OUT WITH THE OLD, IN WITH THE NEW

By Larry & Arlene on Jan 13, 2024 in Blog | 14 comments

  OUT WITH THE OLD, IN WITH THE NEW The ice in the holiday skating rink that has been installed in Ascoli’s Piazza Arrengo is slowly starting to melt. The weather has turned colder so it will take longer for the ice to change from solid, back to liquid. The amplified sound of American Christmas Carols, that suggested some sense of rhythm to the skaters, is now gone replaced by the shouts of workmen undoing Christmas. The wooden sales stalls in the imaginative guise of Christmas Market chalets that stood just beyond the rink, are now stacked in a disassembled pile awaiting the forklift to load them onto trucks until next Christmas preparation. Although an increasingly secular society, Italy carries the distinct imprint of the liturgy of the Roman Catholic Church on its calendar. Dig a little too deep and you might find less resurgence of religious fervor but more of a reluctance to give up State approved days off from work. According to church tradition, the liturgical preparation for the Christmas miraculous birth does not officially begin until the feast day of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin on 8 December. However, in keeping with the increasingly apparent secular overtones of this special season, as in other places where the observance of consumerism occurs, it seems each year, Christmas displays start showing up earlier. However, to our great relief, Christmas Creep isn’t as apparent here as it is in the U.S. where encroachment on Labor Day in September may be already happening. Each year, the festive decorations in the major squares and principal byways in Ascoli seem to go up a little earlier as well. To boost communal morale, the local authorities are reported to have spent a not insignificant amount of funds on new decorations this year, to good effect.         And then, Christmas becomes Christmas Past with the Feast of Epiphany on 6 January recalling the tradition of the Wise Men bearing gifts. It seems from the day of Christmas to Epiphany forms the traditional Twelve Days of Christmas. There is also a nod here to some pagan roots with the arrival of the Good Witch, the Befana at Epiphany bringing gifts...