Flor del Noche Buena
.
.
It seems like everywhere we go we see poinsettias – at the tienda (convenience store) ferreteria (hardware store) in the doorways and by the cash register, restaurants, offices, homes and even street taco stands as well as in the churches. They are sold at markets and from the back of pick-up trucks. The plethora of poinsettias prompted us to inquire about their significance. We were told the poinsettia was originally used by the Aztecs who called it “Cuetlaxochitle” (don’t ask me how to pronounce that). The Aztecs used the sap from the plants to reduce fevers and to make a reddish-purple dye. It is said that Montezuma, the last Aztec King, brought the flowers from Southern Mexico in caravans to Mexico City because the poinsettia would not grow at the higher altitudes.
In Mexico it is called “Flor del Noche Buena” (Christmas Eve Flower or literally Flower of the Good Night) or in Central America the “Flame Leaf.” In North America it became known as the Poinsettia and was so named after Dr. Joel Poinsett, who was the first United States Ambassador to Mexico from 1825 to 1829. The plants are native to the Taxco area in Mexico and while Dr. Poinsett was visiting the region he fell in love with the flowers and shipped some to his own nursery in Greenville, South Carolina where they were also given to several other nurseries to eventually be grown commercially. The Poinsettia starts out with star shaped green leaves that turn into a deep red at the top. Nowadays at home we see white ones, pink ones and variegated ones as well as the traditional red.
Naturally there is a wonderful legend in Mexico as to how the flower became used to celebrate Christmas. The story begins with a poor girl named Maria and her little brother Pablo (or cousin, Pedro, depending on who tells the story). Maria was very sad because she was so poor she had nothing to give the baby Jesus in the manger scene in the Village Church. On Christmas Eve (Noche Buena) on the way to church Maria picked some “weeds” to make a bouquet to leave at the manger scene. Her little brother (or cousin) said to her, “it does not matter what you give as long you give it in love”. Naturally the other children in the village teased them until they saw the “weeds” turn from green to a bright red right before their eyes as Maria knelt at the altar. The whole village then realized they had witnessed a true Christmas miracle and from that day forward the plant became known as the “Flor del Noche Buena.”
Many Thanks to Carol Dean for this article
No comments:
Post a Comment