Many sayings, poems, and stories have been written about rivers. Rivers are the most important mechanism for maintaining life on earth. Thanks to the waterways of the earth, flora and fauna exist on our planet. With the advent of civilization, many rivers have become dry, their beds have been changed, and the waters are polluted with industrial waste. To prevent this, conservationists created a holiday called River Day. Every year (March 14) it is celebrated in many countries around the world. The second name of the holiday is not so common: “International Day of Action against Dams.” In 1997, an environmental organization in the United States spoke at a conference in Brazil against the construction of large dams. Her proposal was supported. The emergence of the river festival is due to this organization. Rivers Day was first celebrated on March 14, 1988. More than 50 actions took place that day, in which protesters took part in demonstrations and also cleaned up rivers of pollution on their own. Since then, on March 14, various thematic conferences and seminars have been organized, actions of those who are not indifferent to the problem of rivers have been organized, and the media have been broadcasting documentaries and feature films about nature. Rivers Day is also celebrated by nature conservation agencies, environmentalists, members of charitable organizations, scientists and researchers. The creation of extensive dams and dams negatively affects the development of the reservoirs themselves, as well as other natural objects that are associated with rivers. Scientists claim that disruption of the natural riverbed entails natural disasters. Only thanks to participants in the movement against the construction of dams, two dams about 60 meters high were destroyed in the United States, and a law was signed in Sweden prohibiting the construction of dams higher than 15 meters. Unfortunately, Russia cannot yet boast of significant changes in its river protection program. Also in many countries, organizations have emerged in which volunteers are actively working to protect rivers.

For more than two thousand years, the mystical, irrational and mysterious number Pi has raised a lot of questions among people. The cryptic value (the Greek letter "π") is a symbol used in mathematics and represents a constant - the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter. Most people first learned about Pi in high school and know it as 3.14159, but modern mathematicians have calculated it to within a trillion digits. The world record for memorizing the digits of Pi is 67,890 digits. In everyday life we ​​cannot escape geometry. For example, a cyclist uses a number to calculate the distance of a trip, and an engineer refers to it when designing car tires, water flows or buildings. In rocket science, things like the Earth's trajectory are calculated using Pi. Its unspoken presence can be felt in the circular ruins of Stonehenge, in the vaulted ceilings of domed Roman temples, and in the celestial realms of Plato and Ptolemy. Pi has spawned numerous mathematical puzzles for centuries and inspired some of humanity's most iconic works of art. All math lovers have a special event on their calendar - International Pi Day. This holiday falls on March 14th and honors one of the most recognizable irrational symbols in mathematics - "pi" or "P", once again proving that mathematics can be an interesting science. This crazy day was first celebrated in 1998, thanks to physicist Larry Shaw. For fans of general relativity, this is also a reason to celebrate the birthday of Albert Einstein, who was born on March 14th. The history of Pi Day is inextricably linked with the origin of the symbol itself. The need to know it is as old as the origin of the wheel itself. In many cultures and countries, mathematicians have repeatedly tried to unravel this mysterious meaning. The ancient mathematicians were able to figure out the full coverage of the entire number up to the seventh decimal place, but the great Indian scientists deciphered it only to five characters. Mathematical number enthusiasts take part in competitions and quizzes to learn the number of decimal places, or to write poems in which the number of letters in each word represents the subsequent digits of the number. On this day, complex works of art are born, inspired by chaotic pi. Many people, especially young people, wear T-shirts with the logo of the symbol. On this holiday, it is customary to eat foods that begin with pi (pizza, cake) or foods that have a round shape, such as pancakes or cookies. There are many other ways to celebrate the most amazing and transcendental day to understand this number and discover its amazing secrets.

