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Elisabeth, a foreign exchange student from Belgium, teaches GPHS some facts about April Fool's Day around the world.
April fool's day
April fool's day
By Elisabeth Demanez
By Elisabeth Demanez
The first of April: a long-awaited day when mischief mingles with joy, and when spirits awaken to jokes. It's April Fool's Day, an age-old tradition that brightens our hearts and makes us dance with laughter.
This custom has been around for centuries, inspiring creativity and ingenuity. Prankster spirits wake up at dawn, ready to stir up trouble with wacky hoaxes. Paper fish hanging from passers-by's backs, extravagant announcements, innocent but witty jokes. According to Le Figaro, one possible origin: April marks the end of Lent, a period of fasting for Christians. For forty days and until Easter, fish is the preferred food of the faithful, as "lean food". this is why many countries, like France and Belgium, call this day April Fish Day--a fact that some Americans might not know.
This ritual, imbued with mystery and lightness, transcends borders and cultures. According to France Bleu, From Europe to the Americas and Asia to Africa, April Fools' Day unites people in collective bursts of laughter. However, behind the fun lies a lesson in life. April Fools' Day or “poisson d’avril” (April Fish in French) reminds us of the value of lightness, of not taking ourselves too seriously. It's an invitation to creativity and spontaneity, to the art of surprising and being surprised. In France and Belgium, for example, a tradition is to stick a varying amount of paper fish to the back of our friends or teachers in schools to make the first day of April with a promise of happiness and laughter.
On April 1st, let's open our minds to the unexpected, and let ourselves be carried away by the gentle madness of April Fool's Day. Because in this often too serious world, a little fantasy is a balm for the soul. Let's grab a piece of paper, cut a fish in it and stick it on our loved one and just have fun.
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