Today we went to the Town Hall for the Town Easter Egg Hunt.

When Steve first told me about the Easter Egg Hunt I pictured it in my mind immediately. Young children rushing around in Eastery clothes, clutching baskets on one hand and pushing aside branches of trees and peering under bushes to find brightly colored Easter eggs. The sun would be shining, birds would be singing, parents would be talking, laughing, getting to know each other, and watching their children, snapping photos when they could. Everyone would be happy. Hearts would be light. Then the children would line up in an orderly fashion to meet the Easter Bunny, who would pat each smiling child on the head before moving on to the next...

Things are never the way you think they will be.

First of all, there was no sun. This is New England, so I guess I should have expected this. The sun is onely a sometimes thing up here. But it was also cold. Not crisp, not chilly, but see-your-breath and wear-your-mittens COLD. We arrived at the town hall just at 10am. The driveway was filled with parents and children tightly packed together. I kept looking for a table or a posted sign telling where the 1 to 3 age group was supposed to go. But there was none. Then this man started speaking into a megaphone and I had a very surreal feeling that I had entered a silent film. I could see him speaking. I knew his voice was supposed to be very loud. He was gesturing, so I knew what he ws saying would probably pertain to us in some way. But all I could hear was the crowd of parents and children.

Even though the megaphone was obviously broken, the people closest to him must have heard what he had said, because they began to move as one united mob up the driveway. Most of them moved towards a small circle of hay that had been placed on the lawn in front of the hall. Again, I could see the man with the megaphone, but couldn't hear him. I waited for him to explain the rules, to introduce himself... to do SOMETHING that would inform us as to what was going on...

Before the man could say anything, as he was begining his little announcement, the mob made its move. Suddeny parents and children alike - many obviously over the 1-3 year age group or else suffering from severe glandular disorders - began rifling through the hay. Parents pushed past young kids, shouted at their kids to "Look there! Look there!" The megaphone man was shouting "there are enough eggs for everyone" but some parents seemed to think he was fooling, and that there were not going to be enough eggs to go around. Steve had to push past a group of parents to get Nick into the chaos, and helped him look for a few eggs. Nick found 2 eggs. He was happy with what he had.

Just so you know, these were PLASTIC EGGS people. They were not golden eggs. They each contained one sticker. They did not contain lottery tickets. And once you got an egg, that was it. You got the egg. There was no prize for most eggs found. There was no winner. It was just a hunt that was supposed to be fun and lighthearted. Instead, it turned into a chaotic mess because some parents - a LOT of the parents - turned pushy. I was afraid someone would step on Nick.

We had plenty of time to discuss the insanity and the craziness of the hunt as we waited on line to see the Easter Bunny. (It was obvious which kids had pushy parents. They were the 2 year olds with 3 dozen plastic eggs in their basket. ) Nicholas smiled when he saw the Easter Bunny, but when it was our turn to go to him, he simply said "No." I picked him up and put him on the Bunny's lap, but he kept saying "No,no, no, no, no" until he could get down. If you ask me, it was the best part of the morning.

I'm glad we went. But I know I don't have to tell you how dissapointed I am. Why don't people listen? Don't they see that everyone is supposed to have fun? Why do parent think it's OK to let thei 8 year old railroad a bunch of 2 year olds to find more stickers? Why do parents think it's OK to grab an egg away from a 2 year old kid? What is WRONG with these people?