Made in America: St. Patrick’s Day

Today is the big day, drinkers. St. Patty’s Day (an obvious abbreviation for St. Patrick’s Day). This celebration is a far cry from the actual Saint, who was not even Irish. Born in Britain centuries ago, the 16 year old pre-saint was captured and enslaved by the Irish. After apparently having a dream from God, he made a dash to escape, hopped a ship, and returned home. He began his quest to become a priest and vowed to return to Ireland to bring Christianity to the people.

The big myth is that St. Patrick drove the snakes out of Ireland. If this were true, I would applaud the man…and curse him for not driving them out of North America. (I can do snakeskin boots, but not winding, slithering, leg-less creepers). Most likely, this whole snake bit represents the introduction of Christianity and the snakes being old pagan and polytheistic beliefs being driven out. (hmm, is this an act of forced assimilation or did they want this? Whatever, it was ages ago- no hard feelings)

Today, we look forward to Shamrock Shakes!

As all good teachers, St. P had a clever way to instill the Trinity (Father, Son, Holy Ghost) in to the Irish- the use of the shamrock. A prominent field sprout, the shamrock’s 3 leaf shape ‘represented’ the Trinity. In modern times, we flip out the moment the Shamrock Shake arrives at McDonald’s. (um, helloooo, it’s delicious!)

The Wearing of the Green!

So postmortem, Christianity blew up in Ireland & St. Patrick became a head honcho within the church. Celebrations in honor of him as early as the 9th century were recorded. Do you know long ago this was?! The guy died March 17th, 461AD. Good grief! Typically, the color associated with St. Patrick was originally blue…somehow that changed in to green. Green, back in the day, was hand in hand with faeries- but naughty ones! The ones that stole children! In the 17th century, people began wearing green ribbons and shamrocks on their clothing…shamrocks turned in to a symbol of good luck…an official celebration day was set on the calendar…During the Irish Rebellion in late 1700′s (forgive me, I don’t know the date…), those rebelling wore shamrocks in their hats to show which side they were on. The famous Irish ballad ‘The Wearing of the Green’ was composed and is now a traditional tune.

Now We Party!

During the hot moment of the 13 Colonies, Irish immigrants started to have get togethers in celebration & homage to their country. George Washington even gave his troops a vacation on 3/17. Clearly, this has been a party day in the making. Since then, it’s turned in to a secular holiday which is celebrated by Irish & non-Irish alike. It is perhaps the craziest day of the year for alcoholic establishments & the most widely celebrated heritage. During dinner in a chic restaurant in downtown Perth, Australia, my friend Erin & I encountered a group of twenty-something Irish clan. Heavily accented & highly intoxicated, they told us about how they do it in Ireland. One of the guys said his grandmothers make corned beef & cabbage…one of the girls noted her mother makes soda bread…and an engaged couple have started the tradition of making whiskey which has been passed down through generations. While on the subject of March 17th, the jolly Irishmen (and women!) chuckled at how the Americans did it. (this is what I got out of the convo…..note: two martini’s + understanding pure Irish tongues do NOT mix well)

‘You go too crazy. You don’t do it right. It’s all about ‘Ohhh another day of drinkin’ and parties’ but you forget what it’s really about- Ireland and all its beauty.’

Yep. Probably true. In defense, I do have Irish-blooded friends who state the love for their ancestry…but then they chug a beer & don’t mention it again.

‘Ya we have our big parade in Dublin and take back some Guinness, but we don’t use it as an excuse to party even harder-’ The Aussie waiter interrupts,

‘Yea mate, you’s party hard every day!’ Then Erin interrupts,

‘So do you Aussies! Oy!’ (glad to see 3 countries were all arguing who consumed more)

What I learned from my Irish friends was that we were to understand the historical significance of Ireland’s history & to remember their island on March 17th. After the serious talk, we peer pressured them in to quoting the leprechaun from the Lucky Charms cereal commercials. Hesitant & irritated at first, they caved in & had a good laugh.

Irish friends in Australia

So here we are in America. A largely populated Irish melting pot & a celebratory day to add some excitement. Buffalo, NY has the 3rd largest parade in the country, Chicago dyes its river green, as does Jamestown, NY to their Chadakoin River. Girls will wear bobbing shamrock party headbands, guys will don ‘Kiss My Shamrock’ tees, we will get up for Kegs & Eggs bright and early, and stomach a Guinness or two. Everyone will have green on & if they don’t they will be pinched, our mouths will devour corned beef and cabbage, swig down down green beer, and we will probably feel awful Friday morning. Perhaps some will stay in & watch Jennifer Aniston before she was a big hit. To the Irish & non alike, ‘Sláinte!’ ….and if you can’t pronounce that, shame on you for celebrating St. Patrick and Ireland! Go out and party for what it is- honoring St. Patrick & his Christian teachings & the history Ireland has gone through to become what it is today. Go ahead & be Irish!

~ by orangemous on March 17, 2011.