Every year on March 14, residents of many countries celebrate International Questions Day. This is one of the funniest holidays, which helps not only to gain new knowledge, but also to lift your spirits. To make it memorable for a long time, you need to try to ask as many questions as possible to your friends and family, and also find suitable answers when they ask. This should be quite fun. It is not known exactly how this holiday appeared, but there are several versions of its origin. Some believe that March 14th is dedicated to young children who like to ask a lot of questions and are often called “why kids.” The spring holiday can be a good reason to spend more time with your baby and satisfy his interest. It is important for every child to learn a lot about the world around him, so his curiosity needs to be supported. According to the second version, the international holiday was created in honor of the German scientist Albert Einstein, who was born on March 14, 1879. He managed to find answers to very important questions in the field of physics. He is the author of more than 300 scientific papers. In 1921, Einstein won the Nobel Prize in Physics. The scientist devoted his entire life to scientific research and called for humanism and mutual understanding between peoples. “Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The main thing is not to stop asking questions,” said Albert Einstein. On March 14, every person will have a good reason to close knowledge gaps and gain important information by asking questions to those who are well versed in the desired topic. The question is considered one of the most accessible ways to establish communications with other people. You can also ask about something to resolve difficult situations and clarify circumstances. There is also a special category of questions that can turn a person’s consciousness around, direct him along the right path and make him think about why everything happens this way and not otherwise... Since it's a fun holiday, you don't have to take it too seriously. To cheer up your loved ones or friends, you can prepare for it in advance and come up with more humorous questions on current topics that will definitely lift everyone’s spirits.

The inventor of the VCR was the Russian engineer Alexander Matveevich Ponyatov, who emigrated to the USA. On March 14, 1956, in Chicago, the Ampex company, founded by Poniatov, presented the world's first video recorder. March 14 marks the birthday of the VCR - a holiday well known in narrow circles of connoisseurs who still remember what it is.

Sandwich is one of the most popular snacks, recipes for which are present in the national cuisines of many countries. It is eaten on the run, washed down with coffee for breakfast and taken on a picnic. March 14 marks the birthday of a simple but delicious snack - a sandwich. The name of the dish, which can be safely attributed to fast food, came into Russian from German: butter means “butter”, and brot means “bread”. The standard size of a sandwich, called a croque monsieur in French and a panini in Italian, depends on the size of the bread from which it is made. There are small sandwiches - canapés. They are made from tiny croutons weighing up to 30 g, decorated with meat, fish or cheese and skewers for easy serving. The sandwich has long been the talk of the town. Cat Matroskin in the cartoon "Three from Prostokvashino" argued that this snack should be eaten correctly - put the sausage on the tongue. Popular wisdom says that according to the law of meanness, a sandwich always falls butter side down. Although comedians made a slight amendment to this statement. “For the unlucky ones, the sandwich falls down with butter. And for the lucky ones, it falls like caviar,” the jokers note. Countries and peoples compete with each other not only in sports, but also in culinary skills, in particular, in preparing the largest sandwiches. Well-known achievements in this area are included in the Guinness Book of Records. Thus, in 2010, a sandwich 2,700 meters long with cheese spread, olives, tomatoes and cucumbers was made in the UAE. The Emirati record was broken in 2013 by Italians from the city of Castelleone. 520 volunteers prepared a 3 km long sandwich from buns and 10 tons of chocolate spread. The British are big fans of unprepossessing snacks, beans, oatmeal and bacon. According to one version, the first sandwiches appeared in Great Britain thanks to John Montague, Earl of Sandwich. He was considered a busy person, because... was a member of parliament, but loved to eat quickly, tasty and cheap. And the count didn’t like getting his hands dirty with food. This is how sandwiches appeared, according to legend. In 2003, residents of Cheshire attempted to prepare a sandwich weighing 2 tons. A giant sandwich 2.5 meters long with 15 cm thick bread and filled with tuna, mayonnaise and cucumbers claimed to be included in the Guinness Book of Records. In Russia, similar records were set in 2001 by cooks from Nizhny Novgorod and in 2019 from Cherepovets at the Vereshchagin festival “Dairy Traditions”. And if the first masterpiece of domestic masters was distinguished by an unprecedented height and area of ​​almost 17 m2 for a snack, then the second sandwich had a length of 100 m and a weight of as much as 110 kg. The latest achievement in this area is the 720 m long Lebanese sandwich, made in 2017 from 3,500 pieces of rustic flatbread with local labneh cream cheese, vegetables and olives. It was fed to more than 14 thousand people present, including the political leader of the country, and was included in the Guinness Book of Records. In honor of the sandwich's birthday on March 14, gourmets are sharing sandwich recipes and preparing real culinary masterpieces. Vietnamese banh mi, Japanese katsu-sando, Cuban medianoche, Mexican kemita, Turkish doner kebab, Chilean chacarera... Become a real chef in honor of the holiday: prepare sandwiches according to the recipe of one or more national cuisines and treat them to your loved ones!

