This week, on January 6th, we have a public holiday. Here they’re called “red days.” Maybe because they’re written in red in diaries and calendars but everyone knows there’s no work, or that if you do work you get extra pay. On January 6th people don’t work because it’s ‘trettondagen’ or as some more Christian-minded /religious people in the know, Epiphany.
Growing up in Australia, I’ve become used to public holidays for things like horse races, the eve before the AFL Grand Final, and the Queen’s birthday (yes, we really do have a public holiday for Queen Elizabeth’s birthday, and not even on her actual birthday!) When I heard about ‘trettondagen’ I asked my nearest and dearest what it was and what it meant. The blank stare I got in return turned me to Wikipedia.
As with most of the ‘red days’ here, they have their grounding in Christianity. There are no red days for horse races. Granted, I am used to Christian celebrations such as Christmas and Easter, but other than that the rest are pretty secular - nothing like celebrating large scale gambling or a Head of State on the other side of the globe! And then I moved here.
Trettondagen, or Epiphany, is a “feast day that celebrates the revelation of God incarnates as Jesus Christ.” It’s also called Three Kings Day, celebrating the three dudes who rocked up with presents for Jesus. In my heathen Australian-ness, I’d never heard of this celebration. Neither had I heard of Kristi himmelfärdsdag (Ascension Day), another ‘red day’ up here in the Nordic region. This time it’s celebrating 40 days after Jesus ascended to wherever he went. Apparently, according to the Nordiskamuseet, winter clothes could be packed away and women could bare their arms. Wow! Racey.
What many of these Christian celebrations do is mark different times of the year. In times past, having significant feast days gave everyone something to look forward to. Of course, the rules and regulations that come with it are a good way of controlling a population too. Christianity has been really good at taking over pre-Christian traditions, giving them a lovely hint of all things Biblical, so everyone just carries on with Jesus and God on their minds. Pre-Christian religions celebrated solstices, sun days (turned into Sunday!), sang to ward of evil (carols), and decorated pine and fir trees to celebrate life (hello, modern-day Christmas trees!)
So why celebrate these days? We no longer have communal feasts (although we ate a lot), and most people I know here rarely go to church. In fact, most people don’t even seem to think about why they’re having a day off work. Until I ask them and they get all uncomfortable. Having seen a recent change in the school curriculum here in Religious Instruction, and witnessing the response by people in the newspaper, the reason is clearly Christian Tradition - and the fear of losing it. Despite having Viking pre-Christian roots, this whole region is Lutheran and those traditions accompanying it are really important for some people who live here. They’re fearful of losing those traditions, even though it may exclude many people who now live here, or not be of relevance to much of the population.
I don’t think there are many countries that do a regular stocktake of public holidays, questioning why they might exist and what relevance they still hold. Tradition is like that. With a capital ‘T’ it stands tall and seems to be the stock answer to ‘why?’ despite perhaps not serving the community as well as it should. Should Australia have public holidays for horse races where gambling, alcohol, poor behaviour, and death of horses is what really happens on the day? Probably not. Celebrating the birthday of the longest-reigning queen seems a better idea - but that can also be questioned in light of the horrific impact of colonisation on the Indigenous population. With so many Australians having little or no connection to the UK, perhaps it is time to reflect and change. And become a republic before we’re celebrating the King’s birthday…
Will things change here? Not anytime soon, and certainly not in my lifetime. Of the list of the eleven public holidays, only 3 are non-religious. Church taxes are collected by the tax department here - you have to cross the box on an official form to opt-out of paying Church tax. This is not something that happens in Australia (although it does in Germany, so probably many other countries). My guess is that the congregations here do serve the community. Being confirmed at the age of 13 is very popular, so they need lessons and instructions before that happens. There are also camps during summer. They certainly do a good job of looking after the amazing old churches here on Åland, many of them dating from the 1100s.
So in my lifetime, I guess I’ll just have to do what everyone else seems to do: enjoy a mid-week day off! Perhaps I’ll ‘dance away’ or ‘throw out’ Christmas - pack up my decorations for another year whilst doing a little jig. I didn’t have a Chirstmas tree so I can’t ‘throw’ that out. (Many people here wait for ‘Knutdagen’ on January 13, twenty days after Christmas, named so after a murdered Danish prince-turned-saint. The day has been moved around a bit. There’s conflicting sources. Tradition😉 )
Enjoy all the down-time-days you can, lovely readers. Think about the reasons why there’s a public holiday - and perhaps think up a few new ones!
Lisa x
Other Things
I just finished reading the lovely, quirky book, Convenience Store Woman by Suyaka Murata. It’s a short read, highly enjoyable, giving an interesting insight into what it means to be an outsider in Japanese culture. It’s the first of her books to be translated to English. I smiled often reading it.
I’m making Coconut Milk Braised Black Pepper Chicken with Sweet Potato for dinner tonight. I haven’t got any Thai basil (note-to-self: start growing my own) so normal basil will have to suffice. My mouth is watering…
I’m currently watching a police series called The Gulf from New Zealand - it’s great. Makes me want to go there, and it’s similar enough to Australia that it makes me a bit homesick. Worth checking out.
One of the best movies I’ve seen recently is Jane Campion’s new Netflix release, The Power of the Dog. What a fabulous film! It also led me to re-watch The Piano (it’s still fantastic), and take a peek at one of her first films, about New Zealand poet and writer, Janet Frame, called An Angel at My Table. All are available on Netflix here.
And as I’m onto all things New Zealand, check out Tiny Ruins, a band from Aotearoa whose music is ethereal and relaxing.