March, 2012 - Occasionally Thoughtful

5 Easter Traditions and What They Mean

Mindy on March 31, 2012

Spring is bustin’ out all over!

Nature renews itself, coming out in vibrant greens after the winter doldrums, the clocks “spring ahead” an hour, and Easter is celebrated on the first Sunday after the ecclesiastical full moon following the Vernal Equinox. This year (2012), Easter falls on April 8th.

Easter is, for many, a Christian festival celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ as well as the end of Lent. However, in the Western world, certain non-religious traditions have become part of the Easter celebration. Want to know more about your favorite parts of Easter? Here are…

5 EASTER TRADITIONS & WHAT THEY MEAN

Easter Parade: In America, the Easter parade tradition began in New York City when high society ladies and gents in the mid-1800’s, who attended services at Fifth Avenue churches, promenaded afterward, both to view the magnificent flower displays in other churches and to show off their new outfits and hats, which were, of course, the latest fashion. Lower and middle class people gathered to watch the spectacle, making it a popular festivity. Today,other cities host their own Easter parades including New Orleans and Richmond, VA.

Easter Eggs: The tradition of decorating eggs for Easter is believed to have pagan origins, as eggs are a symbol of fertility and the renewal of life. The practice of Christians decorating eggs to symbolize Christ’s tomb and His resurrection began sometime in the 13th century. The secular practice of egg-hunting began with egg rolling, first recorded in 1878 as taking place on the White House lawn when President Rutherford B. Hayes was in office. The annual White House Easter Egg Roll still takes place today on the Monday after Easter.

Easter Bunny: The precise origins of the Easter Bunny aren’t clear, but most folklorists and historians believe the egg-laying rabbit may have been brought to America by German immigrants in the early 18th century. Their children believed the “Osterhase,” a white hare, would lay colorful eggs if they were good, and the custom spread. In the 19th century, the Easter Bunny’s offerings grew sweeter, leading us to…

Easter Candy: The first Easter confections were made in Germany from pastry and sugar. In the early 19th century, including chocolate eggs in a child’s Easter basket became popular in Europe – likely due to the new industrial chocolate manufacturing – and the practice soon spread to America. Jelly beans, though first mass marketed by William Schraft in the 1860’s, began to be put into children’s Easter baskets in the 1930’s (note that flavors – such as cherry and black licorice- were not added to jelly beans until the 1970’s). Bonus facts: the world’s largest chocolate Easter egg was created in 2010 by Supermercados Imperatriz Ltda and Nestlé in Brazil – the egg weighed 14,917 pounds 2 oz. The largest chocolate rabbit stood 12′ 5″ tall, weighed in excess of 6,635 pounds, and was made for Duracell (the Energizer Bunny, anyone) in South Africa.

Easter Ham: In Europe, lamb has long been a staple of the Easter dinner table. However, in colonial America, ham was far more plentiful in many communities. Hams put up in November to cure would be ready to eat by April. By the 1930’s, home cooks were experimenting with various methods of glazing their hams for increased sweetness including pineapple, molasses, sugar, ginger ale, marshmallows, and honey. Today, many Americans enjoy a traditional ham dinner, although some prefer vegetarian or other healthful options.

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April Fool’s Day Around the Globe

Mindy on March 24, 2012

April Fool’s Day (also known as All Fool’s Day), observed on the 1st of April, is a lighthearted holiday celebrated with pranks and practical jokes in countries around the world.

The first of April, some do say
Is set apart for All Fool’s Day:
But why the people call it so
Nor I, nor they themselves, do know,
But on this day are people sent
On purpose for pure merriment.
—–Anonymous, Poor Robin’s Almanac, 1790

Get to know more April Fool’s Day by learning how different countries celebrate this fun holiday.

ROME: The actual origins of April Fool’s Day are shrouded in mystery. However, it is known that the ancient Roman festival of Hilaria (March 25) was celebrated in part by playing practical jokes on friends.

