Hang holy cards or prayer cards from your Easter tree

      In the Catholic tradition, holy cards or prayer cards are small, devotional pictures mass-produced for the use of the faithful. They typically depict a religious scene or a saint in an image about the size of a playing card. The reverse typically contains a prayer, some of which promise an indulgence for its recitation. The circulation of these cards is an important part of the visual folk culture of Roman Catholics. 

      Old master prints, nearly all on religious subjects, served many of the same functions as holy cards, especially the cheaper woodcuts; the earliest dated surviving example is from 1423, probably from southern Germany, and depicts Saint Christopher, with handcoloring, it is found as part of the binding of a manuscript of the Laus Virginis (1417) which belongs to the John Rylands Library, Manchester. Later engraving or etching were more commonly used. Some had elaborate borders of paper lace surrounding the images; these were called dévotes dentelles in France. 

I hang prayer cards amongst many other lightweight items
from my Easter trees. Poke a tiny holewith a needle at the top
of the card and then string a fine gold thread through it for hanging.
Prayer cards come in infinite variety and either have classic
prayer, poems or scripture printed on the reverse side.
I am relatively selective about the types of messages
printed on the reverse sides of prayer cards because I
am a Protestant. Most of the prayers are common to
Christians of many different denominations and church
histories. I think I purchased these for approx. 50 cents each.

      The invention of color lithography made it possible to reproduce colored images cheaply, leading to a much broader circulation of the cards. An early center of their manufacture was in the environs of the Church of St Sulpice in Paris; the lithographed images made there were done in delicate pastel colors, and proved extremely influential on later designs. Belgium and Germany also became centers of the manufacture of holy cards, as did Italy in the twentieth century. Catholic printing houses (such as Maison de la Bonne Presse in France and Ars Sacra in Germany) produced large numbers of cards, and often a single design was printed by different companies in different countries. 

      Special holy cards are printed for Roman Catholics to be distributed at funerals; these are "In memoriam cards", with details and often a photograph of the person whom they commemorate as well as prayers printed on the back. Other specialized holy cards record baptisms, confirmations, and other religious anniversaries. Others are not customized, and are circulated to promote the veneration of the saints and images they bear. 

A Protestant tract full of beautifully,
elaborate images, not lacking in professional
execution in the least. Visitors here are
more than welcome to print and use this tract, I
have cleaned it for this very purpose.

      At the end of the nineteenth century, some Protestants attempted to answer these Roman Catholic images with similar images of their own. They produced Bible cards or Sunday school cards, with lithographed illustrations depicting Bible stories and parables, more modern scenes of religious life or prayer, or sometimes just a Biblical text illuminated by calligraphy; these were linked to Biblical passages that related to the image. The reverse typically held a sermonette instead of a prayer. Imagery here was always the servant of text, and as such these Protestant cards tended to be replaced by tracts that emphasized message instead of imagery, and were illustrated with cartoon-like images if they were illustrated at all. (This author is a little misinformed about Protestant graphic history. I've include here a entire Protestant religious tract produced during the end of the nineteenth century. The artist was very skilled and the message quite appropriately delivered. cough.)

The Butterfly

The Butterfly

I saw a little four-year-old

Out in the grass at play:

He watched a little patch of sun

That came and danced away.

And suddenly his eyes lit up,

He gave a little cry

And clapped his hands in wild de-

light--

He saw a butterfly.

He followed it and tried to catch 

The wonder in his hands;

It flitted on ahead of him

Across the clover-lands.

Again and yet again he tried,

It always flew away,

And let him lonely when the sun

Had vanished from the day.

And through the night the little

lad

Would clutch his hands and cry

Out from his dreams, "Oh, come

to me,

Bright little butterfly."

And this is life with you and me,

Children we are who run

To chase some wonder-spangled

thing

That glistens in the sun.

And when night comes out empty

hands

Clutch at glad dreams that

creep

Up through the silence and the

dark

to shine across our sleep.

* * * *

A baby wishes to kiss this monarch butterfly; she is so sweet.

The Proper Care of Easter Plants

      Through the lack of knowledge of just what to do and how to care for your Easter plants, when you receive them, much of your anticipated pleasure is lost by the fact that they remain in flower such a short time.

      The general course pursued by florists to have all their plants in a state of perfection for Easter week is to force them along in quite a warm temperature until they are sure they will flower in for the Easter trade: then the plants are taken to cool houses to "harden up" and given a great deal of air.

