Happy Easter!

     Being a full-service blog, today's topic will be the origin of Easter.  The word Easter comes from the name of a fertility god worshipped by the old English as "Ostara" and the ancient Celts as "Eostre."  Both groups revered the rabbit for its prodigious ability to reproduce.  In fact, the Celtic Eostre was believed to change into an enormous rabbit at the full moon.  Imagine that.

     The Easter egg came from the ancient Egyptians, who equated the egg with the symbol of birth and life.  They believed that the Earth hatched from a (very, very large) egg, and would bury their nobility with eggs in the tombs.  Over time, egg worship spread throughout Europe, and the Europeans would paint or dye their eggs as a means of teaching children about the resurrection of Christ. 

     So, enjoy your Easter, whether you celebrate it for the coming of spring and new life, or for its Christian traditions.  Either way, here's to the renewal of the cycle of life.