The White House Easter egg roll
The White House Easter egg roll is a game played on Easter Monday on the lawn of the White House. The goal of the game is to push hard-boiled eggs down a track made of wooden sticks very quickly. The contestant who has pushed their egg fastest is the winner. Children and their parents use a sizable spoon for pushing the eggs. Unless the eggs are broken, they are eaten after the game.
The White House Easter egg roll was introduced in 1814 by the wife of
President James Madison, Dolley Madison. Originally, they played on the
grounds of the United States Capitol until President Rutherford B. Hayes
brought the event to the lawn of the White House. Franklin D. Roosevelt
forbid the games during his term in office. Mamie Eisenhower, the wife
of Dwight. D. Eisenhower, revived the games and even opened the event to
black children for the very first time. Same-sex couples were first
invited to join the games by Barack Obama in 2009.
During the game, there are famous persons of the White House in the guise of various movie characters strolling around and Cabinet secretaries are reading to the children.
The tradition of egg rolling also exists in Denmark, Germany, Lithuania and Egypt. Yet every tradition is individual. In Denmark, for instance, the eggs are rolled down a hill. Whose egg rolls furthest wins the game.Legend relates that Egg rolling became a symbol of the rolling away of the rock from Jesus' tomb before he resurrected. The Easter egg roll was brought to North America by the European settlers.
These were the highlights of the White House Easter egg roll of 2013:
Wish you all a very Happy Easter,
a joyful time and looots of chocolate and candies!
image source (1): http://www.wh.gov/sites/default/files/image/eer/eggs_0.jpg
image source (2): http://www.thedesertreview.com/wp-content/upLoads/2013/03/white-house-egg-hunt-eg-01_photoblog900.jpg
image source (3): http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/37/Barack_Obama_at_this_2009_White_House_Easter_Egg_Roll.jpg
Unfortunately, it's been a while since Easter but I only saw this post today and found it pretty entertaining! I've never heard of Egg rolling before (and definitely didn't know it existed in Germany!). But the idea is hilarious! I just imagined all the members of the White House rolling eggs in the backyard... :D Maybe I should persuade my family to try that out next year, too.
ReplyDeleteI really like your entire blog, by the way. It's varied, informative and entertaining at the same time - thumbs up!!