Friday, 20th February 2009
Vegetarian Friday and the Feast of Fools
Half fainting I’d open a can of tuna, add two hard-boiled eggs, an assorted array of steamed vegetables and ‘foliage’ to a dinner plate and start munching away in hope of regaining consciousness. Yes, you guessed it …fasting was not my forte! I never fully understood the purpose of it till much later in my life.
As a chubby child, my tummy would grumble uncontrollably, as I waited impatiently for lunch or dinner. The Sacrifice was way too much for me to handle! I’d have rather done without watching my favourite TV Programme or not played a board game I had become addicted to, but I was taught, that the REAL sacrifice was when you gave up something you really couldn’t do without…..and for me food, was one of those things!
I couldn’t stand the sight of fish, neither was it very filling (I’ve always been a big eater!!) so that was a sacrifice which left me in a foul mood every Wednesday and Friday, but I was soon put into my place by mum who reminded me this was a little suffering compared to the ordeal people in the third World countries and those in war went through.
I was also told that my fasting would help these people. If I really believed that that would help those less fortunate than I, was another story! At catacism classes we were told that Lent symbolized the 40 days Jesus spent in the desert, fasting and praying and being tested by the Devil. Our sacrifices were meant to remind us about this and prepare us for the biggest feast in our liturgical year.
THAT made quite a lot of sense I thought, it was written in the Bible after all! However during the Middle Ages the Philosopher Thomas Aquinas went further on to saying that meat, eggs and dairy products were more pleasurable than fish and of greater nourishment to the human body. He continued to state, that as a consequence they were responsible for a surplus of seminal matter which when abundant became a great incentive to lust!
I’d never heard of that, neither was I totally convinced it was close to the truth, but I guess it was yet another reason to keep the devout as far away from the pits of hell as possible. No wonder so many looked forward to one of the most popular traditional feasts before Lent.
Carnival has been celebrated for centuries. A chance to revel in the joys of food and pleasure. A momentary time of madness just before a period of reflection, sacrifice and meditation. Here it is characterized by children roaming the streets in their colourful costumes, grand floats parading the majestic Valletta, the super sweet Prinjolata and an Exodus of locals crossing our sea to the sister island.
In previous years the Nadur Festival was considered a rare gem enjoyed by the villagers of locals who were fascinated by its mystery and the dark undertones, ritual-like re-enactments, morbid attire, satire and tradition. For many years, many of us wondered if the stories about bloody animal heads and dark imagery was true.
Curiosity got the best of us, and every year the numbers of Maltese who visit to witness this festival increased. Gozo has now become synonymous with Carnival and queues of cars right down to Cirkewwa are an obvious prediction this weekend! Now that’s a sacrifice I’m not willing to make, driving my car in 1st gear all the way to the ferries for hours on end…… I’ll stick to eating bland broiled fish!
P.S. Enjoy your carnival and please keep a slice of Prinjolata for me!
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