Juleigh Howard-Hobson The May Queen. We celebrate her appearance and her blossoming forth at this time of the year through Walpurgis observances, May Day faires, and Beltaine festivities. We’ve always known her, whether she is called by her ancient names of Flora, Maia, or Freya or the relatively modern names of Godiva, Guinevere, or…
Juleigh Howard-Hobson With their intricately wrought designs and deepset colors, Ukrainian Pysanky eggs are as fascinating as they are lovely. Pronounced “peh-san-keh”, these decorated eggs are considered Easter Eggs these days, and/or seen as examples of Eastern European folk art by collectors and tourists alike. But Pysanky (singular Pysanka) are far more numinous than that.…
Juleigh Howard-Hobson Just as there is an abundance of milk and dark chocolate bunnies this time of year, rabbits themselves possess both light and dark folkloric aspects. The sweet side is well known far and wide, not only as the Easter Bunny, but also as Tsuki no Usag the cute Japanese rabbit who mashes mochi…
