And We Also Had Andriyivski Vechornytsi

I remember when my grandmother talked about her maiden years, which fell in the middle of the last century, she recalled the evening gatherings with special reverence. They took place only when all the household chores in the field and near the house were completed, when the harvest was gathered and stored in the pantry, when the weather no longer allowed the boys and girls to gather in the evenings somewhere on the pasture or on some village street for dancing and fun. That's when the time for the evening gatherings came. For their organization, they chose a spacious house, whose hostess kindly agreed to host the gatherings in her home.

They consisted of two parts. The first was work: the girls spun, shelled beans, plucked feathers, or embroidered. The second part was, so to speak, entertaining: closer to midnight, village musicians approached the house, the young men came, and the celebration began. Some simply "stomped their heels," while others looked at someone to later send matchmakers.

I remember, my grandmother said: sometimes, such snow would cover everything around, such frosts crackled underfoot, but nothing stood in the way when the youth gathered for the evening gatherings to spend time with songs, dances, jokes, and courtships. And, of course, the St. Andrew's gatherings were special, where they gathered not for work, but purely for entertainment. For good treats. For jokes. And for pranks — mischiefs allowed only on St. Andrew's night. So the boys tried: they would remove the gate at the yard where a girl lived and hide it nearby; they would move a haystack to another place; they would lift a cart onto the barn... What can you say: youth!

And now imagine that something similar happened on St. Andrew's evening — November 29 — in Chicago. Of course, no pranks with gates, haystacks, and carts were recorded here, but an informative and entertaining meeting of Ukrainian youth and even older hosts and hostesses took place. And this meeting was organized near the Ukrainian neighborhood, in the hospitable premises of Eventus Hall (sincere thanks to its owner Oksana Khanas) by the tireless in everything related to Ukrainian culture, customs, traditions, and rituals — Yulia Danylyuk.

This is not the first creative event organized by Ms. Yulia in her four years of living in America. Culture was her professional domain in Ukraine. So she thought: why not organize something similar here (thus the idea of the event platform event.ua was born), when there are many people whose souls are sensitive to creativity, poetry and song, ethnography, preserving and popularizing Ukrainian cultural heritage. Plus, the charitable component of all events, aimed at helping Ukraine, as the topic of war is special in her fate and the fate of her family.

Like-minded people were found, helpers, sponsors, and patrons. And with active interest, their joint creative work began to take the form of meaningful meetings. Like the recently held "Evening Gatherings on Andrew's Day," which I was lucky to attend last Saturday.

— I invite you to immerse yourself in the atmosphere of folk traditions, — with these words, Yulia Danylyuk began the meeting, and together with Tetiana Baryliak (singer BARVA) they opened for their guests the curtain of something warm, interesting, instructive, familial, which traditionally always filled Ukrainian evening gatherings. And the invited spiritual mentor — Father Ihor Darmohrai — spoke about the person of Saint Andrew the Apostle, drew a line between pagan rites in the lives of our ancestors and Christian traditions. And everyone, without any discussions, agreed that we would not resort to fortune-telling, as there was plenty to do at the gatherings without it.

Moreover, the ethnographic component of the past very organically intertwined here with the sound of modernity. It was in this perspective that the mini-play about the evening before St. Andrew's Day was demonstrated by the boys and girls from the Christian youth community "Youth PRO." They showed everything: the friendly hostess inviting guests into the house, the host — a hostage of "TikTok," and the daughter who doesn't "get out" of gadgets... But the special aura of St. Andrew's evening fills everyone in the end. And even the foreign guest — John from America — learns fiery folk songs and dances from the youth.

Oh, there was indeed a lot of music at our gatherings. Everyone was enchanted by Mykola Stefuriak's masterful playing on the cymbals. The youngest participants of the art studio "Creative Kids" delighted with a gentle dance "Heavenly Lights." Wonderful songs were gifted to the audience by singer BARVA, soloists Tetiana Darmohrai and Liubov Lukashevych, Andrii Hambal, Bohdan Savchuk, Viktoriia Basista, Maksym Pashchuk. And the hall not only listened but sang along. And enjoyed wonderful dishes and drinks — varenyky, holubtsi, pampushky, homemade pastries, uzvar, and cocktails.

Of course, there were those willing to bite the ritual cake — kalita — although this turned out not to be so simple. And nearby, you could buy natural honey, silver products, beautiful stylized clothing, or beautiful handmade candles, which with their light and warmth will make the most ordinary evening special and romantic. All this was brought to the gatherings by the owners and representatives of Ukrainian brands that support folk traditions and their popularization among the Ukrainian community in Chicago.

There was even a queue in the hall. To the potter master Yurii Matichyn, in whose hands clay "comes to life," turning into original products. And those who wanted to try themselves as a potter lined up. And many tried. And now they will have a souvenir from the gatherings — a plate, bowl, or cup made by themselves (albeit with the help of the master).

A special guest of the St. Andrew's gatherings in Chicago was the Ukrainian performer NAVKA. She performed in three roles: as a singer, presenting an original performance of Ukrainian and original songs; as a clothing designer with authentic motifs, which was also showcased at the gatherings; as a volunteer, urging those present to participate in an auction and purchase exclusive jewelry — the proceeds will be directed to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

And then there were dances. Ukrainian disco. And here, I must confess, I remembered an old song that I once heard from my grandmother: "You, musicians, play-play, and you, people, listen; and you, old ones, go home, young ones — dance..." So I quietly went home. With my husband on my arm. Because although we are not yet signing up as some kind of old-timers, life is already leaning towards those years when you want to go among the snowdrifts (and last Saturday's winter in Chicago was no joke) — to peace and a warm house.

And the young ones stayed to party. To good Ukrainian music. In the good atmosphere of Ukrainian evening gatherings. Thanks to everyone who contributed to their organization and holding. It was a wonderful event!