Mama SRL

We all know that on Saint Andrew’s Night, wheat is sprouted. It is an old tradition that in some years I forgot to keep. Today, because I spend a lot of time at home, I decided that I have time to do it and also put the child to work. I took the box of wheat grains out of the cupboard this morning, the child counted them during the day and in the evening we put them together to sprout. The little one seemed so sure of himself that the ritual seemed extremely natural. I mean, he knew that he had to patiently put as many seeds as possible on the cotton wool I laid in a small bowl. I would have put seeds in moderation, but he put it in full. I don’t know if that’s better. In fact, I don’t even know how it happens naturally. All I know is that over time I have always been restricted by the shortcomings of the 1990s and I am left with this fear of „putting everything to the test”. Then I thought of pouring water from the prepared jar myself, but the child insisted that he could do it himself and poured the water from the jar into the first bowl and then asked me for water for the next one and then for the last one. I realized that being raised with freedom and access to objects, he acts naturally to use them „properly”. And this way I begin to like the pagan traditions that we still keep alive.

St. Andrew’s Night has all sorts of superstitions that I don’t want to be afraid of, but that are good to know. My dear grandmother, born in November, always considered this to be a month of suffering and was always looking forward to its ending. It seemed a little strange to me, especially since I always had a zest for life no matter the season. When I started to become more responsible (not to say I got older) I decided that she was somehow right and that it is a depressing month with rain, overcast skies and many times, during this period, the world receives bad news. The other day on a walk outside I saw thick carpets of freshly fallen leaves from the trees on the occasion of the first frosty night and no matter how beautiful the landscape was, I realized that from now on gray days are coming. However this is the course of nature and we must accept it. I still look at the pictures from the summer to avoid the grays that surround us. But regarding the good part of the natural cycle, the first snow of the new winter follows and that makes me terribly happy.

The end of November means the Night of the Undead. Maybe that’s how people felt about nature with its changes. Now I am waiting like a child eager to see the first snow of the 2020-2021 season and to quickly erase the loss of 2020 from my professional calendar. Probably we all hope for a better 2021, back to normal and to help us forget that we had a sabbatical year. We don’t know what it will be like, but we planted it with hope and without moderation. Now we have time to enjoy traditions once considered obsolete.

„In the traditional Romanian culture, the spirits of the dead are manifested among the living in the period marked by the eve of two great holidays: Saint George (April 22) and Saint Dumitru (October 25). The period of maximum activity is on the eve of Saint Andrew (29 November) marking the beginning of the cold season. ” – Folclor-romanesc.ro

Although the night traditions of St. Andrew have been preserved for 3,000 years, they have been integrated into Christian practices. Saint Andrew seems to carry a rich list of traditions and superstitions on the night before the holiday itself. It is not advisable to work or clean the house, you have to use garlic in full and put wheat for sprouting to see how next year will be. I am more pragmatic and I like to think of any tradition based a little on the natural course of life. It seems that farmers used to sow wheat during this period and then analyze in January the condition of the seeds to be ready for spring planting. Then garlic is a very healthy vegetable in the context of changing the temperature according to the seasons. It is good to have a garlic sauce on the table to get the cold out of us or maybe just to prevent a possible cold. I think that traditions are closely linked to the cycles of nature and that is why I sometimes I choose to keep them even if they seem outdated by the times we live in. The night of Saint Andrew caught me alone at home with the child and I am not afraid of undead or other spirits. This is also because I feel at peace with the passing away of dear people who I think have found peace and are watching over us. Saint Andrew’s night with undead, garlic and wheat means a perfect combination of the Christian faith with pagan customs.