THE DATE or THE ERITREAN THANKSGIVING
DAY
Asghedom, Tzeggay-Tefery, Quc Canada, 19 June 2005Asghedom
Tzeggay-Tefery, Québec- Canada, 19. June 2005
Every
day is seemingly like any other one. Generally speaking they
all have common properties, light time and dark one or simply
day and night time. If we want to understand better why some
dates do stand out more than others do, then we have to abandon
those commonalties. When we do, then we realise that there is
culture and history contained within any particular date. For
that reason we find out that every concerned society had attributed
more emphasis on particular dates. This is true in every calendar
of every society. As a consequence this is very true in our
dates too.
In
addition to the dates with traditional connotations there are,
in our new calendar, those that describe us better with unambiguous,
emotionally and rationally, collective uniting factors. The
dates are, 1st September, 24th May and 20th
June.
Long
before the 2001 incident that transformed New York into a battlefield,
like any other place that had been considered as a remote place
in the globe where blanket bombardment by civilised nations
have been daily event, 9/11 had been a very important and festive
date.
The
Eritrean Christian faith followers, for almost twenty centuries,
have been celebrating the New Year or Saint John Baptist on
the 11th September. Eritreans of other faith joined
and celebrated it and the Christians in turn joined in the celebrations
of other faiths. Eritreans always understood that God/Allah
had created the Earth and anything that dwells in it before
men invented religions for the nourishment of their souls. All
faiths managed successfully to cohabit for centuries, notwithstanding
fabrications to the contrary.
Starting
1961, the month of September became more important than it had
previously been. It marked the beginning of the first gunshot
fired in defiance of and determination to get rid of oppressors
regardless of their firepower, their numbers and their myths
or their ability to fabricate them. Our Fronts defied, evolved
and sculptured a self-explanatory motto the read Our struggle
is long, our victory is certain. Contrary to Mr Jimmy Carter´s
pretentious affirmations and assumptions, for roles that he
hadn`t played, this motto had been and still is the base that
expressed the Eritrean self-reliance and victory attained. For
that reason 1st September is a date that has a particular
place in our collective calendar and a particular value in the
Eritrean Hearts.
May
24th, is the date that marks the end of what had
been underlined on 1st September 1961. Starting 1991,
May 24th is the date of Independence. It is the date
that summed up our motto. We have just celebrated, in every
corner of the globe, our 14th anniversary.
June
20th,
is the Eritrean Thanks Giving day. It is the
date when we make a halt to think about the journey that started
on 1st September and ended on the 24th
May and the hefty price paid through the journey. For that reason,
it is the date dedicated to the commemoration of all those who
became physically disabled or died while liberating the nation
in-order to hand us over our cherished independence.
June
20th, is the date that
humbles every Eritrean.
June 20th, is the date that
defines the Nation?s character. It is the date that summed up
the self-reliance and resilience of its people. A notion that
the soaked wisdom of the Jimmy Carters of this planet and their
likes seem not to comprehend!
June 20th, is the date that
amplifies the unwavering and profoundly rooted genuine uniting
factor of the Eritrean people.
June 20th, is the date. It is OUR
MARTYRES` DAY!
Zele'alemawi z'khri
n'swoo'atna! Everlasting memories of our Martyrs!
Selam
n`hzbi Ertra! Peace for Eritreans!
Asghedom Tzeggay-Tefery,
who is solely responsible for the contents of this page, contributes
the above article. For any comments, the writer can be contacted
by e-mail: asghedomzt@hotmail.com