La Befana
On Epiphany eve, La Befana flies her broom, leaving sweets for good children and coal for the naughty. She once refused the Magi’s invitation and now searches the world for the Christ child.
Story beats
- 1) The Magi ask an old woman to join their journey; she declines, busy with sweeping.
- 2) Regretting it, she bakes sweets and sets out after them, missing the star.
- 3) She gifts every child she meets, hoping one is the holy infant.
- 4) Each year she returns, soot-streaked from chimneys, riding winter winds.
Context & symbolism
La Befana blends witchcraft imagery with benevolent giving, showing how folk tradition weaves into Christian calendar days. Her endless search turns regret into generosity.
Coal-as-gift hints at hearth warmth and the morality of work versus idleness.
Motifs
- Winter gift bringer
- Broom-riding witch
- Quest of atonement
- Chimney visits
Use it in play
- Help Befana find the right child this season; enemies want her bag of endless sweets.
- Travel by broom in a night of flying witches—sky traffic chaos.
- Coal she leaves can ignite hearth-wards; misuse turns it into charcoal curses.
- Invite her to a feast; she’ll sweep your floors and reveal hidden items.
Comparative threads
- Gift bringers: Saint Nicholas, Ded Moroz, Krampus pairings.
- Witch figures: Baba Yaga’s hut gifts or perils to visitors.
Hooks and campaign seeds
- A town’s stockings stay empty; trace Befana’s lost broom.
- Someone swaps her sweets with cursed trinkets; clear her name.
- She finds the wrong “holy child”; undo the mistaken blessing.