November 4, 2007

"Remember, remember the 5th of November. X-files, treason and plot..."

Few of you probably realize (or realise if you're British) the momentous holiday which occurs tomorrow, and which has been being celebrated with small scale fireworks all over the English countryside. Tomorrow is the hugely momentous Guy Fawkes Day. What, you've never heard of Guy Fawkes Day? But surely you've heard of Guy Fawkes! Well, perhaps not. I have long been interested in European History (I studied it independently in high school and took the AP exam, which gave me 3 credits at UM for my trouble) but I think perhaps few high schoolers would remember a person like Guy Fawkes. In short, Guy Fawkes and some others attempted to blow up the British Parliament building in 1605 using barrels of gun powder, which were almost completely in place before the plot was discovered. The purpose was in part to assassinate James I, who was a Protestant ruler of England. This plot was known as the Gunpowder Plot. There were a lot of politics involved, for which I will refer you to other sources as my intent is not to teach a history lesson about Guy Fawkes. :) Some of you die hard Jane Austen fans might remember a reference by her to an "infantile Guy Fawkes." Now you know where that comes from. :)

There have been fireworks for days now- starting in people's backyards (gardens, if you're British) Thursday and continuing on and will likely continue for days after the 5th. After all, how many excuses do people have to shoot off fireworks? Last night we saw fireworks from our bedroom window in the villages of Over, Longstanton, and Willingham. Tonight was Swavesey's turn.

The fireworks here in Swavesey were actually sponsored by our only pub, The White Horse. Said pub has been in Swavesey since long long before the Gunpowder Plot. But they set up a small area to shoot of fireworks in the teeny Market Green of Swavesey. G and I walked down there, and one of the first things we noticed was the very loud music, of the type you might hear off the Pure Moods CD from the early 90s. :) Sort of techno-ish, but not quite. We were easily able to find the right location, as besides the 2 speakers with the music there were 2 strobe lights, and the square was already full of smoke, making the surrounding trees seem much more interesting than they are in the daytime.

About the time we got there, the music suddenly changed from Pure Moods to American square dance music- highly amusing for us seeing as this was a British holiday that we're celebrating. Following the square dance music we had the X-Files theme. And then a variety of other things. The fireworks were very good for a small town like Swavesey. Naturally nothing can compare to a sky full of brilliant mortars almost as high as the stars themselves. My family have long been connoissers of fireworks, with my brother obtaining fireworks as early as April for 4th of July celebrations in our huge backyard. But these were very good, and very enjoyable.

The spectators weren't more than 50 feet from the launch site, which meant a mouthful of smoke on every "Oooo," and the fascination of watching the guys with flashlights running around lighting the fireworks. There was quite a crowd there, at least 200 or maybe 300, it was hard to tell in the dark and smoke. The show ended with Pomp and Circumstance and the last few rounds going off.

I find it personally fascinating that a foiled homegrown terrorist plot is still being celebrated over 400 years later. 402 years to be exact. Britain has such a long history, and their history really is our history. We were very happy to be here to celebrate a holiday in someone else's culture, even if we don't exactly understand why it's still being celebrated. :)

When I was in Cambodia (I forget which time, possibly the second or third) on the 4th of July I had Cambodian friends who personally came up to me to congratulate me on my country's independence from Britain. Although that seems a bit comical, I was also touched by their thoughtfulness. In a country where the ravages of war have still not been cleared away 40 years later, a country which has been occupied on and off for so long, independence has a different meaning. I've never seen the 4th the same way since, and I am truly thankful for that independence which we won not all that long ago. Considering that tomorrow Britain is celebrating a holiday which began not quite 200 years before the birth of our nation, America's independence seems relatively new.