So, it seems that the topic of this post is a little "past it's sell-by date", but...
1) So is the hot cross bun I just ate, and that was still good,
And...
2) We have only just hit May, and I'm pretty sure we've all still got the bank holiday fever, due to the very many there have been lately...
So I thought, "what the hell"?!
Anyone who knows me well enough, will know that there are two holidays I celebrate more than any other, every year... and yes people! That means more than Christmas too... And that's Easter, and Halloween. I believe in the original beliefs, when it comes to holidays, and that's the Pagan beliefs.
Easter: Celebrating Life!
The very well known symbol of Easter is the egg. This represents life, and fertility.
The Easter bunny originated from the theory that whenever the moon was a full, the Pagan Goddess would like to transform into a hare, and run through the forests, to look up at the moon, and bathe in the bright light than beamed down...
Hot cross buns however, have 2 pagan theories. Some say that the point of the cross was to ward off any evil spirits, and others say that it represents the four quarters of the moon. (I prefer this theory too!)
Halloween: Celebrating Death!
This is a picture of me last Halloween, with a random cat we found walking the streets, and my friend Sean too (I think you can just about make him out in the background...)
Now, I'm sure a lot of people, when reading that pagans celebrate death, will think things such as... "Why would you celebrate death?" or/and "Probably because they enjoyed the element of death." No. Halloween is there to celebrate death, in the way that it is accepted that death is indeed a part of life, and has to happen to everyone, and everything, and should be celebrated. Although life does go on. A dead tree that has fallen to the ground, will be covered in the growth of moss. And no one ever really dies, as long as there memory is lived on through the memories of the living... So, on the night of Halloween, people will celebrate the memories of the lives once lived by the now deceased, by dressing up in their scariest masks and costumes, to frighten away evil spirits, and face their personal demons, by raising a glass! A lot of people also choose to spend their evenings doing scarier things like telling ghost stories, watching scary films, or even choosing to visit a haunted house, as this too, is another way of facing your fears, and scaring them away. And death, although a natural cause, can indeed be bloody scary!
Here's another picture from Halloween last year, but of how I decorated my living room...
So, this Easter, I decorated my front room with a home-made tree of life. I found a dead mini christmas tree from a few years ago, and stuck it in a pot. I decorated it with little hanging eggs, and I put some coloured shredded paper in the bottom of the pot, to give it an extra boost of colour. (I told you that life goes on!) This was rested around the bottom of my fireplace, and brightened the living room up straight away! There were also some yellow flowers in a vase on my window sill.
Friday 22nd April: A Good Go Karting Friday!
(Me and Kade)
Myself, my boyfriend Kade, my brother, and a few friends of friends, decided to take a trip to the local race track. I, of course being the only girl, came last in the second race, but won the first, as I beat my brother...Victory is mine! ...But this was certainly a good way to celebrate your life, by living it in an extreme way, and racing your heart out, against many other boisterous boys, as they over take you...
Do something daring to celebrate living. Maybe one easter I will sky-dive, or swim with sharks when I have a fear of them!
Later that evening, me and Kade went for a meal, and enjoyed our favourite wine with it. A perfect end to the day.
Saturday 23rd April: The Feaster Easter Saturday!
I decorated the dinner table, with confetti, and laid out various easter foods, such as hot cross buns, easter biscuits, mini eggs, and other nibbles. I made home-made cocktails, and invited a couple of friends over, for the celebration. We ate, drank, sang songs, and laughed a lot, until late.
Here is a picture of my friend Sean, myself, and Kade, on top of my shed roof. A fond memory...
On Sunday, I made a mini Easter Egg hunt for Kade and my brother, and we all ate a lot of chocolate... and then again on Monday... and also on Tuesday, where I finished my easter bunny, which had my name written on it, bought for me, from Kade :) We sat by the moat, and just relaxed as we watched the swans, and spoke about various things, including the topic of the homeless man, who was sitting near us, laughing to himself, as he watched a family enjoying their easter...
