where others feel safe – where they know they belong.

Most of us think of inviting others into our homes for meals when we think of hospitality, but hospitality is more than cleaning the house and cooking good food.  We can offer hospitality anywhere.  We show hospitality when we simply show up and make others feel safe to be real and honest.

We can offer hospitality over Zoom meetings and social media messages, but there’s just something about meeting face-to-face.  There’s just something about looking into another person’s eyes and spending real time together.  If you’re hungry for this kind of connection, why not create space to connect outdoors this fall?

Embracing Outdoor Hospitality

Connecting with others has been challenging for most of us throughout the past months of social distancing mandates.  As winter approaches, let’s use these last warm days to connect face-to-face as much as possible.  Here are a few creative ways to create space where others can step into your life and feel just a little bit at home:

Outdoor Hospitality Idea #1: Host a Hunters Moon Party

You’ve probably heard of the Harvest Moon, which refers to the first full moon after the autumnal equinox.  Sadly, this event already passed on the evening of October 1, 2020.  However, there will be a second full moon October 31 this month.

The second full moon is known as the Hunters moon.  Gather your friends around the campfire and watch the moon rise on the last day of the month.   For a history of this moon, visit right here.

Outdoor Hospitality Idea #2: Invite a Friend to Join You at Your Child’s Outdoor Sporting Event

This sounds too simple, but many busy parents have no clue when they might fit a fall gathering into the full fall sports schedules that come with being parents.  Why not connect with a friend by inviting her to sit with you at your child’s next sporting event?

Outdoor Hospitality Idea #3: Gather Friends and Visit a Pumpkin Patch or Corn Maze

Fun fall activities abound in many parts of the country.  Gather a group of friends and meet at a local attraction, and you save yourself the effort of cooking, cleaning, and hosting a big event.

Outdoor Hospitality Idea #4: Plan a Pumpkin Carving Party

Even if your kids are beyond the age of carving pumpkins, getting together with friends to carve pumpkins is a great seasonal activity for all ages.

Outdoor Hospitality Idea #5: Visit an Orchard

Autumn is the season for apple-picking.  Gather your friends and make plans to meet at a local orchard.  Some orchards even provide tours and opportunities to pick apples.

Outdoor Hospitality Idea #6: Explore Wild Places

With the leaves changing color, fall is a fantastic time for a vigorous hike or a slow stroll through a wooded piece of land.  Meet friends at a local state park, national forest, or even a city park.  Enjoy the chatter of squirrels, the variant colors of the canopy above, and the chill in the air.  If you’re up for a real adventure, pack your tent and make it a weekend in the woods.

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Above all else, remember this: Hospitality is about creating spaces where others feel welcome – where they know they belong.  Create this kind of space, and you might just impact a life for eternity.

I recently updated my free toolkit Hospitality without Perfection.  This free gift contains 29 pages of easy, affordable, and delicious recipe ideas, activities for all seasons, backyard games, conversation starters, and inspiration to help you extend the gift of hospitality in your life.  It’s yours by clicking here.