It’s getting cold, isn’t it? I’ve come to warm you up with my legend of the day, as I’m taking you to Brazil. I’d like to take this opportunity to remind you that my texts are inspired by the real legend, but that I’ve put a little (sometimes a lot!) of meat on my turkey leg. Otherwise, these legends would fit into three sentences!
Today’s tale is not about turkey, but about cacti. Happy reading, dear gardeners…
The Radish Farmer’s Son
He hated radishes.
Truly, deeply, irrevocably: Mateus hated radishes.
His father, Luiz, was a radish farmer. And every December, he left his home in Brazil to go to the Christmas market in Oaxaca, Mexico, where he sold his radishes. Why so far away? Because this Christmas market bought absolutely ALL their radishes.
His father had told him that people gathered every December 23 to sell their wares at Oaxaca’s big Christmas market. They used the radishes to engrave the price of their wares. It has to be said that a radish survives well, even if its skin is damaged, and that it attracts attention with its pretty red or pink hues. In short, not only was the taste of radishes intolerable for Mateus, but they were also depriving him of his father at Christmas!
Alone at Christmas…
Luiz left at the beginning of December with his radishes, and the young boy was left alone to look after the house until his father returned at the end of January. Oaxaca is a long way away! And Mateus had come to hate this time of year as much as the radishes…
Being alone at Christmas wasn’t much fun, even if it meant having money to eat for the rest of the year. The nice neighbor who looked after him during this time wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t like spending the holidays with his dad.
That year, Luiz hesitated to invite his son. Was he old enough? It was a long trip, and no matter how much he loved his son, he knew this excursion to Mexico wasn’t ideal for a child. It could be dangerous and terribly boring at times. After giving it a lot of thought, he didn’t invite his son, figuring that next year would be the year.
Preparing to leave with his radishes, he approached Mateus and handed him a small radish.
I know it’s hard for you, my boy, but I have a promise to make. If you can get to like radishes a little, next year, when you’re older, I’ll take you with me.
But Dad… I’ve always hated radishes!
I know, but you’re smart and you’ll probably find a way to enjoy that radish, even without eating it! Be creative!
To be creative? To learn to love radishes? What a strange idea! Dubious, Mateus picked up the radish and looked at it suspiciously before slipping it into his pocket. His father left and he was left alone.
During these weeks of solitude, he didn’t bother his neighbor too much with his presence and went for walks in the forest instead. The Amazon rainforest was, in his opinion, the most beautiful place on earth. It was dense and colorful, full of mysterious smells and sounds. Of course, there were predators too, so you had to be very careful!
Sometimes, the young boy would stop at the foot of a gigantic tree and take the radish out of his pocket. No matter how much he racked his brains, he couldn’t figure out how to learn to love radishes without eating them. Once, he made a cut in the pink skin of the vegetable and took a tiny piece of the root, which he tasted.
No Way: Radishes Weren’t for Him!
He looked at his brightly colored radish, a touch of white where he’d made the cut. The reason that made it a price marker of choice for the Christmas market. With these colors, it could be a lovely Christmas ornament, Mateus thought. An ornament like the villagers used to hang on trees! Satisfied with his “discovery”, he headed home.
In the days that followed, he would return to the forest and imagine the trees full of radishes. It would be original, and a great way to enjoy radishes, wouldn’t it? He found himself hoping for his father’s return to share his idea. But Christmas had to come first… and time was long for this lonely boy.
When’s Christmas coming?” Mateus asked loudly. I’d like a sign that it’s Christmas!
For the neighbor, it was a day like any other, and in fact, it was quite difficult to know which day exactly was the holiday. Mateus could only wait… Wait… Wait…
Christmas Day
On Christmas morning, he got up as usual, without realizing what day it was, and went into the forest. To his surprise, he found his favorite tree… different! Hundreds of pink flowers hung from the branches. Under the tree, the drooping stems bearing the large, colorful flowers seemed to envelop the boy in beauty and softness.
This was his sign! Someone had heard her prayer! These beautiful flowering branches were a sign that it was Christmas Day! Half his wait was over!
On closer inspection, he saw that these strange flowers were growing on cacti which, in turn, were growing in trees. He’d never noticed them before, hidden in the forest foliage, but now he could see them, these Christmas cacti.
More
Another thing struck him: the flowers were exactly the same color as his radish! Inspired by such beauty, he set about sculpting his radish into a pretty flower, like those on trees.
When his father returned in January, Mateus was eager to show him his little work of art. Luiz’s eyes filled with pride when he saw the sculpture, and he told his son he was ready to accompany him the following year.
Life is like a recipe, Mateus. You have everything at your fingertips, but what makes your recipe a success or a failure is what you decide to do with your ingredients.
The following year, Luiz took his son with him to the Christmas market, explaining the importance of radishes. Yes, people carved prices on radishes, but that wasn’t all! Like Mateus, they understood that the spark of magic and happiness shared at Christmas was the most important ingredient in the success of the event.
A simple “2 pesos” engraved on a radish is much less attractive than one accompanied by a little drawing of a Christmas tree! And why not use a few toothpicks to assemble several of these little vegetables? Oh, and let’s go wild and make a radish Christmas tree to catch the eye of customers!
One thing led to another, and works of art made from radishes were created. What began as a simple means of indicating the price of goods became a major annual competition held every December 23: la noche de los rábanos. The night of the radishes.
It was an opportunity to gather, celebrate and share joy and happiness from nothing! A few radishes and a lot of patience had the power to create happiness! And you didn’t even have to eat them! That year, Mateus understood what his dad had meant: the recipe for happiness is simple, you just have to open your eyes and give yourself the chance to see all the possibilities. Life is full of ingredients, and if you don’t like them, you just have to know how to prepare them differently.
Conclusion
I have several points to add to this story. First of all, I have nothing against radishes! On the contrary, I wanted to share with you the existence of this festival in Oaxaca, which has really existed since 1897, and where absolutely incredible works of art are created from radishes.
Secondly, the legend of the Christmas cactus is probably older than the existence of the market, I apologize to confused historians and those who would have liked it to be longer!
In the end, the Christmas cactus blooms when the days get shorter, but since it’s native to Brazil, i.e. South America, the days get longer in autumn… As a result, the Christmas cactus of legend is probably more the cactus we in the Northern Hemisphere know as the Easter cactus, which blooms when the days are longer…
I hope you’ve enjoyed these Christmas legends, and that they’ll fuel your discussions this holiday season. Many of you have told me that you’ve shared these stories with your loved ones. It means a lot to me to know that I’ve touched you too. That’s my secret ingredient for enhancing life: sharing, making people laugh and feeling emotions through my writing… And, I admit, through my cooking!
What’s your secret ingredient for happiness?
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