21 March - Wednesday

Spring Solstice, Verbobositsa
World Poetry Day
International Day of the Puppeteer
International Forest Day

1965 American automatic interplanetary station "Ranger-9" launched to the Moon

http://www.calend.ru/img/content_events/i6/6538.jpg

The dates associated with the solar cycle, many peoples celebrated as festive. The spring equinox, which falls on March 20 or 21 on a new style, was no exception. It was believed that from this moment the real spring begins.
In Russia they said that the spring sunshine is visited by the messengers of Paradise - the larks, bringing with them heat. "The sun will come and to our windows" - people were waiting for this day.
Also on the vernal equinox was the day of the pussy - by this date it was already to be dismissed: "Time for the Willow to become silver". Branches of willows were brought into the house: it was believed that she expelled from the house all gravity - household malfunctions, quarrels, illnesses. At the same time, very unpleasant superstitions are connected with this tree. They said, for example: "Who will plant a willow - he prepares for himself a spade" -that meant that a person would die when a shovel could be woven from a tree.
However, this belief did not prevent the use of the willow for medicinal purposes. Before flowering peasants prepared a bark and dried it in attics with good ventilation. Later, tea was prepared from it with the addition of anise, lime-colored and raspberry. The decoction of the bark was rinsed with stomatitis and throat with sore throat. Powder from it was often used as a hemostatic. Also, the decoction of the willow bark and oak bark was added to the bath from pains in the legs.
On this day, it was noted: if the clouds swim across the sky quickly and high - the weather will be good. They also said that if there was a snowstorm, and the snow lay on the fields with waves - this was a good harvest of bread and vegetables.