Sinterklaas
Sinterklaas kapoentje,
Stop wat in mijn schoentje,
Stop wat in mijn laarsje,
Dank je, Sinterklaasje.
A simple little Dutch nursery rhyme sung by Dutch people all over the world at this time of year, for today is Sinterklaas! The day that the great Saint, having anchored his steamboat, brings gifts around to all the good little children who have faithfully put out a pair of shoes (preferably klompen, of course) and a carrot or two for his majestic white steed.
Not to be forgotten is the devoted servant Black Pieter (yes, that’ s so not a 21st century concept. We know. Allow us a little transgression…As a matter of fact, according to Wikipedia, multi-colored Peter’s have been introduced with the explanation that Sinterklaas passed through a rainbow on his journey) who will distribute the pepernooten and taai-taai in his big brown burlap bag (bringing back delightful memories of childhood Sinterklaas celebrations at a local senior’s home, where us kids would scramble all over the hardwood floors collecting pepernooten as fast as our grubby little hands could gather them, all the while desperately avoiding Zwaarte Piet’s (Black Peter’s) big bag which he would stuff you into and haul you off to Spain if you weren’t careful).
Come to think of it, I wouldn’t mind visiting Spain…maybe I can get free boatfare too…
Oh, to be 8 years old again… if only for a day, for today would be my chosen day.
Why is it that it sometimes seems as if I put more text in the brackets than outside of them? Maybe I ought to just start with a bracket and end with a bracket and them remove them when I’m done.
streamrambler
December 6, 2007 at 3:05 am