Le Quatorze Juillet.
All of France celebrates
7/13/20264 min read
It is the fourteenth of July, a very significant day in France. This day marks the storming of the Bastille in 1789 and the beginnings of national unity. Now France proudly bears the banner: Liberté, Fraternité, Egalité! What a reason to feel proud. Every year it is celebrated with military parades, balls and fireworks in nearly every town and village. I well remember a particular train ride to visit friends who were living in the Lubéron, long before we came to live here ourselves.. As it grew dark, our passage was iluminated all around us as rockets exploded in a million coloured stars. Only then did I realise the country-wide significance of this date.
Sadly, this year will be different. Firework displays have been almost universally banned due to the danger of fire that they create in such exceptionally hot, dry conditions. Other celebrations will be enjoyed, however. Our village combines this celebration with La Fête des Diane, the goddess of hunting. This fête day is officially on 9th June, but in our village we celebrate it today, feasting on sanglier that have been caught by les chasseurs( hunters) and stored over the winter season. Perhaps a couple of sanglier will be spit roasted. Perhaps it will have been cooked up in various homes as terrine and daube de sanglier. We wait to see. One thing is for sure. When the hunters organise the meal it is sure to be good. And so I shall try to forget that before too long ( the 15th August in fact) our peaceful forest will once more echo with the sound of gunshot.
When the evening came it felt hot and steamy. As we took our evening swim, we wondered whether to attend the celebrations , or just stay at home in the shade. In the event we braved it and were astonished to see so many people gathered at the village stade. Aperitifs were being served, a gift from the maire. People gathered at tables to wait for the meal to be served . When we surveyed these family and friendship groups we were astonished to see just how many people live in our sleepy village of three hamlets. Where should we sit? We barely recognised anyone. J.P. our nearest neighbour beckoned to us to join him at his table with a friend. The company was good, but it felt sad to realise how much our little community has shrunk since the maison forestière has been abandoned.
We already knew what to expect, for Mme D, who had taken our payment, had already explained. The meal had been prepared by the chasseurs ( hunters) themselves, and would also be served by them. A brasucade of moules(mussels) would be followed by a sanglier terrine which Mme D.'s husband had made himself. That would be followed by yet more sanglier in a daube( stew), then cheese and dessert , which turned out to be melon. Nearby two great fires had been lit; where the mussels were already cooking in baskets on top of the roaring flames. These baskets were at a slight angle, so that the surplus liquid could drain off, before a sauce was added.
The mussels were delicious , and were my favourite part of the meal. As for the terrine, it was better than anything one could buy at the supermarket, and as local as we could get.
Bon Appétit!
All evening long, people chatted as a disc jockey played modern pop music over the stereo. But for me the best entertainment was in the football match that was going on close by which involved a number of young boys and a dog. The dog would have graced the world cup team. His skills with the ball were superlative. Other children played on the swings, while older teenagers gathered elsewhere. Not for them the main proceedings, but I dare say everyone enjoyed themselves immensely. The meal began around nine . As is customary it lasted for hours. By 11.30, traditionally the fireworks would begin. Sadly, but wisely, that was not to be the case this year
. As we gathered up our things to return home, we looked back to see that many people were staying on to dance to the music, as all over France people continued to celebrate. Yet again this country had strengthened its vows of Liberté, Fraternité , Egalité, and in this lovely relaxed evening, it showed.
