The Easter Hare - A German Legend

At Easter this year I had heard there was an Easter folk story about the Easter Hare - but I struggled to find it. Finally I was given this one ... I'm not sure where it comes from but its lovely for pre-schoolers for whom, I think, the real Easter story is far too much to comprehend.

A long time ago, there was a village where the people were very poor. One Easter the mothers had no money to buy their children the sweets they usually gave them on Easter Sunday.

The mothers knew the children would be very disappointed.
'What shall we do' they asked each other.
'Well, we have plenty of eggs' said one.
' But the children are tired of eggs' said another.

Then one of the mothers had an idea, and by dinner-time all the mothers in the village knew about it, but not a single child. Early in the morning, the mothers went into the woods with little baskets. You could not see what was in the baskets, as they were covered with coloured cloths. When the mothers returned home, the cloths were tied about their head like scarves and the baskets were filled with flowers.

'My mother went to pick flowers for Easter this morning' said one child, as they all walked together. 'So did mine' said another. 'And mine too' said all the others and laughed for they were happy and it was Easter Sunday.

When they came out of church, the children were told to go and play in the woods before dinner. Off they ran, laughing and talking.

The girls and boys picked flowers and climbed trees when someone shouted 'Look what I've found'.
'A RED egg'.
'I've found a BLUE one'.
''Here's a nestful, they are all different colours'.
They ran about searching for eggs and filling their pockets and hats.
'What kind of eggs are they?' they asked each other.
'They're too big for wild birds' eggs.'
'They're the same size as hens' eggs'.
'But hens don't lay eggs in bright colour'.

Just then a hare ran out from behind a bush.
'They're hares' eggs,' cried the children. 'The hare laid the eggs! Hurray for the Easter Hare.'