Wide revelry - Razgulay (4th day of Maslenitsa week)

The second Thursday of March is World Kidney Day. International organizations, the Federation of Kidney Foundations and the World Society of Nephrology, founded the date with the aim of drawing attention to the problems of kidney disease. This paired organ is incredibly efficient and is able to perform its functions even after being seriously damaged. By the time a person notices concerns about the kidneys, his natural filters can be worn out by up to 90% and in some cases doctors are unable to help the patient. It is for this reason that it is necessary to popularize the need for regular kidney checkups and examinations. The earlier diseases and pathologies are identified, the easier it is for specialists to cope with them. And, therefore, the better, richer and brighter the life of every person who takes care of their health will be. Among the rules that must be followed to maintain kidney health, there is one that is as simple as it is important. Drinking enough water. Plain drinking, non-carbonated and not sweet. The kidneys, being filters, perform their function more easily the thinner the medium they pass through. At the same time, water cannot be replaced with drinks, because they are solutions. Consequently, the filter has to separate the substances from them from the transport medium, ordinary water. Failure to comply with such a simple setting as daily consumption of one and a half to two liters of water, as well as a passive sedentary lifestyle, weight gain and uncontrolled use of medications can cause serious kidney diseases. Among them: chronic kidney disease (failure of functioning of this organ), urolithiasis, various types of nephritis. The etymology of the term “nephritis” is interesting. From Greek this word is translated as “disease, inflammation of the kidney.” However, the same name is given to an ornamental stone, which in its natural state is found in nature precisely in the form of a human kidney. For a long time, there were beliefs in various cultures that this similarity helped, through the mineral, to get rid of kidney ailments. Suffering patients took the mineral powder internally, hoping for healing through such a drug. Nowadays, advances in medicine make it possible to cure most kidney diseases using progressive methods and without swallowing stones. It is only necessary to lead a healthy active lifestyle, systematically undergo examinations, involve relatives and friends in this process, convincing them of the need for medical examination. Even if nothing bothers you, doesn’t hurt and doesn’t make itself felt. World Kidney Day reminds us of this every year.

The habit of eating healthy foods, rich in essential vitamins, minerals and microelements, is formed in a child not only in the family. The menu for school lunches and breakfasts is formed taking into account the age needs of children, a balanced content of vegetables and fruits, dairy products, fish and meat. A holiday was established to raise public awareness about the extent to which food served in educational institutions affects the health and mental development of children. International School Feeding Day is celebrated on the second Thursday of March every year. International School Meals Day was first held in the UK and the USA in 2013. The movement, initially coordinated by the Children of Scotland organization, eventually spread throughout the world. According to statistics, about 368 million children eat at school every day. Most schoolchildren are fed in schools in India. The country feeds 120 million children attending educational institutions. The mental and physical development of the child, the absence of obesity and other pathologies of the body depend on the quality and correct choice of food products. This is why it is so important to pay attention to school food. The international movement, which is coordinated by Children in Scotland staff, has found support from partners around the world. As a sign of solidarity with the founders of the celebration, posts with the hashtag #internationalschoolmealday are posted on social networks. In honor of the holiday, seminars, master classes and other educational events are held. They are aimed at expanding the ideas of adults and children about the benefits of healthy food and the national characteristics of the cuisines of different nations. In 2018, on School Meal Day, a competition of recipes for children's dishes was held among more than 100 participants. The top 20 were included in the cookbook published by the organizers of International School Meals Day. School-age children should be provided with healthy and tasty food, regardless of place of residence and education, family social status and other factors. Therefore, under the auspices of the World Food Program, a charitable food distribution is held in honor of the holiday. Donations collected for School Meal Day are used to provide meals to children from economically disadvantaged countries and those living in war-torn regions. In Russia, students have breakfast and lunch in the canteens of educational institutions. Food for children is supplied by food factories or prepared in school catering units. The menu, which is compiled in accordance with SanPiN requirements, is updated weekly. A nutritious and balanced diet helps improve performance and academic performance, the physical and mental development of children and adolescents, prevents diseases, and creates conditions for students to adapt to adult life after leaving school. Therefore, in the Russian Federation, as well as throughout the world, International School Meals Day is held annually.

