Easter Egg Hunt Madness

I read a story, recently, about an Easter egg hunt in Georgia that had to be cancelled because of agressive parents. These so called "helicopter parents," were apparently so concerned that their children weren't given a fair shot at finding eggs, that they crossed the barrier and began forcibly collecting eggs on their children's behalf. It threw the hunt into chaos. Many of the kids whose parents didn't intervene ended up eggless and, if you can believe it, some kids were even trampled!

The story made me think of Waterville's annual egg hunt. I didn't get to see it this year, but last year I was so impressed with how organized everything was. The park was sectioned off by age group. The littlest kiddos got to go first (if I remember right) and their eggs were conspicuously "hidden" on the grass, under tables and near tree trunks. The oldest group started last and were given a more challenging course.

I remember that everyone was polite, smiling and having fun. I don't recall anyone being pushy. In fact, I remember that parents were really just hanging out, talking amongst themselves, and were seemingly unconcerned with the possibility of eggy injustice.

I suppose it could be the small-town atmosphere that really makes an event like that work, but kudos to the organizers of the Waterville Easter Egg Hunt for a very well-executed event.

After all, who would have ever thought that an Easter egg hunt could incite violence?!