Our local dollar shop started stocking Easter paraphernalia as soon as Australia Day was out the way.
An array of straw hats stacked in precarious piles, ribbons, stickers and hundreds of tiny yellow chicks lined up on the shelves like an army of fluff poised for action.
By this morning, all this stock had been transformed into Easter hats and they were on procession around playgrounds all over the neighborhood.
Hats or bonnets have been part of Easter celebrations for generations. Once upon a time women would get dressed up in their finest clothes and bonnet to attend church on Easter Sunday. Over time, making a new hat for Easter became a tradition.
In Australia, the Easter hat parade has become part of the school calendar. But For some parents, the hat making can be a bit of a headache.
One mother at my daughters’ school confessed that she was over it.
“What’s the point of it?” she asked.
“Wasting plastic? Wasting time? Wasting money? Celebrating a religious holiday which public schools shouldn’t be celebrating?”
When I think about the amount of plastic stacked in our local dollar shop year after year I have to admit that I get her point. Maybe it’s time to introduce an element of recycling into the festivities.
So what about the religious element? It makes sense to celebrate Easter if you are a Christian, but in our multicultural society not everyone observes it.
These guys get it.
I am not a religious person; my children do ethics instead of scripture and have never set foot in a church. So is it weird that they’re participating in what is essentially a religious tradition?
Most of the parents that I spoke to said that while they are not overtly religious, they thought the Easter Hat parade was just “a bit of fun”.
” I Love it .. It’s so beautiful to see the kids wearing their hats and I enjoy making the hats with them,” said Saffron.
Likewise, Cath said: “It is so fun for the kids and they are so proud of their creations.”
I have to admit that my heart swelled when I saw my daughters in their hats. And they were both very happy to be joining in. In fact, my youngest daughter was so excited about her first Easter hat parade that she was up before sunrise.
So while we might not all agree on the merits of the Easter hat parade, it’s probably safe to say we can all agree that it’s cute to see the little ones marching around in their carefully assembled bonnets.
“It’s my favourite school event,” said Marnee.
“The kids love it – and that’s what matters most.”