The celebration of Mother Language Day in Estonia is directly related to a series of historical events that influenced the formation of the Estonian language. The date of the celebration also did not appear by chance. On one spring day, March 14, 1801, an Estonian poet was born, who became the founder of the literary poetic language. His name was Kristjan Jaak Peterson. K.Ya. Peterson is the first to write and publish scientific works that study the linguistic features of the Estonian language. He was also one of the first translators from Scandinavian languages ​​into Estonian. K.Ya. Peterson became the founder of the Estonian literary language, making it more melodic, deep, with a varied and multifaceted syllable, placing it among other previously formed languages ​​of Northern Europe. Mother Language Day became an official holiday in Estonia only in 1996. Nowadays, the holiday is celebrated all over the world, wherever Estonians live. On this day, linguistic competitions for knowledge of the native language are held in all educational institutions in Estonia, and meetings are held in scientific circles to study modern problems of language development. A memorable and iconic symbol is the laying of flowers at the monuments of Kristjan Jaak Peterson. The purpose of the holiday is to maintain and preserve national and cultural identity among Estonians around the world, to popularize the study of the language and traditions of the people. Linguistic meetings, seminars, and conferences are also held in other countries. All these events are aimed at promoting the importance of the Estonian language. There are also readings of Estonian literary works, poetry and prose. In the modern world, more than one million people speak Estonian. 950 thousand of them live in Estonia. An obligatory attribute of this holiday in Estonia is the raising of national flags, which are hung on government buildings in the country.

March 14th is an occasion for the Japanese to thank women for their gifts on Valentine's Day. Valentine, because on this day there is a holiday with a romantic, such an unusual name - White Day (howaito dee). Traditionally, on this day, men give women marshmallows and other sweets, always white. In addition, gifts such as white gold jewelry, underwear, and soft toys are allowed. In addition to the Japanese, White Day is celebrated on the island of Taiwan and Korea. White Day is an unofficial but popular holiday. Nowadays, few people remember how it all began. The tradition of giving sweets to women began in 1965 on the initiative of Marshmallow, a manufacturer of confectionery sweets. In order to increase sales, the company conducted an advertising campaign called “White Day” and invited men to thank women for gifts on Valentine's Day. This proposal was accepted with a bang. An unusual marketing ploy has grown to the size of a national holiday with its own traditions and customs. Why is it necessary to thank women on this day? The fact is that in Japan, Valentine's Day is celebrated differently than in our country. On February 14th, only women show attention and give the opposite sex valentines, chocolates and sweets. In addition to lovers, signs of attention are shown to friends and colleagues. A month later, men must give reciprocal gifts to all women who congratulated them on Valentine's Day. One of the unwritten but observed rules of this day is that gifts for White Day should be at least 2 times more expensive. In Japan, White Day is incredibly popular, because everyone considers it their duty to thank their colleagues and loved ones. Revenues from sales of chocolate and sweets are growing these days and amount to almost 5 billion yen, an amount equivalent to 0.5 million dollars. In addition to sweet gifts, women also receive more expensive gifts, but always white.

