Saint Patrick's Day vs. All Snakes Day
Happy All Snakes Day everyone! Sorry it's been a while since I've been active here, research to make sure everything is clear, concise, and accurate is a bit of a bitch sometimes! Plus the all consuming adult world that is work, healthcare, etc.
Saint Patrick's Day celebrates not getting righteously hammed like it does today, but Saint Patrick driving all the 'snakes' from Ireland. All the druids, pagan worshippers, people who basically weren't Christian. According to legend, the patron saint of Ireland 'chased the slithering reptiles into the sea after they began attacking him during a 40-day fast he undertook on top of a hill.' but that's rather contrarian to the evidence. Research suggests snakes never occupied the Emerald Isle in the first place. There are no signs of snakes in the country’s fossil record. And water has surrounded Ireland since the last glacial period. Before that, the region was covered in ice and would have been too cold for the reptiles.
So why celebrate a day about stomping out our practices, even if you only celebrate it to get hammered? All Snakes Day sounds cooler, and better honors the history of paganism by remembering what we've been through, raising a glass to those who lost their lives in the Christianization of the UK and Ireland. So with that in mind, go honor those who came before and get smashed in THEIR honor instead, so long as you can legally drink.
Blessed Ostara (March 19th in the Northern Hemisphere), and good health to you all!
- Blackbird
