Sunday, April 20, 2008

Easter bells and willow branches

Since Serbian Orthodox Easter falls on April 27th this year, today is Palm Sunday or Vrbice, the last Sunday before Easter when willow branches (vrbica=Vur-BEET-sa) are carried or worn as wreaths by little children, who hang little bells with Serbian tricolor ribbons—red, blue, and white—around their necks and parade three times around the church.

A SPLASH OF COLOR

I know it's early for spring. I glimpsed some forsythia near where I live, but otherwise I am surrounded with drabness. However, today d...