Hina Matsuri or “Doll Festival”, is celebrated in Japan on March 3rd every year. Ayako Egawa wrote to me from Japan about the holiday: “Families with daughters celebrate March 3 by displaying Hina-dolls on a stepped shelf to express the wish for their daughters’ good health and growth. I posted a photo of ‘Hina-dolls’ (below). They...

In Japan, on March 3rd, Hina Matsuri, people pray for their daughters’ future happiness, health and growth. Hina means doll and matsuri means festival, so Hina Matsuri is literally Doll Festival. It’s also Girls’ Day. Yet another name for the day is Momo no Sekku meaning Peach Blossom Festival, because this is around the...