The significance of popcorn

There are 2 (of many) things that signify a religious holiday to the habesha. One of them is tossing long grass all over the floor. I am not sure what this means. Popcorn is the other commodity seen in abundance on holidays and I do know the reason.

There are a handful of crops that are especially attributed to the deity of which the most common is popcorn. Even in America, this plentiful member of the corn family has cultural significance in native populations. At the MoFED cafeteria, there is always long grass on the floor and many bowls/dishes of popcorn around during religious holidays. Habesha (at least the Orthodox Christians) are now in a 2-month fast that began 13 days ago and continues until Good Friday. From time-to-time at MoFED this grass appears on the floor and is then not seen for days.