Wabbit Tracks & Easter Bunnies

While I do remember going to church on Easter Sunday as a little girl, that family ritual had stopped by the time I was in my early teens.  I remember liking church on Easter Sunday: my mother would dress my little sister and I up in pretty, frilly dresses, and I was allowed to wear my one-pearl necklace (for special occasions only).  Sometimes my sister (who is 3-1/2 years younger) and I would be dressed like twins--that was not so much fun.  I have one memory--it's from when my sister was around 3 years old (and I was around 6 years old), sitting in church on a sunny Easter Sunday: red, blue, purple, and yellow colors pouring onto my dress from the lighted stained glass windows.

In my adult secular memory, however, are more important rituals than church--more important because they involved happy family bonding, imaginative play, and fun.

One involved egg decorating.  This tradition came down via my German grandmother.  We called them "forest eggs," but my cousins called them "dinosaur eggs"--either way, they were difficult to make, but very cool.  (I'm sorry that I don't have a picture of them.)  In their natural state, they were various shades of green and yellow, with some orange and brown and white: shadowy images of plant outlines.  But they were often further colored with dyes: purple, blue, red, more orange, more yellow, more green,.... Here is how they are made:

They looked like the non-flowery eggs (left side).

 You will need:

• uncooked eggs
• lots of onion skins (the dryer, the better)
• thread
• various shapeley leaves (parsley, celery, clover,...); edible flowers (such as violets) are a nice addition of color and shape, too
• vinegar 
• food coloring (optional)

Directions:  

• Place the leaves loosely around the egg (do not clump too many together).
• Wrap onion skin on top of the leaves, to hold them in place.
• Tightly wrap thread around, and around the eggs, to hold everything in place.  Be sure that the thread is as tight as possible--I usually start off with a loose wrapping, tightening after the first 10-20 wrap-arounds.  Be careful to not wrap so tightly that you crack open the eggs!
• Carefully place the eggs into a pot of water.
• Add a little vinegar.
• Bring the water to a rapid boil.
• Turn the water off and cover the pot.
• Let sit for 20 minutes.
• Cool and unwrap your eggs. 
• OR dip your wrapped eggs into the food coloring/vinegar/water mixture (as you would in coloring other eggs).

Another ritual seemed to have been started by my grandfather (who was married to the above mentioned grandmother).  We would collect food for the Easter bunny (such as the above mentioned leaves, as well as flowers--if available) and leave it in a bowl for him on Easter Eve.  The next morning, all or most of the food would be gone; in its place would be a few unwrapped chocolate eggs (the Easter Bunny's poop).  We kids never ate those, but it was amusing--and gross when my grandfather would pop one into his own mouth.  Sometimes, too, we would wake up to find a bit of food coloring on our faces, arms, or hands--and my grandfather would tell us that the Easter Bunny had been looking over us, while he had been working on his eggs for us.

As you can see, for me, Easter has nothing to do with the Christian faith.  Then again, the Easter Bunny is not a part of the Christian faith.  According to Lawrence Cunningham (a theology professor at the University of Notre Dame and Christianity editor for the HarperCollins Dictionary of Religion),   there isn't "...any intrinsic value to the rabbit to the resurrection of Jesus Christ;"  symbols such as eggs and bunnies, "to some extent return to their pre-Christian roots as symbols of spring fertility" ("Spring Bunny vs. Easter Rabbit").    According to Barbara G. Walker:

The Easter Bunny began with the pagan festival of the springtime Goddess Eostre, when it was said that the Goddess's totem, the Moon-hare, would lay eggs for good children to eat1. . . .  Eostre's hare was the shape that Celts imaged on the surface of the full moon, derived from old Indo-European sources.  In Sanskrit, the moon was cacin, "that which is marked with the Hare." 2   Queen Boadiccea's banners displayed the Moon-hare as a sacred sign.  Both hares and cats were designated the familiars of witches in Scotland, where the word malkinmawkin was applied to both.3  (The Woman's Dictionary of Symbols & Sacred Objects, 377) or

Easter Bunny legends apparently began in Germany, in the 1500s, and by the 1880s the Germans had begun promoting the ritual of chocolate bunnies (Kevin Shortsleeve), so it is no surprise to me that my German grandmother would have encouraged her family egg-making traditions.  (My grandfather's so-called "traditions," however, seem to have been only inspired by his wife's traditions; a bit of a parody of them--I believe.)  

