Trees for patron saints

Village festas have been with us for centuries. There is a very strong cultural influence in their rituals and celebration procedures. Band marches and fireworks, together with the religious procession, dominate most weekends in our villages during the summer months.

Notwithstanding the decline of various traditions in our culture, village festas seem to have survived the test of time. Youth and elderly alike flock to the village feast by the masses.

Most festas witness the convergence of members of Parliament, reputable people in society and distinguished visitors to villages and towns across Malta and Gozo.

Sponsorships abound, directed usually towards band clubs, fireworks' clubs and the various organising committees (too many to mention).

If village festas serve the purpose to unite villagers, even if only momentarily, then, their sponsorship could be viewed positively.

Recently, I said to myself: What about initiating a custom that could both give homage to the patron saint and celebrate the village festa and at the same time help the environment?

In view of the recent spat of vandalism at the Mellieha sanctuary, I thought that one way to celebrate the village festa was to plant trees and dedicate them to the same village/town I represent in my constituency.

This is what I set out to do on June 9. Together with a few friends of mine we planted trees at the Ta' Qali nursery. I dedicated one tree to the people of Rabat (that weekend happened to be the feast of Corpus Domini there) and another tree to the people of Zebbug, Malta (that week happening to be the feast of St Philip of Agirra).

Furthermore, together with my friends, we presented a small monetary gift for the reforestation project in Mellieha, Foresta 2000, which was launched in May 2007.

A total of Lm40,000 were needed to plant 6,000 trees, double the amount of those destroyed, and Environment Minister George Pullicino courageously increased the target to 9,000 trees.

On the morning of June 10, during the programme Forcina on NET TV, I spoke about the initiative taken and proposed that other MPs follow suit.

If each of the 65 MPs had to plant a tree for each village festa within his/her constituency, then, on average, each MP would plant 4-5 trees per annum, totalling circa 300 trees a year.

I surmised that this was definitely a new approach how to celebrate village festas.

One must remember that a tree usually outlives us and it is a memory that remains. Furthermore, this is a definite green and clean way that could set an example to our children on how to celebrate festas.

The Tree for you (34U) campaign is an afforestation campaign launched by Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi and Mr Pullicino on January 14, 2005 to commemorate Arbor Day.

Five main areas were earmarked for tree planting: Delimara, Xrobb l-Ghagin, Kennedy Grove, Ta' Qali National Park and Mellieha. One of the aims of 34U is to increase public awareness about the importance of the world's lungs... trees.

Let us all embark on a project to make our world a healthier place to live in. What better way to celebrate our village patron saint than to dedicate a tree of life to the village we so love and respect?

Dr Cassar is a Nationalist member of Parliament.