FRANCE & ITALY: April 1st is known as Poisson d’avril in France and French-speaking Canada, and Pesce d’aprile in Italy (“April Fish”). The holiday is celebrated by taping a paper fish to a friend’s back, and then yelling, “April fish!” when the trick is discovered.

IRAN: On the thirteenth day of Norooz (Persian New Year) called Sizdah Bedar- which usually occurs on April 1st or 2nd – celebrants play pranks on one another. Because the practice goes back as far as 536 B.C., some historians consider it the origin of April Fool’s Day.

UNITED KINGDOM: In most of the UK (and the non-French speaking part of Canada, South Africa, New Zealand, Australia, and Cyprus), tricks can only be played on April Fool’s Day until noon.

SCOTLAND: April Fool’s Day is called “Hunt the Gowk Day” – a gowk is a foolish person. Traditional pranks are played.

POLAND: On Prima Aprilus (April 1st), apart from individual joke playing and avoiding serious activities, media such as newspapers traditionally publish false news stories.

SWEDEN & DENMARK: Both countries celebrate April Fool’s Day in the usual way, but they also celebrate May 1st as a kind of additional day for pranking and jokes.

UNITED STATES: While today, April Fool’s Day is celebrated with joking, pranks, tricks, and hoaxes, in early America our Founding Fathers delighted in sending friends and family on a “fool’s errand” by asking them to fetch things that don’t exist such as sweet vinegar or sending them on a fruitless undertaking.

April Fool’s Day is also celebrated in the Netherlands, South Korea, Germany, Russia, and Japan.

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5 Nifty Facts About Persian New Year

Mindy on March 16, 2012

Persian New Year, also known as Norooz, Nowrooz or Nowruz, is a thirteen-day festival of joy celebrated annually by Iranians world-wide. For those who may not know much about the most important holiday in the Iranian calendar, here are…

5 Nifty Facts About Persian New Year

Persian New Year always begins on the first day of spring – the Vernal Equinox – which is symbolic of new life, rebirth, new beginnings, and renewal. The celebration has its roots in Zoroastrianism, and has been observed by the Iranian people (once known as the Persians) for at least 3,000 years.
An important tradition is the Haft Sin or Seven S’s, items on a table which symbols spiritual virtues. Customarily, the Haft Sin consists of apples for beauty (Sib), dried lotus tree fruit for love (Senjed), vinegar for patience (Serkeh), sumac berries for sunrise (Somaq), garlic for health (Sir), sweet wheat germ porridge for affluence (Samanu), and a dish of sprouted wheat barley for rebirth (Sabzeh). Additional items that may be included are coins (prosperity and wealth), decorated eggs (fertility), goldfish (life), and hyacinths and tulips (spring).
The colors of Persian New Year are red, white, and green – the colors of the flag of Iran.
Hajji Firuz is a singing, dancing figure playing the trumpet and tambourine who heralds Persian New Year. His face is painted black and he wears red. His visit to a family’s home is supposed to bring happiness, blessings, and abundance in the coming year. Hajji Firuz is also the assistant of Amoo Norooz, who, like Santa Claus, brings gifts to children.
A divination ritual practiced by some during Persian New Year is to hide somewhere and eavesdrop on other people’s conversations. Hearing good news or a positive conversation means good fortune.

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5 St. Patrick’s Day Symbols and What They Mean

Mindy on March 9, 2012

St. Patrick’s Day, celebrated annually on March 17, is a holiday rich in symbols, many with Irish and Celtic themes. Ever wondered about those particular symbols, their origins, and how they were chosen? Let’s find out with …

5 St. Patrick’s Day Symbols and What They Mean

1. The Shamrock
The ancient Celts revered the shamrock as a sacred symbol of spring. Fast forward a few centuries to the 18th century, when Ireland was ruled by the English. At this time, with speaking the Irish language and the practice of Catholicism forbidden by law, Irish nationalism was beginning to make itself known. The shamrock was adopted by proud Irish nationalists as a symbol of their heritage.