While I mostly grew up with a secular Easter--religion had nothing to do with it--it was a lovely game of magic and fun.  This does not at all demean the importance of my family's rituals.  Imaginary games are important.  Karl Sven Rosengren and Carl N. Johnson observe, "More generally, children's capacity to pretend has been linked to a wide range of social and cognitive skills, including language development (Ervin-Tripp, 1991), social competence (Singer & Singer, 1990), memory development (Newman, 1990), exploration and mastery of emotional themes (Bretherton, 1989), and logical reasoning (Dias & Harris, 1990) (Imagining the Impossible: Magical, Scientific, and Religious Thinking in Children, 247).  

So, I say, in the important spirit of imagination: 

Happy Easter everyone!

TRANSCRIPT

ELMER: Rabbit tracks! [pointing spear at tracks]

ELMER: [jabbing spear into rabbit hole, singing] Kill the wabitt; kill the wabbit!

BUGGS: Kill the rabbit?!

----------------------------
1 de Lys, Claudia.  The Giant Book of Superstitions.  Secaucus, NJ: Citadel Press, 1979: 117.
2 Baring-Gould, Sabine.  Curious Myths of the Middle Ages.  New York: University Books, 1967: 204.
3 Potter, Stephen, and Laurens Sargent. Pedigree.  New York: Taplinger, 1974: 71.

Medievalism, Dwarwinism, and Disabilitizing

Medievalism

Anatomical Man, Les Très Riches Heures du duc de Berry.

The mysteries of the human body have generated some very creative thinking, and there is a reason why the medical arts were originally considered to be a part of the "arts" rather than "sciences" (as these medieval illustrations emphasize).  In the Middle Ages, medicine was dominated by religious and artistic thinking.  The Middle Ages were not "dark" ages ("dark" suggests that there was no creative or ingenuitive thinking), nor were they a time of purely fantasy-world living.  However, they were a time of unscientific, anti-philosophical, and thus often unreasonable thinking--from our contemporary day perspective.  For example, most contemporary practices of medieval medicine hold very little scientific support.  Medieval medical practices took on a very different philosophical, scientific, and religious approach.  Observes Nancy G. Siraisi, "The criticisms of medical practitioners that were frequently voiced usually sprang less from dissatisfaction with medicine's limited effectiveness than from religious tradition, with its powerful themes linking healing with religious charity and miraculous intervention, and its assertion of the priority of the healing of the soul over the healing of the body" (Medieval & Early Renaissance Medicine: An Introduction to Knowledge and Practice 43).


Perspective is everything.

13th century illustration of viens.

 We think that we are enlightened, and certainly we are more enlightened than folks of medieval Europe--just as a 13-year-old is more enlightened than a 5-year-old; however, like a 13-year-old, we (as a society) often seem unable to recognize the limitations of our intellectual collective growth.  Those who study medievalism, spend a great deal of energy pointing out the aspects of contemporary thought (in literature, in the arts, in politics, in popular culture, and so forth) that are yet more "medieval" than they are "contemporary" in nature.  Indeed, one need only make a quick observation (much less a deeper analysis) of medievalism in video games to know that the desire to move backwards in the time-space continuum is strong.  Some thinkers call this re-invention of the Middle Ages, which often has a sci-fi twist (such as the blending of space aliens and elves in World of Warcraft) to be a type of neomedievalism.  It's all a lot of fun! 


However, such fantasies of the medieval world are not...well, realistic.  Indeed, it appears worthwhile to take a closer look at the treatment of, for example, the "disabled" in the Middle Ages. (I write "disabled" in quotes because, as I will argue in another blog post, disability is a matter of perspective, too.)  For example, promising scholar observes, "The fact that deaf-mutes are mentioned in legal records (and I'm certain they're mentioned elsewhere, of course!) doesn't mean that they're irrelevant to historians. One would think that these legal references would be seen in a positive light: they certainly demonstrate that medieval understandings of deafness (and disability in general) may very well have been quite sensible and practical in taking real-life considerations into account instead of painting the deaf (or disabled) with a single brush" (Medieval Cripples, Crazies and Imbeciles...and a Service Dog? "Disabled Histories: Part I").1


Darwinism
The contemporary practice "of painting the deaf (or disabled) with a single brush" has not been sufficiently dis-mantled (disabled).  Indeed, mis-guided applications of Charles Darwin's Theory of Evolution seem to have only strengthened this abusive practice. The concepts of "natural selection" and "survival of the fittest" have been misapplied to mean more of a medievalist "might makes right" argument than the more scientific and reasonable (and actual) argument that--over a period of many years--certain characteristics might be deemed more desirable or necessary to survival than others.  For example, the qualities of "natural selection" of a mate can be quite varied and are far from being "correct" or even appropriate to survival.  Furthermore, the qualities of "survival of the fittest" do not justify inhumane practices, much less the broad-sweeping assumption that only a small percentage of the human population is disabled--that's a myth.  The reality is that only a small percentage of the various types of both physical and mental disabilities in only a small percentage of the human population have been identified.


