Written by Brittany
This is the
first holiday we’ve experienced here that is majorly different than what we are
used to back home.
For starters,
Easter here is celebrated on Monday, not Sunday. Our students have told us that
only if you are religious is Sunday part of the holiday.
There are some
similarities. There are still chocolate Easter bunnies & Easter candies
sold in the grocery stores. Some families do the Easter Bunny, but that varies.
I had some students say their family does it every year and others say that
their family has never done it.
They also
decorate eggs, but here they paint them instead of dye. The painting of eggs is
also seen as a female activity. You can see a picture of them below. Clearly it
takes a bit more time & skill than the usual dying kit from Kroger.
 |
| Beautiful painted eggs! |
Now, the
differences.
Based on an old
pagan tradition, Easter Monday is a day when men spank women with a whipping
stick the men make from willow branches.
This stick is called a pomlázka in Czech. The branches are
twined together and ribbons are tied on the end.
 |
| The pomlázka or whipping stick |
The men then go
door to door to find and spank all the women in the house. As they spank them,
they are supposed to say an Easter poem. The ancient thought behind this tradition
is that whipping the women with tree branches will give them health, beauty,
and fertility during the coming year. Essentially, it will give them the energy
of the tree.
Once the women
have been spanked, the men are then given painted eggs, chocolates, money, or
shots of alcohol before they go on to the next house.
Women do have a
small chance for revenge, though. The spanking is only supposed to go until
noon. If someone comes to spank them after noon, the women can pour cold water
on him.
Since we live in
a city, we weren't part of any of this yesterday. And our students told us that in Prague they
really only do it to people they know. But if we were in a small village, they
said they would go to each house, so it’s a bigger tradition in the villages
than in the capital city.
So let’s just
say, we’re glad to live in the city :)
 |
| Old Town Square decorated for Easter |
Prayer Requests:
-
Drama
Club – opening night is in 8 days!
-
Health
– Brittany came home from Istanbul with food poisoning.
-
Our
senior students as they prepare for their exams next month.
Praises:
-
We
had a great trip to Istanbul, even if it did end with food poisoning.
-
Such
great drama club students! They have made something very stressful into
something very fun!
-
Even
though Brittany was in bed all day Easter Sunday, so we didn’t get to celebrate
at church, we are still praising God for giving us His son, and praising that
the tomb is empty!!