Easter Jonquils

      Naturally, in this process of forcing they are kept very wet at the roots and syringed frequently over the tops, this syringing sometimes being done twice in a day.

      It is necessary to know this so you will understand the changed conditions into which a plant is placed when brought into our homes, where the atmosphere is generally dry and warm. It is usually placed in a window and possibly the first day we fail to give it any water, and the second day, perhaps not before 10 o'clock in the morning, and even then only a little is poured in the surface of the soil of each pot, which in an hour (owing to the dry atmosphere) has evaporated. Is it any wonder that before the evening of the second day we find the plants silting and the flowers lying over the pots?

      You all desire to have your flowers attractive and fresh looking as long as possible, and you will experience no difficulty if you will only give them the same treatment they receive before leaving the greenhouse. As soon as you receive the plant, before placing it in the window, give it a thorough soaking. To dampen its is of little use, but thoroughly soaking at the roots stiffens, freshens and revives the flowers. 

      In the case especially of azaleas and hydrangeas it is necessary to stand them in a bucket of water for at least ten minutes twice a day. This same method of watering applies to many other Easter plants.

      Easter lilies can be kept in the pot in any handy place until about the middle of May, when they may be planted in the garden flower bed or border. The tops will die away, but late in the summer they will almost invariably make a new bulb and the flower again. Hydrangeas can be planted out in the ground in the hot sun. In the fall lift and pot them, and they will flower beautifully the next spring. A second method is to plant them out in the garden where they can remain permanently. In this case, plant them on the north side of the house and they will flower in profusion every year. But if planted in southern exposure, as amateurs so frequently do, they will produce no flowers, or at most only one or two very indifferent blossoms and a mass of strong, vigorous foliage.   Under such a condition the indifferent blossom is really the exception, because they rarely set a bud.

      Never are cut flowers more beautiful than at this Easter time, and it hurts a real flower lover to have them fade within twenty-four hours after being delivered from the florist. This may be avoided with a little care. The first thing in opening the box is to sprinkle the blossoms over the top, then place them in a depth of water at least two-thirds the length of the stems. They will last much longer if the bowl in which they are kept is not in too strong a light. Each morning this water must be changed and at least one-half inch of the stems cut off. By following these directions they will in most cases keep fresh for at least a week.

More Related Content:

• Transplanting hydrangeas
• How To: Force Bulbs Indoors
• How to Cure Daffodil Bulbs for Replanting: 10 steps
• Buying and Planting Azaleas
• How to make your tulips rebloom?

Positive and Negative Bunnies

      In this project, students will learn the difference between positive and negative space as well as the importance of color contrast or color compliments. The teacher may decide in advance which definitions of color combinations and/or principle of design he would like to emphasize during the course of discussion with his students. In either case, the method for the art assignment is the same. 

      The teacher will need to draw some classic Easter bunny templates to print, cut and duplicate in advance of the project. I often use summer months to cut and store multiple templates for kindergarten through second grade students to use in their art projects. Templates or stencils guide young inexperienced hands and also aid in the overall impression of a completed project. I do not use stencils for the majority of art projects that I teach. However, these do come in handy for this exercise. 

      If you are using this project idea for students in 3rd-5th grade, I strongly recommend that they be required to design, draw, and cut their own stencils. As with most art projects, teachers need to scaffold the method according to the abilities of their pupils. This is something that only the individual teacher may deduce given the environment and progress of students in their classrooms.

Bunny projects like this one could be used to teach concepts in cutting templates,
manipulating stencils or in identifying color theory.

In addition to the ideas listed above, this kind of bunny stencil could be used to teach
additional assignments in understanding symmetry in design.

Binny and Bunny
Binny and Bunny were two little dears
With velvety jackets and stand-up ears;
They went to sleep in the afternoon
And woke to play by the light of the moon.

"Binny," said Bunny, "I hear something pop;
Couch down and keep quiet, perhaps it will stop."
"Oh, yes," said Bunny, "I will, I will;
Perhaps it's a fox coming over the hill."

"Binny," said Bunny, "I'm older than you
And mother has taught me a thing or two.
It's a dangerous animal, worse than a fox,
Who suddenly bangs like a Jack-in-a-box.

"She told me the name of the creature was-Gun.
I hear it again! hurry home! Let us run."
They said as they sat in their hold peeping out:
"There's no place like home when guns are about."

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