Dewali -- October 31, 2024

Locator: 48685DIWALI.

Hindi festival of lights.

We always look forward to this festival. 

And, with regard to the school calendar and the festival, the local school district is either very, very clever .... or purely coincidental. But I highly doubt the latter. I think the school district is being very, very clever.

We live in a very, very conservative part of the DFW metropolis. Dallas is blue, Ft Worth is purple, and the north side of Ft Worth where we are is very red. The administrators and officials of the local public schools have a lot of issues to navigate, including how to handle religious holidays.

Diwali is a moveable feast occurring this time of year, sometimes early, sometimes later, coming close to overlapping with Christmas. It is generally celebrated for five days but can be celebrated as little as one day depending on the calendar. I've always considered it a five-day celebration and my hunch is that the local Hindus celebrate it as long as possible.

Diwali this year is very, short in duration, lasting just over 24 hours. It started this morning, Thursday, Halloween and will end tomorrow morning, Friday, 

But, look at this! Next week, Sophia gets Monday and Tuesday off from school. A four-day weekend which just happens to coincide with Diwali! 

And this is what makes me think the school district is so clever. There are a number of Indian students that attend the local public schools but not all folks might think it appropriate to celebrate a Hindi festival. So, to avoid controversy, the school district scheduled Monday and Tuesday next week as teacher continuing education / workshop days. The kids have the four-day weekend and the teachers get the mandatory continuing education required by the state.

Again, perhaps it's just coincidental. I really don't know, but it sure makes me wonder.