Bird’s Gift: A Ukrainian Easter Story

Description

Villagers take in a flock of golden birds nearly frozen by an early snow and are rewarded with beautifully decorated eggs the next spring.

When winter arrives early and with severe storms, Katrusya inspires the whole village to rescue the hundreds upon hundreds of tiny birds trapped in the snow. Later, when spring comes, the birds show their gratitude by leaving the world’s first pysanky. There’s a priest drawing lessons from the birds’ behavior and there are references to Easter, but Kimmel reserves the full force of his storytelling for folkloric rather than religious elements.