Our Village Feast
August 2002. Eve of Savior. It was the day when the
whole village including me were waiting for the religious
festival which takes place on this day. The next day the church
of the village celebrated and, as usual, the day before of Saint
fair would take place, everyone helped in the preparations.
Early on the afternoon of that day, I began to prepare myself
for the procession of the icon in the streets of the village.
Afterwards I would go to the cultural association in order to
help with the roasting of the meat in order to prepare
sandwiches to sell. This happened every year and we helped as we
could. My sister would dance traditional dances, my father
would carry the icon in procession and my mother would serve the
visitors.
The hour when our mother shouted for us to prepare
ourselves for the church came and while the heat outside was
unbearable, suddenly the sky darkened and the sun disappeared.
In a few minutes it starting raining hail like rocks which fell
from the sky. All of us terrified ran to the windows and watched
the rain which was falling threateningly. This kept only half an
hour but it was enough. As soon as the rain stopped we ran
frightened to the village which so many days had been preparing
for the village feast. It had been destroyed! Nothing was there
to remind us of the place that we had set up!!
Our sorrow and our disappointment interrupted the
bell of our church that called us. We were all gathered at the
church where with the light of candles, the lights had been cut
by the storm, watched sadly the showbread. We however decided
that the rain will not cancel a custom of years. Thus the
procession of the icon became only with habitants of the village
under the slowly rain, in the mud and in the dark. We walked the
streets of the village with the candles in our hands. We were
forced, of course to cancel the festival. But sortly before left
we promised all together the following year we would have a
better procession.
Constantinos
Gotsis
2nd High School of Komotini,
Greece
noni_peers