Green is the color of March. Everyone sees it on the trees, as the flowers emerge from the ground and when the Spartans take the court during March Madness. The greenest day of all, however, comes on March 17, St. Patrick’s Day. It is a day for South students to put on our shamrocks, tap their toes to an Irish jig and hope for a bit of the luck of the Irish to come their way.
Students celebrate this holiday from the top of the morning to the wee hours of the night, like Scout Webber ’25 who honors the day surrounded by family and excitement.
“My family turns it into more of a party than a brunch,” Webber said. “We always dye the bread green and one year my cousin even stole the dye and dyed his mom’s dog green.”
Recalling Irish celebrations from elementary school when one would color rainbows, search for gold coins and laugh at the shenanigans of the class leprechaun., for Addy O’Keefe ’24, who is part Irish, the St. Patrick’s Day fun extended beyond the school day and included magic and gifts when she was a child.
“Growing up, I truly believed that leprechauns were real,” O’Keefe said. “My brother and I would make leprechaun traps every St. Patrick’s Day and my parents would leave gifts from the leprechaun.”
While the childhood magic of St. Patrick’s Day has faded, the desire to celebrate endures. As the day draws near, it is not unusual to hear the unmistakable fiddle from an Irish band playing at a restaurant or to see traditional Irish food as the nightly special in a restaurant. For O’Keefe, traditional Irish food and music are important parts of her family’s traditions.
“My family celebrates by having semi-traditional Irish food for dinner,” O’Keefe said. “We normally have stew and potatoes. One year, we had a party to celebrate with all of our friends and we got someone to come and play the bagpipes. This is very traditional Irish music that a lot of people enjoy.”
Similar to O’Keefe, Maeve Hix ’24 said her family celebrates their culture through classic Irish food.
“To start off, I eat Lucky Charms for breakfast each year,” Hix said. “My family also eats a traditional Irish meal for dinner that includes corned beef, cabbage, potatoes, carrots, Irish soda bread and an Irish pub salad. My mom spends the day cooking and puts up four-leaf clovers and other decorations around the house.”
While food plays an important role in the annual celebration of Hix’s Irish heritage, the holiday extends beyond the pleasures of food and serves as a way to acknowledge her strong connection to her Irish roots.
“The holiday is special for our family because our ancestors were Irish,” Hix said. “Also, I like just spending time with my family and friends and celebrating our culture. I look forward to it every year.”
