Irish For A Day

The Feast of St. Patrick is a cultural

and religious celebration held on

March 17, the traditional death date of St. Patrick,

Patron Saint of Ireland

Even though St. Patrick's Day is celebrated on March 17, celebrations were held on March 16 to take advantage of the weekend. People enjoy the day by wearing  green and eating corned beef and cabbage. One year we ate the Irish meal at a Mexican Restaurant because on St. Patrick's Day the meal is prepared in most restaurants! Today a large parade took place in downtown Denver while in Arvada a couple of streets were blocked off for entertainment, food, and drinks for the celebration in green!

Walking through the throngs of people I noticed that the majority were young people and most did not look old enough to be drinking. Of course, at my age, anyone under 50 looks young to me! The music, on a large stage was loud. People were dancing (jumping up and down) to the music while holding drinks in their hand. I wondered what condition the drinkers would be by the time the celebration ended at 6 p.m.

There were many dogs on leads and one dog stole a few hot dogs because he was chomping away as people made their way around him. Other dogs, very well behaved, just walked beside their owners. One cute dog was in a back pack. Maneuvering through the crowd, body to body, was difficult but exciting to see such a crowd.

At one end, there was an area for Celtic dancers and bag pipers. People gathered around the entertainers and some of the dancers looked around six or seven years old. I couldn't help thinking how wonderful that the tradition of that special dancing is passed on from generation to generation.

When I spotted the fellow all decked out in green and wearing golden boots, I knew I had to have my picture taken with him. He was ready to celebrate and had dressed for the occasion.

Even though it was a cool day and the wind made it feel colder, everyone seemed to be having a good time. I am sure that Arvada's tradition of celebrating the "wearing of the green"  helps the businesses in Old Town Arvada.

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY TO ALL

"St. Patrick's Day is an 

enchanted time--a day 

to begin transforming

winter's dreams into

summer's magic."

Adrienne Cook