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Mike Polk Jr. on Cleveland's 2nd pandemic St. Patrick's Day

'For those keeping count, we'll only have missed one July 4th, one Christmas and one Thanksgiving but two St. Patrick’s Days! "Luck of the Irish," my shillelagh.'

CLEVELAND — For the second year in a row, the beloved Cleveland St. Patrick’s Day Parade has been canceled due to this wet blanket of a pandemic.

It was the right call, of course, but that doesn't make it any less of a bummer, because there should be several majestic horses trotting past me right now and it should be SO LOUD. 

I will note that we Irish did get particularly hosed in regards to the pandemic holiday calendar, because we’re missing two of these. Sure, we didn't get to have a real Fourth of July last year, but word is we'll likely be able celebrate properly this summer. So for those keeping count, we'll only have missed one Fourth of July, one Christmas and one Thanksgiving, but two St. Patrick’s Days!" Luck of the Irish," my shillelagh.

But don't stress, everyone, because you know what holiday is totally safe from being canceled since it’s not until fall? Sweetest Day, aka "Our Regional Dollar Bin Valentine's Day." So congrats, fellas. That contrived obligation should be good to go and awaits you in the autumn. 

The Cleveland St. Patrick’s Day Parade goes way back. In fact, the first one was organized in 1842  and it was sponsored by the Catholic Temperance Society. That’s right, Cleveland’s first St. Pat's Parade was put on by Teetotalers. If they could only see us now. 

It's probably for the best that they can not see us now, but I think they'd like MOST of what we've done with it. After all, what started back in 1842 as a small procession directly following morning mass at St. Mary's in The Flats went on to become a vibrant celebration that annually averages about 10,000 participants and more than 400,000 attendees. And it has endured.

I found some amazing parade footage on YouTube from the early 1950s that was shot by the late, great Patrick McCafferty of North Olmsted and was recently uploaded by his grandson, Owen.

Isn't it remarkable? And keep your eyes peeled, because if you're from the area and you have an Aunt Bridgette or an Aunt Colleen, there's a fairly good chance she might make a cameo from the past here pretty soon.

We've had to make a lot of adjustments to our lives over the past year to keep ourselves and each other safe, like mask-wearing, social distancing, etc. That hasn’t been pleasant, although some of us have reacted more dramatically than others.

But the adjustment that has seemed to bother everybody the most is the interruption of our family gatherings and our traditions. Traditions are customs and rituals transferred from generation to generation that serve to ground us and prevent us from drifting apart from one another. The most enduring traditions aren't totally static; they're adaptable and able to adjust to the societal changes that inevitably occur over time.

Yet even though those traditions might look quite different from when they began, they're still rooted in something that connects us to each other and to our past. That's why of all the hardships we've had to endure during this past year, what has seemed to trouble us the most is being told we can't spend Christmas with our families or attend Opening Day at the ballpark, or that we have to miss the St. Patrick's Day parade for the SECOND year in a row, yet somehow we’re only going to miss ONE STUPID Arbor Day and that is a holiday FOR TREES.

Sorry. I’m good.

Okay, silver lining time: I think having to take this mandatory time off from our traditions is going to serve to remind us to value them properly. Let's face it, we've all phoned a New Years here and there, and I know I've gone on autopilot through most Easters. But think about how hard our Holidays are going to rock once we're out of this, now that we know what it's like to be deprived of them.

So here's to the fireworks looking that much brighter this July and the bagpipes sounding that much louder next March. Hang in there, folks. Happy St. Patrick’s Day, and sláinte.

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