2. The Leprechaun
The leprechaun of Celtic folklore – the “lobaircin” or small-bodied fellows who were cranky and liked to play tricks – did not become associated with St. Patrick’s Day until after 1959. Why did it take so long? St. Patrick’s Day was considered a religious holiday until fairly recently. But in 1959, Walt Disney Productions released the film Darby O’Gill and the Little People, which introduced many Americans to the notion of a good humored, friendly, luck-giving little fellow who subsequently became part of St. Patrick’s Day lore in the U.S.

3. The Color Green
Again, we go back to the turbulent 18th century. The color originally associated with St. Patrick was blue, but when Irish patriots adopted the shamrock as a symbol, the color green came along with it. Green ribbons began to be worn to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day as early as the 17th century. In fact, “The Wearing of the Green” – taken from a song with the same title – came to mean wearing a shamrock on one’s clothing in support of Irish nationalism. During the United Irish Rebellion of 1798, Irish soldiers wore green uniforms to draw attention to their cause.

4. Corned Beef and Cabbage
Today a traditional St. Patrick’s Day meal served by Irish-American families and others, in fact the pairing corned beef and cabbage is not native cuisine to Ireland. The practice came about in the 19th century, when impoverished Irish immigrants living in New York City’s Lower East Side could not afford Irish bacon for the dish, and substituted cheaper corned beef (supplied by neighboring kosher butchers) instead.

5. St. Patrick’s Day Parades
Now a tradition in many American cities, when and why did St. Patrick’s Day come to be celebrated with parades? Reliable historical evidence is scarce before the 18th century. However, we do know that officers from primarily Irish infantry regiments of the British Army stationed in New York City – the 16th and 47th Regiment of Foot – formed The Society of the Friendly Brothers of St. Patrick. On March 17, 1762, soldiers from these regiments, joined by Irish immigrant civilians, marched in a parade and celebrated with music.

As for the green beer? We’ll leave that one up to you. 🙂

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Seven Things to Know About St. Patrick’s Day

Mindy on March 2, 2012

Observed for more than 1,000 years as the religious feast day of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day (March 17th) has become a popular, secular holiday in the United States and around the world, celebrated with parades, parties, and of course, the wearin’ o’ the green!

Saint Patrick was a gentleman, who through strategy and stealth
Drove all the snakes from Ireland, here’s a drink to his health!
But not too many drinks, lest we lose ourselves and then
Forget the good Saint Patrick, and see them snakes again!
—Anonymous

“LUCKY” SEVEN THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT ST. PATRICK’S DAY

The first recorded parade honoring St. Patrick’s Day happened on March 17, 1762 when a group of Irish soldiers who served in the British Army were stationed in the American colonies. Homesick, they held a parade on lower Broadway in New York City, and sang Irish songs and played bagpipes.
Since 1962, the city of Chicago dyes the Chicago River green on St. Patrick’s Day each year. The practice began when pollution-control workers, using dyes to trace illegal sewer discharges, chose a green dye because of the holiday.
In 1848, several Irish fraternal and beneficial societies in New York City banded together to organize a single large St. Patrick’s Day parade officially sponsored by the Ancient Order of Hibernians. Continuing to this day, this St. Patrick’s Day parade has become the largest parade in the United States.
St. Patrick’s Day became a national holiday in Ireland in 1903, but did not receive much official backing until 1995, when the Irish government began promoting the holiday as a way to boost tourism. Today, over a million people take part in Dublin’s St. Patrick’s Day Festival.
Forget green beer – more than ten million glasses of Guinness are sold on St. Patrick’s Day around the world.
Why do we celebrate on March 17th? Because that’s the date of St. Patrick’s death in 461 A.D.
34 million Americans have Irish ancestry – 9x the actual population of Ireland itself

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