St. Patrick's Day

St. Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland. He was born in Britain and was sold as a slave at age 16. After escaping, he went to France and became a priest. The Pope sent him to Ireland, where he successfully converted the island from druidism to Christianity. He later became a bishop. He died March 17, A.D. 461 and is today revered by many Christians. In the USA, St. Patrick's Day is more of a secular holiday, celebrating the Irish. The most notable observance is the annual St. Patrick's Day parade in New York City. Many people wear green, make green food and even dye beer green to celebrate the holiday. Motifs include shamrocks, Irish fairies called leprechauns, kissing the Blarney stone, and anything green. Businesses and stores are open normal hours.

Purim

This is a Jewish holiday, a day of joyous celebration and feasting, in remembrance of the deliverance of the Jews from the Persian minister Haman. Reading from the book of Ester marks the holiday, along with Purim plays, the exchange of gifts and donations to the poor. Businesses and stores are open normal hours.

April Fools' Day

This is a day to play small tricks on friends and strangers. One common trick is to point down to a friend's shoe and say, "Your shoelace is untied," and when he looks, yell, "April Fool!" This tradition began in the 16th century when Pope Gregory converted the calendar for the Christian world, and the New Year fell on Jan. 1. Some people continued to celebrate the New Year according to the old calendar, on April 1. Thus, people who believed falsehoods were April fools and the trick of making someone think something false was true began. Most practical jokes, or fool's errands, are harmless, and the most clever ones have everyone laughing, especially the fool. Businesses and stores are open normal hours.

Daylight-Saving Time Begins ….Spring forward ... fall back.

Daylight-saving time is when we turn the clocks forward one hour from standard time in order to save energy. During the long days of spring and summer, we are awake during daylight and use less electricity. This idea of daylight-saving time has been around a long time, but was widely instituted in the USA in 1966. There are still areas where they do not observe daylight-saving time, like Hawaii, parts of Indiana and most of Arizona. If your area uses daylight-saving time, the clocks should be set forward one hour the first Sunday of April at 2 a.m. Many countries around the world utilize daylight-saving time, each to its best advantage. The change back to standard time occurs the last Sunday in October.

Palm Sunday

Observed the Sunday before Easter, this Christian holiday celebrates the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. Processions and ceremonies include giving palm leaves to worshippers, which they keep through the year. Businesses and stores are open normal hours.

Passover

This holiday is a celebration of the Jewish people's freedom from Egyptian slavery more than 3,000 years ago. Passover refers to the story where the Egyptians planned to kill the first born sons of the Hebrews. Lambs' blood on the doorpost of each Hebrew home allowed the Angel of Death to pass over their homes and save their children, and the Egyptians' sons died instead. Passover is celebrated with a feast called a seder, which includes specific foods that are symbols for their hardships and joys of their deliverance. Businesses and stores are open normal hours.

Good Friday

The Friday before Easter commemorates the Crucifixion of Jesus. Businesses and stores are open normal hours.

Easter

Christian churches celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus on Easter Sunday. The origins of the religious holiday can be traced to several places. Likely it is an adaptation from the pagan observance of the Spring Equinox, which celebrated fertility, the returning sun, and the resurrection of nature after winter. The symbols often associated with Easter are rabbits, chicks, eggs, lilies and new clothes, especially a bonnet. Parades are held, children get gifts of candy, and Easter egg hunts are enjoyed by many. Some stores are closed or have limited hours.

Professional Secretaries Day

This is a day of thanks for secretaries, who do so much for so many executives and businesses. Small gifts, flowers, cards or lunches are given in appreciation.

To be continued next week..

Till then have a wonderful weekend..