Pancake day

Many people in the United Kingdom eat pancakes on Shrove Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday, when Lent begins. The custom began long ago, when people could not eat butter and eggs during Lent. So, to use up their butter and eggs before Ash Wednesday, they made pancakes.

On Pancake Day, as it is called, the women of Olney, England, have a pancake race. On this day, the women line up in the market square. Each carries a pancake in a frying pan. The women must flip their pancakes three times as they race for the church door at the other end of the square.

A bell clangs. They're off! Pancakes are flipping and feet are flying. The race lasts about a minute. The winner gets a kiss from the bell ringer of the village.

On the same day, there is also a pancake race in Liberal, Kansas. The people of Olney and the people of Liberal compare winning times by telephone to see which town has won the pancake race.

The beginning of lent

Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent. It can be as early as February 4 or as late as March 10. The exact date depends on the date set for Easter Sunday.

Ash Wednesday is observed in Roman Catholic churches and in some Protestant churches. In Roman Catholic churches, ashes from burned palm leaves are blessed. A priest then uses these ashes to mark a cross on each person's forehead. The ashes are to remind people that they came from dust and will one day return to dust.

Lent is a religious season that is a time of fasting (not eating as much food as usual) and of prayer. Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, forty days before Easter (not counting Sundays) and ends on Easter Sunday. The forty days of Lent are to remind people of the forty days Jesus fasted in the wilderness. The word Lent comes from the Old English word lencten, which means "spring."

In many countries, special foods are eaten during Lent. These foods are usually a substitute for meat. In Ireland, people have a dish called champ. It is made up of scallious, a kind of onion, whipped in with hot mashed potatoes and served with a lump of butter in the middle.

The English also make special foods for Lent. One is a pudding of flour and milk, flavored with fruit syrups. Because it can be made quickly, it is known as hasty pudding.

In most places, fish is a standard food throughout Lent. So are eggs. But there was time when people were forbidden to eat eggs and butter, as well as meat. During the forty weekdays of Lent they could have only bread and water.

St. Patrick's day (march 17)

On St. Patrick's Day, you may hear such Irish songs as "The Wearing of the Green." And on this day, many people – even some who are not Irish – do wear something green. The bit of green is a reminder of the beautiful green countryside of Ireland. This island nation is so green that it is often called the Emerald Isle. (An emerald is a lovely green jewel.) Green is also the color of the shamrock, a small cloverlike plant with three leaves on each stem. It is the national symbol of Ireland.

In Ireland, St. Patrick's Day is both a holy day and holiday. Saint Patrick, Ireland's patron saint, brought Christianity to Ireland. According to legend, he used the three leaves of the shamrock to explain the idea of the Trinity – that in the one God there are three divine Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Another legend says that Saint Patrick rid Ireland of snakes by charming them into the sea.

St. Patrick's Day is usually celebrated with a parade. The one in Dublin, Ireland, has some to be known as the Irish Mardi Gras. The St. Patrick's Day Parade in New York City is perhaps the biggest.

Two big Irish wolfhounds always lead the marchers in the gala New York City parade. These huge dogs are the mascots of the Fighting 69th, an infantry regiment that is part of the New York National Guard. At one time, this regiment was made up entirely of Irishmen. More than a hundred bands and a hundred thousand marchers follow the dogs up Fifth Avenue. The parade lasts for hours.

You don't have to be Irish to celebrate St. Patrick's Day. Next March 17, put on a shamrock or a bit of green and have fun.