"Say, I couldn't help but notice those blue yarn bracelets
you've been wearing the past few weeks, what's the occasion?"
"Well So n' So, glad you asked. I'm wearing these in memory of the
snakes that were driven out of Ireland by St. Patrick, as St. Patrick's
Day is coming up..."
"Ah, I see. Got a thing for reptiles, eh?"
"No, by 'driven' I mean 'converted' and by 'snakes', I mean 'Pagans' or in Ireland's case 'Druids'".
From
here, So n' So sips coffee or tea or beer and listens intently as I go on to
explain how the whole "snakes" story of St. Patrick is really a
not-so-subtle metaphor for the Christianization/colonization of
Ireland, which was accomplished more by aggressive proselytizing (i.e.
threat of execution) than gentle persuasive arguments ("Would you like to join us this Sunday? No? Okay, just go about your business, we promise never to ask again").
So n' So
raises an eyebrow as I tell him/her stories of the Druids who refused to
convert and were tossed off cliffs by the Bishop Patritius with his own
bare hands (okay, I don't know if that last part is true, but at a
party with other Pagans this past Saturday, after a few drinks, we all
agreed...). I go on to explain how tattooed blue snakes on the wrists
signifies initiates of Druidism and that is why I'm wearing the blue
knitted yarn throughout the month.
So n' So says, "Whoah.
That's pretty amazing," and goes about the rest of the day pondering the
significance of the aforementioned holiday within the modern context of
binge drinking and plastic green chatskis made in China.
Unfortunately,
none of this has happened. For over a week I've been wearing knitted
blue yarn bracelets around each wrist and haven't gotten one question
yet. Not one. Maybe it's because I'm more or less a flaming hippie or
live in a quasi hippie-ish town where outlandish (i.e. bad) fashion
statements are the norm. But come on now, hey everyone! Look over here!
Blue bracelets! There's a spiritual and political reason I'm wearing
these! It's not another "hand-crafted" gift from the little one...
