Baba Yaga And New Year

2024 Author: Harry Day | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-01-31 14:10

The chimes on Spasskaya, the clock on Senatskaya, we see off the Old, we meet the New, in Moscow, in Helsinki, of course in Greenwich, the most persistent - in New York and Alaska … New Year's fireworks, New Year's salad, clinking glasses, noise, fun, champagne by the river …

Feast is an integral part of any holiday. Always in Russia they loved to treat themselves to and treat guests and did it on a grand scale and with all the heart. Social stereotypes about alcohol are perhaps the most persistent. It seems that it is impossible to even imagine a holiday without alcohol. But no.

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The chimes on Spasskaya, the clock on Senatskaya, we see off the Old, we meet the New, in Moscow, in Helsinki, of course in Greenwich, the most persistent - in New York and Alaska … New Year's fireworks, New Year's salad, clinking glasses, noise, fun, champagne by the river …

Feast is an integral part of any holiday. Always in Russia they loved to treat themselves to and treat guests and did it on a grand scale and with all the heart. Social stereotypes about alcohol are perhaps the most persistent. It seems that it is impossible to even imagine a holiday without alcohol. But no.

When asked

As long as alcohol is not only allowed, but also encouraged, in most homes the New Year's table is bursting with an excess of delicacies and dishes, snacks and drinks for every taste. The amount drunk often measures the success of a festive event. It is clear that in small doses alcohol can improve mood, relieve some tension, people become more liberated. But sometimes the moment when a luxurious carriage turns into a pumpkin, Beautiful Elena turns into a drunken Baba Yaga, and the local Ivan Tsarevich turns into a drunken Serpent Gorynych, can be irretrievably missed. And then children and low drinkers who find themselves outside the circle of the sacred union of drinkers may get bored. Unusual, unnatural intonations and hesitant movements of parents scare toddlers and strain adolescents.

For children, New Year is often the most anticipated holiday. Kids are especially happy if, having received gifts, they can, like big ones, not go to bed, but sit with everyone at the table. Well, if adults also took care of contests, games, charades for the whole company, then such an event will be remembered for a long time.

Sooner later, children watching cheerful drinking adults may wonder if they should also try wine or champagne. In this respect, parents act differently, in accordance with their views and family traditions.

It happens that an "advanced" or already "matured" parent, who mistakenly believes that the child is not having enough fun without alcohol, comes to his head to treat him to champagne. I would like to remind you that in the child's body there is no enzyme that breaks down alcohols, and alcohol has a particularly detrimental effect on the development of the brain and hormonal system. In families with balanced and well-built relationships, children do not even have a question why adults can drink what is forbidden for children. And on the festive table they have their own, non-alcoholic drinks in abundance. Milkshakes and fruit shakes are great options. In addition, if parents in the presence of children behave in a rather restrained manner with respect to alcohol, then it does not attract children's attention either: after all, alcohol is not a symbol of a holiday, but a good mood - the result of a happy relationship and a desire to please others, and not drinking alcohol.

Speaking about the traditions of wine drinking in general, it is worth noting that the physiological organism of the southern peoples develops faster, the corresponding enzymes are formed in it, therefore in the culture of these peoples there is an earlier acquaintance of children with the taste of young grape wines. In Italy, for example, and Georgia, it is customary to drink wine with your family. For the younger generation in Italy, dry young wine is diluted in a jug with water, so that the alcohol content does not exceed 2 - 4%. Wine is also called grape juice in Italy. Researchers believe that a consequence of this tradition is the attitude of young people to wine as a common food product, and not as a forbidden fruit. However, there is an opinion that the data from this study may be ordered.

Another example is an episode from F. Iskander's wonderful book "Chick's Childhood", when a fourteen-year-old hero was sent to fill a teapot with wine from a jug buried in the ground, and he decided to try it on the way back, "sipping the excess." “When I entered the kitchen, my aunt took the kettle from me, looked deeply into my eyes and suddenly smiled.

- Have a little? she asked knowingly.

- There is! There is! - for some reason I answered enthusiastically.

