La Befana Vien di Notte Con le Scarpe Tutte Rotte

As some people may know, I'm not much of a Christmas person.  I've really got no use for it, other than as an excuse to see just how many people can fit into a single store at the same time.

Anyways, there've been all kinds of rumblings from our neighbour to the south about the use of the word "holidays" to describe the period of time from sometime early in December until sometime early in January.  Normally I'd ignore this, but the people screaming about it are making such a noisy tempest in such a small teapot that it's getting hard to ignore.  In amongst this has come up the following quote from an article on a school that decorated the classroom with a number of decorations representing different cultural traditions:

"At the same time the school has changed the religious songs to secular," Staver says, "their so-called 'Winter Program' has included decorating classrooms with Santa Claus, Kwanzaa, menorahs, and even Labafana - a term I'd not even heard of until this year." Labafana, he says, is "apparently a Christmas witch."

I personally find it amusing that he's railing against this particular decoration (I hate to be judgemental and stereotypical, but I'm tempted to say he heard the term "witch" and freaked.)  Although he may not have heard of it, the tale of La Befana (not Labafana, as stated — further proof that someone didn't do their research) is an old Italian folktale that actually does have a religious component to it — and by religious, I mean Christian.  So, for those of you who've never heard it before, I present to you the tale of La Befana (as I remember it).  Those who know the Russian tale of Babushka will find in this disturbing similarities.

In a house there lived an old woman known as La Befana.  One winter, there approached the house the three wise-men (in some versions, shepherds).

"Come with us," they said, "for we go to see the newborn messiah, so as to present him with gifts."

However, La Befana was busy sweeping, and she replied to them: "I cannot go, for I am busy."

Again the wise-men (shepherds) asked her, and again she declined.

"I truly have far too much housework, and can not possibly go now.  I shall leave when I finish."

So the wise-men (shepherds) left, leaving La Belfana behind to continue with her work.

The next morning, she gathers up a basket of gifts for the child, and leaves.  But she is unable to find the wise-men (shepherds), and when she arrives in Bethlehem, she finds the stable empty.  Since then she searches the world, peering into the faces of children and leaving presents for them, in case they may be the messiah for whom she searches.

(It should be noted that there are a few extra variations.  In some, she realises her slight to the messiah immediately, and leaves several minutes after the wise-men (shepherds) but is unable to find them.  In others, she has a magic broom upon which she rides — hence the witch description.  The broom, as far as I know, is specific to La Befana, and doesn't show up in any of the Babushka versions.)

All in all, it's hardly the type of story you'd expect someone worried about the secularisation of Christmas to get upset over.  I personally think it's a very Catholic story, what with the character forever attempting to perform penance for an ancient guilt, but that's just me.  (Of course, if it did originate in Italy, that might explain it.)

But that's my telling of it.  I apologise for any mistakes or omissions, but I am going largely from memory (and there are many versions of it).