One unidentified, and seemingly (so far) unexplicable disability--a mental one--involves the inability to rationally perceive Evolution Theory.2   As, amazingly, a relatively recent article illustrates ("Scopes Weeps: Evolution Still Struggling in Public Schools"), reality seems to be much more difficult to accept than fantasy!  Fantasy is a wonderful (and even sometimes healthy) escape--it illustrates the wonderful creative thinking of which human beings are capable.  But to insist that we live in a fantasy world all the time--to call (as I once saw being done in a college level biology class) Evolution little more than an "atheist belief" that is on equal par with Creationism is, well INSANE.  No wonder, then, that a passionate movement to celebrate Charles Darwin's birthday ("Tell Congress to Approve the Darwin Day Resolution!") is on the rise.  


And no wonder we have...

Minchin-ism

"Storm" by Tim Minchin--as seen on Pharyngula (scienceblogs)


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1 For more information about medieval disability studies, consider Disability in the Middle Ages (Ed. Joshua R. Eyler) or Disability in the Middle Ages: Impairment at the Intersection of Historical Inquiry and Disability Studies (Irina Metzler).

2 Please see my previous blog entry, "Theory vs. Belief vs. Opinion" (Hiccuping Thoughts).

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THEORY vs. BELIEF vs. OPINION

Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster

I am so tired of people saying to me, about Evolution, "It's just a theory," as if being "just" a theory suggests that it is little more than an opinion or a belief.  These are different words, with different meanings--or at least they once held very different meanings.  I blame a general mis-use (or lack of use) of a quality dictionary (or of any dictionary whatsoever). 

So, let's review some terms.  Belief is an opinion or conviction about something, a confidence that something is true (regardless of evidence or lack thereof).  Opinion is a belief or judgment made with limited or insufficient evidence, a personal perspective. It is possible to have a very strong opinion--one that is passionately supported.  It is also possible to have a very reasonable opinon--one that is supported by logic and a limited number of facts.  Theory has a much broader set of meanings, ranging from conjecture and speculation to a coherent, logical group of principals based upon facts.  There lies the problem: theory means everything from a belief to an opinion to a factually supported analysis.  In the science world, theory is a technical term used for verified or established explanations for phenomena, based upon facts and logic.   Thus the English language seems to have evolved with the merging of meanings: theory = opinion = belief.  This apparent merging only proves to me that not all evolution is either positive or constructive. 

From "Evident Creation: The Evolution Myth"

What is worse: there is an irrational campaign that works upon the logical fallacy that Darwin's SCIENTIFIC Theory of Evolution is little more than some sort of belief system.  This suggests to me that there is a fundamental misunderstanding of the differences between science and religion.  I'm sorry, but, no: physics is not a religion.  There is a real danger here.  Suppose, for example, that your doctor believes that all men should have estrogen pumped into them to help reduce violent, aggressive tendencies?  Where are the fact-based studies to support this "theory"? For a more realistic (historically accurate) example, suppose that your doctor believes the reason your menstruation has either stopped or become irregular is because you haven't had enough sex or are unmarried (see "Women and Medicine in the Middle Ages & Renaissance")?  Amusing in opinion but certainly not in theory!

What's my point?  Simply this:

There is nothing rational 

about the concept of believing

in Evolutionary Theory.
(No one is asking you to believe reality.)

Tim Minchin

Brownies

Crispy on the outside, moist and rich on the inside.  (I like to use Olivio margarine to grease the pan, and Ghirardelli 70% cocoa chocolate for the dark chocolate.)  

1/2 cup unsalted butter

4 oz. unsweetened chocolate squares (4 squares)

4 eggs

2 cups sugar

1 Tbsp. of flavoring 
   (such as vanilla, Irish Creme or Kahlua) 

1 cup flour
1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 cup  dark chocolate, chopped 
   (70% cocoa is great)

Melt butter and unsweetened chocolate together.
Beat eggs together until foamy.
Add salt, sugar, and flavoring; mix well.
Mix in flour; mix well; let sit for about 10 minutes (until it gets bubbly).
Stir in melted butter and chocolate; mix well.
Add  chopped dark chocolate.
Pour into well greased 13 x 9" glass pan.  
Bake: 350° F for 25-35 minutes.