Feb 1

St. Bridget's Day

St. Bridget is the female patron saint of Ireland. Her feast day, February l, was the first day of spring in rural Ireland because it marked the start of the agricultural season. Bridget loved the land and tended the crops and cattle.

Many old customs are associated with St. Bridget's feast day. For example, people would not perform any work on this day that involved turning or twisting, or that required the use of a wheel. It was also customary on the eve of the saint's day for the oldest daughter of the family to bring a bundle of rushes to the door. Playing the role of St. Bridget, she would distribute the rushes among the family members, who would make crosses from them.

The custom of having women propose marriage to men during Leap Year can also be traced to St. Bridget. She had complained to St. Patrick about the fact that men always took the initiative and persuaded him to grant women the right to do so during one year out of every four. Then Bridget proposed to Patrick, who turned her down.