Zebra walks through the spring meadow, past red tulips, purple hyacinths and yellow dandelions. Okapi leans against a tree trunk and holds its nose in the sun.
-Hey, Okapi, how much do you know about traditions?
Okapi tilts its head and thinks for a moment. -Not too much, I have to admit.
-So you can't tell me what Easter is all about?
Okapi's eyes widen. -So everyone knows that Christianity celebrates the resurrection after death.
Zebra nods. -The festival stands for the overcoming of death and suffering.
-Yes, and the ancient annual festival of the goddess Ostara also celebrates life. It's about the start of spring, new life blossoming and nature awakening again.
-You do know quite a lot about it, smiles Zebra.
-Yes, even more about Ostara, because her name is the origin of the word 'Easter'. She comes from Germanic mythology and is often depicted as the goddess of dawn, who brings longer days and the promise of new growth after the darkness of winter. She is usually associated with fertility symbols such as eggs and rabbits.
-But now I want to ask you another question: Do you notice the difference between how Easter is traditionally celebrated and the actual values of the holiday? Easter is a symbol of new beginnings and life, but somehow this is celebrated with a pile of meat on a plate.
Okapi is scratching its hoof on the spring-saturated earth. -People decorate with cute rabbit and lamb figures because they are so adorable. And the real, live animals made of flesh and blood are slaughtered and cooked, roasted and devoured. Although they were much cuter than the decorations.
-Have you ever seen a little lamb jumping around? - Zebra wants to know. -I was lucky enough to see one yesterday and I really liked it, with its shiny eyes that have yet seen so little of this world and its curly coat. Full of adventurousness and joie de vivre.
-Yes, luckily I've seen many of them. Grown up sheep are also very pleasant contemporaries. They radiate a lot of strength and calm. The memory brings a smile to Okapi's face.
-And what advice would you give to people who still like to celebrate the festival and don't want to lose their traditions?
-You can think about how you could celebrate with alternatives that fit in better with the original ideas.
-Yes, you could create new traditions together that fit in better with Easter. Maybe plant spring flowers together or prepare a plant-based feast. Then next time you can tell me what new customs there are.
Okapi muses: -If you consciously deal with the old customs, you can combine old and new values and introduce more peaceful traditions so that Easter becomes a real celebration of life and new beginnings.
-And what do the chickens say? asks Zebra.
-They invite everyone to take a closer look at them. They are really intelligent people that can do much more than most humans realise. But more on that another time
.