The White House has made some changes this year for the annual Easter eggstravaganza, the Easter Egg Roll. In years past, people stood in line overnight for tickets. Now the 27,000 tickets are available online through a lottery. That's a reasonable change. What else is different? Let's start at the beginning...
First Lady Lucy Hayes (1877-81) started the custom of inviting children for egg rolling at Easter on the White House lawn. Music was added in 1889 as the United States Marine Band (conducted by John Philip Sousa HIMSELF) was asked to play for the children.
Here are some lost or strayed children with a White House policeman during the Easter egg roll in 1920.
This boy is proud of his prize basket at the 1929 event. I would just like to mention that the toys inside this basket would go for a fortune on eBay today. "Truss me" (as Nate would say).
During the Nixon administration, they tried an egg hunt with real eggs. Apparently all the hidden eggs were not found and that led to olfactory distress. Nixing that...the next year they introduced egg roll races, using spoons from the WH kitchen.
A member of First Lady Pat Nixon's staff was the first to dress as a human-sized bunny. Since then, furry bunnies and other book characters stroll through the crowd.
Here the White House chefs prepare eggs...
And former First Lady Barbara Bush reads to the children...
The Clinton's began a tradition of giving a souvenir wooden egg to each child as they leave the egg roll. This year the eggs are "green" (eco-friendly, created from U.S. Forest Service certified hardwood, colored with water-based coating, decorated with vegetable-based inks) and are available in a variety of colors.
The Obama White House announced that this year they have reserved 3,000 of the free tickets for students in the DC public/charter schools. The school district lady is receiving the tickets from Education Secretary Arne Duncan. Another block of tickets were reserved for gay and lesbian couples to bring their children. That would be in line with President Obama's goal of diversity and making the White House available to everyone.
You know, the Easter egg roll is not paramount on the world's scene or on anyone's urgent list. It's a children's event. But somehow all this stuff leaves me blue.
Music has gone from John Philip Sousa to Fergie in a short dress that at the least revealed a decorum deficit. She told the audience that she wore her "girlie little white dress" for Easter...and then she began a song with lyrics that required she leave out curse words. Gee, I sound like someone's mother...but PUH-LEEEZE...wasn't this an audience of children?
And what else has it become? The White House has selected a theme for the egg roll of "Ready, Set, Go". That's in keeping with their new fitness theme for children. They plan to have booths that teach sports techniques (taught by sports heroes), story telling, cooking, and live music.
Do you see the bunny on the seal? He is wearing running shorts.
Am I the only one who finds all this commotion "Third Rock from the Sun" absurd? What has any of this to do with Easter?
Of course Presidents have come and gone and they have all hosted the Easter egg roll. Isn't it just a fun, cultural tradition? Yes. It's not meant to be a religious event. True. So it's harmless?
The Easter egg roll is harmless unless the next generation has no idea why Easter is celebrated. God so loved the world....
"This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life." John 3.16 TM
Outta the way, Easter Bunny! That "whole and lasting" life sounds pretty good to me!
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