School diaries: Η Κυρά Σαρακοστή (Mrs Lent)

An old tradition of the Greek Easter is making Mrs Lent, a woman with no nose and mouth so she can't be tempted by all the tempting food we find around us during the Lent. Her hands are crossed because she prays all these seven weeks of Lent and she has seven feet that symbolize the seven weeks of the Great Lent that leads to Easter. Every week, one foot must be removed, usually this is done every Saturday, until we make it to Holy Saturday when the Resurrection of Jesus Christ is about to happen.

In some places they make it with salt dough, decorate it and hang it somewhere in the house, in other areas they used to make it like a ragdoll, with fabric and stuff it with feathers, at school we prefer to make it with paper or carton since these materials are easier to find and work with when you have to do with children.

Την Κυρά Σαρακοστή που είναι έθιμο παλιό
οι γιαγιάδες μας τη φτιάχναν με αλεύρι και νερό.
- Our grandmothers used to make Mrs Lent, an old custom, with flour and water

Για στολίδι της φορούσαν στο κεφάλι της σταυρό
και το στόμα της ξεχνούσαν γιατί νήστευε καιρό.
- They put a cross on her head as a decoration headpiece and forgot her mouth because she would fast for a long time.

Και μετρούσαν τις ημέρες με τα πόδια της τα εφτά
κόβαν ένα τη βδομάδα, μέχρι νά ‘ρθει η Πασχαλιά.
- And they used her seven feet to count the days, each week they'd cut off one until the big day of Easter came.

This week we made two variations of Mrs Lent with my second graders. I made a poster with her to hang on the classroom wall and handed out a 3d cut-out pattern to the children so that they could have their own Mrs Lent to take home.

This one had her hands full with food that we eat during this long period of fasting. Keeping traditions alive are really important and I hope I get to pass on as many as I can to my little students.

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^{Original content by @ruth-girl - All images taken by @ruth-girl with smartphone Moto G22 - All rights reserved}