Writing about holiday traditions can be a lot of fun. And because Easter is coming up (and jellybeans and chocolate eggs seem to be everywhere I look) I’m beginning to reminisce about past Easters and how my family celebrated.

My mom always placed our Easter baskets right outside our bedroom doors. My sisters and I would joyfully rifle through the goodies, sorting through the plastic grass to find the jellybeans that had fallen through to the bottom of the basket.

I never had the willpower of my sisters – within hours the Peeps were gone, followed by anything fruit flavored. The chocolate I saved for last, by which I mean the afternoon, when all of my candy was gone and I'd start to look longingly at my sisters' stash. My mom wised up and transferred her energy to nonedible items: fun socks, trinkets, and books.

I can still picture her teacher-perfect handwriting inside the front cover of many books:

Dear Kate,

Happy Easter! I thought this was a great read.
Hope you enjoy it, too!
 
Love,
The Easter Bunny

The Easter Bunny.

A bunny that brings treats via hollow plastic eggs nestled in fake grass in baskets. Who came up with that? Could any of us accurately explain this strange tradition?

A quick online search tells me that the tradition is traced back to Germany and Eastern France in the 1500s, so this hare that brings eggs for Easter probably came to the United States with the settlers from that region, just like Saint Nicholas.

Could I really explain the Easter Bunny to my sponsored girls in a succinct way? Should I even try?

This is a good and necessary tip: If you write to your sponsored child about Easter, please leave out the bunny. Even the best explanation could be lost in translation, leaving only confusion.

Trying to figure out what you meant about a bunny bearing gifts distracts from the real focus of this holiday. But does that mean you should avoid talking about your traditions in any way?

Of course not -- you can still mention going to church, singing songs to God, celebrating the day with joy.

And gifts and sweets are a part of many family traditions. You can mention this practice without bringing up the baffling bunny. Gifts – that is a great way to talk about the gift of Jesus! Through Jesus’ resurrection, we can receive the free gift of salvation. Through Him we have a living hope, something that that will never perish, spoil or fade (1 Peter 1:3-4).

That is the sweetest gift of all, and a much clearer source for family traditions.