happy st. patrick(ov) day!

     I’ve been celebrating so many Bulgarian holidays lately that I figured I would go all out and celebrate a holiday I’m familiar with. Thus begin Bobov Dol’s first St. Patrick’s Day. I’ll admit it was pretty lame; there were no parades, no corned beef and cabbage, no green beer (though Bobov Dol was introduced to its first Irish coffee…), there wasn’t even an Irish tricolor in sight. But still I think people won’t soon forget it.
     I woke up this morning dreading going to school. I don’t know why besides the fact that I have been having this feeling of dread/ anxiety for the last couple of weeks. This feeling was compounded by the fact that because of a change in the schedule this week I had a class today, though usually today is a day off for me. I realized, however, as I was standing in my long underwear trying to figure out what to wear that I was sick of feeling like this. I looked at the green tie, suit jacket and slacks in my closet and had an idea. I quickly put together the tackiest greenest outfit I have ever worn (green shirt, green tie, green jacket, green pants and green socks. Each a slightly different shade of green…) and scribbled a quick “Happy St. Patrick’s Day!” (“Честит Св. Патриков Ден!”) sign and walked to school.
     My outfit was quickly noticed by… everyone. At first I was a little sheepish, but after a little while, I forgot I was even wearing it. Bulgaria celebrates many Saint Days and so it was easy to explain this one. But I think people thought the tie and jacket was a little strange…
I guess St. Patrick must have enjoyed my little display, because my day went really well. I went in with a colleague to help her teach a third grade class. If I’m not busy on Fridays, I go in and help her teach this class. The students are the sweetest things I have ever seen and they absolutely love me. They energize me to teach for the next week. Today, I introduced them to “Old MacDonald” and they loved it. Despite the fact that my voice is somewhat akin to the sound a cat in heat makes, we had a great time. They had to try hard from falling out of their seats at different parts. I don’t know what else they learned in class, but I know they went home singing “Here a moo! there a moo! everywhere a moo-moo!” most likely at the top of their lungs.
My next class was my dreaded 8th graders. I had a plan to do some boring activity from the book, but when I walked in they saw my suit, and whistled and clapped. I knew what I had to do. I spent the rest of the class explaining the traditions of this day and, while I almost had to pinch myself to believe it, they understood what I was saying, and (and!) I asked some comprehension questions at the end of the class and they answered! Correctly!
I had lunch with some neighbors, had the world’s best éclair (no exaggeration, whatsoever…), talked about life during communist times and religion in Bulgaria. They even had a shamrock plant (from where, I have no bloody idea) and they pinned a leaf on my jacket.  All in all it was a great day. Hope you all have a great St. Patrick’s Day, and whoever you are, wherever you are, take a moment to share a little of the green!