3.1.22 – March Recognitions

There is a popular saying about March: it is the month in which winter is holding back, and spring pulls forward. For Flight Attendants, we are affected by the weather more than many professions. Here is to spring arriving and milder weather following!

March, in Ukrainian, is березень/berezenʹ, which means birch tree. Our thoughts for peace and safety are with the people of Ukraine.

March is National Women’s History Month, honoring women, and their role in our history, as well as their significant contributions to our work, travels, culture, society, and livelihoods.

March is also Irish American Heritage Month, celebrating the contributions of Irish immigrants and their descendants living in the United States. The Irish have been present in the United States for hundreds of years, bringing customs, traditions, culture, and music. Today, 40 million Americans claim some Irish ancestry.

March 1 is Maha Shivaratri, a Hindu festival also known as Shiva Ratri is a remembrance of overcoming darkness in life. The festival is celebrated with yoga, vigil, fasting, and lingam puja, a ritual for honoring the light of consciousness held on the 13th night or 14th day of the waning moon in the Hindu calendar.

March 1 is Shrove Tuesday and called Mardi Gras, Carnival Day, and Fat Tuesday. For Christians, it is a day to feast before Lent. March 2nd is the first day of Lent, also known as Ash Wednesday. Lent goes until April 16th, and during this time, there is a commitment to prayer, denying yourself pleasures, repentance of sins, giving to the poor, simple living, and self-denial in preparation for Easter.

March 2nd until March 20th is the Baha’i faith Nineteen Day Fast to bring a person closer to God and reinvigorate the soul by fasting from sunrise until sunset each day. Healthy Baha’is between 15 and 70 years of age do not eat or drink from sunrise to sunset and spend time on prayer and meditation.

March 8th is International Women’s Day, celebrating achievements socially, culturally, politically, and economically. This call to action brings attention to women’s reproductive rights, gender equality, and the abuse of women throughout the world.

March 13th, we change our clocks one hour ahead and “Spring Forward.” Daylight Saving Time started to save energy because the time change allows us to be up and use more natural daylight.

On sundown on March 16th until sunrise on 18th, is Purim, or Feast of Lots, a Jewish Feast celebrating the survival of the Jews from their Persian rulers in the 5th century BCE. It is celebrated on the 14th of Adar in late winter/early spring.

March 17th is St. Patrick’s Day and commemorates the death of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. It is also a day to celebrate the history and culture, through an appreciation of all things Irish.

March 19th is Hola Mohalla, a Sikh annual martial arts parade lasting three days, coinciding with Holi, the Hindu festival of colors. Celebrations of Holla Mohalla listening to kirtan, music, poetry, and a procession on the last day to Anandpur.

March 20th is Vernal Equinox, or Spring Equinox, the first day of spring. The sun shines equally on both hemispheres when it is spring in the Northern Hemisphere and, at the same time, fall in the Southern Hemisphere. On this day, our hour of light starts to become longer, and the nighttime becomes shorter.

March 21th is Nowruz, an Iranian and Zoroastrian festival celebrating the first day of Spring in the Northern Hemisphere, the day the sun crosses the celestial equator. It is the Iranian New Year and is also celebrated as New Year’s Day in Baha’i tradition, called Naw-Ruz.

March 21th is International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (IDERD), a proclamation to end racism throughout the world. In South Africa, it is Human Rights Day, acknowledging the day people died to fight for democracy and equal human rights for all in South Africa during apartheid.

March 29th is National Vietnam War Veterans Day, observing veterans who served in the US military during the Vietnam War, which started in 1954 and ended in 1973. About 2.7 million served in the armed forces of South Vietnam, the United States armed forces, and countries allied to them.

March 31st is César Chavez Day, promoting service to our communities by honoring Chavez’s work in social justice as a labor leader, fighting for fair wages and working conditions for farmworkers. He, along with Dolores Huerta, co-founded the National Farm Workers Association. It is now called the United Farm Workers Union (UFW). More information on César Chavez and Dolores Huerta may be found here.

We wish you a healthy and safe month and look forward to all the good things this month will bring.

In Solidarity,