As you know, in former times the Slavs had many intricate holidays, mainly associated with events in nature. Thus, there was a holiday called Small Ovsen (New Year), which was celebrated in March. The celebration date was moved from March 1 (old style) to March 14 (new style). It is quite symbolic that the Slavs began the year in the spring, when the whole earth awakens. At this time of year, not only nature wakes up, but all peasants begin to actively prepare for spring work. Little Ovsen was celebrated very widely, with festivities, chants and round dances. Ovsen was popularly considered the brother of Kolyada. He cleared the way for people from the winter evil spirits, and also began not only the day, but also the whole year, full of troubles. There was a popular belief that Ovsen came riding on a horse and brought the New Year with him. They greeted him with porridge, which was certainly prepared at night. While the food was being prepared in the oven, the Slavs whispered conspiracies to attract a rich harvest. It was a good sign if the porridge was a success. This meant that Ovsen accepted the gift and good luck would come to the owners of the house. In 325, at the Ecumenical Council, it was decided to move the celebration from spring to autumn (the date was set for September 1). Since the name “Autumn” itself is consonant with the word “autumn,” it becomes clear why it was chosen to celebrate it at this time of year. Historians know that in different areas people celebrated this day in different ways. Some Slavs, out of old habit, celebrated the New Year twice, in September and March. After the adoption of Christianity in Rus', Little Ovsen turned into a day of remembrance of the Venerable Martyr Evdokia, and March 14 began to be called the day of Avdotya Plyushchikha. She personified spring and had the power to awaken water and earth from winter sleep. It is known that in our time we celebrate the New Year in winter thanks to the decree of Peter the Great (since 1699). The tradition of celebrating the New Year in January has been taking root for a very long time. But the most popular and ancient day of celebration remains March 14th.

On March 14 (March 1, old style), according to the folk calendar, the day of Evdokia Svistunya is celebrated, also called Avdotya Plyushchikha or Vesnovka. The name of the holiday is partly taken from the name of the Christian martyr Evdokia Iliopolis, revered by the church on this day. The story of the martyr began in the 2nd century in the Palestinian city of Iliopolis. The girl had extraordinary beauty, but led a dissolute life. Having heard the prayer of the pilgrim Herman for life after death, she decided to return to the righteous path. After a series of trials, she was accepted into the monastery, where years later she received the rank of abbot. Thanks to prayers to the Lord, Evdokia revived the dead. When the persecution of Christians began, the saint was beheaded. According to the old style of the calendar, people celebrated the arrival of spring on Evdokia. She was called Whistler because of the beginning of the spring winds, which sometimes sounded like whistling. Animals in the forest also whistled, rejoicing in the warmth and looking for a mate. Avdotya (a derivative form of Evdokia) was called Ivy, because the snowdrifts melted due to warming, decreasing in size, as if they were flattening. Breaks in the ice and the remains of snow piles in the fields were called “buns.” On this day, residents collected melted snow, believing that it had miraculous properties. It was consumed internally and wiped off in order to have good health. Livestock was fed with it for a good offspring, and birds - for more egg laying. The floors were washed with melted snow so that evil spirits would be afraid to enter. Women on Evdokia baked cookies in the shape of larks or swallows. They were distributed to children, who tied them to a thread and threw them into the sky. The girls climbed onto the roofs and sang spring songs. These rituals were performed to invite spring. Evdokia Svistunya's Day was considered a day off. Residents were forbidden to work, but wealthy people looked for mercenaries for field work. The owners of the geese decided among themselves when to slaughter the birds and go goose hunting. Housewives set festive tables, residents visited guests, and young people gathered in cheerful companies. Even the day of Evdokia was called Vesnovka. According to legend, the Lord handed Evdokia the keys to the spring waters so that she could begin spring at her own discretion. That’s why the weather was different; sometimes the sun was shining and it was raining at the same time. The upcoming spring was determined by the day: a fine day meant a warm spring, a cloudy day meant a long and cool spring. The bright sun predicted good grain harvests, and the falling fog predicted an abundance of beans and peas in the summer.

