March 17th, is St. Patrick’s Day, a day important to people of Irish descent1. Thousands of Irish immigrants2 came to the U.S. in the 19th and early 20th centuries when there was widespread famine3 and starvation4 in their native land of Ireland. Many of them settled in New York, Boston and other large East coast cities but also a number of them came to the Midwest5 including Iowa.
Ireland is often referred to as the “Emerald Isle6” because of its rich, bright green pastures7 and grasslands, so the Irish identify with the color green. Therefore, one will see many people, even non-Irish, wearing green clothing in recognition8 of the day. The weather on St. Patrick’s Day was bad a year ago and it was too rainy for a parade. Chicago also had a beautiful day too, so people could watch a parade there, and also walk along the Chicago Canal9 and look at the water which was a bright green color from green dye10 which had been added for the day. People might even stop in at a donut shop11 for a green frosted12 donut and a glass of green milk, both special for that day. This year the weather in Iowa was lovely, so there was a long and colorful parade in Iowa’s capital city of Des Moines. Kim and I went to Des Moines to leave some cast-off clothing at the Goodwill Center13 there. As we drove up the very busy 86th St. we heard some loud music coming from a large tent, and we saw many green-clad14 people eating, drinking and celebrating. They likely would remain there drinking green beer late into the evening. Instead of snacking15 there, we went on a bit to a Japanese restaurant where we had a delicious meal in quiet comfort. Instead of Irish drinks, we had Japanese drinks.
Don has been in China the past few days and missed St. Patrick’s Day, so he missed the traditional Irish meal of corned beef and cabbage16. I’ll fix this delicacy for him when he returns because he likes it very much.
Saint Patrick17 was an early Roman Catholic Church18 leader in Ireland. A legend19 associated with him is that he chased all of the snakes out of Ireland. That is the early Irish explanation of why there are no snakes now native to the country.
St. Patrick’s Day is not a legal holiday. In other words, banks, the post office etc. are all open and people are working there. However, the Irish like to have a parade20 on that day in which they march21 through the city streets playing Irish music on traditional instruments. The biggest parade is always held in New York City, but many smaller cities have them too. Our capital city of Des Moines is scheduled to have a parade this noon, though it will probably be a wet one since it is raining. Not many people will want to stand outside to watch it. The city of Chicago, which has many Irish citizens, has a large parade too, but in addition, the city officials pour a harmless green dye into the canal that runs through the city, which turns the water green for the day. Some taverns22 also color the beer that they serve green that day.
There is a traditional meal that most people associate with St. Patrick’s Day. It is called “corned beef and cabbage.” Corned beef is a special cut of beef that is preserved and seasoned with a large amount of salt and pepper. Cabbage was easily grown in Ireland, as were potatoes, so these items are all cooked together. I fixed that meal Saturday night and invited this year’s Chinese teacher from Zhejiang University to eat it with us. She liked it very much and even took some leftover meat home with her.
Last night our long time potluck group23 got together at a friend’s house. The hostess always prepares the meat and sometimes an accompanying vegetable. Of course, she fixed corned beef, cabbage, and potatoes, so Don and I happily ate that meal again. I still have some meat and vegetables left so plan to make soup with them this evening. With our cold and rainy weather today, it’s a perfect day for hot soup. Thus we will complete our celebration of the day. Don has some Irish ancestry24 on his mother’s side of the family; I have none, but I enjoy our simple celebration of the day anyway.
1. Irish descent: an ancestral line which developed from the Irish (people of Ireland, a country of the British Isles) (爱尔兰血统、世系). The people of the ancestral line share certain characteristics, both physical and cultural.
2. immigrants: people who have moved from one country to another, with the purpose of living there indefinitely and making it their home (移民). In this case, the people from Ireland planned to make the United States their home.
3. famine: an extreme lack of food on a widespread basis, resulting in death by starvation for a large number of the inhabitants living in the area (饥荒).
4. starvation: death due to lack of food (饥饿，饿死).
5. the Midwest：中西部
6. “Emerald Isle”: a name often casually given to Ireland because of the green beauty of its vegetation, looking not unlike the green beauty of the gem known as an emerald (绿宝石岛，爱尔兰的别称).
7. pastures: grasslands used for the grazing (i.e. feeding) of animals such as cattle (牧场).
8. recognition: an acknowledgement calling attention to the importance of a person or thing, in
this case, the importance of the color green for the Irish (认可，指对绿色的重要性的认可).
9. Chicago Canal: a waterway connecting Lake Michigan and the Illinois River in the city of Chicago, Illinois (芝加哥运河).
10. green dye: a chemical mixture which causes water to turn to a green color (绿色染料).
11. donut shop: a small store which specialized in making and selling donuts (炸面圈店).
12. green frosted: covered with green covered sugary frosting (覆盖了绿色糖霜的).
13. Goodwill Center: a shop operated by a charitable organization making available used clothing items to customers (善意中心店，由慈善机构开设的商店，顾客在那里能得到旧衣物).
14. green-clad: wearing green clothing (穿绿衣服的).
15. snacking: eating small food items, but not as part of a main meal of the day (吃点心).
16. corned beef and cabbage: a meal consisting mainly of a specially seasoned beef and cabbage cooked, usually with potatoes, carrots and onions (专门调过味的牛肉与卷心菜，土豆，胡萝卜，洋葱等一起煮的一道菜).
17. Saint Patrick: an early Christian missionary who traveled to Ireland and converted many of its inhabitants to Christianity (一位早期的基督教传教士，曾经到过爱尔兰使很多当地居民皈依基督教).
18. Roman Catholic Church: a Christian church having a hierarchy of priests and bishops led by a special one known as the Pope (罗马天主教教会，上面有教皇领导，然后设有主教，牧师或神父). Special priests etc. are sometimes designated as “saints” because of their virtue. The special Catholic church service is known as a mass.
19. legend: a story coming down from the past, especially one regarded as historical although not verifiable (传说). There are many legends about Saint Patrick.
20. parade: a public procession, often associated with a holiday or other special event (庆祝游行).
21. march: to move along steadily with a rhythmic stride and in step with others (游行队伍行进).
22. taverns: pubs where alcohol can be bought and drunk, and where meals are often served (酒馆，酒吧)
23. potluck group: a group of individuals who get together for a meal, each individual or family bringing a special item of food to be shared by the whole group (自带饭菜聚餐的一群人).
24. Don has some Irish ancestry on his mother’s side of the family: Don’s ancestors, great grandparents on his mother’s side, immigrated to the United States from Ireland; thus he shares some of the genetic characteristics of the Irish (当的母亲这边的曾祖父母是从爱尔兰移民到美国的，因此他继承了一些爱尔兰人的特征).