HAPPY DAY OF RECONCILIATION AND ACCORD!!

Today, November 4, is our first experience of a Russian holiday. I would have to say that in my conversations with most of my Russian friends, this day is comparable to a mix between Columbus Day and Arbor Day in their minds. The reason is as follows: this is the first year when this holiday is being held today rather than on November 7, as it had been since the fall of Communism here in Russia. Well, November 7 was a very important day, Revolution Day, in the Communist calendar. Hence you can see where the name comes from. In a way, the government was trying to replace the Communist holiday in name but not lose the day of celebration.

But, this year they changed it to November 4, which prior to the 1917 Revolution was a Russian holiday celebrating the 1613 defeat of the invading Polish army by a popular army (which was supported by the Orthodox Church, which feared “contamination” by the Catholic Poles) led by Kuzma Minin and Dmitry Pozharsky. Thus, the government hoped two things by changing the date: first, to connect with some old Russian history and thus provide some historical significance to this holiday. Second, since November 7 is still vividly remembered for its Communist connection (in fact, every year, a small, but hard-core group of Communist sympathizers still hold parades and rallies around Russia in celebration of the Communist Revolution), the hope is that removing it from that date will eventually establish its significance on its own merit.
Well, the day has been mixed in reception: some stores and shops have closed (all banks and government buildings are closed), some people have the day off, while other are not as lucky. I, for one, still had my Russian lessons, and my teacher didn’t seem at all disappointed that she had to work today—I think that in this financial reality, finances trump holidays. I don’t think that I should be expecting fireworks or a parade downtown or anything today.