Italian Festivals and Traditions
ST. LUCIA’S NIGHT
December 13th was and still is one
of the most longed days of the year. Children wait for that night when it is 
said the Saint brings them presents.
In the past the feast was prepared in a
suggestive atmosphere: for three nights in succession the children prayed the
Saint in the little church of S. Sebastiano , via Romani, which was opened for
the occasion. Inside the church there was a statue of the Saint: on her hand
there was a little plate and on it there were the Saint’s eyes. As a matter of
fact Saint Lucia is remembered as the Saint from Siracusa (283-304) who
suffered the Diocleziano martyrdom. According to the tradition she was blinded
and for this reason she has always been considered the Saint of light.
The night during which the children wait for
the Saint seems to be very long: as a matter of fact there is a saying which
goes like that: “St. Lucia’s night is the longest night”.
There are also poems in the local dialect about
that night
Santa Lusia ST. Lucia
La scarpa l’è
mia the shoe is mine
La bursa l’è dal pupà the bag is the
father’s
Santa Lusi la gnaràa
ST Lucia will come
La gnarà com
trì bumbon she will come with
three sweets
Caramèli e turon sweets and torrone
In the
children’s imagination St. Lucia comes 
from the sky on a barrow full of gifts pulled by a donkey. That’s why
they put outside the door of their houses some hay and milk for the donkey and
some biscuits for the Saint.
To make
the wait more suggestive, the days before that ‘festivity’ some people walk
along the streets ringing a little bell: little children are worried about that
and hide themselves because they “can’t” see the Saint. According to tradition
in fact she could throw some ash into their eyes.