Palm Weaving and Pisanki or Pysanka: Keeping traditions alive…eggsactly!
In America, decorating eggs for the Easter season is easy. Just buy a PAAS or McCormick egg dye kit! Maybe not, if you have a Polish or Ukrainian chromosome, like 70 people, of all ages, who attended Pisanki and Palm Weaving workshops at the Polish Museum of America (PMA), 984 N. Milwaukee Ave., Sat., Mar. 23.
"I grew up in Maryland with parents who did not pass on the traditions," explained David Palko, an attorney living in Indiana. "So now that I am close to Chicago, I thought that it would be neat to take advantage of opportunities like this." Palko attended both the Pisanki and the palm weaving classes and said he'd return again.
Amanda Rodski from Mountain Top, PA, was the student who came the furthest. "Last time I did this I was in 5th grade," she said as she was laser-focused on an egg. "My grandparents cooked some of the traditional foods and my great-aunt cooked the foods and visited Poland, bringing back dolls and wooden eggs."
Originally from Kielce, Poland, Ola and her husband Roman Walkowiak were both determined to learn and enjoy some new experiences. "I have dyed eggs using onion skins, then scratching a design on it, but I have never used the wax before." She is pulling material together to teach a Polish culture class in one of the suburban colleges. Her husband was determined to have treasures for their grandchildren.
A mother and daughter participated in both classes. Margaret Bereszczuk wanted her daughter Zuza to experience the Polish traditional crafts and her daughter was enthusiastic about both.
The Spalla family is a blend of Italian and Polish. Mom, Robbie, said that she and her daughter, Samantha, had
attended classes at a church before. Since that instructor had retired, she decided she wanted her husband,
Dominick, and son, Gaetono, to learn these two traditions too. According to them, palm weaving is something that probably started in Italy, where they have Palm trees.
Lidia Kowalewicz, one of PMA's instructors, said that many Poles used to use willow branches instead of palms. Like the palms, "You take them to church on Palm Sunday and get them blessed, then bring them home. Each person then swallows a willow to prevent you from getting ill."
Malgorzata Kot, PMA's Head Librarian, intertwined telling Pisanki students many different egg decorating tips with other traditional information. "The Hungarians take metal and wrap the eggs with metal before dying them. My husband likes that and calls them manly eggs!
"The day before Easter, we take our food baskets with things like bread, eggs, sausage, etc. and take them to church to be blessed. At Holy Trinity, 1118 N. Noble, they do that every half hour between noon and 4 p.m. And it all smells so wonderful!"
Since the Orthodox Easter is on May 5 this year, there is another opportunity to attend a Pysanka(y) workshop at the Ukrainian National Museum on Apr. 6.