Carnival – when winter says goodbye with a little wildness

Shrove Tuesday is usually understood as a three-day revelry that precedes the forty days of Lent before Easter.

It may surprise you, but it's not because of the carnival. That moment when I feel something approaching. Spring is not here yet, but the air already has a different taste. And it is precisely to this moment between what was and what is yet to come that Carnival belongs... It's because of that feeling of last joy before peace. As if you've indulged in all the good things once more before the time comes for silence and contemplation.

So – From now until February 18th, we're going bombs – good food, drink and a carnival that is sure to please. Mark the weekend of February 14-15, it will be the absolute highlight! Our ancestors knew it – just enjoy yourself before the forty days of fasting. Eat, drink, laugh❣

Shrove Tuesday ends on February 17. Then comes Ash Wednesday (February 18) and everything stops. Lent lasts until April 4 – Holy Saturday.

The scent that belongs to carnival

I remember when I was little and my grandmother fried donuts.

The whole house smelled of hot oil, sugar, and the sweet tenderness of warm dough. We all huddled around the stove, waiting for something to pop onto the plate. God bless. Bacon spread on fresh bread. Pork knuckle.

It may sound difficult today. But back then – and actually still now – it was a ritual. A meal together. A moment together.

And that feeling can be brought back. Just open the window, let in the February air, and turn on the oven.

The first time I went to a carnival parade, I was fifty.

Yeah, really. I never thought of it before. But my friend said: Let's go to Hlinsko, she can do it there. And she was right. I saw a bear on a rope. A bear in a fur coat. Masks that looked like they came out of old fairy tales – old women with a litter, horses, clowns. And that sound! Wooden clappers, laughter, music.

UNESCO has put it on the list of masterpieces. But I remembered something else – how people laugh. How they take their time to be silly. How they stop.

That's the beauty of Mardi Gras. It's not perfect. It's not polished. It's just alive.

sounds strict – and once it really was. Ashes on the forehead. The words „dust you are and to dust you shall return.“ Fasting, silence, no meat. Our grandmothers were not allowed to sew, pluck feathers or chop wood. Otherwise, they say… fleas, lame cows, frogs in flax.

Today, most of us don't observe this anymore. But perhaps some of that peace could remain, right?

I've discovered that fasting doesn't have to be about giving up. It can be about inner cleansing. It can be about allowing yourself to be quiet. It can be about stopping for a moment.

The six Sundays between Shrovetide and Easter have their own names. And I have my favorite.

Mothers baked pretzels at night and hung them on trees in the garden. In the morning they told the children: This is from the fox. The children prayed, ate them – and they said they didn't have any toothaches for a whole year.

Isn't that a wonderful story?

I tried it last year. Not because of my teeth. But because of the feeling of creating something with my hands, giving something, inventing something.

Fox pretzels. Warm, crispy, and fragrant with caraway.

Here comes Morena, the straw puppet. She burns or floats away down the stream – and winter is over. Officially.

That's exactly the moment when I say to myself: yeah, the world keeps turning. Everything passes. And that's okay.

It's about allowing yourself to enjoy the last bit of winter to the fullest. Bake something good. Get together with friends. Laugh. And then – calmly – let the rest go.

I'm going to have a nice weekend, February 14th and 15th. Maybe I'll bake donuts. And maybe I'll go to a parade. Or maybe I'll just light a candle and sit by the window.

Women would jump as high as they could during the carnival dance, because it was believed that the higher they jumped, the taller their flax or grain would grow. Imagine those grandmothers jumping like crazy!

After Shrove Tuesday, there was "Sack Thursday" - a day when the very last leftovers from the Shrove Tuesday feast were eaten. And why sack Thursday? "Because after Shrove Tuesday, everything that is left over is eaten, digested - sacked!"„

On Monday, a mill was built, and on Tuesday, „old women were ground into young ones.“ Imagine that – an ironic celebration of rejuvenation!

The figure of Bacchus, the "lord of drunkards", was tried, condemned and punished - for example, by being thrown into a fountain in the square, burned or buried. Garden. Drama as embroidered!

During Shrovetide, parody masses with ridiculous sermons, humorous skits, and satirical songs about clerics could be seen in various corners of Europe. Medieval freedom of speech!

The bear has been documented since at least the 6th century, but it was already used in ancient pagan times. That's more than 1500 year old theater!

The character of the "Jew" with the sack could only be played by a married and well-to-do man. He had a blackened face, a suit made of rags, feathers and money. He entertained, told stories, bargained and stole alms, grain and money. Such legal robbery!

If there was no wedding in the village during Shrovetide, there was talk of „"a dusty carnival"“. It just wasn't fun without a wedding!

People wearing masks climbed into a half-drained pond and rolled around in the mud – it was believed that this would bring abundant fishing in the coming year. Muddy prosperity!

The party had to end at exactly midnight. The night watchman came, blew the horn, and the magistrate ordered everyone to disperse. As if she wanted a policeman with such authority today!

On Ash Wednesday, women were not allowed to spin, sew, chop wood, or pluck feathers. Anyone who disobeyed would be bitten by fleas, their hens would not lay eggs, their cows would limp, and the flax in the field would be eaten by frogs. Wikipedia. Drastic warnings!

In some areas, women held their own celebrations known as "barren feasts"„ Wikipedia. Women's solidarity in action!

On Shrove Monday, there were „"men's balls", where neither bachelors nor girls were allowed, only married people Wikipedia. Exclusive married club!

Word „"meat festival"“ is already documented in Great Moravian sources from the 9th century Wikipedia. That's over 1100 years of tradition!

Beauty, right? 😊

Because Carnival reminds me: That spring is coming! Yours and mine time. Joy and merriment.

And that's exactly what a big girl needs.

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So, will you bake donuts this year? Or will you try fox pretzels? 🦊

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JANUARY Personalities: Who celebrates in the first month of the year?