Orthodox holidays on March 14:

Every year on March 14, Orthodox Christians remember Eudokia of Iliopolis (late 1st-2nd century AD) in their prayers. The martyr was born in the capital of northern Israel - Samaria (Chevron), but spent the conscious years of her life in Iliopolis (a city in Ancient Egypt near Cairo). In her youth, Evdokia was a very beautiful and slender girl who made men fall in love with her at first sight. She led a dissolute lifestyle and earned money from a vicious craft. Among her fans were major politicians and military men of that time. Wealthy men came to her from other countries and cities. As a result of carnal pleasures, a large fortune was accumulated. Evdokia's carefree life was disrupted by the visit of monk Herman to Iliopol. The monk preached the Lord, reading the Gospel aloud. The girl heard the reading. She was impressed by the lines of Holy Scripture about the second coming of Jesus Christ and the Judgment of God. Conversations with Herman became a turning point in the fate of the future saint. She decided to be baptized. The local clergyman, knowing Evdokia’s sinful life, appointed a week of fasting and prayer before the holy rite. On one of the days of sincere repentance, Archangel Michael appeared to Evdokia, promising help and support to the saint on her godly path. After receiving baptism, Evdokia distributed all her property to the poor, dismissed the servants, and headed to the nunnery. Soon she became his abbess. God sent many miracles to Evdokia during her earthly life. Thus, while the saint was in the monastery, a former admirer came to her and urged her to leave the monastery, return to the world and take up a vicious craft. His name was Philostratus. By the providence of God, the deceitful and vulgar tricks of the former admirer were punished - he fell and died. After the prayers of Evdokia, Philostratus was resurrected, he repented of his sinful thoughts and returned to the city in peace. Evdokia’s former boyfriends were haunted by the thought of the wealth earned through a dissolute life with their help. They turned the local ruler against the saint and organized a campaign of three hundred soldiers to seize the wealth of the monastery. But the plan was not destined to come true. The Lord defeated the attackers on the women's community, including the ruler's son. Only a few people remained alive. They told the ruler the terrible news about the death of their son and the death of the entire army. Philostratus, once resurrected by Evdokia, convinced the ruler to stop pursuing the saint and ask her to save the heir. Through the prayers of the martyr, the ruler’s son was revived, the whole family repented and received holy baptism. Numerous cases are known of the resurrection of people by Evdokia through prayers to the Lord: the governor of Iliopolis - the pagan Diogenes and his servants, the wife of Diodorus, a youth bitten by a snake. Sincere repentance transformed the great sinner, making her a saint. Evdokia lived after baptism for about 60 years. Her death was a martyr's in the name of Jesus Christ: Evdokia was beheaded after her unwillingness to renounce God on the orders of Vincent, an ardent opponent of Christians.

On March 14, Orthodox Christians have a wonderful opportunity to become familiar with spiritual literature, because it is Orthodox Book Day. The purpose of the holiday is to popularize Orthodox literature, which teaches tolerance and love for one's neighbor. How often do we turn to such books in difficult situations? But for our ancestors, Christian literature was a source of knowledge; they used it to raise their children and learn to read and write. On this day, thematic lectures with the participation of clergy and presentations of new printed publications are held en masse in educational institutions and libraries throughout the country. Every year more and more people join this useful educational holiday, because such events are truly interesting and educational. The holiday was initiated by Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus'. It was December 25, 2009; the first celebration took place already in 2010, and the date was not chosen by the Holy Synod by chance. March 14 (old calendar - March 1) is considered the beginning of book printing in Rus' after the state printing house, which was built over 10 years, published the very first book. It took a whole year, but this book subsequently became a classic of Russian publishing. This was the famous "Apostle", published at the behest of Ivan the Terrible. Previously, the same printing house had published single copies of the Psalms, Gospels and Triodion. However, it is “The Apostle” that is considered to be the first official publication, because the printer Ivan Fedorov and his faithful assistant Pyotr Mstislavets indicated in the afterword the publication date of March 1, 1564. According to our usual Gregorian calendar, this falls on March 14th. By the way, from the first circulation of almost two thousand, only 67 copies of “The Apostle” have survived to date, one of them is in the famous Moscow museum “Kolomenskoye-Izmailovo-Lefortovo-Lublino”.