After being off with ill kids last week, I have been ill for the last three days. I am feeling a lot better today and even chanced a cup of coffee (my first since Sunday).
So I thought I'd take this chance to have a blog catch up before the
Vernal Equinox celebrations (Easter) begins.
No, I'm not being clever or Pagan, I just had to look up in my 'Wheel of the Year-Living the Magical Life' book by Pauline Campanelli, and found out some interesting thing's I thought I'd share -
At the time of the Vernal Equinox, eggs are used for the creation of talismans and were also ritually eaten. There is little doubt that clutches of eggs laid by many different kinds of birds in the Spring were a welcome dietary supplement to early hunter/gatherers after the spareness of Winter. It is also possible that gathering a variety of eggs from nests of birds by our ancient ancestors gave rise to two customs still popular today-The Easter Egg Hunt and coloring eggs in imitation of various pastel colors of the eggs of wild birds.Ahhh, that makes sense now. I often wonder why we do these strange little rituals and my Pagan handbook always gives me the answer. I am not religious, but living in a Christian Country we (our family) observe most of the festivals in some way and I like to have a overview of why we (society) do these things and what the pre-Christian festival would have been.
It also puts a non-consumerist perspective on it all which is also something I am keen to pass onto my kids.
It's not all about chocolate, kids, but let's eat some while thinking about nature.
My book also gives the natural dyes for your eggs-
Soft Orange - Single skin of a onion
Deep Rust - A handful of onion skins
Sunny Yellow - One and half teaspoons of turmeric
Pink- Beetroot juice and vinegar or pickled beetroot juice
Robins Egg Blue - Vinegar and several layers of red cabbage leaves boiled with the eggs and left to cool overnight.
Might have to give it a go, I'll report back if I do.
In the postal receiving department I got a lovely matchbox full of buttons, plus extra buttons and this most brilliant stamp from Lia at Sleepyside Farm, I have stamped everything that's not moved so far, I'm now going to start on the things that do move!
Now, do you want to see what the Easter Bunny really looks like?
Sorry Dad, hehehe!
