Ivanitsa Nesheva
Member of the Parent Organization
After several years of discontinuity, the Bulgarian school in Cape Cod has restored a wonderful custom - creating our own survaknitzi! The students were excited to learn about this old Bulgarian winter tradition and participated in decorating the survaknitzi.
We all reviewed the symbolic meaning of each part of the survaknitza:
The dogwood branch is a symbol of longevity, health and wisdom.
The white wool symbolizes the feminine beginning and serves to drive away diseases and evil forces.
The red woolen thread serves to protect against diseases and lessons.
Coins are a symbol of health and wealth.
Popcorn and dried fruit symbolize abundance and fertility in the fields and gardens.
The survaknitzi are used on the first day of the year, St. Basil's Day. Tradition dictates that on this day, the taping with a survaknitza on your shoulder will protect from misfortunes and bring health and longevity, as well as luck throughout the year.
Parents, grandparents, teachers and helpers actively participated and helped in this wonderful workshop on Saturday and with great enthusiasm and smiles reminisced memories of their childhood years back in Bulgaria.
Preparing for the workshop was long and intense, and everyone pitched in to provide the necessary materials - twigs, yarn, popcorn, dried fruit, coins, cranberries, and pretzels. Many families were involved in the organization and this brought us closer and united us in the days leading up to Christmas. There was plenty of popcorn, fruit and crackers to snack on, as well as hot coffee for the parents.
With joint efforts, we managed to create twenty survaknitzi that will be sold during our Christmas celebration.
In addition to the survaknitzi, many of the students also worked on Christmas cards, Christmas garlands and we even found time to rehearse for the Christmas concert.
Finally, we treated ourselves to delicious sweets and a cake as we also celebrated the birthday of one of our students. The mood was extremely cheerful, everyone was satisfied and happy and the children enriched their knowledge of this old Bulgarian custom.
Without the participation of parents and the community, this pre-Christmas workshop would not have been possible. We hope to continue with the same enthusiasm in the future! To create and maintain the school and the many friendships of our children that will one day continue the Bulgarian community in Cape Cod.
