Hello March!

March is here! The beginning of Spring! It’s also that time of year that we start thinking about Summer, so we get more anxious to start a diet or start going to the gym more often. It’s that time of the year that we make all those new resolutions, following the new year’s resolutions. I know I do… and I am not ashamed to admit it!

As nature starts to bloom, we feel that same need. We want to detox, get fit, start new routines, take better care of ourselves. Nothing wrong with that, as long as we take some action. Wishful thinking will not get us anywhere. So, ladies, time to act!

Also, March is a perfect time to take better care of our home. I am sure you have heard of Spring cleaning. As the weather gets warmer and the sun begins to shine brighter, we start feeling happier and more energized. It’s the perfect time to deep clean our home and to make small or even big changes, so that our home matches our Spring mood!

So, we have a lot to do this month. I will try to provide useful tips, smart choices and any piece of advice that I deem it to be useful in my posts. Always expecting your feedback and always very interested in what you have to share.

Today, on the very first day of March, I want to start with something different. I want to share with you one very old Greek tradition. Every year, on the last day of February, mothers in Greece make a special bracelet for their children. They take a red and a white thread and they twist them together or they braid them, forming a red and white bracelet. On the 1st of March, children wear this bracelet, because it is believed to protect their faces from sunburn! This bracelet is called “March” or “Martichi” or “Marta”. They wear it until the end of March. On the last day of March, they hang it on a rosebush, so that some swallow can take it to its nest. In some areas, they take it off as soon as they see the first swallow of Spring and they leave it on a bush or a tree, so that the swallow can take it.

This tradition has its roots in ancient Greece and it was preserved overtime in other countries as well, where ancient Greeks were living at the time. You will find the same tradition today in Bulgaria, in Albania, in Romania and other countries of the Balkans.

Do you have any special traditions about March in your region? I would be very happy to learn about them! Old traditions are always a part of us, a part of our memories.

Happy March!

6 thoughts on “Hello March!”

  1. I also feel that the 1st of March has a special meaning, a new start, even if it’s not the start of the calendar year. I can’t believe that Christmas just passed and now we have to prepare for Easter. I am Romanian and we also celebrate the beginning of March by giving each other charms that have those threads on them 🙂 I have been looking like crazy through my house for one but couldn’t find 🙁

    1. Time seems to fly by! But Spring always brings hope. I love celebrating Easter more than Christmas. And I love Summer, don’t you? It’s nice to hear that you also like old traditions. I beleive that they are important and I am happy that you still keep them in Romania.

  2. I love the idea of the bracelet for children. 🙂 I also need to begin my Spring cleaning and cannot wait till Summer is finally here!

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