Why I Have a Love/Hate Relationship with St. Patrick's Day

Today is March 17th, which, as you probably know, means its St. Patrick's Day. The day for wearing green, drinking beer, and looking for four-leaved clovers and pots of gold at the end of rainbows. The day when everyone is Irish. Fun, right?

Well, personally, it gets on my nerves.

Oh, don't get me wrong. I have nothing at all against Ireland or the Irish. In fact, my own family history is a mix of Scottish and Irish, and I would love to visit Ireland. Celebrating Ireland is definitely my favorite part of St. Patrick's Day.

Unfortunately, society and I have differing ideas on what celebrating Ireland should be. At least in America, St. Patrick's Day has become so over-commercialized and basically dumbed-down that it's lost its meaning. It's just an excuse for people to wear "Kiss Me, I'm Irish" t-shirts, drink lots of Irish beer, eat corned beef hash, and put on ridiculously fake Irish accents.

To me, it almost feels like it's become a mockery of Irish culture. For example, corned beef hash isn't even really Irish. It was more commonly a dish prepared among immigrants in America using beef and salt. It's like eating fortune cookies to celebrate Chinese New Year.

In my opinion, St. Patrick's day should really be about learning about Irish culture without mocking it. Ireland has a deep and fascinating history, full of fairy tales and war and music and rebellion and folklore.

So if you want my suggestions on how to celebrate today, here's what I have to say. Pick up a book of Celtic fairy tales or poetry. Listen to some Celtic folk music. Read some fun facts about Ireland. You don't have to spend ages studying everything about Ireland, but take a moment to appreciate the beautiful country we call the Emerald Isle.