Cinco De Mayo: Celebrating the Underdog

It's NOT Mexican Independence Day.  But for some it may be an excuse to drink tequila and eat tacos. (Do you really need an excuse to drink tequila and eat tacos?  The "holiday" after all, this year falls on Tuesday which has managed to become "Taco Tuesday" for many households.)  There is reason to celebrate and remember Cinco de Mayo, even if you're not in Mexico.

Cinco de Mayo actually signifies/celebrates the day of an unlikely win for the Mexican Army over a much larger and better trained French army in Puebla.  (Not include a bunch of ragtag colonial army fighting off the British.)  We can ignore the fact that the French eventually DID defeat the Mexican army and ruled from 1864-1867.

When the "little guy" triumphs over the "big baddie" it's always worth celebrating.  After all, don't we all identify with the "little guy?"  Haven't we all, in one way or another been picked on by a "big baddie?"    Why not celebrate Cinco de Mayo, if only to remind ourselves that sometimes despite the odds, the underdog can win.

So don't let Cinco de Mayo pass you by without thinking about what it really means.  Don't deny yourself that taco, burrito or even that margarita.  But do remember that it's all because of small army of Mexican men who defied the odds on May 5, 1862.