March 28, 2024

April Fool’s Day in no joke

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This archived article was written by: Hailey Peyton Sellers

y came out of nowhere. Sources have varying explanations. But let’s be serious, humans just want to have a good laugh at each other. In this  world we go through many levels of stress. Fooling around never hurt anyone. It’s a refreshing (and, dare I say, necessary) practice to swap the salt with sugar, or put a little Vaseline on the bathroom door handle.
There is one popular theory about how one day was dedicated to making jokes acceptable. In the 1500s, there was a change in calendars. The Julian Calendar had been used for centuries by the Roman world, Europe and European settlements in the Americas. Edits were gradually made and eventually it was replaced by the Gregorian Calendar, officially published by Pope Gregory XIII. The new calendar put the New Year’s Day on January 1. 
This update was either rejected by some or didn’t spread quickly enough. So, some people had no clue. Stubborn traditionalists and the clueless continued to celebrate the new year on April 1. Others who accepted the change, made fun of the poor folks stuck on April 1. They would trick them into believing false stories, or play practical jokes. 
The only thing a little funny with this theory is there is some evidence claiming that the April Fool’s tradition was already established in England before the calendar change.
So, really, humans have always wanted to fool around. 
Don’t forget to snag some free cotton candy at the library next Saturday.
April Fool’s Day advice:
Be there when they are fooled.
Film it. Don’t trust anyone. Laugh it off.