Celebrations and Holidays

Celebrations and HolidaysStatutory holidays are days on which many people do not have to work hut they are nonetheless paid for that day because the government has declared the days as legal holidays. These holidays differ from province to province. Most offices and places of business close down on these days, although some stores remain open for shopping. The main holidays in Canada are as follows:New Years Day January 1stGood Friday the Friday immediately before EasterEaster Sunday/ Monday Easter Sunday and the first Monday after itVictoria Daythe third Monday in MayCanada Day July 1stLabour Day the first Monday in SeptemberThanksgiving Day the second Monday in OctoberRemembrance Day November 11 Christmas Day December 25Christmas, Easter, and Thanksgiving are the major holidays. They are traditionally days when family members gather to eat, visit, and relax together. They are also days of religious celebration for active members of the Christian faiths. On Christmas Eve (the night before Christmas), many people go to church and then return home to have a feast and open gifts. Others wait until Christmas morning when they gather around the Christmas tree, empty their stockings, and then open their gifts. Then, in late afternoon, the family gathers for a turkey dinner with the traditional stuffing, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes and gravy, brussel sprouts and/or sweet potatoes, and plum pudding for dessert. Families have their own special menus on these days, but these are menu items which are very common on Christmas for many families. Ukrainian families will add cabbage rolls and perogies to that menu for example, and other ethnic groups will have their own special items. On Boxing Day, the day after Christmas, many people rush to the stores to get the best bargains of the year. Canadian Christmas celebrationsEaster too is both a religious celebration for Christians and a secular celebration for everyone. Children love Easter for the treats they get. Small children believe that, just as Santa Claus comes to leave them gifts at Christmas, the Easter Bunny comes to leave them their basket of chocolate eggs at Easter. The traditional meal for Easter Sunday is roast ham with yams. Easter Sunday is a special day for Christians who are celebrating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. Easter, as we experience it in Canada, is actually a mixing of the Christian festival with old pagan rituals which celebrated the spring solstice. In pagan rituals, eggs are the symbol of life and rebirth.The other traditional meal for many families is Thanksgiving when, once again, they enjoy a large turkey together. The meal is topped off with pumpkin pie and whipping cream. Delicious! Thanksgiving began with the early pilgrim settlers in the United States. They wanted to give thanks to God for having provided good harvests in the hard new land. The American holiday falls in November, while the Canadian celebration is in October because the Canadian winter starts earlier.Many provinces have additional statutory holidays. Boxing Day (the day after Christmas), for example, is usually a day off. In Quebec, St. Jean Baptiste Day is a provincial holiday. In Alberta, the second Monday in February is an optional holiday called Family Day. Many provinces have a Civic holiday the first Monday in August.There are also many other days of celebration for particular ethnic groups and religions in Canada. The Jewish religion, for example, celebrates Purim in March, Rosh Hashanah in September, Yom Kippur in October, and Hanukkah in December. Muslims, too, have special feast days, as do the Orthodox Christians who celebrate Christmas later than the other Christian churches. The Chinese New Year in February is well-known and is enjoyed throughout the Chinese community. Those who celebrate these holidays often take time off work on these special days.Children with jack olanterns at HalloweenOther celebrations are an excuse for a party, but not for a day off. On Valentines Day, lovers and children send heart-shaped cards to those they love. Husbands and wives, boyfriends and girlfriends, and others also exchange flowers and chocolates. The flower shops and candy shops do a big business on Valentines Day each year.On Halloween, children dress up in costumes and knock on doors shouting “Halloween Apples” or “Trick or Treat.” The homeowner then puts a treat of some kind in their bags. Parents are cautioned to examine their childrens treats carefully, however, because a few people use Halloween as an opportunity to hurt small children. At school or at home, children carve pumpkins in