“If you want, lie down,” she advised and pointed to the couch … Through my closed eyes I felt the blazing fire on my face and even, as it were, saw the flaming streams with my skin. Then I suddenly felt how everything moved from its place and floated, as it happens when you look at the flowing water for a long time. I opened my eyes and everything floated again. Then he closed it again, and again everything stopped … And then my uncle comes in, and the children enthusiastically rush to explain to him that I got drunk, and I hear his kind smile, I hear his aunt pouring water on him and telling him about me. And I feel some strange pleasure that when they talk about me in front of me, thinking that I do not hear …"

For the northern, including Slavic peoples, it is better to postpone the acquaintance with wines until as late as possible. The fact is that the "northern" style of drinking alcohol, typical for both Scandinavia and Russia, is characterized by the consumption of alcohol mainly in the form of strong drinks in one-time large doses, which is fraught with the formation of alcohol dependence. Therefore, it is good if the child tastes wine under parental supervision, at home, in very small doses. And it can be just high-quality red (the most harmless) wine, and not beer or champagne. And if teenagers are having a party, in many cases it is advisable to invite a group of friends home, then it is less likely that the celebration process will go too far.

It happens that, regardless of family traditions and the nature of intra-family relationships, and sometimes even contrary to them, a teenager comes home drunk. In such a situation, parents may have a variety of thoughts and experiences, for example, shock or horror (how such a nightmare could happen to our lovely child!), Resentment (we tried so hard for him, and he …), guilt (perhaps we something they did wrong, if this happened), fear (what if the daughter-son gets drunk?). Nevertheless, such an event should not be considered a world tragedy (it's good that you came home and didn't go looking for adventures on your own head), because everything happens for the first time. But even ignoring what happened is not good.

To begin with, you should take care of the child, if he feels bad, feed or put him to bed. Indeed, often loved ones need our attention exactly when they least deserve it. It's stressful for him too. It is good if in this unpleasant situation he can feel understanding and care. The next morning it is worth talking about what happened, exchanging impressions and thoughts. Parents can talk about how upset and confused they were, ask about the events the day before, how many people were there, what they talked about, what they drank, about the teenager's feelings and experiences, to which drink or dose the body reacted especially negatively. Without pressure and undue curiosity, while maintaining trust. Moralism, stories about the dangers of alcohol and the horrors of alcoholism will be ineffective. Especially when you consider that in such situations, children already feel guilt and shame.

As a rule, drinking alcohol for a child is a means of socialization: it means becoming one of his peers, among new acquaintances. This is how they want to feel like adults.

This is how a 15-year-old girl recalls a similar event: “I got drunk for the first time, I had zero experience, I didn't know in advance when to stop and how much I could drink. There were many people in the house, everyone drank differently, but tried everything - I wonder Well, I wanted to have a drink with everyone, show off for something. First beer, then cider, then some delicious liqueur, then cider again. At first I remember that I didn't stay on my feet very well, I even fell off a chaise longue. then I walked into the living room, sat on a large sofa and felt … disgusting. And for some reason, almost immediately instinctively went to the toilet. A classmate came to me, consoled me somehow, then took me to someone's room, where I lay on It was as if everything was on fire inside, probably it was the gastric juice in the esophagus that somehow eaten away - I don't know. And just then it became scary. What would happen to me? I was still worried that my classmates would laugh at me. got up, stood on her feet quite normally … Thanks to my friends, one took me home, giving me a bag with him. In the car, everyone was afraid that the parents would be unhappy, I really wanted to sleep, weakness, tears flowed …"

Drinking, a teenager seeks to extinguish the state of anxiety characteristic of him, get rid of shyness and excessive self-control. The desire for experimentation also plays an important role - you want to try a drink with which the idea of masculinity and adulthood is associated.

In this respect, the character of many Russian folk tales, Baba Yaga, is of particular interest. Her image is ambiguous. On the one hand, she is evil, frighteningly scary and warlike, on the other, she is endowed with some otherworldly wisdom and insight. The hero of the tale - a good fellow, children, Ivan Tsarevich - is forced to turn to Baba Yaga for help in order to be able to continue his journey to the goal. To do this, he must demonstrate his special skills - fearlessness, courage, ingenuity and with honor pass the tests proposed by Baba Yaga. When the hero completes the task, she rewards him with a fabulous horse, a ball of thread, a harp or other magical object that allows him to continue the journey. If the hero passed the tests even earlier and learned the laws of the fairy kingdom, a spell or ritual, made a sacrifice, then he will receive a reward from the hands of Baba Yaga immediately. At the same time, she often feeds and solids the hero. Literary critics believe that the task of Baba Yaga is to lead the hero through the rite of initiation, dedication. Having passed the tests, overcoming difficulties, the hero becomes the owner of new knowledge about himself and about the world and moves to a new level of maturity. This new stage also means in many ways the acquisition of responsibility for their actions.

While drinking, a teenager tries to feel independent, self-reliant, mastering new roles, trying to expand his personal boundaries and know himself. After coping with this challenge and gaining new experience, both the teenager and the parents get the opportunity to move to a new level of constructive relationships.